Tina Russell was born Linda Marie Mintzer on Sept. 23, 1948, in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, to John H. and Margaret Ditzler Mintzer. She grew up in Williamsport and graduated from high school there in 1966. Her senior photo shows a mature brunette with a "Laura Petrie" hairstyle, looking more like a future nurse than a porn star. She became one of the best known adult film actresses of the "Golden Age" of porn, admired for her fresh looks and evident enthusiasm for her on-screen liaisons. The Williamsport city directories of 1968- 1970 show Russell living at home and listed as a student, but she moved to New York City to attend New York University shortly thereafter. Along with her husband Jason Russell (born John Sanderson) - several years her elder - she began modeling in sexually oriented photographs and performed in so-called "live sex shows" (the "sex" at the period was usually pantomimed). After appearing in 16mm "stag" loops, Russell began to take small roles in feature films during early 1970s. Russell only really acquired star status, however, after the publication of her 1973 memoir, Porno Star, in which she described - in often glowing terms - her life in the New York adult film industry. Her husband Jason Russell became involved with another early pornstar Jean Jennings. This broke up their marriage and Tina became a chronic alcoholic, which led to her early death. On May 18, 1981, Tina Russell died of multiple organ failure at the Tri-City hospital in Vista, CA after having visited her brother in San Diego. She is buried in Resurrection Cemetery in Montoursville, PA, where her father is also buried.
