[8] Although he claims to have attended the University of Wisconsin at Madison on a basketball scholarship and studied political science, he turned to acting as a career.
Then he appeared in the stage version of Jesus Christ Superstar on Broadway and in a touring production, where he played all the male roles except Peter.
After completing the touring production, Norman Jewison cast him as Peter in his film version of Jesus Christ Superstar.
[2] Following his release from prison, Thomas resumed his career and, in 1983, won the Adult Film Association of America Award for Best Actor in Virginia.
[4] He is a personal friend of Jennifer Ketcham, who recounts Thomas' directing style as relying heavily on aesthetics with "one-hundred-page scripts" and "deftly placed lighting" in order to create shadow effects on his performers' bodies.