She made her mainstream screen debut at age nineteen in a leading role in the 1988 remake of the 1957 Roger Corman science fiction film Not of This Earth. As it turns out, she didn't put up much of a fight for her title in part because there was a second set of photos, this set shot with a different photographer and with her in bondage gear. The way they told the story was as a noir, with Traci as the ne plus ultra of femmes fatales: She’d scammed the adult industry with a fake ID; had made one movie after the age of 18, a movie she owned the rights to; and then she’d blown the whistle on herself to make more money and become more famous. In the year 1987 Traci joined in the Lee Strasberg acting school, started voice lessons and built on her natural acting talents.

According to a 1988 interview, she chose Traci—one of the popular names she had longed for growing up—and Lords, after the actor Jack Lord, since she was a fan of the television series Hawaii Five-O, in which he played Steve McGarrett. To wit: the Pubic Wars (an actual coined phrase, appearing in such august publications as the Wall Street Journal), which he won by showing short-and-curlies in the February 1970 Penthouse, a full eleven months before Playboy. Federal law defines child pornography as any visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct involving a minor.

And I teamed up with Ashley West to investigate the mystery, because how could I dream up a better partner?

Shirley Chisholm, "that this nation has been able to select the beautiful young woman of color to be Miss America. The federal government attempted to litigate the producers of the movie Those Young Girls in 1984, the first adult film Traci seemed in, for child pornography. And for a Black woman to take the prize, be chosen as the country's official—"official," at the time, being code for "white"—feminine ideal, was a milestone. Williams had already been through the wringer and then some by the time she found out, in mid-July 1984, via a New York Post reporter, that she was about to become Penthouse 's cover girl, an honor she neither asked for nor wanted.

After leaving the school, Lords placed an advertisement in The Hollywood Reporter looking for representation. Traci Lords: The Other Side of an X-Rated Star" Archived July 31, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, BigO, Issue 110, February 1995. While most of Lords' movies were permanently removed from distribution in the United States, several were re-edited to remove her scenes (such as Kinky Business and New Wave Hookers), or in a few cases, had new footage filmed with a different actress playing her part (as in Talk Dirty to Me Part III).

We’re sure fans will be more than elated to witness and admire these Traci Lords sexy pictures which are sure to be to their liking and satisfaction! In 2009, Lords appeared in the direct-to-DVD science fiction movie, Princess of Mars, alongside Antonio Sabàto Jr. She provided Kuzma with a new birth certificate on condition that if she were ever caught she would say that she had stolen the phony identification. There appears to be an important distinction that’s being missed: The Playboy centerfolds from Decades past and Brooke Shields’ appearance in Pretty Baby were, presumably, legal at the time they were made.Following the Steubenville High School rape case, Lords spoke up on the topic and subsequently released the song "Stupidville" as a response to the case.

So the question is whether anyone has ever gotten in trouble for being in possession of this magazine with the Traci Lords images intact? If what you’re saying is correct, a magazine could openly sell pictures of women under eighteen as long as they’re not engaged in actual sex. Lords was one of the most sought-after actresses in the adult entertainment industry during her career.

The most important news in the history of our country, having a woman vice presidential nominee, was overshadowed by the fact that we had…well, that we had what we had. The Paul Oakenfold remix of the song was included on the soundtrack of the movie Virtuosity (1995), in which Lords had a cameo appearance. Traci Lords welcomes a son" Archived April 2, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, People, October 10, 2007.