The Hunt for the Real John T Bone – Part 1: Podcast 103

The Hunt for the Real John T Bone – Part 1: Podcast 103
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Who is John T Bone – and why did The Rialto Report find him languishing in jail when we looked for him?

John T Bone was one of the bad boys of 1980s and 1990s adult film, a moviemaker responsible for some of the most controversial moments in X-rated film history. He worked at the cheap end of the porn film business – but his films nevertheless always stood out. It was John, for example, who made the infamous World’s Biggest Gang Bang in 1995, in which Annabel Chong supposedly had sex with 300 men in 24 hours. Then he made the sequel with Jasmin St. Claire, and follow-ups too numerous to mention in a career that lasted over 20 years.
 
But it wasn’t just John’s films that were controversial – John was the rare example of a director who was even more notorious than his work. If you look back at media coverage of the X-rated film industry from the 1990s, John’s name features prominently, and he appeared regularly on TV scandal programs like The Jerry Springer Show. He seemed to go out of his way to shock – and sometimes appall – people, winning awards for filming the most outrageous sex acts, one of which involved a quart of motor oil that… well, you might want to google that one.
 
John’s films weren’t universally loved, but they did make a lot of money. Which was a bit like John himself. He wasn’t universally loved, and stories abound about his arrogance, egotism, and swagger. Tom Byron said John was an asshole; Paul Thomas called him cruel and manipulative – even Jamie Gillis said he could be crude and obnoxious. But John did well in the porn business, lived in style and owned a fleet of fancy cars that include a vintage Rolls Royce.
 
By now, John T Bone had our attention.
 
But when we started to enquire after him, a number of very different rumors started to emerge. First, we heard that he’d had been a notable figure on the fashion scene in London at the height of the Swinging Sixties. Then someone said he’d actually been a wealthy antique dealer, and another that he’d been a major art trader in New York in the 80s. We heard that John was close friends with Adrian Lyne, the director of Flashdance (1983) and Fatal Attraction (1987), and that he worked for Tony Scott, director of Top Gun (1986). Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones supposedly stayed with him whenever he was in Los Angeles.
 
So how could all these stories relate to the same person – let alone someone who was also a scandalous pornographer? And where was John now? He seemed to have disappeared overnight.
 
We wanted to find the answers, so we looked for him – in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Colorado, Florida, Thailand, Brazil and the Philippines. Each time we found an address where he’d lived, we discovered that he’d left years before. For someone who’d loved the spotlight for so long, it was surprisingly difficult to find what had actually happened to him.
 
And then, finally, we did find him. Except not where we expected. He was in jail serving a lengthy prison sentence. He was forgotten and alone. And he was willing to talk and reveal all.
 
This is the first part of our mini-series, The Hunt for the Real John T Bone.

This podcast is 74 minutes long.

The music playlist for this episode can be found on Spotify.

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John T Bone – Part 1

A selection of some of the people and topics covered in this episode.

John T BoneJohn’s involvement in the search for Marilyn Monroe’s lost diaries

 

John T BoneJohn convenes a press conference to discuss a $100,000 reward to be given for Marilyn Monroe’s diary (from L to R: John Bowen, Douglas Villiers, Chris Harris and Susan Griffiths, a Marilyn Monroe look-a-like.) Photo dated: August 26, 1982.

 

Marilyn Monroe

 

 

Samantha Strong

 

Samantha StrongSamantha Strong – one of John’s favorite performers

 

Tracey Adams

 

Tracey AdamsTracey Adams, another of John’s favorites

 

John T. Bone

 

John T BoneAmber Lynn, who was instrumental in John’s early success providing costumes to adult film sets

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  • Posted On: 7th February 2021
  • By: Ashley West
  • Under: Podcasts

26 Comments

  1. Wayne · February 7, 2021 Reply

    I’m listening to this now, and it is another example of what The Rialto Report does so well: taking a subject that is unknown to me and making it genuinely compelling listening.

    This is entertaining and crazy – and that’s not even including John’s life in XXX!

  2. John Lane · February 7, 2021 Reply

    The opening of this podcast had me 100% hooked. I was on the fence and then I started… and sign me up again Rialto!!

  3. Biff · February 7, 2021 Reply

    Brilliant. Good to hear from Will Ryder too – great director!

    When’s the next installment ?!

  4. Jeff Robertson · February 7, 2021 Reply

    John T Bone 80s and early 90s famous x-rated film star I didn’t knew Amber Lynn did with John Holmes and Peter North if I remember correctly that was really interesting article look forward podcast keep up the good work

  5. Thomas Walsh · February 7, 2021 Reply

    Everytime i try to get out they pull me back in!!!! Great work Rialto Report.

  6. Kai · February 7, 2021 Reply

    I freely admit I didn’t have a huge amount of interest in John T-Bone before this…….. but I should’ve known better. The guy is a compelling story teller, an agent provocateur, and a smart dealer, making this a truly interesting journey.

    And now I’m keen to find out how it ends and why John is in jail.

    Great work.

  7. AA · February 7, 2021 Reply

    Loving this. Nice work.

  8. Steven Millan · February 7, 2021 Reply

    When she was at the 1999 Las Vegas Film Festival promoting her documentary SEX:THE ANNABEL CHONG STORY,Annette Chong severely badmouthed John T. Bone/Bowen as this episode(of your excellent podcast) will likely explain why John B. if often badmouthed about(especially now that John is currently in federal prison[for unknown reasons]).

  9. Henric · February 9, 2021 Reply

    John T Bone always came across as a misogynistic and unsympathetic character in all interviews. Might however just have been a persona. So I am really looking forward to hearing this…

  10. Michael · February 11, 2021 Reply

    Outstanding as always! Anxious for Part 2. Keep up the Great work!

  11. Jeff C · February 14, 2021 Reply

    Another fascinating podcast. Thank you again, Rialto Report, for getting me interested in a person whom I would not necessarily have thought of having a desire to hear about.

    Seeing the name Jasmin St. Claire stirred up memories of my adolescence. I did not watch any hardcore films at the time, but porn stars appeared on Howard Stern’s radio program with regularity back in the mid-1990s. The program was recorded to be shown on the E! cable network late at night, and I was a regular viewer. Those interviews were among my early introductions to world of adult films. Jasmin St. Claire came on the Stern show several times, with one appearance definitely promoting the gangbang film. I was certainly shocked by the concept and a little horrified. A little time after that a porn star named Houston came on Howard Stern taking about a bigger gangbang. I was even more horrified. It is funny what you can remember from your youth.

    I did take a look at Tracy Takes Paris out of curiosity. (I do need much coaxing to watch something with Tracey Adams in it). Not bad, but I was disappointed that Tracey does not even set foot in Paris. False advertising! Anyway, hopefully one of these days the Rialto Report gets the chance to interview her.

  12. Michael Legend · February 14, 2021 Reply

    May I politely and respectfully ask of someone who has obviously had a hard life –

    Are you aware if Misty Regan is still alive and whether she was of Australian origin?

    She was an actress who grabbed my attention in my teenage days from “Inside Desiree Cousteau” and it was a blast from the past to hear her name and I would be very interested to hear if she is okay. Thank you for such a well told story.

  13. Paul · February 17, 2021 Reply

    What a natural raconteur. John’s reputation might go before him. If you keep an open mind and base your impressions on this podcast you’d have to tip your hat to acknowledge his superb ‘ahead of the game’ business acumen, humour and , yes, charm. The Brits in Hollywood segment is especially interesting and maybe Aussie Misty understood that! Fancy chucking in her career for JTB. John’s Manc accent is still 100% intact too.
    And well done on the soundtrack. Anything including Dave Edmunds and the Feelgoods has clearly been well thought through!
    Thank you Ashley for a superb podcast that clearly had considerable technical challenges.
    Now onto Part 2

  14. Bunty McCunty · February 20, 2021 Reply

    Max Hardcore next please!

  15. mike · February 23, 2021 Reply

    Ive been waiting on a new Podcast. Wasnt that interested in John T Bone but was hooked within minutes. Another great job by Rialto reportt !

  16. Elverga Larga · February 26, 2021 Reply

    Fascinating.Love the interviews and showing the performers and Directors as people .

  17. Joseph · May 19, 2021 Reply

    WOW……just WOW!!

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