Insatiable is one of the premiere films of its genre with a healthy production budget, vibrant cinematography, reliable acting, and entertaining musical numbers performed in part, by Marilyn herself. In a humorous nod to her days as the Ivory Soap girl, early on in the film, Chambers opens a closet to retrieve a robe and a box of Ivory soap is shown on the top shelf.
In 1984, Marilyn reprised her role as Sandra Chase in the sequel to Insatiable titled Insatiable II with Juliet Anderson, Jamie Gillis and Paul Thomas. Although the film contained some exceptional performers, it proved a tough act to follow the success of its predecessor as Marilyn explained.
Insatiable was my favorite film. I looked the best. I felt the best. I felt the sexiest. It was like the prime of my life right there. That was a time where you saw me being totally sexual, everything was great. Everything was going my way and I just felt sexy, and I felt happy. I wasn’t into drugs and alcohol. We partied, but that wasn’t my life. I love that film, but the problem with the film industry is that they got so into, “Let’s make it a story for women, so women will watch.” Then they went overboard and the films had too much story and too much talking, and these people can’t act. Then it evolved into vignettes. There’s a beginning — a middle and an end. There’s not this big long story that you have to sit through. The tape is worn out in certain sex scenes. That’s what they want to see. The filmmakers went from stag films to loops to Behind the Green Door, which was very experimental, to an Insatiable type thing — back to almost loops, which were sort of like vignettes [as in] Marilyn Chambers’ Private Fantasies; five fantasies in one film.
Fantasies & Reality
When VHS came out that was a huge turning point. Because then people started shooting on video. You could be the straightest, staunchest person in the world but this is a person’s human nature. They are curious about sex. Everybody has sexual fantasies. The older I get, I believe you don’t want to have those fantasies, a private thing you do in your own home or behind closed doors unless you’re a swinger — Everybody doesn’t have to know what your sexual fantasies are. We are different people in this world. We are different people when we go to work. In a straight job, around the water cooler, you can’t say, “Oh yeah, we did this and that,” because it’s going to haunt you. Our generation, we just wanted to be free and live the way we wanted to, but that’s not how life works.
Marilyn Chambers Private Fantasies [Part 1] is very well orchestrated and it has a gymnastic feel. I can’t remember when we did the gym scene in Private Fantasies, I think it was the same time we were doing Insatiable because we shot Marilyn Chambers’ Private Fantasies, Part One [released in 1983] at the same time.
Marilyn Chambers’ Private Fantasies is interpreted through several montages, two of which are clips from an earlier film, Spirit of Seventy Sex (1976), that don’t feature Chambers.
A few moments after well-toned Marilyn introduces the first vignette in “Fantasies,” she is appropriately seated inside of a fitness club, dressed in a fitted leotard. While confiding she’d like to have sex on all of the equipment, she proceeds to demonstrate her amazing physical agility by turning a few cartwheels and doing a couple of headstands and flips. The camera pans over to John Holmes hitting a punching bag. When he turns around, Marilyn is positioned at his feet. They share a lingering open mouth kiss before he bends her sinewy body backward over the bench and begins deep cunnilingus while she talks dirty to him. From that point on, the two stars reposition themselves on various pieces of equipment in order to experience all forms of penetration until reaching a climax.
The fifth segment features Marilyn in a shrouded gothic bowling alley. Introducing Ashley Welles and Jane Lindsay: both women are dressed in dark cloaks and move slowly toward the squatting Chambers. They disrobe and Marilyn takes them on in a sensuous ménage a trois, which includes anal licking, spanking, and nipple biting. Chambers is anything but bashful and lies across Welles’s back in order to give Lindsay easier access to her orifices with her hands and fingers. In turn, she extends the favor to Welles and Lindsay.
In the final sixth segment, Marilyn enters a soda shop wearing pigtails and dressed in a cheerleader uniform. Immediately, she begins to tease the shop owner and patron played by Michael Morrison and (early male performer) Mike Ranger sporting a porno “stache”. With very little effort, they convince Chambers to show them her cheerleading moves until she is on her hands and knees on the counter naked. The guys go to work on Marilyn, who seems to enjoy every bit of the attention — even the insertion of the cherry into her cherry. Marilyn then works Ranger and Morrison over (she impressively deep throats Morrison) while Ranger gets her in the behind as she begs for more.
Between the years 1983-1987, Chambers starred in five more installments of Marilyn Chambers Private Fantasies distributed by Caballero, showcasing her with a number of male luminaries including Harry Reems and Richard Pacheco. The recurring series also depicted Marilyn opposite some of the newcomers of the 1980s decade in the way of Christy Canyon, Sheri St. Clair, Tom Byron, Jerry Butler, Billy Dee and Buck Adams. Due to the success of their two previous onscreen trysts together, in 1983, Chambers and Holmes teamed up together again.
John went to jail, he came out, and we did the Up ‘N’ Coming (1983) movie. I remember sitting in a room with John, and he was kind of waiting for his scene. He’d become this person who had become way more introverted. All of a sudden, his intellectual side had sprung out.
In Up ‘N’ Coming Marilyn starred as Cassie Harland, a rising songstress who sleeps her way to the top of the country and western circuit. The multi-talented Harland wages war against a diva she had once emulated, the washed-up alcoholic, Althea Anderson, played very convincingly by the terrific sexy bombshell Lisa DeLeeuw. Anderson knows her days are numbered, but refuses to go down without a fight and the two women (Chambers and DeLeeuw supplied their own vocals throughout) contend for top spot in this big-budget production centering on the two competitors. Marilyn efficiently demonstrates her physicality in various sexual encounters including a funny scene with Richard Pacheco as a radio personality, and with Savage who is very good in the role as Harland’s hard-boiled studio exec Jimmy King. The story builds toward a climax that eventually pairs Harland with country music’s legendary outlaw — fresh out of jail, Charlie Strayhorn (John Holmes in a cameo role that is tailor-made). Smitten when she gets a load of Strayhorn’s pleasure package, Cassie and Strayhorn get into it as they entangle themselves within a slew of veteran performers during the requisite orgy scene at the conclusion.
Although a little harder looking around the edges compared to how she appeared in Insatiable three years earlier, Marilyn is remarkable in all facets of her performances in and out of bed, in addition to her vocal capacity. Chambers performs the film’s title song lending a personal touch. The Special DVD Edition of Up ‘N’ Coming includes an audio commentary provided by Gloria Leonard, and offers a Marilyn Chambers “photos” section and “cast bio.”
Having worked again with John Holmes immediately following his release from jail for contempt after a first-degree murder acquittal, Marilyn commented how drug abuse can radically alter a person’s personality while noting corresponding factors between Holmes and Jim Mitchell.
I can’t remember what the story is, but I don’t think John did rat because that’s why he went to jail. He didn’t tell on anybody because he thought, “You know, I’ll just go to jail and do my time.” I admire that. What he was involved in was not a good thing, but that’s what drugs do. That kind of shit happens. He was similar to Jim Mitchell after Art was murdered. I visited Jim in San Quentin. Robert De Niro wanted to do a film based on Jim and Art’s life. He was interested in doing the life story of the Mitchell Brothers but he wanted to do it below the belt, he didn’t want to do it above the waist. He wanted to do the whole thing. He flew me up to San Quentin to see Jim and Jim said, “You know what? I don’t give a shit about who’s doing a movie about it. I don’t care if it’
s Robert De Niro or God. I am not telling anything about anything.” He said, “This was a major tragedy and it was a mistake. It’s a tragedy I will never talk about.” The film was never done correctly.
In February 1991, Jim Mitchell drove to his brother’s house armed with a .22 rifle in response to family and friends’ concerns about Artie’s exacerbated battle with alcohol and cocaine. During his visit, Jim fatally shot Artie and was charged with voluntary manslaughter. (Marilyn was one of many guests in attendance who spoke at Artie’s funeral.) The details about what transpired during the confrontation between Jim and Artie were re-enacted during Mitchell’s trial, in which Jim was represented by pro bono attorney (and old friend) Michael Kennedy, former partner of Joe Rhine. Mitchell served three years of a six-year sentence in San Quentin Penitentiary. After his release from prison, Jim resumed his role as owner and manager of the O’Farrell Theatre and created a fund in Artie’s name with proceeds going to a local drug rehabilitation centre and to the San Francisco Fire Department. In 2000, Rated-X, a cable television film presentation revealing the rise and fall of the two brothers was made in Toronto with Hollywood actors (and brothers) Charlie Sheen and (director) Emilio Estevez portraying Jim and Artie Mitchell. Tracy Huston played the part of Marilyn Chambers.
Jim Mitchell died of a heart attack at his home in Sonoma County in July 2007, in his sixty-fourth year.
MARILYN CHAMBERS: When people get addicted to anything, everything goes in the shitter. They want that drug. No matter whom you step on in your way, you’ll do it. There’s a reason why people become addicted. They don’t like who they are. They don’t want to look at who they are, or what is at the root of the problem of why they are who they are. They may have been molested or no one cared about them, or someone that they’d loved left them for someone else, whatever.
Marilyn’s Brightest Light
In 1985 Marilyn and Chuck Traynor parted ways, and toward the latter part of the eighties, Marilyn began to scale back on film roles. It is worth noting that Chambers was a guest on Live with Regis and Kathy Lee, along with Hulk Hogan in May 1989, another endorsement of her ability to crossover as a pop culture figure.
During the years when she performed at Las Vegas Night clubs, Marilyn met the man who is believed to have been her greatest romance, Bobby de Piece. Little is known about de Piece, a likely pseudonym. Due to unfortunate circumstances, the two were not be able to share their lives together as Valerie Gobos explained.
Bobby de Piece was said to be the love of Marilyn’s life. He worked at a lot of strip clubs in Vegas. There was a problem one night when he escorted somebody outside. A fight broke out and someone ended up getting killed. Bobby wound up taking the heat on that. In 2010, he was released from jail. I was recently contacted because somebody, apparently, is doing Bobby’s life story. I don’t know exactly, but before Marilyn died, Marilyn and Bobby had started writing letters to each other. It was kind of nice that Marilyn was able to put closure on that. I think Bobby has a young daughter who is married at this point. The incident happened earlier on.
According to Marilyn, one of her greatest regrets concerned her love life.
You know, I chose men who were violent and very sexy, but I could never choose the proper mate. That doesn’t go for the last guy that I had my child with, but we had our problems. There’s drugs, there’s alcohol; there’s all kinds of stuff involved in any relationship that I’ve ever had. When you’re in the sex business, when your sexual libido is heightened constantly and that’s all you think about and that diminishes, it is like “Oh, my god. Who am I? Who would want me?” And then when men. do go out with me as soon as they find out after. so many dates who I am, it’s like, “Forget it.” It’s way too intimidating. I’ve never met a guy who is like, “Okay. That’s cool.” Seka, I think, has met a guy who makes her happy. He accepts her for who she is and they have a good relationship.
My career has been phenomenal, but in retrospect, I’m not sure I would do it again. It’s been great but it’s really provided a very big stigma. It’s a stinky stigma and lasts forever, unfortunately. It’s something that’s always going to be out there and no matter what you want to do, if you want to do mainstream, or if you want to go back into the woodwork and just be a normal person, you can’t. I’ll tell you one of the most difficult things is having a relationship with a man. I’ll be a spinster to the day I die. I don’t know if I want to be married, but I’d like to have a relationship with somebody. Again, do I want that?. I’ve lived alone for so long, I am my own person and I don’t need a guy. Years ago, I needed somebody. I was very needy. I was looking for daddy. I think most of the chicks in the porn business are looking for a daddy figure. Something is definitely lacking. They were either molested, or abused, or not paid attention to.
As her own career as an X-rated entertainer continued to wind down, Marilyn met and married her third husband William (Billy) Taylor. She gave birth to her first and only child, McKenna Marie Taylor, born on May 13, 1991. The birth of McKenna was clearly a landmark in Marilyn’s personal life. Chambers and Billy Taylor divorced in 1994, but as she looked toward the future and reflected upon her past, Marilyn always spoke with love whenever her daughter’s name was mentioned, even if she was unable to find a suitable mate.
The best thing that’s ever happened to me is my daughter. To be a mom is the best thing in the world. You know, that’s all I ever really wanted to do after I had finished doing films. When I met my last husband, I just fell madly in love with him and our goal was to have a house, a home, and a family. That’s what I really wanted to do. I did it for a while, and then other things got in the way where it just didn’t work out. I still do have my daughter and I still do have a great relationship with him, the dad. That’s because I was very intent on making it work. You have to work together.
You know, it’s the kind of thing where she’s now sixteen and when the empty nest syndrome comes, I don’t know what I’m going do!. I’ll probably go up and be near my sister back east. I have a brother and sister who are still there. My sister is back in Washington State so I’ll probably move closer to her. Right here, I’m alone. I don’t spend the holidays really with anybody. I don’t. I want to be with my family. My sister has her sons and her grandchildren, and she’s a great cook. I’m a good cook myself. You know, at her house, we cook and we have all the family and we have parties. That’s what I would like to do.
VALERIE GOBOS: I do think Marilyn was lonely during her later years and I think she would have loved to have found her soul mate at the end. McKenna, her daughter, had said that Marilyn really did love her dad. Yet, it’s kind of unclear as to why they got divorced. He has since passed away. He died the same year she did, so I wasn’t able to interview him. McKenna was living with her father before he passed away. He had a big house. She liked the fact that he had the big home, but she and Marilyn were together all the time and they were very close. The father was in and out of rehab, so maybe McKenna wanted to be close to him for that reason. She lost both parents in one year.
McKenna Taylor is a bright, twenty-one year old woman currently working on an undergraduate degree in psychology at a California University. The fact she lost both her parents tragically, before the age of eighteen has not discouraged or jaded the sweet and vibrant Taylor. With her head on straight, McKenna is surrounded by a supportive network of extended family and friends. When McKenna was invited to contribute to this book, she provided another shade of Marilyn Chambers Taylor, the nurturer and immortal celebrity from a daughter’s point of view.
MCKENNA TAYLOR: My mother wanted to be the best mother she could be. I really do believe that was her goal in life, and she accomplished it from day one.
My mom and I loved to cook, watch movies together, dance, sing, and cuddle with our pets. Her hobbies also included gardening, and most importantly, she liked to help people in need. She rescued animals off street corners and would talk on the phone for hours with friends if they needed her.
Some of my fondest memories of my mother are our cooking shows. My mother was the best cook. I would be her little helper with cooking dinner, and she would go over absolutely everything she was doing so I could learn. Whenever I made any kind of meal for myself, the first person I would call would be my mother. She would be so proud of me for taking her advice and making a great meal on my own. Another memory of my mother that I will never get out of my head is of us dancing and singing together. We would be in the car and turn up the music so loud, and just dance and sing a lot. Of course, there is also my mother’s laugh. I could hear my mother laugh a mile away. Her laugh and smile lit up a room as soon as she entered it.
My mother was very open about the adult industry and told me a lot about it when I was old enough. At first, I was obviously in shock and a little bit embarrassed until I got older. Once I was able to understand her past and really get to know it, I was able to embrace it and love it because she did. My mother would tell me stories about her life and I enjoyed it so much. I am still so proud of her for the accomplishments and hardships she overcame.
Talking about her career, I think a moment that brought my mother great happiness and pride was when she was given the keys to San Francisco. I recently visited San Francisco and was lucky enough to be able to stop by the O’Farrell Theater. The very first room on the right, which is a sitting room, has posters and memorabilia of my mother’s. I talked to a very nice man [Ted McIlvenna, President of the Institute for Advanced Study of Human Sexuality in San Francisco] who has been working there for over thirty years, and we talked about what an amazing person my mother really was, not to just me, but to so many others.
GOLDEN GODDESSES: 25 LEGENDARY WOMEN OF CLASSIC EROTIC CINEMA, 1968-1985 Page 15