Rest In Peace Dan Barros

Very few people in porn these days would know the name Dan Barros but he left an indelible mark on the biz to be sure.

I first met Dan in I think 1994 at the CES show, he had a girl there and I shot her.  Her name was Melissa Hill, Melissa and I remain friends, matter of fact it was Melissa who first alerted me of Dan’s passing early this afternoon.  Dan was a rare breed of agent, specially in those days, he genuinely loved his girls and he considered a large part of his job to be to protect them and help them instead of just seeing them as a paycheck.

Dan and I became friends and we used to talk weekly, as time passed those conversations became fewer and further between until I just presumed he had moved on and away from porn.  I thought of him from time to time over the years because he was a good guy, he was personable, likeable and honest.

Dan was younger than myself and hearing about his passing from a massive heart attack reminds me of my own mortality at the same time it saddens me because there weren’t and still aren’t enough guys like Dan in the business.

While most people in porn these days never knew Dan, the old timers do, Steven Hirsch, for example, because Dan discovered Vivid Girl Jen Teal and should have been a Vivid Girl Melissa Hill, that’s quite a record for having a good eye for talent.  But Dan had more than just an eye, he had a heart and a soul, he didn’t try to deceive the girls he represented and he was careful to make sure that they didn’t feel pressured to go beyond their comfort levels.

As Melissa Hill told me; of the many things she remembers about Dan she still gives girls the same advice he gave her, that advice being don’t sell your soul, don’t do anything you are uncomfortable doing, don’t do anything you wouldn’t do in your personal life and don’t let the business consume you and turn you into someone you are not.

Rest in Peace Brother…Only the good die young.