Grabby Awards

Grabby Awards (better known as The Grabbys) are presented annually in Chicago to honor work done in the gay adult erotic video industry. The awards are sponsored by Grab Magazine, a free biweekly that describes itself as "Chicago's premier LGBT publication." The Grabby Awards and Grab Magazine are owned and operated by Grabbys, LLC. The awards were owned until 2009 by Gay Chicago Magazine.

The first Grabby Awards (formally known as Adult Erotic Gay Video Awards) were given in 1991, when the awards were listed in the year-end issue of Gay Chicago Magazine. Awards given that year included "Burnout of the Year", "Comeback of the Year", "Fresh Surprise of the Year", "Best Supporting Actor", "Best Newcomer", and "Best Overall Performer". According to "Big Daddy" Ferguson, founder of Gay Chicago Magazine and creator of the awards, the Grabbys are "...our way of highlingting [sic] certain aspects of the past year's videos that, in our opinion, are worth[y] of special notice."

The awards have evolved as they have matured; the second year, 1992, saw the addition of some more traditional award categories, such as "Best Video of the Year" and "Best Screenplay"; "Best Overall Performer" was shortened to "Best Performer". The unique awards continued, however, with the presentation of the "Pull-Lister Prize", given to Gay Sex: A Manual for Men Who Love Men.

In 1993, the third annual awards included "Best Ethnic Performer" and "Best Cum Shot", and saw the first tie for an award, that of Falcon Studios and Kristen Bjorn Productions for "Best Video of the Year".

"Best Director" was added in 1994, along with "Best International Video", "Best Cinematography", "Best Sex Scene", "Best Bisexual Video", and the "Whopper Award", presented to a Canadian performer.

"Best Cum Shot" was renamed "Hot Shots", the only change in award categories for 1995. The 1996 awards included the addition of "Best Non-Sexual Role", and "Promising New Performers"; there were no additions or name changes for the 1997 awards.

Held on Saturday, May 29, 1999, the 1998 Grabbys were presented during an awards ceremony for the first time during the Memorial Day weekend. Chicago had been home to the International Mister Leather Contest (IML) for 20 years, and the founder of IML, Chuck Renslow, suggested that the Grabbys be added to the weekend's activities to provide additional entertainment for the thousands of IML attendees.

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