It was 1972, and the "Porno Chic" era was about to explode. People who wouldn't be caught dead in a seedy theater were suddenly lining up to see a movie that cost about as much as a used car to make. That movie was Behind the Green Door. It didn't just break the rules; it basically lit the rulebook on fire and danced on the ashes.
When people search for behind the green door the movie cast, they’re usually looking for names. But the story of who was on that screen—and how they got there—is way weirder than just a list of credits. It involves soap commercials, NFL players, and a pair of brothers who ended up in one of the most famous fratricide cases in American history.
The Ivory Snow Girl: Marilyn Chambers
You can't talk about this cast without starting with Marilyn Chambers. Honestly, her casting is the stuff of Hollywood legend. Before she was "Gloria Saunders" in the film, she was the face of Ivory Snow detergent.
Yeah. The literal "pure" girl on the box holding a baby.
The Mitchell brothers, Artie and Jim, were looking for a lead who didn't look like a "porn star." They wanted someone wholesome. Someone next-door. When Marilyn (born Marilyn Briggs) showed up, they knew they’d hit gold. She was paid a pittance—some reports say around $25,000, though others suggest even less—while the movie went on to gross something like $25 million to $50 million.
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The fallout was instant. Proctor & Gamble wasn't exactly thrilled to have their "pure" spokesperson starring in a hardcore film. They pulled her from the packaging immediately, which, of course, only made the movie more famous. It was the ultimate "good girl gone bad" marketing campaign, even if it wasn't planned that way.
Johnny Keyes and the Scene That Shook the South
Next up is Johnny Keyes. He played Virgil. In 1972, the sight of a Black man and a white woman together on screen was still a massive taboo in many parts of the U.S.
The Mitchell brothers didn't care. They leaned into it.
Keyes was a former boxer and stage performer with a lot of presence. His scene with Chambers is cited by historians as one of the primary reasons the film faced so many obscenity prosecutions, especially in the South. It wasn't just the nudity; it was the racial dynamics that made people lose their minds. Keyes brought a level of athletic intensity to the role that made the "performance art" aspect of the movie feel real—maybe too real for the censors of the time.
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The Supporting Players and Weird Cameos
The rest of the cast is a mix of San Francisco locals and bizarre cameos. Here’s a quick look at who else was in the room:
- George S. McDonald: He played "Barry Clark," the guy often referred to as "the Stud" in the credits. He was one of the many young men Gloria encounters in the club.
- Ben Davidson: This is the one that catches sports fans off guard. Ben Davidson was a 6'8" defensive end for the Oakland Raiders. He shows up as a bouncer. He doesn't do anything explicit, but his massive presence adds to the surreal, "secret society" vibe of the club.
- The Mitchell Brothers: Artie and Jim didn't just direct; they showed up as the kidnappers who snatch Gloria at the beginning. It's a bit meta if you think about it—the creators "kidnapping" their star and bringing her into their world.
- Toni Attell: She played one of the mimes. The movie has these long, weirdly silent sequences with mimes and clowns that make it feel more like an avant-garde art project than a standard adult film.
Why This Cast Still Matters Today
Most people today find the movie's plot—about a woman being kidnapped and forced to perform—pretty disturbing. It’s a far cry from the "consensual" narratives we see in modern media. However, from a historical perspective, the behind the green door the movie cast represents a moment when the "underground" tried to go mainstream.
The Mitchell brothers weren't just making a "skin flick." They were trying to be the next Polanski. They used 35mm film, hired real cinematographers like Jon Fontana, and spent money on a soundtrack by Daniel Le Blanc.
The Aftermath
The lives of the people involved didn't exactly end in "happily ever after."
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- Marilyn Chambers became a massive star, ranking high on every "top porn star" list for decades. She even tried a career in politics, running for Vice President on the Personal Liberty Party ticket in 2004. She passed away in 2009.
- The Mitchell Brothers had the darkest ending. In 1991, Jim Mitchell drove to Artie’s house and shot him to death. He claimed it was an "intervention" for Artie's drug habit that went wrong. Jim served time for manslaughter and died of a heart attack in 2007.
- The Industry changed forever. This film, along with Deep Throat, proved that there was a massive market for adult content if it was packaged with a bit of "art" and a lot of controversy.
Practical Insights for Film Historians
If you're looking into this film for a research project or just out of curiosity, keep a few things in mind. First, there are several versions out there. The original was 72 minutes, but many edits were cut down for different theaters. Second, if you're looking for the sequel—Behind the Green Door: The Sequel (1986)—be aware that the cast is completely different, starring Missy and focus significantly on "safe sex" themes during the height of the AIDS crisis.
To truly understand the 1972 cast, you have to look at them as symbols of the "San Francisco O'Farrell Theatre" scene. They weren't just actors; they were part of a subculture that thought they were winning a war against censorship. Whether they won or lost is still up for debate, but they certainly left a mark on cinema history.
If you're researching this for a media studies paper, look for the book X-Rated by David McCumber. It gives the most detailed, non-filtered account of what life was like inside the Mitchell brothers' empire. Also, check out the 2000 movie Rated X, where Charlie Sheen and Emilio Estevez play the Mitchell brothers—it’s a surprisingly decent look at the chaos behind the camera.
Explore the legal cases surrounding the film in the First Amendment Encyclopedia. It’s fascinating to see how a $60,000 movie ended up in front of judges across the country, fundamentally changing how we define "obscenity" in America.