Harvey Cowen, Harvey Joel Coen, Herschel Cohen, Jack Black, Max Cohen
Height
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Herschel Savage (born Harvey Cohen, November 25, 1952 – October 8, 2023) was an American pornographic actor, director, and stage actor who appeared in over 1,000 adult films.[2] In 2002, AVN ranked him 46th on their list of The Top 50 Porn Stars of All Time.[3] He was also inducted into the AVN and XRCO Halls of Fame.[4][5]
Savage began studying acting under Broadway theatre actress Uta Hagen and renowned acting teacher Stella Adler.[11][12] Savage initially sought a mainstream stage and screen career.[8] However, he became disillusioned by the constant auditioning and competition for roles.[11] He also worked for an exercise company.[9]
Career
Savage in 2006
Savage was introduced to the adult film industry via the actor R. Bolla in 1976.[11] He went on to become one of the biggest stars of the "Golden Age of Porn" in the 1970s and 1980s.[11] Savage appeared in the 1978 classic Debbie Does Dallas, for which he was paid about $150 a day.[12] The film was a financial success, becoming one of the top five highest grossing adult films of all time.[7] Some of the other films he appeared in include Expose Me Now, Bodies in Heat, and Rambone Does Hollywood.[12] He created the stage name "Herschel Savage" with adult actor Jamie Gillis in an attempt to combine a 'nerdy Jewish identity' with that of a stud.[11]
During the mid-1980s, Savage helped to organize sex workers in San Francisco to fight for better wages.[2] The initiative was ultimately abandoned after production studios threatened to blacklist performers.[2] In 1986, Savage appeared in a cameo for the neo-noir crime film 52 Pick-Up starring Roy Scheider and Ann-Margret.[6] He was credited as "Harvey Cowen". In 1988, Savage was inducted into the XRCO Hall of Fame.[5][13] That same year, he left pornography to work in sales and video distribution.[8] He returned to performing in 1997.[8]
Savage appeared as a guest during the fifth season of the NBCsitcomJust Shoot Me, with Ron Jeremy, which aired on February 1, 2001.[14] In 2003, he performed a stand-up routine on an episode of the reality television series Family Business. Savage portrayed a detective in the 2008 parody film The Texas Vibrator Massacre.[15] He appeared alongside other adult performers in the documentary series After Porn Ends 3 in 2018.[16] Savage appeared in more than 1000 adult films.[2] He was also inducted into the AVN Hall of Fame.[4]
Stage
Savage performed under the name "Max Cohen" in a 2006 production of Neil Simon's The Prisoner of Second Avenue.[6][8] In January 2013, he portrayed pornographic film director Gerard Damiano in the Los Angeles production of The Deep Throat Sex Scandal, a play described as the "theatrical telling of the back story of
Deep Throat."[10][17] His performance drew positive reviews.[18] Writing for The Los Angeles Times, Charlotte Stoudt called Savage's portrayal of Damiano "surprisingly cogent".[19] Myron Meisel from The Hollywood Reporter remarked that he "engenders endearing empathy as the amiably deluded director Damiano."[20] Steven Leigh Morris from LA Weekly deemed his performance "dramatic comedy terra firma".[21] Savage credited the play with "renewing [his] love for performing on stage."[9]
Best Group Sex Scene - Video (with Mayhem, Tory Lane, Jay Lassiter, Dirty Harry, Scott Lyons, Jenner, Rick Masters, Chris Mountain, Steve james, Trevor Thompson, and Alec Knight)
^"Nominations for the 1986 Adult Video News Awards". AVN. Vol. 1, no. 47. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Adult Video News, Inc. January 1987. pp. 16–20. ISSN0883-7090.
