Robin Byrd

Robin Byrd
Robin Byrd
	Robin Byrd at a party in New York (2010)
Born	April 6, 1957(age 67); New York City,New York,U.S.
Website	robinbyrd.com

Robin Byrd(born April 6, 1957) is an American formerpornographic actressand the host ofThe Robin Byrd Show,which has appeared onleased access cable televisioninNew York Citysince 1977.^[1]

Background

Robyn Byrd in the filmDebbie Does Dallas

Robin Byrd was born and raised inNew York City,New York.A child ofadoption,she has never been able to identify her birth parents, due to the unwillingness of her adoptive mother to reveal that information andsealed birth and adoption recordsunderNew Yorkstate law.

At the time of filming the porn filmDebbie Does Dallas,Byrd was living in New York City and was still known asRobin Cohen.After taking college classes in marketing and advertising atBaruch Collegeand dropping out as a senior, she attended theSchool of Visual Artsand worked as a nude model for art classes.^[2]She subsequently starred in porn films during the late 1970s, including a role in the previously mentionedDebbie Does Dallas.

Public access

After guest-hosting on aleased accessshow calledHot Legs,Byrd changed the name toThe Robin Byrd Showin 1977. The show has aired continuously since then, initially onChannel J,^[3]though it now shows reruns rather than live episodes. Each episode features Byrd in her trademark blackcrochet bikiniand white fingernail polish, on an all-red set with a large, heart-shaped neon sign that bears the name of her show. Male and female porn stars and strippers appear as guests and perform fully nude stripteases, sometimes also taking calls from viewers. Byrd and her guests also frequently engage in onscreen sexplay by the end of the episode. Each show customarily ends with all the guests dancing to Robin's recording of a bawdy novelty tune, "Baby, Let Me Bang Your Box".

Time Warner legal issues

Byrd andAl Goldsteinwere in a long-standing legal battle withTime Warner Cable(and its predecessor, Manhattan Cable), which wanted to scramble all adult-oriented content so that subscribers had to send in written requests to view it. In 1978, theEighth Circuit Court of Appealsstruck as unconstitutional theFederal Communications Commission(FCC) mandatory access regulations under which Byrd and Goldstein had challenged the cable provider's actions, but theU.S. Supreme Courtdisposed of the case on other grounds.

In 1995, the issue was again before theUnited States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit,which upheld the regulations and ruled that Time Warner's requirement for written requests was a violation. As of 2007^[update],The Robin Byrd Showcontinues to be aired unscrambled and uncut although with disclaimers that the content is not for children to watch.

In popular culture

Byrd's show and filmography have made her a local celebrity and to some extent, a national one. She is a frequent presenter at New York City adult entertainment,gay pride,andAIDSawareness events.The Robin Byrd Showwas parodied onSaturday Night Livein a series of skits airing in 1997 and 1998; Byrd was played byCheri Oteri.^[4]

In 1999,Richard Avedonphotographed Byrd for a feature inThe New Yorkeron famous and influential New Yorkers. Byrd has also branched out into other adult-oriented businesses, includingphone sexlines and ringtones.

In 2015, Robin released "Touch Me", a dance single with recording artistLovari.

Byrd has stated that she is bisexual.^[5]

References

^"Robin Byrd Onstage - Live, but Not Nude".The New York Times.2012-11-29.
^Morris, Bob."Cable's First Lady Of Explicit"Archived2009-02-22 at theWayback Machine,The New York Times,June 23, 1996. Accessed December 3, 2007. "At 17, Ms. Byrd got her graduate equivalency diploma and then pursued advertising design at Baruch College but dropped out in her senior year. By then it was the early 1970's and she was modeling at the School of Visual Arts, where she had been taking life-drawing classes."
^Smith, Sally Bedell (1984-03-05)."Channel J Pornography Is Cause of Lockout Law".The New York Times.p. 16.ISSN 0362-4331.Retrieved2024-01-27.
^"Saturday Night Live Alum Cheri Oteri to Join Off-Broadway's NEWSical the Musical".Newsle.com.2012-11-07. Archived fromthe originalon 2014-02-19.
^Speiser, Lainie (2011).Confessions of the Hundred Hottest Porn Stars: Intimate, Funny, Outrageous.Fair Winds Press.ISBN 9781592334773.

External links

[1] "Robin Byrd Onstage - Live, but Not Nude".The New York Times.2012-11-29.

[2] Morris, Bob."Cable's First Lady Of Explicit"Archived2009-02-22 at theWayback Machine,The New York Times,June 23, 1996. Accessed December 3, 2007. "At 17, Ms. Byrd got her graduate equivalency diploma and then pursued advertising design at Baruch College but dropped out in her senior year. By then it was the early 1970's and she was modeling at the School of Visual Arts, where she had been taking life-drawing classes."

[3] Smith, Sally Bedell (1984-03-05)."Channel J Pornography Is Cause of Lockout Law".The New York Times.p. 16.ISSN 0362-4331.Retrieved2024-01-27.

[4] "Saturday Night Live Alum Cheri Oteri to Join Off-Broadway's NEWSical the Musical".Newsle.com.2012-11-07. Archived fromthe originalon 2014-02-19.

[5] Speiser, Lainie (2011).Confessions of the Hundred Hottest Porn Stars: Intimate, Funny, Outrageous.Fair Winds Press.ISBN 9781592334773.

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