Karen Dior

American actor (1967–2004)

Actor
singer
director
activist
writer
drag queen

Karen Dior (February 14, 1967 – August 25, 2004) was the stage name of Geoffrey Gann, an American actress, singer, director, and drag queen.

Life and career

Karen Dior was born Geoffrey Gann in Missouri; She was adopted as an infant into a Southern Baptist family, and was raised in that religious tradition. Gann moved to Los Angeles at the age of 21 and began working in a beauty salon and performing in drag shows in West Hollywood bars. In 1989, She began appearing in bisexual and transgender adult films.^[1] She performed in approximately 120 adult films, most of them under the Dior name. She also performed under the names Geoff Dior, Rick Van, Geoffrey Karen Dior, Geoffrey Gann, and Geoff Gann.

In the 1990s, Dior moved into mainstream film and television roles, including a performance as Loni Anderson's stalker in the 1992 TV movie The Price She Paid. Other work included guest appearances on the television series Xena: Warrior Princess, Head Over Heels, and Veronica's Closet.

Later years and death

Dior contracted HIV in 1995 and later worked as an AIDS activist.^[1]^[2] After leaving the adult film industry, Dior wrote and released Sleeping Under the Stars, her first autobiographical work, in 2001. The same year, she released an album (under the name Geoffrey Karen Dior) titled S E X, and she was a member of two bands, the Johnny Depp Clones and Goddess.^[3] She also received a PhD in philosophy in religion and became an ordained minister.^[2]

On August 25, 2004, Dior died of hepatitis.

Selected filmography

Actress

Single White Shemale (1992)
Mystery Date (1992)
A River Made to Drown In (1997)
Xena: Warrior Princess (1 episode, 1997 – "Here She Comes... Miss Amphipolis"^[4])
Head Over Heels (1 episode, 1997)
Veronica's Closet (1 episode, 1998)
Double Down (2001)

Director

I Dream Of Queenie (1997) "Produced and Directed"
Genderella (1998)
Playing the Odds (1998)
Getting Personal (1999)
Bi Athletes (2000)
Bi-Dazzled (2001)
Leather Temptation (2002)
Bi-Sluts (2001) "2001 AVN Bisexual Nominated Adult Film"

Bibliography

Sleeping Under the Stars (2001) ISBN 0-9706956-0-8

References

^ ^a ^b Ebner, Mark; Cheevers, Jack (March 23, 2006). "The Bagman". Hollywoodinterrupted.com. Archived from the original on December 21, 2008. Retrieved December 27, 2008.
^ ^a ^b Kay, Kerwin; Nagle, Jill; Gould, Baruch (2000). Male Lust : Pleasure, Power, and Transformation. Routledge. pp. 343. ISBN 1-56023-981-6.
^ Corliss, Richard (January 19, 2005). "The Long Goodbye II". Time. Archived from the original on February 21, 2006. Retrieved December 27, 2008.
^ ""Xena: Warrior Princess" Here She Comes... Miss Amphipolis (TV Episode 1997) - IMDb". IMDb.