Allen's ' girl next door' good looks led to a quick rise in her popularity and eventually she became one of the most popular female performers in adult-entertainment history. She had her own line of videos through Vivid Entertainment with the director Bruce Seven. Allen received the Best New Starlet award in 1985 and is an inductee to the X-Rated Critics Organization (XRCO) and Adult Video News (AVN) halls of fame. Allen signed a contract with Vivid Entertainment founder, Steven Hirsch, making her the first 'Vivid Girl' and beating out the then-underaged Traci Lords. She was later called to testify on Lords' behalf against porn producers she refused, and according to her, was then targeted by the Internal Revenue Service for falsification of a tax return. In February 1986, Allen left adult video in order to establish herself in mainstream films by using her full name.
She appeared in several non-adult films, television shows and interactive movie segments of the Wing Commander computer games.
