Monday, June 7th, 1999

Media rep for Dutch pornographer Charlie Geerts, Hans Knoop, writes Luke:

As the deadline I put in my earlier message has expired without an editorial correction and apology I will feel obliged to take the neccesary steps.

Instead of getting back to me (as you mentioned in your reply) you published another paragraph about my client and his daughter, once again containing slander. I want you to know that Betty Geerts is not involved in Scala at all and that Mr. Charles Geerts has no ties with organised crime at all. In fact he has no police record and never appeared in any Dutch court as an accused. He is not running Scala behind the scene and does not maintain any ties with the present management or owners of that company.

My client has instructed me to take legal action against you. I will fly to the US shortly to take the necessary steps and will call a press conference to expose your slanderous accusations.

Ramsey on Tiffany Mynx

Ramsey writes on RAME: Luis Cypher (Mr. Jessica Darlin) justifies his threats against Torris by claiming to be a good husband who must defend his wife against anything bad. But where was Luis Cypher when Jessica was under contract at Elegant Angel? I read Jessica's interview last year (by Roger Pipe) and she had a lot to say about her time at Elegant Angel. I quote:

"Patrick (Collins) has ruined a pretty fair portion of my career".

"He (Patrick Collins) decided, only god knows why, to cut all my hair off and dye it red. Not only did i loose a lot of my fans, but it really took a lot of my confidence away."

"There was also a total lack of respect shown towards me, Patrick (Collins) flat out lied to me over and over. When my husband would leave the room during meetings, Pat would yell at me like i was his kid, but he'd never try that in front of my husband".

So where are the threats against Patrick Collins? I mean Torris only wrote thing about Jessica but Patrick did things to her personal but i guess that's ok by Luis Cypher. Maybe Luis Cypher was afraid of getting his ass kicked by Dale Jordan. I'm only writing this because Luis Cypher wrote lies about the girl i worship, Tiffany Mynx. Maybe now Luis Cypher and Extreme Associates will understand the fact that Tiffany Mynx is not just a pornstar, Tiffany Mynx is a religion.

Luis Cypher responds: "see your still talking from that side of the fence.there were never bad words between me dale or patrick collins..she didn't leave elegant for personal reasons.it was all business.i didn't work at elegant so i didn't have a say for how her videos were planned or shot.the hair issue is still a tuff one.it was never meant with harm behind it because she was still contracted there,but it didn't work out.of course when she left it became a bigger issue.thank god for extreme and the chance they gave her a day after.elegant was business,but this is personal.you commented that i was afraid of dale jordan,but if you ever get the chance to see me understand that the most dangerous person is the one who doesn't fear anything. actually not true,dentists scare the s--- outta me!.dale and i never had a problem.if we did i'm sure one of us would of dealt with it by now."

Linda Thoren, Katja Kean

Sin City writes: Sin City contract girls Katja Kean and Linda Thoren brought some much-anticipated Scandinavian sizzle to the recent Cannes Film Festival, stealing the spotlight from the other girls in attendance, even the Americans, and dazzling the jaded European media. Both Danish and German TV did features on Kean, and RTL, the German television station, followed her around the festival, accompanied by a videographer on roller blades.

If Katja Kean exemplified Sin City's upscale, sophisticated side, Linda Thoren brought a barely-post-adolescent fizz to the proceedings. She posed for photos, and in her spare time, hooked up with Chuck Martino to lend her sensual presence to another one of his unspeakably raw features. Hot Video magazine, the premiere European adult industry publication, pursued both girls aggressively and did a photo shoot of them to accompany their coverage of the annual event.

"They were both were very well received by everyone," said Josie Faria-Snyder, Sin City's Director of International Sales. "We were very proud of them. The press fell in love with them and couldn't get enough of either. We are overjoyed to have Katja and Linda under contract."

Both Kean and Thoren will be in Los Angeles in July to attend the party Sin City will be holding to celebrate our new offices and to appear at the Sin City Booth at VSDA. Each will perform in two separate features during their visit. Thoren will appear in Midas Touch. Kean will appear in Michael Raven's big budget epic Underworld. In the meantime, Kean can be seen in the July, 1999, High Society in a photo layout shot by the esteemed Suze Randall.

We would like to congratulate Kate Moore on her Best New European Starlet Award at the 1999 Hot D'Or Awards. The world may have just discovered Moore, but we recognized her talent long ago. The brunette sex kitten appears in our recently-released Body Language and her photo graces the box cover.

Book Says Russ Tried to Whack Walter

A 1998 book alleges that VCA owner Russ Hampshire tried to hire a Mafia hitman to whack his partner of the time Walter Gernert.

Hampshire totally denies the story.

I quote from page 134 of The Animal in Hollywood: Anthony Fiato's Life in the Mafia by John L. Smith, published 1998 by Barricade Books, New York. Fiato:

"After I bailed out Harvey Ross [aka Harvey Rosenthal, long time employee of Russ Hampshire who died of cancer in 1994, thief, assisted in the 1982 murder of actor Frank Christi with pornographers and dupers Alan Betts and Ronald Coe who are associates of Robert Zeichick aka Puggy, criminal, thief, pornographer], he started coming to the club regularly and told me all about the pornographers he knew. Now Harvey's acting like one of my crew… He tells me he's working for a place called the American Video Library for Russ Hampshire, who Harvey says wants to have somebody killed. Russ realized who I [LA mafia enforcer Anthony Fiato] was and knew me by reputation, and he's also good friends with Michael Esposito. Russ knew that Harvey [Rosenthal] was friendly with me, and he [Russ Hampshire] brought up this deal to Harvey that his partner, Walter [Gernert], was throwing away the business by doing so much cocaine. Harvey came back and told me that Russ had told him he wanted to have his partner [Walter Gernert] killed.

"So I send Harvey to Radio Shack for a seventy-eight-dollar pocket recorder and arrange a meeting with Russ. I told Harvey, 'Get him [Hampshire] alone again and get him to repeat what he'd said. Harvey goes to the meeting, follows him into the men's room, and asks him if he was really sure he wanted to go through with this. Harvey gets him to say he wants his motherf---ing partner dead and is willing to pay Anthony fifty-thousand to do the job. Half up front and half when it's done. We take the half up front.

"After Harvey met with him, we made another meet, this time at the Tail O' Pop on La Cienega [Blvd]. Harvey, Puggy, John Di Mittia and I were at the meeting. When Russ walked in I could see the fear on his face. He only expected to be meeting me [Fiato] and Harvey [Rosenthal]. Russ was carrying a briefcase and sat down. He appeared to know everybody at the table. I told Harvey to take out the tape and play it for him.

"Russ's eyes almost popped out of his head like a frog. I gave him the tape. I said, 'Here, you're lucky this came to my attention because this motherf---er Harvey was going to blackmail you.' He was so happy, he slid the briefcase over in the booth and handed over twenty-five thousand cash, just like that. We're not going to kill anybody for this guy. And we don't have to. He can't go to the cops. He can't do anything. It was sweet.

"When he [Hampshire] left, we just laughed. I'd had Harvey make six copies of that f---ing tape. Russ kept paying for two years until finally after the fifth or sixth time he turned his pockets inside out and said, 'All I've got left is lint. Tell Walter, tell the cops. Tell anybody you want. I don't care what you do.' "At that point we'd taken thousands from the guy and we didn't need to hurt anyone."

Luke found this story 12/24/98 and immediately phoned Russ at home. Russ completely denied it but asked me to keep it off my site. I said I would hold off running it. I needed to investigate it more.

My emails to the author, Las Vegas Review Journal columnist John Smith, went unreturned. Over the past six months, I've asked various porners about the Russ - Walter story. Several said they had heard of it, most said they had not. Russ's friends did not believe the story and Russ's enemies did.

When I relayed this story to Walter Gernert at the January 1999 CES, he appeared genuinely shocked and said he had not heard of it. At the time, Walter and I were having an intense heart-to-heart conversation in Russ Hampshire's office in the VCA CES booth. Russ stood outside looking through the window to make sure nothing bad happened to me.

Adult Video News and numerous other "porn journalists" also know of this book's allegations but they don't have the balls to run the story. I held off for so long in part to check out the facts but mainly because I felt deeply obliged to Hampshire for various favors. Eventually, I decided I could no longer live with myself if I refused to publish this story, which I would've immediately published about anyone else.

I do not know that the story in ANIMAL IN HOLLYWOOD about Russ is true but many of the other facts in the book check out. Anthony Fiato, the book's subject, has played a significant role in the convictions of more than 50 members of the Mafia due to the accuracy of his testimony.

Hampshire refers to Fiato as "a rat."

I do know that Walter Gernert did have severe cocaine problems during the 1970s and 1980s. I do know that Russ and Walter along with Chuck Bernstein were arrested and eventually convicted in the MIPORN sting for shipping illegally duplicated mainstream movies across state lines.

Russ has mellowed over the years, but during the 1980s he was essentially one of the Dark Brothers, along with Greg Brown and Walter Gernert. Russ was known as a "bad boy."

A porn journalist writes Luke: "We should start our own movement. Porn writers who don't work for AVN and never get laid! To raise awareness to the stars how while the pen is mightier than the sword, it never hurts to grease the sword once in a while."

Marc Simms Does Darian Cainey

While at the Erotica Expo in NYC I [Marc Simms] came across this beautiful brunette woman who handed me her card. It said, "Come Play With Me In The Privacy Of Your Own Home at www.dariancaine.com. On the flip side was a stunning black and white photograph of Darian on a bed in a very sexy position.

Being wiped out that day from covering the event and interviewing Porn Stars and such, I neglected to stop and really talk to her even though I asked her if I could take her picture. When I got home I visited her web site and my interest grew. Here was a person blooming in the industry like a flower and I didn't stop by to sniff the scent. So I made it one of my priorities to get an interview with Darian and find out who is this exotic beauty on her web site. After some cyber tag we finally were able to have this interview that I am happy to share with you all now.

What do you find sexy?

Women: leather, rubber, exotic looks, eyes, how a person carries himself or herself, a woman's voice(no squeaky voices, raspy) confidence, glossy lips Men: dark, rough looking, chest hair, deep voice, rough hands, inhibition, distinct character.

Are you a XXX Porn Star?

Yes and no. The stuff I have done so far have only featured me with women, and I would prefer it to stay that way. I'm not too sure if bondage films are considered XXX

Why do you choose to live in NYC if you are a XXX porn star?

I don't live in NYC. But I can always fly to California for more mainstream XXX. NYC offers a lot more fetish opportunities.

What films can you be seen in? Adam & Eve's DaDa House: The Seven Spiritual Laws of Sex, I didn't feature, but I am told I will be in their next sequels. I have also been in 2 RSVP Videos and bondage films for Stanton Archives, and for my own web site. I'm just beginning and I've been doing this since last August.

What is your favorite sexual position?

I like doggy style because it hits all my spots.

Are you only into women or are you bisexual?

Bisexual, men are for marrying women are for fun.

What do you like about being in the Adult Business and what do you dislike?

Sex. Eversince I was young, I have always liked to be naked. After my first orgasm that's all I ever thought about. I love meeting beautiful women, freedom (it's not a 9 to 5 job), and I get to be the person I imagine in my mind. So far I dislike nothing, I haven't been in it long enough.

Your take on the First Amendment as it relates to your web site and career?

Freedom of speech is important to everyone, without it we are denied our true selves. In this country, even with the first amendment we still fear to be who we are because of other people's morality judgements. This is wrong, and we need to be accepting to each and everyone's individual freedom.

Are you a career performer or is this a gig to help you reach another goal?

Everything is to reach a higher goal, but I found the most fun way I could for me to achieve it.

Where are you from?

Amherst, Mass

How did you become or get into erotica?

I started dancing after high school to put myself through college, and ended up enjoying it so much that I wanted to go further, and get my whole life into the Adult Entertainment Industry.

Are you your own Web Master?

No, I have a business that makes adult sites, and a partner who is the Web Master.

Who took your photos?

There are a lot of photographers who did my photos, but most were done by Greg Fabian.

Do you have many fans and how do you deal with the recognition? I'm a loser, no one likes me :)

Does your family know what you do?

Yes, my family is the most important backing I have and I wouldn't have gotten this far without their pushing me towards my dreams.

Are you single?

I live with 3 guys, does that count?

Do you work out or are you naturally beautiful and sexy?

Yes, I go bike riding whenever I possibly can, dancing also keeps me in shape, and I eat really well.

What is the tattoo just above you ass?

Old Egyptian hieroglyph, it stands for Life, Eternity, Everlasting, and Desire all the things I want out of life.

Describe the kinkiest thing you have ever done?

That would have to be when I got off on a handsome car in Central Park with tons of business people on lunch break watching me for the playboy channel. I don't know if it was kinky, but it was one of the wildest things I have ever done.

Do you dominate men & women or are you submissive too?

I enjoy both.

Ever dildo train a man? Yes.

How old are you? 22.

Do you enjoy giving and receiving Oral Sex? Do you like facials?

Hell yeah. Where can a person rent one of your videos or see you perform in person? a video store, my web site(http://www.dariancaine.com and http://www.darksideofdariancaine.com) and you can see me dancing at Stiletto in Carlstadt, NJ.

How do you choose your mates to play?

I have a good eye for that. I've never regretted anything, and all my experiences were what I expected. Darian Darian Darian

Laurence O'Toole's Pornocopia

British author Laurence O'Toole, his real name, writes to Luke: If you recall, you emailed me early in 1998 after you saw my piece in The Face (UK) about 70s porn. You asked details about the publication of my book, said you'd like to list it on your web site. You were all enthusiasm and charm, in other words. You never did list my book, as far as I am aware, but I noticed that you occasionally made a few swipes at it. (I am a fairly regular visitor to the site - we love gossip in the UK).

And then the other day, on a visit to your site, like any sad author, I checked the 'books' page, and saw you had appended a scathing review that Pornocopia received in The Times (UK) about a year ago. That's the only mention my book gets. I think I smell a rat, but maybe I'm being unfair. It's possible you may not be aware that my book received numerous glowing reviews - especially here in the UK - and the one from the Times was, to my knowledge, the only bad one.

In the interests of fair play, even handedness, ethics, good practice, all of those attributes I know you value so highly - things you are quick to berate porners for falling short on - I thought I'd offer you a quote file for Pornocopia. Also to mention that a new, updated, extended edition is due out in the Autumn of this year, in the UK, and early spring 2000 in the US. You might like to read these quotes. Who knows, you might even want to use a few next to the anti porn tirade from The Times, to even the score a little. Of course, it's your web site, and you may do with it as you please. So, I'm not holding my breath.

I know this is a small matter in the great porn cosmos, but it sort of matters to me. So, what do you say, Luke, as a man who proclaims at length about his ongoing pursuit of moral excellence, here's your chance to be a mensch. Are you going to take it?

Plugs for Pornocopia

'No shortage of books ... about the porn industry, but Laurence O'Toole is head and shoulders above them for research, felicity of phrase, and liberal attitude... Excellent.' Time Out

'Brilliantly argued' Sight & Sound

'Packed with revelations about the porn industry.. intelligent and humane ... ' The Sunday Times

'An illuminating new study of the [porn] industry.' Frank

'coolly observational... clear-eyed... has explored the subject from every conceivable angle, and all the arguments for and against are succinctly rehearsed.' Times Literary Supplement

'A good snapshot of a culture in crisis' i-D '... much interesting interview material, of the current scenes in America and Britain ... In a climate of increasing Puritanism and a country where images, legal in the bulk of the Western world, are prohibited and policed, this may be just what the debate needs.' Empire

'This overview of the state of porn combines good, hard journalism with critical analysis. O'Toole wants to overturn the tired cliches of the porn debate.... this is a timely, witty look at the world's biggest, least discussed industry.' Esquire

'It seems ironic... that a society that pullulates daily with sexual issues should need another book on the subject and that it should actually prove to be both a useful and instructive one... Writing about sex is usually either couched in doctoral-level theoretical jargon, or is dim, raunchy and sticky with that famous Italian suppository, innuendo. A clear, comprehensive history of the pornographic image in the West, providing a guide to the laws and the porn wars, was badly needed. O'Toole answers all possible questions and clarifies many shamefully murky areas.' New Statesman

'... an enthralling study... O'Toole dares to take his subject seriously.' Neon '... the skin trade receives little serious coverage, which makes English critic Laurence O'Toole's Pornocopia - an astute look at the past, present and possible future of "adult entertainment" - a welcome book.... In-depth chapters on the history of porn and its opponents... set the stage for the book's centrepiece, a well-reported look at the adult-film industry in the San Fernando Valley.' Time Out, New York

'Smart, engaging and possessed of a becoming light touch, Laurence O'Toole deftly knocks every anti-porn argument on its head... ' Salon

'For decades, the intellectual argument about the porn business has tended to be one-sided. It's always been hard to find anyone willing not just to stand up for porn on principle but to positively identify themselves as a fan. Well, take a bow Mr Laurence O'Toole, a man unafraid to speak up for the charms of The Devil in Miss Jones and Buttman's Inferno . Pornocopia is both an excellent history of mass-market hardcore porn from the Sixties to the Nineties and a well-argued case for the need for less rather than more censorship.' GQ

'Do not be afraid.... O'Toole's book is entertaining and accessible... A little bit of history, a little bit of a road map, and a lot of excellently-strung-together words... for those who might want a bit of brainy validation to go with their genital stimulation.' AVN

'Laurence O'Toole has produced a fascinating examination of the history, definitions and realities of pornography in the US and UK... women especially should read this book. Pornocopia is an important book in the ongoing debate about human sexuality and the policing that surrounds it. ' Gay Community News

'... it's nice to find someone else who's realised that porn isn't the ultimate sin.' Forum

'Pornocopia is a highly readable, sane and non-judgemental tour of the entire landscape of the modern porn industry . Drawing refreshingly upon interviews with actors, producers and consumers, O'Toole delivers a humane indictment of the state's passion, especially strong in the UK, for censorship and overregulation.' Andrew Ross

''... amusing, very readable ... excellent polemic' Fetish Times

'Hardcore videos, CD-ROM porn games, online sex chat, "teledildonics", "wargasms" and cybersex: there are so many ways to have a handjob these days, and Laurence O'Toole has written about them all in his new book. His quirky history of pornography manages to combine some hilarious and salacious observations on the sex industry with a more serious plea against censorship. O'Toole's main contention that the vast majority of pornography is harmless fun is controversial, but persuasive.' The Big Issue

'There has been a mini-flurry of books about the porn industry over the last year of so... Laurence O'Toole's Pornocopia is the finest to emerge so far by a long way.... Given the current government obsession with portraying Britain as a thrusting, forward looking, cool nation, [Pornocopia 's] a timely reminder that we are, in fact, a rather sad, small minded, bigoted and repressed little island.' Flesh and Blood

'... fact packed, intelligent overview of porn from the 19th Century to 90s cyberspace ... Pornocopia demonstrates, porn can, like lesbianism, provide an escape from boring heterosexual sex.' Diva

'This is a brave book.... demolishes many myths and much media disinformation about the sex biz swiftly, wittily and effectively while pointing out ways to progress the debate... an excellent overview of XXX today.' Desire

'Based on interviews and extensive research covering Britain and the US, this timely study of modern porn and its evolution is a revelation ... O'Toole has a way with anecdotes, knows a good joke and takes no prisoners ... ' The List

'[Pornocopia] offers a description and celebration of hetero porn that transcends all the usual value systems... What makes this book rather different from most anything else I have read on the subject, is not only Mr O'Toole's enthusiasm, but also the basis on which he argues his case.... how often does one read a book, nearly four hundred pages long, that can be summed up as, better porn for wanking please? If that's not original, I don't know what is.' Carlo Gebler, Fortnight

'A piece of cultural criticism that gathers much of its strength from listening to the voices of fans.... O'Toole is smart and witty in discoursing on how porn is imagined, manufactured, and used. And while puncturing many of the most persistent myths about porn (like the ridiculous notion of porn addiction), he makes a solid case about how the prosecution of porn has made for some of the most flagrant -- and uncontested -- violations of the right to free speech.' The Boston Phoenix

'... brave and accomplished ... porn, like drugs, should be discussed in a reasonable and open-minded way. Just like mature adults are supposed to. This book goes a long way to achieving that.' D-tour