Dirk Shafer
Dirk Shafer | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | November 7, 1962 Carbondale, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | March 5, 2015 (aged 52) Los Angeles, California |
| Occupations |
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| Known for | Playgirl 1992 Man of the Year |
| Height | 5 ft 10+1⁄2 in (1.791 m) |
Dirk Alan Shafer (November 7, 1962 – March 5, 2015) was an American model, actor, screenwriter and director. Born in Carbondale, Illinois, he was most noted in the modeling world for having been Playgirl magazine's 1992 "Man of the Year".[1] Shafer related that he did Playgirl for "validation" as a model because he never believed himself to be attractive.[2] Shafer wrote, directed and starred in Man of the Year, a 1995 mockumentary about his time as a semi-closeted gay man in the role of a heterosexual sex symbol. Shafer's next directorial project was Circuit, a fictional look at the world of gay male circuit parties.[3]
As of 2008, Shafer was working as a fitness trainer and certified Pilates instructor.[4] In 2012, Shafer returned to the pages of Playgirl for a 20th anniversary photo spread in the August issue.[5]
Shafer was found dead in a vehicle near his home in West Hollywood, California on March 5, 2015. Initial reports indicated he might have suffered a heart attack.[6] Following an autopsy, however, the Los Angeles County Coroner's office determined Shafer's death was the result of "methamphetamine and cocaine toxicity", with hypertensive cardiovascular disease possibly being a contributing factor.[7]
Shafer is buried at Hollywood Forever Cemetery.[8]
Filmography
[edit]As actor
[edit]- Will & Grace episode "Cheaters" - Blaze (2001)
- Man of the Year - Himself (1995)
As director
[edit]- Circuit (2002)
- Man of the Year (1995)
As writer
[edit]- Circuit (2002) (with Gregory Hinton)
- Man of the Year (1995)
- Inside Out II (segment "Double Vision") (1992)
Notes
[edit]- ^ Stack, Liam (March 9, 2015). "Dirk Shafer, Playgirl Centerfold Who Revealed He Was Gay, Dies at 52". The New York Times. Retrieved March 9, 2015.
- ^ Kramer, p. 30
- ^ Hensley, Dennis (April 30, 2002), "Circuit king", The Advocate, retrieved September 6, 2007
- ^ "25 Great Things About Gay L.A.", Frontiers Volume 26 Issue 4, archived from the original on March 31, 2008, retrieved May 12, 2008
- ^ Former Gay Playgirl Man of the Year Dirk Shaffer Returns 20 Years later and he is hotter than ever...
- ^ 'Man Of The Year's Dirk Shafer Found Dead
- ^ Cocaine, meth blamed in ex-centerfold's death in West Hollywood
- ^ Death of WeHo's Dirk Shafer is Attributed to Meth and Cocaine
References
[edit]- Kramer, Gary M. (2006). Independent Queer Cinema: Reviews and Interviews. Haworth Press. ISBN 1-56023-343-5.
External links
[edit]- 1962 births
- 2015 deaths
- 21st-century American LGBTQ people
- American gay actors
- American gay writers
- American LGBTQ film directors
- American LGBTQ models
- American LGBTQ screenwriters
- American male screenwriters
- Burials at Hollywood Forever Cemetery
- Film directors from Illinois
- Gay models
- Gay screenwriters
- LGBTQ people from Illinois
- Male models from Illinois
- People from Carbondale, Illinois
- Pilates instructors
- Playgirl Men of the Month
- Playgirl Men of the Year
- Screenwriters from Illinois