She was born Lisa Trego on July 3, 1958 in Moline, Ill. and had an average childhood. She was the typical midwestern farm girl and very much a tom boy growing up, though seeing her all grown up on screen you would never think in that fashion. Growing up she always played with the boys, was very athletic and took part in a number of sports. She experienced her first sexual experience with a boyfriend and his friend when she was in her teens. In 1978 she left with the boyfriend who managed a theater that showed X-rated films. Lisa was overweight, but ready to leave the Midwest farm life behind. So she and the boyfriend made their way to Los Angeles and she devoted herself to losing 40 pounds. Once she accomplished that she began making some good money modeling for several men’s magazines. With her huge natural breasts, freckles, natural flowing red hair and striking look she was quite a fetching sight. It was at that time when it was suggested that she could do well in porn films and should give it a try. While Lisa had a high sex drive she really wasn’t sure she could do it. She had her dreams set on becoming a legit actress. With a promise of good money she changed her mind and name to Lisa De Leeuw and did a few loops for Swedish Erotica. Though she was still somewhat inexperienced when she began, she learned fast and would become quite the accomplished sex performer.

Lisa made her debut in the 1979 film, “800 Fantasy Lane” when she was offered the starring role by director Svetlana, who could be a tyrant on the set. For newbie  Lisa it was intimidating, but she worked through it and quickly established herself in porn. She became an instant favorite with fans and co stars because of her never ending appetite for sex which came across every performance. She had a sexual intensity and realism that shined but she also had a natural flair for acting making her roles even better and her characters very real. With her brassy, outgoing personality, her sexual talents and seductive manner some thought of her as the Mae West of porn. During her time in porn she appeared in over 200 films that include her award winning performance in the 1981 porn classic “Amanda By Night”. Some of her other great films include “Ultra Flesh “ with Seka, “Pro Ball Cheerleaders”, “Garage Girls”, “I Like To Watch”, “Aunt Peg Goes to Hollywood”, “Coed Fever” and “Dixie Ray Hollywood Star” which would also garner Lisa a Best Supporting Actress award, an award she would win four times in her career. At times she could act like a diva on the set but by and large she was very much liked by her co stars and the production crews. They all agree when it came to sex Lisa she never faked it in a film. What you saw was the real deal all the time and that total sexual realism would make her scenes even hotter!

Like many back in the 80’s porn scene, Lisa got involved in the drug scene which actually began to take hold when she was losing all that weight. Film director Svetlana had put Lisa on a strict diet of pills to lose the weight and over time that would lead to other drugs and what would turn out to be her eventual downfall. She was also one of the first female performers to sign an exclusive contract with one film company, Vivid. She also appeared in a number of photo spreads in the top men’s magazines. In just about every film and photo you can see Lisa wearing a lion’s head pendant. It was her good luck charm and was rarely without it on.

In 1987 Lisa made the decision to leave adult films. She wanted to concentrate on a lucrative personal appearance schedule as a feature dancer at top clubs around the country. For a couple of years she was a major draw, making good money and seemed to have everything under control in her life. Eventually she would leave the business altogether and go about leading a normal life. Some had said the reason Ms. De Leeuw left the industry while she still was extremely popular was  the AIDS scare that had many very worried and concerned.

In 1993 it had been reported that due to complications from AIDS Lisa De Leeuw had died. However, in the year 2000, the story was discovered not to be true and that Lisa was, in fact, alive, healthy and living a life far removed from the adult industry. As a tribute to her contributions to the adult film industry, the sexy redhead who will be 57 this July, is a deserving member of both the AVN and XRCO Halls of Fame. There is also a fan website  www.LisaDeLeeuw.com  you can go to that will bring back a lot of great memories.

She will always standout among her peers and her fans because of that flowing mane of red hair, her total presence, her voracious sex appetite and the totally real sex scenes she appeared in. Many of those great films of Ms. De Leeuw are now available on DVD. If you have only heard about, but have never seen, this steamy redhead in a film you are missing quite a visual and sexual treat. The adult industry and its fans were very fortunate to have Lisa De Leeuw part of it during it’s golden age and thanks to modern technology we can all still enjoy her today.

Art Koch, National Features & DVD Editor, NightMoves Magazine and AAN