Herbert John Streicher (August 27, 1947 – March 19, 2013), better known by his professional pseudonym Harry Reems, was an American pornographic actor, later working as a real estate agent. His most famous roles were as Doctor Young in the 1972 pornographic cult classic Deep Throat and The Teacher in the 1973 classic The Devil in Miss Jones. Throughout the 1970s and into the mid-1980s, he was one of the most prolific performers in the adult film industry. He became the first American actor to be prosecuted by the United States federal government on obscenity charges solely for appearing in a film (Marlon Brando and Maria Schneider had previously been prosecuted and convicted of obscenity charges in Italy in 1973 for appearing in the film Last Tango in Paris). He retired from the industry in 1985.
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Early life
Reems was born Herbert John Streicher on August 27, 1947, into a Jewish family. He was the youngest of three children. His father Don Streicher worked as a salesman before becoming a bookmaker. His mother, Rose, was a model. Harry's father later entered the printing industry and was wealthy enough to move the family to Westchester, New York. In 1965, at age 18, Harry went to the University of Pittsburgh to become a dentist. He later enlisted in the United States Marine Corps, from which he received an honorable discharge following hardship leave. In 1967 he moved to the East Village in Manhattan where his brother and roommate were gaining experience as actors. His early non-pornographic acting career was principally in off-Broadway theater for La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club, New York Theater Ensemble and National Shakespeare Company.
