Dennis Parker

Parker died on January 28, 1985. In a tribute to Parker in a 1985 issue of Soap Opera Digest, fellow Edge of Night actor Ernie Townsend wrote "He died in early January after a long and painful illness that took away a talent in its prime." An obituary released in Virginia stated that he died after a "brief illness, survived by his mother, brother, and partner." It was revealed later that he died of an unspecified AIDS-related illness.

Seriously ill by October 1984, Posa was unable to continue working on The Edge of Night and his character was written out of the show. The show was cancelled two months later.

In 1979, using the name Dennis Parker, he recorded a disco album on Casablanca Records titled Like an Eagle. The album was produced by Village People creator and producer Jacques Morali, who was Nichols' boyfriend at the time. He also toured Europe to promote the album. He later appeared in the French film Monique that same year, with "Like an Eagle" being used as its theme song. The title track was released as a single and appears on the box set The Casablanca Records Story (1994).

Posa (still as Dennis Parker) joined the cast of the soap opera The Edge of Night in 1979 as Police Chief Derek Mallory. He continued in the role until 1984.

Nichols' first feature film role was probably in the gay adult film Boynapped! (1975). He subsequently appeared mostly in straight porn films shot in New York, such as Barbara Broadcast, Blonde Ambition, Jail Bait, Maraschino Cherry, Punk Rock, Summer of Laura, Take Off, and Teenage Pajama Party. Posa was credited as Wade Nichols in most of the adult films in which he appeared.

Dennis Posa, aka Dennis Parker, (October 28, 1946 – January 28, 1985), better known by his performance name of Wade Nichols, was an actor and singer who started his career in adult films.