After arriving in
Los Angeles, Applegate and Marcell unsuccessfully pursued several employment leads. Marcell then saw an ad for the World Modeling Agency in
Van Nuys, which sought recruits for "figure modeling". Applegate and Marcell visited the agency's owner,
Jim South, who set up a session with
soft-core photographer J. Stephen Hicks, whose work often appeared in
Penthouse. Her first pictorial's theme featured a mock camping set and was published by
Club. Hicks said of Applegate: "I deal with a lot of girls who are new in the business, a lot of young girls and a lot of girls from out of town. Colleen was so incredibly young and naive. She was completely un-hip and non-L.A." Her wholesome, "
girl next door" looks soon landed her work posing for other magazines such as
Chic,
Hustler,
Swank, and
Penthouse. But Hicks advised Applegate to get out of nude modeling quickly, because when all of the magazines had used her, the only thing left for her would be
hardcore movies. "You know, you take a typical girl that's used to working at McDonald's or at a shoe store, where she's used to making a minimum wage, and suddenly she's given the opportunity to get made up, and be in front of people who tell her she's beautiful, and make as much money in a day as she was making in three weeks and they change. They change. And that's sad." Almost immediately, Applegate progressed to filming hardcore sessions for photographer
Suze Randall. Applegate's relationship with Marcell ended within their first two months in California; he returned to Farmington and joined the
U.S. Army. Before his induction, he informed some Farmington residents that Applegate was making pornography, which embarrassed her family. In a
Frontline documentary, Marcell refused to speak about his relationship with Applegate except to say that he no longer cared about her. Ignoring Hicks's advice, Applegate continued working with World Modeling Agency, where she met veteran porn producer
Bobby Hollander. Hollander launched her adult film career, suggesting what he felt was a "classy"
stage name, Shauna Grant. She appeared in
Virginia,
Suzie Superstar, and
Flesh and Laces 1 & 2, among other films. Her pay rose from $300 a day to around $1,500. As Shauna Grant, she made dozens of adult movies. In
Suzie Superstar, she played the lead singer of a rock band. Grant was provided with her own makeup artist, Laurie Smith. Smith, who co-starred with Grant in several movies (including
Suzie Superstar,
The Young Like It Hot, and
Bad Girls IV), became Grant's best friend and fellow
cocaine user during that period. She quit the adult film business for a short time after Grant's suicide. Grant's popularity earned her three acting nominations at the Erotic Film Awards in 1984. But she had some difficulty getting work due to her cocaine addiction and lack of "enthusiasm" during sex scenes. In some circles she acquired the nickname "Applecoke" and a reputation for flakiness. == Retirement ==