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2003-07-17 08:11:51

There's a string of power players in porn who've slept with AIM's Sharon Mitchell and are now pushing Paul Fishbein, AVN president, and the Free Speech Coalition (FSC), which detests Sharon, to make her the sole testing center in the industry.

AVN editor and publisher Tim Connelly and attorney Paul Cambria, who are both fond of Mitchell and have enjoyed special access to her, are pressuring Fishbein, who has not enjoyed Mitchell as much as his peers. FSC's Bill Lyon can't stand Mitchell.

James DiGiorgio writes on www.simplyjimmyd.com:

"What’s with all this Pulitzer Prize for Journalism-worthy sh-t Setgo.com has been printing about AVN and Tim Connelly and Sharon Mitchell and AIM? It seems Setgo has engaged in guessing game--although Setgo calls it an “investigation”-- as to AVN’s motives in backing AIM. But there’s been almost zero words given to the motives of the other clinics vying for a market share of the jizz biz’s semi-lucrative, blood-testing business and the people who are behind those people. You want to know what’s motivating some of those other people? I’ll tell you in a word: kickbacks. I know that’s an ugly word. And it’s probably a revelation to most of you that in an industry as professionally-run, morally-sound, and squeaky-clean as the jizz biz, anything as sordid and corrupt as graft, grease, or gravy could be an incentive for backing a blood-testing facility, but as I mentioned earlier in this article, “stranger things have happened.”

"And if you think that AVN is getting behind AIM because they’re looking for some payola, think again, Sherlock. AVN certainly doesn’t need the kind of chump-change this represents. Personally, I don’t believe for a second that Fishbein & Company would go out on a legal limb for chump-change. But believe it or not, there are people in this business who make their livings off of chump-change—a little chump-change here, some chump-change there, and after a while it’s at least equal to full-blown change, although those on the receiving end of it still remain chumps. Investigate that, Setgo!"

DUC says: I agree that kickbacks are not the reason for AVN's support of AIM. I agree that some or all of the clinics competing with AIM are no better or even worse. I don't claim AIM is better or worse than competing clinics. Setgo.com doesn't have a dog in this fight. We don't have an agenda about where porn stars should get tested. We're not claiming that certain people in this contest are good guys and other are bad guys. Taking kickbacks or trading sex does not, in and of itself, make you good or bad. Intentionally giving people HIV, now that's evil. But I don't think that happens in heterosexual porn any more, thanks in part to AVN and AIM and Bill Margold and Sharon Mitchell and their critics, on the Internet and off, like Rob Spallone and the Free Speech Coalition.

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After porn star Tricia Devereaux tested positive for HIV in January 1998, leaders of the industry turned to Sharon Mitchell to lead the charge against the infection.

For several months, Mitchell worked with Bill Margold and his PAW (Protecting Adult Welfare) foundation, which was funded by the Free Speech Coalition. They worked out of the same building as Jim South's World Modeling.

Mitchell found that claustrophobic and decided to set up her own non-profit, not under Margold's or the FSC's thumb - Adult Industry Medicine (AIM). Since late 1998, it has been the main site for porn stars to get STD tests as well as receive counseling.

Many porners swear by the place, claiming that the industry's STD problem would be far worse without Mitchell. Since she's taken over the testing and started AIM, HIV cases in the industry have been minuscule.

Numerous big companies have donated thousands of dollars. Adult Video News (AVN) and particularly reporter Mark Kernes have been behind Sharon Mitchell and AIM from day one. AVN can't stand Bill Margold.

The Free Speech Coalition has long had a more ambivalent attitude towards Mitchell and AIM.

Now that Mitchell's former lover Tim Connelly, once the editor of Adam Film World, has assumed the position of editor and publisher of AVN, the industry trade magazine has taken an aggressive stance with AIM.

AVN says AIM should be the industry's sole testing facility. That other facilities are simply not up to snuff.

AVN's Tim Connelly led the charge of coercing the Free Speech Coalition into an unqualified endorsement of AIM as porn's sole testing facility.

AIM has had a high turnover rate from day one. In the last few months, former AIM stalwarts Laurie Holmes and Tony Montana have been ejected from the organization.

The beautiful blonde Stephanie, Bill Amerson's friend, who was taking blood at PAW and AIM in 1998-99, relapsed into using drugs and was fired from AIM. Stephanie's beauty and feminine charms helped AIM secure its first building lease on Ventura Blvd. Stephanie was sleeping with the landlord of the building, Tom Bell, and thus persuaded him to give AIM a lease. The building has since sold.

A source intimately acquainted with AIM says: "I know AIM makes $50 off every HIV test. The lab charges $35 and AIM charges $85.

"The accountant for AIM, Eric Fulton, has pretty much hit on or had sex with every woman who has worked at AIM, particularly the office managers and those who would have to do bookkeeping. If you're pleasing the accountant, he pleases you. Sharon's sent girls over to give him full massages, full releases, happy endings... So of course the books are going to look good."

Fulton, who's fond of blondes, has placed ads in the back of AVN. He has many porn star clients. "He always finds ways to write their taxes off creatively. I have no evidence that he does anything illegal."

Ex says: "Sharon did a presentation on the new regulations on LA County regulations on STD testing for performers at a sex store called The Grand Opening. She got really drunk. She's supposed to be pledged to sobriety."

Sharon systematically pushes people out from working at AIM after they've been there about a year or so. She had a letter thrown on the front yard of Laurie Holmes firing her. Sharon ordered another worker, who she's just fired, to shred all of Laurie's certifications for drawing blood, giving HIV counseling.

Mitchell pushes away anyone who questions her, says a former employee. "Sharon put Laurie on sick leave or vacation, then had that note thrown on her front yard. She either does that or leaves it on people's voicemail.

"She'll accuse her employees of being drunk at work, or on drugs. She'll have them take urine tests. She's drug-tested every worker at different times. She thinks it's them, not her.

"It gets under my skin that Mitchell promotes this life-after-sex work thing while she's still escorting. You can read a review of her escorting on www.theeroticreview.com."

Luke: "Is she still shooting up?"

Ex: "No.

"She's been getting all sorts of plastic surgeries, her eyes lifted, her nose done, stuff implanted in her face, and get a lot of Vicodan for recovery time. She'd ask her employees for Valium.

"She has the DEA number of the doctor in charge of medical stuff at AIM so she can call in prescriptions to a pharmacy. I know she's used it to call in prescriptions for gonorrhea and chlamydia.

"She stays away from illegal drugs. She likes to drink, though not every day, and she probably likes her pills. I don't know how much she drinks. There were occasions when she would indulge. I know she was drinking at another event when she said to an employee, 'I just want to let you know that I did have a drink and I might have another.' That's the way many an alcohol-relapse story starts.

"She pushes people away who know her well enough to say, 'What's wrong with you?'"

Luke: "What about Dr. Steven York?"

Ex: "He goes missing for days at a time. Nobody knows what he's doing. He doesn't seem like he's doing drugs. He has a son who's retarded. I think he's divorced. I think he struggles with depression.

"Dr. York would make housecalls if Mitch threw her back out or was feeling ill. He's a Sharon Mitchell fan. He's a fan of porn stars. He does his best to help the adult industry. He tries to figure out how to medicate people for this or that. He'll work for a reduced fee. He'll say to people with an infection, 'You can pay me less. Just come into the office to get treated.' He has good intentions.

"There was a lot of trash talked about the other testing clinic. That Dr. was writing everyone prescriptions for Valium and Xanax and Vicodan. So porn stars were all going their to test, plus the tests were $10 cheaper. I think he's been shut down."

AIM offers an education fund. The biggest recipient of this fund so far has been Mitchell, with a grant of nearly $5000 to study at for her Masters Degree at The Institute For Advanced Study of Human Sexuality (not exactly the most accredited place). Other grants typically amount to $250 - $500.

Ex: "A $10,000 check was written to AIM but only $5000 was accounted for. Money was coming in. She deposits money at the bank.

"She's good at talking to people to donate into a 501C3 so they can write it off on their taxes. I don't know if these people are in the Mafia or the Mob or what the right word is. But they are her connections from backing in New York. She finds creative ways to get funded.

"I've heard her say that if she doesn't see 600-clients a month, AIM will have to close their doors. She's making $50 profit off each PCR-DNA test. The other tests make $10-$40 profit.

"She's been dating this guy Matt, who is insane. He would stalk her at AIM and stand outside the door and call her repeatedly. He was a manager for rockn'roll. He was always paranoid and jealous. He was always thinking she was going off with somebody else."

Luke: "What about Jim South and his relationship with AIM?"

Ex: "They definitely have different goals. Jim gets mad when AIM staff let the girls know their options, and possibly discouraging the girls from the riskier work that pays more money. Sometimes the AIM staff will emphasize to the girls that there is porn shot with condoms and they can insist on being condoms-only. The girls will then get less work.

"There are different risk levels for disease between oral, vaginal and anal sex. Coming from a healtcare perspective is different from the agent's perspective. Sometimes girls have changed their mind about what they will do after going to AIM and getting educated.

"Despite these tensions, Jim and Sharon have tried hard to keep a good working relationship."

Luke: "Where does Sharon get the money to do all this plastic surgery? According to AVN, she earns only $3300 a month."

Ex: "I know she gets kickbacks when she refers other girls to a couple of plastic surgeons.

"And when she has "Another 40th Birthday Party" ever year, she gets surgery. Either right before the party or right after it. And then we'd hear, oh, we just broke even at that. We didn't make any money. And a lot of the money you are taking in in cash. It's not so much accounted for.

"I think Dr. Colin Hamblin at AIM is the one who does her surgery, or maybe it is just her botox treatments."

Luke: "Is Sharon Mitchell competent to oversee the industry's health?"

Ex: "She has done a lot of good things and set up a good structure but she needs competition. I don't see why she should have a monopoly on testing. People do forge their tests. I don't see how consolidating all testing with AIM will fix things.

"Chloe is a good person. She comes in about once a week. I don't think she sees enough of what Mitch does to understand. Chloe likes to stay out of the office politics.

"AIM's board of directors doesn't meet often. That's normal for a non-profit. They are only required to meet once a year. Many time, only half of the board will show up to a meeting. Sharon tries to appoint people who will be friendly to her point of view.

"I think Maggie Knowles is a little crazy. She's been in and out of AIM a lot. She gets frustrated there and leaves. It's like there are two Maggies. There's the nice Maggie and the one who turns her head and walks away from you.

"Sharon Mitchell and Paul Cambria have some sort of special [physical] relationship."

Luke: "Sexual?"

Ex: "He's got to be a fan or something because any time she has legal stuff, she goes to him. They helped promote the Cambria List [notifying porners of risky material to put on box covers, which could bring down obscenity prosecutions]. Now she has a big law firm that will give her pro-bono work for up to $100,000 if she gets into trouble, which she does often. In my opinion, she's wrongfully terminated several people within the last year. She's been sued for that before and she lost. AIM had to pay Wednesday Tyler about $20,000 for wrongful termination.

"Tony Montana and Laurie Holmes are kinda crazy. They seem to work well as a couple. When Laurie started taking on more responsibility at AIM, she started writing people up for stupid things and forgetting to fax tests. She couldn't balance the cash drawer. Somewhere along the line, Mitch told her that she needed to take a break, and then she was fired.

"Tony did construction work. Tony and Laurie would work tables for AIM at conventions.

"Jayson Marston was on AIM's board of directors. He was starting up outreach to the gay community through AIM. He had a grant. He was going to go into bathhouse and doing counseling and testing. Before the thing got off the ground, Mitch decided to cancel it and back out. This was the second time he left AIM. Mitch drove him crazy.

"Nobody ever gets a salary or knows how many hours a week they will be working at AIM. She changes it month to month."

Luke: "How good is the testing at AIM?"

Ex: "It's valid. It's run through labs with a CLIA license."

Luke: "How did you find out Mitchell was still working as an escort?"

Ex: "From www.theeroticreview.com. Someone got a password and went in and looked. I don't know what the level is of what she does.

"She doesn't talk about it. She'd say, 'Oh, I'm going to get my hair cut in Beverly Hills.' It was clear that she was driving across town to turn a trick, which is another source of untraceable, unreportable money. She is not hurting for money.

"I remember after Marc Wallice tested positive for HIV, she said something like, 'I'm sure he's ok. We just had sex.'

"She doesn't sexually harass her staff but she's sexually inappropriate in a lot of ways. She'd flash her skirt and show her new underwear. It was scary.

"The staff would have to take any attitude from the performers and from Mitch and from agents. It wasn't a pleasant place to work.

"Companies would promise to pay for the tests of certain performers and then never pay.

"Rob Spallone doesn't owe AIM any money."

Luke: "How do they feel about AIM at the Free Speech Coalition?"

Ex: "I know they're anti-AIM. They would constantly butt heads with AIM. Mitch doesn't like you if you are not going to play her game and be on her side.

"Mitch would talk a lot about Bill Margold and his Protecting Adult Welfare (PAW). She said he would counsel the girls and get inappropriate with the girls. He'd try to have sex with them. He's old. He says, 'Hey kids.' I'm sure he didn't mean it in a creepy way but it seemed like he was a creepy old man who just wanted to hit on girls who're trying to get out of the industry."

An email to Bill Margold requesting an interview was not answered.

Luke: "Who were the most obnoxious people you dealt with?"

Ex: "T.T. Boy and Roy Garcia. Roy is short-tempered and controlling of the girls. He wouldn't want us to say anything to his girls. It was like he was too protective of them."

Roy Garcia replies: HA! That’s funny, I bring them tons of business, make them lots of money, I pay for the talents test, and they talk sh-t. Must be Laurie Holmes… the first day I met her, she hung up on me twice while I was trying to get a test result after spouting: “Do you know who I am??? I’m John Holmes Ex…” I was like: Hey lady, I don’t care who you are, put Sharon on the phone.” I bring Magazine models to a supposed medical center that tries to scare the girls - and talk them out of doing a Magazine layout because of a Chlamydia scare? I’ve lost a bunch of girls to their pre traumatic porn “Counseling sessions” and they call me controlling??? Whatever. Myself & my talent see real doctors over @ West Oaks Urgent Care 818-709-5700, I suggest everyone else follows suit.

Tim Connelly writes on avn.com: "AVN strongly supports AIM as the only adult industry testing service and with 100% industry support, AIM would be able to offer the first PCR-DNA and STD panel test for FREE as well as a counseling session. In our view, anybody in the adult industry who doesn’t support this goal, is creating an environment where situations like this current HIV crisis can more easily happen."

LT writes: On Star E. Knight...interesting how JKP says: "we mutually decided she should get a boob job". Ask her how "mutual" this was. How much of it was her say, how much was Bobby F.'s?

Jimmy D. writes about "kickbacks" how about the kickbacks on the boob jobs? How many homes, cars and pools has that financed?...and at who's expense?

And why does Tim Connelly use the term "situations like this current HIV crisis" Has the industry hushed up some more HIV positives?...why use that phrase?