The church has taken a fair few performers from us in recent years. So much so that you might be forgiven for developing a bit of a grudge against them! The latest adult star to 'see the light' and decide to take a bit of a turn for the religious is Erica Campbell. In May 2008 she announced that the world of porn had filled her with 'darkness' and 'pain'. She said that she would seek to ease it by following the words of Jesus and that she had quit the industry.

The makers of her official site weren't too happy. They had to issue all of its members with refunds.

As much as anti-porn protesters might suggest that such now regular occurrences of adult stars quitting the industry for a more ecclesiastical existence is a sign of the industry's immorality and filth, in the case of Erica Campbell it probably has more to do with the fact that she was always quite a quiet soul anyway. In fact, her private life would never have suggested that she would be an adult model in any way, shape or form. After all, how many adult stars nurse sick animals back to health in their spare time?

Not a great deal is known about her upbringing except for what he gave away in an interview once when she said that when she grew up she had wanted to have her own farm and model for Playboy. Aside from that, and the fact that she grew up in New Hampshire, where she still lives with the farm she always wanted, nobody really seems to know a great deal else about her.

As such, her rise to become a widely adored figure in adult entertainment meant that she was probably the only one who wasn't surprised when she became the winner of the prestigious Mystique Magazine Model Safari contest in 2003. Prior to that though she had already dipped her toe into the DVD market when she turned 21 as she shot several titles with JB Video, a label that had a reputation for blooding exciting new softcore talent.

Indeed, she so immediately impressed the label's bosses that they gave her two eponymous titles to work in. DVDs and video work were never her strong point though and Erica Campbell always seemed to be far more comfortable working with still photography. Over her 6 year career, she only appeared in 6 DVD titles that are known of. Yet her photographic work was regular, consistent, and she was never likely to be short of it either.

It wasn't difficult to see why the name Erica Campbell became one that no Playboy subscriber was likely to forget. With an extraordinary curvaceous figure that was enhanced and kept its shape because she readily admitted to loving to eat, large natural breasts that many labelled as the best in the business, and beautiful features that always seemed fresh and happy, she was an obvious success story from the moment she did her first shoot.

She became as popular with glamour photography fans as she did with nude modelling fans as she showed an ability to mould smoulderingly sexy shoots whilst still maintaining a modicum of clothing, making sporadic appearances in men's magazines. Meanwhile, her nude modelling career saw her peak in particular in 2005 when she was named as Playboy's Special Editions Model Of The Year. Early in 2006 though she set tongues wagging that she would be about to make a move into hardcore circles after constantly making references to her enjoyment of anal sex during an interview at the AVN Awards alongside her friend Crystal Klein.

Such a move never materialised though and it seemed as though she was merely joshing with those who had constantly debated whether she would enter the hardcore market. She even moved away from lesbian content in 2007, but it didn't stop her from completing a rare Penthouse-Playboy major award double when was named as Pet Of The Month for April 2007. It would prove to be her last major award within the industry. She notably started to wind down the amount of shoots she did for magazines and her websites, as well as the dream dates she auctioned for charity with her fans, but it was still regarded as a shock when she announced her retirement earlier this year.

Some might say that the loss of a star in such a sprawling industry is not necessarily a huge one. After all, there are thousands of beautiful women out there at the very least in the industry. But my suggestion would be not to make a suggestion in front of Erica Campbell fans - many of them believe she was the best. Once you start browsing through just one of her galleries, it becomes difficult to disagree.

PROFILE:-

Name - Erica Campbell
Porn aliases - Erica Rose, Erica Rose Campbell
Place of birth - Deerfield, New Hampshire, USA
Nationality / Ethnicity - Caucasian-American
Date of birth - May 12th, 1981
Official website - www.ericacampbell.com
Debut year - 2002
Retirement year - 2008
Niches / genres - Modelling
Mainstream exposure - None
Must-see sites - Playboy, Danni.com, Mac And Bumble, Mystique Magazine
Must-see titles - Erica Campbell 1 & 2 (2002-3), Justine (2002), Virtual Lap Dancers 1 (2005)
Notable awards - Mystique Magazine Model Safari Winner (2003), Playboy's Special Editions Model Of The Year (2005), Playboy Cyber Girl Of The Month (October 2006), Penthouse Pet Of The Month (April 2007)