August Ames, born Mercedes Grabowski on August 23, 1994, in Antigonish, Nova Scotia, Canada, was a renowned pornographic actress. Growing up as a military brat in Petawawa, Ontario, and Colorado Springs, she endured a traumatic childhood, including alleged sexual abuse by her grandfather, leading to placement in a group home at age 12. After high school, she pursued culinary arts briefly and worked as a nanny and horseback trainer before entering the adult film industry at 19 in 2013.
Ames appeared in over 270 films for studios like Brazzers, Evil Angel, and Jules Jordan Video. She received multiple AVN Award nominations, including for Female Performer of the Year, and won accolades such as 2014 Miss FreeOnes Best Newcomer, 2015 AVN Cutest Newcomer (Fan Award), 2015 XRCO Cream Dream, and 2017 AVN Most Spectacular Boobs (Fan Award). She also starred in the non-porn film 'Model for Murder: The Centerfold Killer' in 2016.
Married to producer Kevin Moore, she battled bipolar disorder and dissociative identity disorder. On December 5, 2017, at age 23, Ames died by suicide in Camarillo, California, amid cyberbullying following a controversial tweet. Her passing spotlighted mental health challenges in the industry.