Pinay ex-porn star wants to be Nevada gov

A Filipina immigrant to the United States who has appeared in American porn films may yet bring pride to the Philippines — if she wins in the gubernatorial elections on Aug. 15 in Nevada.

Melody Damayo, who is better known by her "nom de porn, Mimi Miyagi," filed her certificate as a Republican gubernatorial candidate in the state of Nevada on May 12.

She registered as a candidate under her birth name, Melody Damayo, born on July 3, 1973 in Davao City.

She is running in the Nevada primary next month against US congressman Jim Gibbons of Nevada, a fellow Republican, and Henderson Mayor Jim Gibson, a Democrat.

If she wins the elections, Damayo would follow the footsteps of Italian lawmaker Ilone Staller, an immigrant from Hungary and a former porn star who went by the name Cicciliona. She won a seat in Italy’s parliament in 1987.

After filing her candidacy, Damayo was featured on the MSNBC news show, "The Situation With Tucker Carlson." Her interview was extensively reported in the June 19 issue of the Las Vegas Review-Journal which first came out with the story about Damayo’s bid for governor.

In its May 12 issue, the Las Vegas Review-Journal included her as Mimi Miyagi in the story "Filing draws to a close: Last day for ballot bids brings out the usual unusuals."

The Journal quoted Carlson saying on his show: "We’ve had professional wrestlers, action heroes, downright criminals in our governor’s mansions, so why not a former porn star?"

It further reported that Damayo wore an extremely low-cut red-white-and-blue top with a red bow tie, showing off artificially enhanced breasts that her official Web site says are size "36DD." "Perhaps in an attempt to flutter her eyelashes seductively, she appeared to be constantly blinking."

"I’m just a single mother concerned about the state of Nevada," Damayo told the show. "Las Vegas has been experiencing unparalleled growth over the last decade, and yet no efforts have been made to enable the infrastructure or public services to meet the growth demands."

The Journal added Damayo had claimed Democrats have "protested" at Republican conventions, trying to get her to defect to their side, but she was committed to being a Republican because she believes in individual rights. Convention attendees, however, could not recall seeing Damayo at such events, much less any protesting Democrats.

The Journal said Carlson pronounced the name of the state in the way that drives locals crazy, Ne-vah-da, and told Damayo he hoped for her sake she doesn’t succeed.

"You’re going from a job where you make a pretty good amount of money and you’re adored by obsessive fans to a job where you’ve got to stand up all day, nobody likes you and you don’t get paid well," he said. "I don’t know if I wish victory on you."

At the end of the interview, the Journal reported, Damayo made a plea for more than just political support from Carlson. "I love you," she said. "Please be my first man."

Carlson chuckled. "I’m not going to respond, but I appreciate it," he said.

In her own website, Damayo listed "Filipino" as her "ethnicity" and indicated her eye color as brown, hair as black, and 5’3" in height.

She also indicated her body measurements as 36 DD-23-35. She, however, admitted she had 32-B as her "natural bust" measurement. She admitted that she had several surgeries to increase her natural "B" cup breasts to "DD" size.

The second of four children of immigrant parents Mike Ariesgado and Luz Damayo, Damayo was described in one website as "something of a prodigy."

She supposedly spent her childhood studying piano and dreaming of becoming an Olympic gymnast. At the age of 15 she graduated from high school and right after graduation, she began working to save money for college.

She returned to Los Angeles just before her 18th birthday with a little over $1,000 to her name. At that time, she thought that this money would be enough to last her several months.

This was not the case and within a month she ran out of money and began looking for work. She met with little success until shortly after her 18th birthday.

She began her career in adult films after she answered an ad for nude models. When she first started out in the industry, she claimed to be ethnic Japanese because of her facial features, but was repeatedly told that there just wasn’t a market for Asian adult stars.

But she was determined and refused to give up, "becoming quite popular for her abilities to take well-endowed men during anal scenes, as well as for her unusually long tongue. She was also building a fan base due to her lesbian scenes."

She started publishing her own men’s magazine, Oriental Dolls (now known as Asian Hotties), and quickly saw the magazine become one of the top Asian-themed publications in the United States.

The rise of the Internet in the mid-1990s as a profitable medium for content led her to create a website that she coded and runs on her own. With access to a global audience, she continued to expand the market for Asian adult films.

In 1999, she began doing movie production and talent scouting for Metro Home Video and produced the series she entitled Fantasiany Series #1,2,3,4.

In September 2003, her film Happy Ending was released. This film marked the end of Damayo’s career as an adult film star. In May 2005, she began work on her first bit role in a mainstream comedy, Come Again.