Although starting his paid career in adult films, Kerman was a trained actor who won minor parts in such mainstream productions such as The Goodbye Girl (1977) and The Concorde ... Airport '79. In the 1980s, he starred in several Italian horror films, including Ruggero Deodato's Cannibal Holocaust, and Umberto Lenzi's cannibal films Mangiati Vivi and Cannibal Ferox. Still, he remained active in pornography throughout the first half of the decade, with roles including Lawyer Quim in Liquid A$$ets (1982), and Fritz von Holenwohl in the Henri Pachard directed Public Affairs (1984). In 1985, attempting to work solely in mainstream productions, he obtained a Hollywood agent and went on to play supporting roles in television series such as Hill Street Blues and Simon & Simon, In 1987 he appeared in the film No Way Out. He continued to appear in pornographic cinema and was dropped by his agent. Unable to find work and feeling betrayed, he slid into years of depression and substance abuse.