J. Brian

Born 1932-02-21 · Alameda, California, U.S.

Died 1985-05-17

Jeremiah Brian Donahue, better known as J. Brian, is credited with several firsts in the gay adult industry. As J. Brian he began as a photographer and in 1964 was allegedly the first in the modern era to publish male full frontal nudes. Brian moved to San Francisco in the mid-1960s. He and his partner Bob Damron formed Calafran Enterprises, a photographic studio, which also published the magazine "Golden Boys" in 1968. Brian began producing silent "loops", among them "Opus One" (1969), "Little Boy Lust" (1970), and "Come to the Orgy" (1971). His first feature, "Seven in a Barn" (1971) is said to be the first gay adult feature with synchronized sound. This and subsequent films were distinguished by the appearances of "all-American" young men in rural locations.