A few hours ago I learned that my friend Jim Holliday has passed away. Jim was a well-known director for VCA Pictures and had made his career in adult videos since the early seventies. I have many significant memories of being on Jim's sets which were referred to by many as "Jimmyland." Jim was a friend who would chat for hours on the phone with me, usually late at night. Topics ranged from sports, betting, porn, music, the vagaries of life, and often back to sports and betting. Having played football at the University of Ohio Jim still liked to get a little "action" in on sports, particularly football. Before Jim I had not even know what a "point spread" was.

Jim loved the desert and in recent years most of his shoots had taken place, at least in part, in an isolated set out in the Mojave Desert. I was a part of each one of those shoots and I shared his appreciation of the desert and the desert winds. By coincidence, or maybe not, I am booked for a shoot at that very same isolated set in the Mojave Desert this weekend.

Last week on the Playhouse bulletin board I discussed my plans to retire from shooting for anything other than my own website. No sooner than I had made my decision to do so than I was asked to be a part of a really interesting project out in the Mojave. I chose to do what Jim had always counselled me to do: work selectively and pick only the best opportunities.

This weekend I will be in the blustery, desolate Mojave shooting what I suspect will be one of the more memorable videos of my career, and undoubtedly feeling Jim's spirit out there amidst the howling winds, gravelly sand, and spindly cacti.

May Jim rest in peace. The experiences of Jimmyland will dance in my mind forever.

-- XXOO Tanya