In this era where everyone seems to be chasing follows, likes, shares, and clicks I have to admit I try not to look at which Rialto Report interviews have had the biggest audience. The reason is simple: I’ve wanted to cover all people from the golden age of adult film, regardless of their notoriety, because all stories are interesting and informative, big or small, famous or unknown.

But if you really want to know which Rialto Report podcast has been downloaded the most, there’s only one winner. I interviewed Christy Canyon back in 2019, and that podcast has been downloaded, streamed, and listened to tens of thousands of times since then. For anyone who knows her, that won’t be a surprise: Christy was one of the biggest stars of the 1980s, she’s always entertaining, and she’s still involved in the business today.

Christy turns 60 this week, and I wanted to pay tribute to her.

A few years ago, the former adult film star Rick Savage gave me an audio tape of a conversation he’d had with Christy back in 1992. Christy was touring the country with her dance act at the time, and Rick was writing porn star profiles for a Japanese men’s magazine. Their chat was more of a casual conversation, not meant to be an interview, but Rick taped it so he could mine it for information for his next article.

After their meeting, Rick stored the tape – and forgot about in for the next 30 years. When he came across it again it was unlistenable, a mass of hiss and static, but with the help of AI, I managed to clean it up. It was recorded in a noisy New York diner so it has variable sound quality – but I wanted to share it with you because it’s an interesting time capsule.

Despite the fact that this conversation took place 34 years ago, it has a surprisingly nostalgic feel: Christy had started in the X-rated film industry in 1984 as a teenager with a carefree attitude in the free-for-all, wild west days of the video explosion. She retired a few months later before returning in the late 1980s – this time as a contract girl, a little older, wiser, and now thinking about a career and a future.

Rick had done two scenes with Christy – the first was in the early days when she was a newcomer, and the second when she was a seasoned professional, almost a veteran – and he was struck by the change he noticed in her – which he wanted to ask her about. Rick also took photographs of Christy which have never been seen before – and we’re sharing these below.

Today, Christy is still going strong – connecting with her fans and providing regular content via her social media accounts and through Only Fans.

Welcome to the Christy Canyon birthday party.

With thanks to Rick Savage and Cathy Gigante-Brown.

This podcast is 41 minutes long.

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