Pioneer Adult DVD Salesman Jim Monroe Dies

LOS ANGELES—Jim Monore, who brought the very first adult DVD to market, died Monday after a lengthy battle with an undisclosed illness, AVN has learned. He was 60. Having served as the vice president of Vivid Entertainment digital media division Vivid Interactive from the mid-'90s to 2001, Monroe teamed up at that time with Vivid co-founder David James to jointly launch independent label Peach DVD, for which Monroe also directed a number of titles. Veteran director David Lord, who informed AVN of Monroe's passing, recalled, "Vivid Interactive did all the video games, CD-ROMs ... it wasn't really a big thing, and then when DVD came into play, David James and Jim were in control of the department ... the guy that made the first ever DVD was Jim Monroe, the first adult DVD ever was Bobby Sox. He was the guy that started it all." Titles Monroe helmed for Peach (which was acquired in 2005 by Red Dragon Releasing) included Filthy Rich Girls 1 & 2, Bar Tales, Lingerie Lust and A Sexy Western. Among Monroe's other ventures was a stint playing guitar in the band Voodoo Circus alongside fellow veteran adult salesman Danny Gorman and editor Lisa McCormick.