Veronica Hart

Veronica Hart
Portrait of a smiling woman with long red hair and bangs
Hart in 2014
Born
Jane Hamilton

1956 or 1957 (age 69–70)
Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
Occupations
  • Film director
  • pornographic film actress
Children2
WebsiteVeronicahart.biz

Jane Hamilton (born 1956 or 1957) is an American film director and former pornographic film actress who performed under the stage name Veronica Hart. Described by columnist Frank Rich as "a leading porn star of the late '70s and early '80s", Hart is a member of the AVN Hall of Fame. Director Paul Thomas Anderson has called her "the Meryl Streep of porn."

Early life and education

Hart was born and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada. She graduated from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in 1976 with a bachelor's degree in theater arts. After school she worked in England before returning to the United States and moving to New York City.

Career

Hart began appearing in pornographic films in the 1970s, becoming a major star by the 1980s. According to film scholar Chuck Kleinhans, she portrayed the "stylish 'native New Yorker'" type. She is best known for her performances in Amanda by Night, Wanda Whips Wall Street, Roommates and A Scent of Heather. She left the adult film industry in 1982, eventually returning as a producer and director.

Around 1984, Hart began directing segments on the Playboy TV series Electric Blue, appearing in B movies and working as a stripper to support her family. After retiring from performing in pornographic films, Hart became an executive at film distributor VCA Pictures. For VCA, Hart directed a series of comeback features for friend and fellow pornographic film actress Ginger Lynn. With the sale of VCA to Hustler Video in 2003, and the direction of the company moving from feature, storyline-driven films to gonzo, she left the company when her existing contract expired. Afterwards, Hart moved on to other work, including working as a tour guide at the Erotic Heritage Museum in Las Vegas.

Hart has acted in off-Broadway theater productions such as The House of Bernarda Alba, A Thurber Carnival, The Dyke And The Porn Star, and The Deep Throat Sex Scandal.

She has also made appearances in non-pornographic films. She played "Telephone Trixie" in Ruby and a judge in the film Boogie Nights (1997), directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. She appeared as a fictionalized version of herself in the sci-fi/horror comedy film One-Eyed Monster (2008), directed by Adam Fields.

As of 2014 Hart had become a sex educator in China. An article in AVN magazine stated that she has been instructing women through an arrangement with a chain of adult retail stores and clubs called Sediva Maison.

Personal life

Hart has two sons who attended magnet schools for highly gifted students.

Selected TV appearances

Awards

Wins

AFAA for Best Actress – Amanda by Night

AFAA Award for Best Actress – Roommates

AFAA Award for Best Supporting Actress – Foxtrot

XRCO Hall of Fame

Free Speech Coalition Lifetime Achievement Award

AVN Award for Best Non-Sex Performance – Nylon

AVN Hall of Fame

XRCO Award for Best Video - Torn (directed and produced by Hart)

XRCO Award for Best Comedy or Parody - Misty Beethoven: The Musical (directed, edited and produced by Hart)

Porn Block of Fame


Nominations

AVN Best Director – Video for White Lightning

AVN Best Director – Film for Taken

AVN Best Director – Video for Crime and Passion

AVN Best Director – Film for Barbara Broadcast Too

AVN Best Director – Film for Misty Beethoven: The Musical

AVN Best Non-Sex Performance for Eternity

AVN Best Non-Sex Performance for Sex Pix

AVN Best Non-Sex Performance for Delilah

AVN Best Non-Sex Performance for Roller Dollz

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Rich, Frank (May 20, 2001). "Naked Capitalists". The New York Times Magazine. section 6, pp. 51 ff. ISSN 0028-7822. ProQuest 215482929. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
    Reprinted in: Dines, Gail; Humez, Jean M., eds. (2003). Gender, Race, and Class in Media: A Text-Reader (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, Calif.: SAGE Publications. pp. 48–60. ISBN 978-0-7619-2260-5 – via the Internet Archive.
  2. 1 2 Frammolino, Ralph; Huffstutter, P. J. (January 6, 2002). "The Actress, the Producer and Their Porn Revolution". Los Angeles Times Magazine. ISSN 0458-3035. ProQuest 421671295. Archived from the original on September 18, 2024. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Weatherford, Mike (November 2, 1997). "Movie sparks memories for porn star". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on September 17, 2000.
  4. 1 2 "AVN Hall of Fame". Archived from the original on October 2, 2008. Retrieved November 29, 2007.
  5. 1 2 "AVN Awards". Archived from the original on April 15, 2009.
  6. ↑ Bona, Damien (2002). Inside Oscar 2. New York: Random House Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-345-44800-2.[page needed]
  7. 1 2 3 Smith, Kent; Moore, Darrell W.; Reagle, Merl (1983). Adult Movies. New York: Pocket Books. p. 120. ISBN 978-0-671-46844-6.
  8. 1 2 Lieberman, Hallie (September 30, 2023). "Club 90: The Secret Women's Club That Rocked the Porn World". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on April 23, 2025. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
  9. ↑ Kleinhans, Chuck (2006). "The Change from Film to Video Pornography: Implications for Analysis". In Lehman, Peter (ed.). Pornography: Film and Culture. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press. p. 166. ISBN 978-0-8135-3871-6.
  10. ↑ Anthony, Andrew (August 1, 2004). "Risky Business". The Observer. ISSN 9976-1971. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
  11. 1 2 Kernes, Mark (August 18, 2014). "So ... What's Veronica Hart Up To These Days?". AVN. Archived from the original on August 21, 2014.
  12. ↑ Monji, Jana J. (August 27, 1999). "New Steps in Dance Toward Romance". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
  13. ↑ "HOT! Gay/Bi Thespian Action!". Paper. March 1, 2000. Archived from the original on June 1, 2019. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
  14. ↑ Ng, David (December 10, 2012). "'Deep Throat' play set for L.A. with porn star Veronica Hart". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
  15. ↑ Morris, Steven Leigh (February 7, 2013). "The Deep Throat Sex Scandal Celebrates a Famous First Amendment Victory But Ignores the Bigger Issue". LA Weekly. Archived from the original on October 2, 2016.
  16. ↑ Hosoda, Craig (1992). The Bare Facts Video Guide (Third ed.). p. 128.
  17. ↑ Rich (2001), p. 57.
  18. ↑ "XRCO Hall of Fame". Archived from the original on July 20, 2011. Retrieved November 29, 2007.
  19. ↑ "Night of the Stars". Archived from the original on June 11, 1998. Retrieved May 30, 2025.
  20. ↑ "Past AVN Award Winners". Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. Retrieved November 29, 2007.
  21. ↑ "PREVIOUS WINNERS and NOMS - 2002 & Before)". Retrieved March 8, 2014.
  22. ↑ "XRCO 2004 Winners". Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  23. ↑ "Hustler Hollywood to Induct Hart, Edwards into Walk of Fame". March 9, 2006.
  24. ↑ "AVN 2001 Nominations". Archived from the original on March 9, 2001. Retrieved December 2, 2007.
  25. ↑ "AVN 2002 Nominations". Archived from the original on December 8, 2001. Retrieved December 2, 2007.
  26. ↑ "AVN 2003 Nominations". Archived from the original on November 27, 2002. Retrieved December 2, 2007.
  27. ↑ "AVN 2004 Nominations" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 3, 2003. Retrieved December 2, 2007.
  28. ↑ "AVN 2005 Nominations". Archived from the original on December 10, 2004. Retrieved December 2, 2007.
  29. ↑ "AVN 2006 Nominations" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on November 29, 2005. Retrieved December 2, 2007.
  30. ↑ "AVN 2007 Nominations". Archived from the original on December 20, 2006. Retrieved December 2, 2007.
  31. ↑ "AVN 2008 Nominations" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on February 27, 2008. Retrieved December 2, 2007.
  32. ↑ "Nominations 2009 AVN Adult Movie Awards" (PDF). AVNAwards.com. November 25, 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 3, 2008. Retrieved November 26, 2008.

Further reading