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Sunday, May 15, 2005

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Alterna-Porn Rises Again, But Does Anybody Want It?

Ernest Greene writes on Nina.com:

Once again, we hear the trumpets announce yet another porn Nouvelle Vague, stirred by yet another generation of black-T-shirt-wearing, chain-smoking, whey-faced bohos. This may be news to the Style editors at The Gray Lady, but old-timers like myself have seen this all before. Every so often, some film-school types sitting around their cold-water flats passing a bong get the brilliant inspiration to make porn that's - you know, like, more hip - than the standard commercial fare offered by major porn companies. Of course, each new batch of wannabe auteurs thinks they've discovered fire, when in fact, they're just reinventing the wheel, only with corners this time.

Anybody here old enough to remember a movie called Cafe Flesh? It came out in 1984, the year Nina and I both got in the XXX biz, and it caused quite a sensation at the time. Made by a very creative film-school grad (that part isn't new either) known as Rince Dream, who had previously directed the very successful and slick mainstream porn flick Night Dreams, Cafe Flesh was an ambitious attempt to wed explicit sex with what was than known as "Underground Film" style. The result was a rather grim dystopian fantasy in which a jaded audience quarantined from sex by some future plague (rather prescient, that part) sits around a theater, gloomily watching a small troup of non-quarantined performers working their way through a menu of desultory sexual combinations. I always though it was Snore Village, but some uptown critics made a fuss over it and as a result it played the midnight art-house circuit for a number of years, making some pretty good mainstream money for its distributor, VCA.

Though there was a Cafe Flesh 2 made many years later for the same company, it's a much more conventional porno vid without the artistic pretensions of the original. So if CF 1 was such a phenom, why didn't it spawn a whole raft of imitators? Bet you can guess the answer. While the mainstream theatrical release was a money maker, the home video version was a flopola with the regular XXX audience. The sex in it wasn't all that hot, and the surrounding stuff was just depressing and cheesy and campy. In short, the key market for porn just didn't want it.

Down the years since, other directors and other companies have headed up this same dead-end highway. Greg Dark, after making some energetic f--- flicks in the beginning (including the best amalgam of alterna-porn and the regular stuff in the genre's troubled history, New Wave Hookers) was eventually reduced to self-parody with dreary hokum like The Psychosexuals, populated by guys in pig masks and girls in tacky devil costumes. Dark sold some tape, to be sure, with the help of Evil Angel's mighty marketing machine, but after a few years, he and the audience both got tired of his shtick and he moved on to making music videos, for which he was tempermentally better suited to begin with.

After Dark's departure, mainstream porno companies pretty much shunned alterna-porn, which nonetheless enjoyed a sort of half-life in the cultish world of Mondo Video stuff, like Maria Beatty's Fritz Langian fetish shorts (The Elegant Spanking, The Black Glove) and other basement tapes you never heard of, much less saw.

But everything old is new again, if you wait long enough, and now we're seeing yet another onset of goth-tinged, wish-we-were-making-Marilyn-Manson-videos-but-we-aren't-good-enough projects, both from independents like the folks described in the NYT piece, and from real porn companies that ought to know better, including VCA, now owned by LFP. Though VCA wunderkindt Eon McKai's first number, Art School Sluts, did some pretty good numbers based on media buzz, A.S.S. 2 broke its leg coming out of the gate and his latest release, Kill Girl Kill is regarded as pretty much of a turkey by the luckless individuals trying to sell it. Likewise, LFP's Taboo video line (which happily bears no resemblance whatsoever to the magazine I edit) has been, to put it very charitably, a major bottom-line disappointment.

It would appear that heavy, black eye-shadow, acres of tattooed skin, smoke machines, strobes and people f---ing in piles of bleeding meat just don't add up to boffo box-office. The motivation for trying this approach is clear enough. Mainstream producers are worried about the aging demographic of its current audience and eager to bring in a younger crowd. However, in attempting to do so, they ignore the basic motivation the propels anyone of any age to buy or rent a porn vid - sexual arousal. If the audience wants MTV, they'll watch MTV. If they want to jerk off, they'll watch Rocco. If the younger porn consumer has an identifiable market signature, it's an affinity for the hyper-realism of gonzo, which has some of the same raw, voyeuristic appeal of reality TV, which has caught on big-time with exactly the consumers these misguided artistes are hoping to attract. The very in-your-face artlessness of the subjective-camera-Interior-Room approach grabs a lot more eyeballs than labored attempts to pander to self-consciously hip artistic sensibilities.

The clue to why all these labors are doomed is contained in this trenchant observation from the NYT article: "People don't want punk porn," he said. "There's just no market for it because that's not what porn is about. Porn is not cool," in the words of Vice magazine founder Gavin McInnes.

Porn is not cool. Nor is it hip. It can never be these things, because porn utterly lacks the defining attribute of hipness - irony. Because the appeal of porn is explicit, immediate and visceral, it can never achieve the distance and detachment necessary for irony. If something is ironic, by definition, it is one remove from the lizard-brain, stimulus-response formulation from which porn derives its kick. You just can't be all that cool with a hard-on. My friend and colleague Bob Stoller used to say that laughter was the enemy of arousal, and though a smug, hip smirk isn't quite a guffaw, it's much closer to that response than to the rapid-heartbeat, sweaty-palms, can't-look-away reaction upon which porn depends to attract the consumer.

Is this a bad thing? Not to me. Porn is curiously innocent in this way, and appealing for that very reason. It doesn't and can't try to be anything but what it is without self-destructing. If you try to make it about something rather than letting it be the literal experience it's meant to be, you sacrifice the whole dynamic that generates its power to mesmerize. Take one step back from it and the effect fades, leaving only those low-rent production values to occupy the viewer's attention.

Certainly, there will be enough SuicideGirls fans out there to make a small dollar for Ms. Angel and her friends (though everybody sounds typically art-school underpaid to me), any major porn producer who seizes on this as a trend and tries to jack their niche is going to regret it on the bottom line.

Ultimately, insincere porn, whatever its pretensions, is sure to fail, and that is one of the greatest charms of the medium as far as I'm concerned. Once again, I return to the advice Bruce Seven once gave me:

"I don't give a f--- what anybody says, behind every great video, there's one guy's hard-on."

This simple truth is etched in the brain of every successful pornographer. It's a statement of mission objective that must be respected by anyone wanting to turn a buck in this business. There will always be Alterna-Porn, and by definition, it will always be the kind that's defined by its very nature as a minority taste. It's what it's alternative to that will always constitute the working model for porn as the rest of us know it.

Reflections Upon Turning 39

I think that I shall never see
A sight as lovely as a bukkake

PamelaPeaks.com

Adultvideoeditor emails:

With many escort agencies and websites coming under the radar of various levels of law enforcement, Pam Peaks continues to thumb her nose.

Here are two of the many ads Pam Peaks has out: Here and here.

Pam Peaks does not hold a escort or agency license in the County of Los Angeles. Pam Peaks does not hold ANY form/type of business license in the county of Los Angeles.

Felicia Fox On Miss Nude World Contests

Felicia emails:

Contests like the "Miss Nude World" are a joke, and they've always been a joke. Young feature dancers who are new to the feature circuit rely on pageants and contests such as these to acquire "titles," which they then use to try and increase their booking rates on the dance circuit...many then try to market themselves as "porn stars," hoping to draw the bigger porn chick paychecks, whether or not they've actually done any films or even have any desire to do XXX.

As a new touring feature entertainer, back in 1999 I quickly figured out that the majority of those hokey pageants and contests are rigged, so I decided to do XXX films instead, and I increased my name recognition value through my film, television and magazine work and steady touring.

Any girl who pays to enter one of these things is in for a rude awakening, I'm afraid. The only one I might even consider, if I was a newbie, would be the Nudes-a-Poppin' Festival, held each year in Roselawn Indiana at the Ponderosa Sun Club.

A Cry To Penny Porsche

ChaimAmalek: Penny@pennyporsche.com. Why can't journalist Duke Floored obtain a REAL email address for Penny?
ChaimAmalek: The one you gave is strictly for wanker fans.
ChaimAmalek: This is a permanent error; I've given up. Sorry it didn't work out. "Sorry, I wasn't able to establish an SMTP connection"
ChaimAmalek: You gave me a bad email address for Penny.
ChaimAmalek: You are afraid of her tits.
ChaimAmalek: Must be a word for when a man fears being smothered to death by a woman's breasts.
ChaimAmalek: What kind of a porn journalist can't get a porners email address?

Personally, I think Duke Floored and you would make a cute power-couple in the world of Southern California cinema. But - and don't tell him that I said this - he is really very shy around women, and does not have the self-confidence to approach you directly, hence my intercession on his behalf.

As for me, I am a spiritual adviser to Duke who lives in New York City and knows that with the right woman at his side, Duke might yet do great things with his life. And you might be that woman. Chaim Amalek

Dave writes: "The email address that was on Penny's site penny@pennyporschexxx.com goes to her pimp Pamela Peaks and Penny doesn't even see it."

Tanya Danielle On America's Work Ethic

In the Sunday paper this morning an author of a new book is quoted as saying that she returned to live with her parents because she had no job and no interest in working at a local coffeeshop. The reason that irritated me is because I hear people making similar comments all the time. It is as if they think there is shame in an honest job. They should feel lucky that they live in a country with so many jobs and such abundant opportunity. When did it become preferable for people to remain unemployed rather than take a paying job that may not be the position of their dreams? If they are determined to do so they will eventually get the job of their dreams and there's no excuse for being a lazy sloth in the meantime.

I can understand people wanting to live with their parents, but I just can't fathom why able-bodied adults choose to sit on their butts and let their parents pay all the bills. My parents and I never got along, but in a way I'm glad that I never had the option of returning to their home and sitting idle. I've worked full-time since I was 17 because there was always that specter of the homeless shelter looming in my future as the alternative.

Devon Michaels

From Danni.com:

Having already appeared in Danni's Casting Call, our Sexual Prime E-Zine, a Model of the Day twice, In Bed With Danni as a host and now as a guest... well it was high time we gave Devon Michaels her own model page, don't you think? Born in Chicago but truly a Southern girl at heart, Devon just doesn't seem to be making it fair for the other models out there! She's just got too much work under her belt. Leave some for the rest, will ya Devon? But seriously, check out her credits: she's a feature dancer that dances nationwide, she shoots softcore and catfight videos, she's been in nudie mags like Cheri and Swank and fitness mags like Pump and Iron Man. She loves reading and writing, working out, playing piano, getting massages, and she's big on kissing. But if you really want to impress her, cook her a great meal. The best way to this lady's heart is through her toned and taut stomach!

Devon: 'Wow, You're Quick'

Devon Michaels writes:

Hiya--- that was quick and look at you suddenly giving me all this press. Thanks baby--- but that whole southern girl at heart----ick--don't know where danni.com got that! I'm such a Yankee--- pro-choice, pro-porn, not a friggin racist-- and way too semi-vegetarian,semi-PC for the south-- I drive a Prius for godsakes! I lived in NC for 3 years and found it to be quite racist and backward thinking---not everyone, but too many of em and too vocal about it--- midwesterners keep their mouths shut.

Here's a book--- probably the only book that had a truly profound effect on me--which is kinda lame because I've really read hundreds, including all those required lit. books, but books never shaped me, life shaped me. "The Five People You Meet in Heaven"-(-by the Tuesdays with Maurie guy). I got divorced and my father, who I was really close to, died, all within a year, and someone gave it to me. Very non- porn answer--not sexy at all, but a great little book that gave me a lot of peace.

Running with Scissors (Augusten Burroughs) and I Know this Much is True (Wally Lamb) are two of my favs-- I like to know people are crazier than me.

The Story of O-- because I'm so ridiculously submissive and find it to be incredibly hot-- I'm sure I'll be masturbating a lot on the island-- it's demented, but it's just a story,OR Claiming of Sleeping Beauty but not both because I'd just play with myself all day long Something by John Updike--Couples or maybe Rabbit Run-- I've loved his stuff forever. and I'd probably have to take Dreams of My Father by Barrack Obama-- I just started reading it and it bugs me to not finish a book. It's pretty decent so far, and besides, I have the Story of O if I get tired of it....

Ok, I'm going to go put my tits in strangers faces.

Devon Michaels calls me Friday afternoon.

Devon: "So what are you doing?"

Duke: "I'm trying to finish a column."

Devon: "Do you want me to call back later?"

Duke: "No. You are the solution to my problems."

Devon: "Normally I'm the root of the problem."

Duke: "When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?"

Devon: "A writer."

Duke: "Why?"

Devon: "Because it was my only skill. I was only a kid so I didn't realize I had the whole stripping thing.

"English was my easiest class. That's probably why I wanted to be a writer."

Duke: "Did you have a Persian husband?"

Devon: "I've had two. Neither of them were Persian. One was gay. The other one was a big white guy."

Duke: "What kind of crowd did you hang out with in highschool?"

Devon: "Mostly the jocks. I was a cheerleader and on the track team and a little bit of volleyball."

Michaels grew up in Illinois. She now lives in Peoria, where she owns two strip clubs (Fantasy Land and Elliots). "Peoria is like a mecca of strip clubs."

Devon lost her virginity at 15. "I was really little. I ran all the time. I was 90-pounds. It didn't quite fit. I learned to give a blowjob that same night because he couldn't get his dick in me. The next weekend we finally had sex. He was big.

"I'm the same height, 5'2" and I weigh 115-pounds. I'm 38D-24-34.

"I come from a strict home. But my parents were also open-minded. They went to college in the sixties. They were real liberal, yet they were strict. You could do whatever you wanted to do but they certainly didn't expect dancing and porn. It's nothing they would've chosen for me but they've always been cool about it. They don't know about porn. My father died a couple of years ago. My mother doesn't know. She might know but she doesn't say anything."

Duke: "It wasn't because your father found out you were a porn star and then he..."

Devon: "No. They know about dancing because I've been dancing forever. And adult magazines."

Duke: "What was your reputation in highschool?"

Devon: "I come from a small highschool. There weren't any drugs. Everybody drank and lost their virginity their sophomore year. So I wasn't considered a slut. There was nothing to do there but drink and have sex. I was popular. I had sex with three guys before highschool graduation at the end of my Junior year.

"I started dancing during the summer between my first and second year of college. I did four years of college but I didn't get my degree. Damn them! I took a semester when I got my boobs done. I thought I should. Ok, it was a good excuse. I moved to New York after my fourth year of college. I was about 20-credits shy. I should've stuck around another semester and graduated.

"I was 21 and one of my friends wanted me to move to New York with her. You don't care about that stuff then. I was like, '---- education. I'm going to New York.'

"I was a decent student. I partied a lot in college. I drank a lot. I went to a lot of frat parties. I was dancing. So if it was a good time of year at the club I'd blow off classes and work. I could've been a good student. I didn't have a lot of drive. 'Yeah, give me a beer.'"

Devon says she reads a lot. "I read a lot of books of short stories. I buy books a lot at the airport so I'll have something to read on the flight." She mentions, For The Relief of Unbearable Urges by Nathan Englander. "I just liked the title. I saw it and I thought, that's a cool title.

"I don't pay attention to what people say you should read."

Duke: "What were your measurements before your implants?"

Devon: "I was a 36AA. My back is broad. I am all implants. I have basically no breast tissue.

"I was fine with being flat-chested. I was never insecure about that part of my body. Other parts, yeah.

"I remember thinking that I was making good money with AAs, so I'd make even more if I made them bigger, which I did. In regular clothes, they don't look that big. But if I have sports bra on at the gym, I forget that they are huge to the average person. People tend to stare at them. It's a compliment. Who doesn't want to be noticed? There are times when I'm not trying to get attention and it gets annoying."

Duke: "How did you get into hardcore?"

Devon: "I got divorced [for the second time]. A company had emailed me about a cat-fight video. I was like, it's not my thing. And they said, we have a good customer who wants to commit to this video and here's the girl you'll be working with -- Tanya Danielle. She's hot.

"Tonya and I got to be friends. She set me up with Brad Armstrong (Wicked Pictures director). It was three years ago this month."

Duke: "Did you ever date Brad?"

Devon laughs. "No. He'd seen me before. He goes to the Exotica Dancer convention every year in Las Vegas. He'd seen some of my Iron Man fitness stuff.

"He put me in my first scene without me having to go on an audition, a go-see. I didn't have to go out with him. He's turned into a good friend of mine.

"I introduced him to Stormy. She and I had a mutual photographer friend. He was like, 'Stormy wants to go to LA but she doesn't know anybody. Could you show her around?'

"We got delayed shooting my scene and I had to go back the next day. I said, 'My girlfriend is coming into town. Do you mind if she comes to the set? She's beautiful and she wants to do porn.'

"She got out of the car and the world stopped turning [for Brad].

"Brad is like me. He likes variety."

Duke: "What gave it away that your husband was gay?"

Devon: "As far as I know, when we were together, he wasn't actively gay. He wouldn't even let me touch his ass. If I had known he was gay, I would've been like, we can get divorced and we can be buddies and we can go shopping.

"A few years after I got divorced, the house mom asked me if I had been married to a guy named Steve. It turned out that her friend had dated him after we split up and he dumped her for a guy. From what I hear, now he lives in Atlanta and he's married to a man."

Duke: "Atlanta is very gay."

Devon: "If he's happy, that's cool."

Duke: "What's it like trying to have a relationship while you're a porn star?"

Devon: "I haven't had a relationship since I've started doing movies. People that had a problem with dancing, I didn't bother with. I quit for one guy when I was 20. After we broke up, I thought that's no good. We could've been making money that whole time. After that, I didn't put up with it.

"After I got divorced [for the second time], I didn't want to be in a serious relationship. In my twenties, I was in three serious three-year relationships. In the whole decade, I was totally involved with someone and totally monogamous. After that, I just wanted to have fun and ---- people.

"I am straight but not stupid. If you give me a really hot girl, I'll ---- her. I've never had a relationship with a woman. I'm not sure I could handle a relationship with a woman. That would be like another me and I can barely handle myself.

"You'd think [stripping] would cure me of being boy crazy but I like men a lot.

"I like tall athletic smart funny men with dark hair.

"I'm not that easy. I'm a great ---- buddy. I'm not a great person to be in a relationship with. When it starts getting serious, I feel uncomfortable."

Devon says she's done about 70-porn scenes.

"I'm a sex addict. Porn keeps me from ----ing a million civilians. I just save it for when I'll be in LA. I've never lived in LA."

Duke: "What are your ambitions?"

Devon: "I think I'm about done with all this. Of course I keep saying that. I'd like to retire in the next two years and be a normal person. I'd like to marry again.

"In my town, everybody knows who I am but nobody brings it up."

I'm surprised when Devon mentions she was scheduled to do a bukkake.

Duke: "I thought you were a conservative girl."

Devon: "I'm not conservative. I like an orgy."

Aside from a trip to Mexico, Devon has never been outside of the United States. "The last vacation I took was in 1998."

Miss Nude U.S.A. Pageant

I got a package in the mail today. It was sent on to me by a source. The contents were originally sent out by Taya Parker and Jaz Securo.

Their cover letter reads:

August 18, 2004

To Whom It May Concern:

You are receiving a packet which contains some extremely disturbing information regarding the 2004 Miss Nude U.S.A. pageant. This year the Miss Nude U.S.A. pageant was held at the "Cheetah" in Hallandale, Florida July 28-31, 2004. I was a contestant in this pageant, along with around 26 other entertainers. Among the contestants were several young ladies new to the feature entertainment business, myself included. At this contest I was introduced to Miss Rio Rivers, the head of R&B Promotions.

At the closing of the 2004 Miss Nude U.S.A. pageant, I was named Miss Nude U.S.A. 1st Runner-Up. During the announcement of my title, a great deal of chaos ensued. Judges were approaching the stage and profanities were being shouted through the club. In hate to "assure" me that everything had been handled professionally, I was handed printouts of all the judges score sheets by Miss Rio Rivers and her husband.

I was presented 14 judges score sheets. Each sheet contained the scores for myself, Lauren Kain (Miss Nude U.S.A. 2nd Runner-Up), and Jada DeVille (Miss Nude U.S.A.). Upon reviewing these score sheets, it was plain to see that something was terribly wrong. When returning home to Columbus, Ohio, Jaz Securo (my manager) and I sought the experience of Mr. William T. Bennett. We were able to come in contact with him through the Ohio Division of Forgery and Fraud Department.

We presented Mr. Bennett with the score sheets that had been provided for us by Miss Rio Rivers from the Miss Nude U.S.A. pageant. Enclosed are his findings, which validate our concerns that the Miss Nude U.S.A. pageant has been corrupted. His letter includes findings which he would be willing to testify to in a court of law. Mr. William T. Bennett was able to find many alterations on the score sheets. These alterations were done several times by "the same person." Therefore, the alterations could not have been done by the judge himself. Someone other than the judge altered these score sheets. Now we must ask ourselves, why would this have been done if the outcome had not been different from the outcome which was presented? The score sheets were changed for one reason only -- to change the outcome!

Mr. Bennett also has reservations regarding score sheet #2. It is believed that judge #2's score sheet was thrown out and replaced with a score sheet from the office by the same individual that listed the scores on the oeverall score sheet. This opinion is not included in Mr. Bennett's letter based on the fact that he would not be able to conclusively testify to the fact.

Included you will find Mr. William T. Bennett's letter, a lengthy list of his experience and background in his field, and copies of the score sheets which were presented to me by the head of the pageant herself, Miss Rio Rivers. I am sure you can come to a rational decision of your own.

I have, since this debate has arisen, been stripped of my title of Miss Nude U.S.A. 1st Runner-Up by Miss Rio Rivers. Lauren Kain has turned in her sash and refuses to represent the title of Miss Nude U.S.A. 2nd Runner-Up and has, subsequently, been stripped of her title by Miss Rio Rivers.

Why all of the concern?

Jaz Securo and I have personally assumed the monetary and time responsibility of doing this investigation. Our concerns are for the clubs that represent this pageant and other affiliated pageants. Our concerns are for the many newscomers and house dancers that are eager to participate in these alluring pageants. The hundreds of dollars it costs to enter, the airline tickets that are paid for by the contestants, the time off work to participate... All of these costly concerns for an entertainer. Once one judge sheet has been tampered with, who is to know the extent of the corruption. I have provided proof. I hope that this information will educate club owners and future participants. I am truly sorry for having allowed myself to be deceived. I have used this as an opportunity to educate those that may make the same mistake.

Judge Overturns SC Net Porn Distribution Law

Chip Baker writes for AVN.com:

CHARLESTON, S.C. - A South Carolina law banning Internet distribution of sexually explicit materials to minors has been overturned by U.S. District Judge Patrick Duffy, the Associated Press reported.

Nina Hartley Talks To Vicky Vette

Nina writes May 11: "Ms. Vette and I spoke today, and we're scheduled to do a webcast on the 31st. She's also looking for a young man to shoot with me for her MILFqueen site, so that should be fun!"

Which Professions Are Sexiest?

Broker writes on JBM:

Straight from Marie Claire Mag, here are the results of what job is most sexy where:

Flight Attendant: Croatia, Czech Rep
Masseuse: Poland, Germany
Secretary: Thailand
Soldier: Sweden, Finland
Doctor/Nurse: Denmark, Italy, Slovakia, Austria
Actor: India
rockstar: South Africa
Model: China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Vietnam
Firefighter: Amercia, Canada, Australia, England

All countries agree on one of the least sexy professions: LAWYER.

DOJ's Obscenity Prosecution News

AVN's Mark Kernes writes:

Many had wondered what [Bruce A.] Taylor was doing with his time in the 14 months since the conservative religious e-zines made such a fanfare of his rehiring, and now we know: Besides "advising" on the creation of the Obscenity Prosecution Task Force, he was hard at work putting together Volume 1, Number 1 of the "DOJ - Obscenity Prosecution News," a seven-page rundown of some of the things the Justice Department has been doing in an attempt to shut down free sexual speech in America.

...this is a publication of the Department's Criminal Division, rather than of the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), which heretofore had been charged with coordinating all federal obscenity and child porn prosecutions - and in fact, there is no link to this document from anything in the CEOS section of the Justice Department's Website.

A Line-Up For Destruction

Dallas Cowboys coach "Bill Parcells has nailed up some new signs for the players to read. At the entrance to the locker room is this one: Tobacco, Alcohol, Gambling, Sex Clubs, Night Clubs, Painkillers, Steroids, Street Drugs - "A line-up for Destruction." And then on the wall above the water fountains, staring the players right in the eye as they come back from the weight room: The Tougher Our Standards - The Deeper Our Pride."

They Shoot Horses, Don't They?

James DiGiorgio writes on www.simplyjimmyd.com:

I'm reading this horrific story about the alternativemodeling.com girls who came on Wankus' KSEX show and talked about killing a water buffalo and a goat and then defiling and having sex next to the animals' dead bodies.

I guess I was wrong in a recent opinion I published here. I guess there are snuff movies. And I guess there's people in this business willing to talk about being in these snuff movies. And they're willing to talk about it on the radio, no less! Okay, on the internet radio, but that still amounts to publicly announcing it.

Way back in 1969 there was a Sydney Pollack directed movie called, "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?" It starred Jane Fonda and it was about this pathetic group of Depression Era losers who participate in a grueling dance marathon to make a couple of bucks. The title makes sense if you've ever seen this depressing flick.

Here's a snippet from a review of the movie: "Endlessly negative, the movie goes out of its way to deny the audience any moments of joy, opting instead to retreat further and further into the phantasmagoric fever dreams of the exhausted group."

Anyway, I started thinking: This snuff film that features killing defenseless animals as part of a porn flick, coupled with a fair amount of other s--- I regularly hear about and see in this business, is starting to remind me of the Sydney Pollack movie I just mentioned. It's like a significant and growing portion of the jiz biz has become just like that tired, pathetic, group of marathon dancers all trying to stay on their feet--doing anything and everything they can to stay on their feet--to make a couple of f---ing bucks.

And to paraphrase the review I quoted, it seems to me that a whole lot of porn is becoming an endlessly negative business going out of its way to deny its audiences any moments of normalcy in its depiction of sexual relationships, opting instead to retreat further and further into the phantasmagoric fever dreams of an exhausted group of losers, scumbags, and deviants. I love a lot of people in this business. But there's some who really make me sick.

Elegant Angel Sold

Just doing the final paperwork. Patrick Collins has been trying to sell it for a long time. It will be a done deal by the end of the month. A lot of people at Elegant will lose their jobs.

Paul Fishbein reports that the company has not been sold.

James DiGiorgio Misses An Opportunity

JimmyD writes on www.simplyjimmyd.com:

I wish I had... gone to Porn Star Karaoke, that is.

Why? Because after seeing the pictures of Jason Sechrest, a.k.a. Jason Curious, posted on the porn version of Matt Drudge's site, I realized I could have gone there, camera in hand, and spent the entire evening documenting Sechrest.

And then, I'd probably be signing a generous, mid-SIX-figure deal with a New York publisher to put out a pseudo-artsy, Timothy Greenfield-Sanders-style, coffee table photo-essay book of my images of Jason Sechrest. Then I'd go make some side deals with Tod Hunter, Gram Ponante, Wankus, Fozzi, Lisa Sparxxx, the little bald guy who owns Sardo's, Sardo's bouncer guys at the door, and maybe even Self-Hating Lew himself, to write up their commentaries and reflections of Jason Sechrest Night at PSK.

Another missed opportunity... Story of my life.

Vince Voyeur - Dictatorial Head Of Production At Redlight District?

I'm getting complaints from people that Vince is difficult to deal with. Pugz writes: "He turned into a little dictator, and nobody can stand to work with him. However, word now is that a few of the deadwood directors are gonna get axed."

I heard Vince was fired but a source inside the company says he remains as head of production.

I hear Michael Luciano is the best-selling director at Redlight and has six-months of product in the can.

International Exposure: Perspectives On Modern European Pornography, 1800-2000

Published in February 2005:

Like it or not, many of us come across pornography on a regular basis: naughty pictures wink from the seaside postcard rack, dirty magazines beckon from behind the convenience store counter, and scrambled images moan over cable TV.

Tera Patrick Agency

Max is leaving New Sensations at the end of the week to run the Tera Patrick Agency.

Leaving Your Drug Habit At The Strip Club

I've heard a lot about strippers and porn stars picking up their drug habit in the sex industry. But I've heard about as many stories, such as Chloe's, about strippers and porn stars leaving their drug habit behind in porn. They found a family, a meaning, and the strength to turn their back on drugs.

Tim Case Has A Kind Word For Critic John Simon

I too have enjoyed Simon's work for many years.

Tim writes:

I later received a handwritten letter from Mr. Simon on "New York Magazine" stationery, addressed to me in care of The Dayton Voice.

I still have that letter. In it, he complimented on my writing style, and mentioned that he thought I would be able to publish in several of the markets he was currently writing criticism for. He listed the names of the magazines and the contact persons to whom I should direct my queries. He complimented me on my work, actually said I was more level-headed and a better writer than most of his fellow New York critics, and was so full of praise that I nearly fainted upon reading it.

CCBill or Paycom, any major differences?

Tat2Jr writes on GFY:

Paycom has no reserves (kinda), and CCBill does. So CCBill has 5% of your money rotating. Both are solid companies. If you want a easy to setup affiliate program, go with CCBill. If that doesn't matter to you, see if either are running specials (i.e., no $750 Visa fee). No one knows for sure if it's true, but CCBill is 'supposed' to have a harder scrub, so you may get more sales through Paycom, but if you run a tight ship you shouldn't run into chargebacks issues (going over 1%).

Now that I've got NATS I can easily switch out the first biller in my cascade. I want to do some tests, but I'm holding off right now. We're busy opening some new sites, and want all our money now, so we're sticking with Paycom as #1 since they don't keep that 5%. In a month or so when I get the site up I'll have time to look at the numbers and stuff, so I'll switch over to CCBill and first. It will be nice to see what pans out. It will be even nicer to not have all my eggs in one basket.

Dark Jedi writes: "I think CCbill rejects more transaction. I always get much better conversion rations on Paycom sites."

VRocKs writes:

Epoch is going to make you more money.

Fact: 90% of all Epoch sponsors payout $25 - $35 per signup. 90% of all CCBILL customers do not and usually only give revshare and even then, at lower percentages than Epoch.

Why? Because Epoch has a lower scrub. You will get more rebills than with CCBILL. You will make more money than with CCBILL. I think the fact that Epoch sponsors can afford to payout more per signup is quite telling.

d00t writes: "you will get more signups with paycom, and shotty retention. ccbill you will get less signups, and better retention. if you want to test ccbills scrub factor its easy, just use your own cc to join. plus, ccbill join pages suck."

Latinassojourn writes:

18 months ago we averaged 30-40% fraud on ccbill check signups, so we took it off join pages, and now use netbilling for checking. and now have almost zero fraud, and nice recurring. i wonder if ccbill has improved, but netbilling is so good for checking there is no reason to change.

Zprogramz writes:

We use Netbilling exclusively now for credit cards and checks. We control our own level of scrubbing through their system and pay a lot less than 13%. I know they work with NATS, MPA, Exec and others too even though we have our own custom affiliate program.

Porn Star Devon Michaels Says She's Not Available For Escorting

Devon Michaels responds: "You were right, and it's being taken down. It was a mixup--- I do not escort at all, ever, but sometimes I do private photoshoots---which are just that--- just pix-- for fans that are collectors, and once in a blue moon a private party, which is just dancing. I was joking around about it and it was taken the wrong way by a friend of mine. Totally my fault and she was trying to make me some extra cash-- I don't escort, in fact, I don't do anything illegal because I have a club that could be taken away from me in a minute both the building and the adult use license, so please let people know I don't. I really can't even afford the rumors."

Penthouse Drops Raunchy Direct Response

From MediaWeek:

After years of declining circulation, bankruptcy and the erosion of its brand, Penthouse has been working to clean up its act. The struggling men's monthly has tried to soften its image by covering broader lifestyle topics and featuring less racy covers and pictorials. Now CEO and part-owner Marc Bell has taken another step. Effective with the July issue, on stands May 31, Bell has dumped all sex-related direct response ads in the magazine, though they bring in more than half of Penthouse's ad revenue.

"No one was going to advertise as long as the magazine was hard-core and the 900 number phone-sex ads were in there," said Bell. "One of the reasons we went into bankruptcy is because we lost all of our advertisers." Bell will now focus on traditional tobacco, alcohol and men's grooming advertisers. He's already signed up Bang Vodka. "We're giving up a lot of revenue, but it's a very smart move."

Since Bell's arrival six months ago, Penthouse has expanded its coverage of more lifestyle topics relevant to young men-computer games, books and sports-and profiled higher-wattage interview subjects, like pop star Avril Lavigne. The softer approach has also helped Penthouse regain bigger distribution in mass-market retailers like Barnes & Noble and Circle K. Plans are to add 8,200 additional outlets to its distribution chain by year's end. Finally, virtually all of its newsstand copies no longer are sold in opaque polybags.

Holly M. Sanders writes in the New York Post:

The magazine has hired writers to cover sports, music and gadgets, while scaling back on sexually explicit photos.

Today, Penthouse boasts fewer than a dozen advertisers -- mainly liquor and tobacco companies...

Penthouse circulation is down to 382,000. Most of Penthouse's editorial crew has been kept on under the new owners. The new music editor is a hot 24-year old chick from Stuff magazine.

The one person fired was photographer Joe Brooks, who helped Guccione start Penthouse in England in 1969.

Penthouse has dropped a lot of sections, including Unrepentent Voyeur, which Gil Reavill often wrote, and View From The Top.

XXX tells me: "There are so many self-hating pornographers in this business [Gil would not consider himself such]. The daughter of Penthouse's Editor-in-Chief Peter Bloch, back in the 1980s, wrote a piece for a women's magazine about her getting raped and how she blamed it on pornography. He was asked how he felt about her article. He replied, if it helps her get published, go ahead."

David calls: "Anyone who takes himself seriously for his work in porn is going to get kicked in the teeth when they get public reaction. The letters are from horny subhuman retards. People at Playboy and company want to believe that they are talking to a higher brand of intellectuals. You're not. It's only possible to believe such bollocks if you don't feedback contact from the public. Then you read the letters and you feel all dejected. This is what I'm working for?"

Duke: "I get a lot of thoughtful feedback from my readers."

David: "Of course. Your site is not for sexual titillation. It's for news. You have intelligent stuff on there, legal stuff, issues, that a stupid person couldn't understand."

Skeeter Kerkoves' Criminal Record

From the first time I met Skeeter (Arland Dale Kerkove, born 9/24/64) in late 1998, he was open about his long criminal record and his time spent in prison. I think he said something about drugs.

I got a hold of his rap sheet.

Filing date: 8/29/85
Charges: 311.4C; 289A
Criminal Case #: A 771059 (Archived in downtown Los Angeles)

311:4 (Misdemeanor) Printing or possessing obscene material featuring a minor.

289A: Sexual penetration against victim's will by force...

Filing Date: 4/16/91
Offenses: 12020(A)PC: Unlawful manufacture, import, sale or possession of weapons.
Case #: 91F04022

Filing Date: 6/7/91
Offenses: 23153(A)VC: Driving under the influence of alcohol, drugs or combination. Unlawful act or neglected duty causing injury to another while driving.
Case #: 91D03865

Hearing Date: 4/3/92
Charges: H 11351: Possession for sale of a controlled substance aka drugs.
Criminal Case #: BA 055230

Filing Date: 5/10/96
Offenses: 273.5(A)/21: Corporal injury to spouse/former spouse or cohabitant/former cohabitant
Case #: 62F02766

Skeeter and Bridgett separated about a year ago.

Hustler and Penthouse

About three weeks ago, Penthouse retooled its video division and fired Wit Maverick and Don McDonald. They've brought in Jim English, who used to run Playboy TV.

Pugsley writes:

Luke, read the little blip on your site about Hustler and LFP being f--ked from top to bottom. Whoever that poster was, they don't know the half of it. Not only is Dustin Flynt in charge of the video division -- something most of the directors were promised wasn't going to happen -- he now has Mark Kramer working for him in charge of some area of production as well. Whether Mark works for, with, or above Christina Peters remains to be seen (they've been calling directors in to have meetings with Mark all week). Many porners may remember Mark as the guy who went from being a Vivid P.A. to heads of production at Pleasure, one of the worst-run companies in the industry. Now he's landed at LFP working for the hands-down dumbest, most arrogant, most abrasive know-nothing Flynt spawn.

Even worse is Penthouse... their video production arm has been stillborn twice now. They hired Bruce Whitney away from LFP just before he got fired and had him set up two weeks of big HD shoots with several directors including Kelly Holland, Jim Malibu, Bryan Pryor and Ren Savant; then, three days before the shoots were supposed to happen, the Penthouse suits, all based in Florida, none of who know anything about porn, flipped the switch on the entire video division and shut the whole thing down. No one has heard anything since. Rumor is that Adam & Eve turned them down for distribution, and Playboy obviously won't take their soft, so they have nowhere to sell their product if they ever shoot it.

A source within Penthouse says those cancelled shoots will be made-up when English takes over.

What's Up With Lyra?

Jabba writes: "You still haven't met her? What'd she get busted for - how'd she get out? Why can't she spell? And she cannot possibly, by the way, be working for a legitimate mortgage business. A crooked loan business, maybe. But not legally for a legitimate one."

Does The Exotica-2000 Bust Violate The Original Intent Of The Framers Of Our Constitution?

One poster to the FunWithPSEs Yahoo group argues yes: "The big deal is that the people that make the rules in this country say this kind of activity goes against the laws of an invisible mythological deity that lives in the sky and watches over us. Which flies in the face of our forefather's original intentions to keep a defined chasm between church and state by passing laws that protect religious moralties instead of public saftey or health."

Tantas Daddy contends on XPT: "He doesn't know much about our forefathers original intentions as they were to not have a state-sponsored religion. Remember England and the Catholic Church. That is what separation of church and state was intended to be. Not the bastardization we are saddled with now."

Jabba writes:

I'm pretty sure prostitution was illegal in 1783. Another question is whether [the bust] is bad for the U.S. economy - and plainly it is. First off, since you can no longer buy hot European models, dollars are worth less now than they were before the bust. Second, these girls were travelling abroad - and bringing money back to the States. And third, just think of what this is doing to hotel vacancy rates?

Who's Brad Armstrong Dating?

I saw Brad at PSK last week. I asked him who he was dating. He thought I was busting his balls. He said I already knew. I didn't. But now I read on the prestigious FunWithPSEs Yahoo group that he's dating Wicked's new contract girl Keri Sable (thanks for the scoop Fast Eddie).

I think they've been together a year.

Jabba writes: You should post this response re: Keri Sable on "funwithpse's":

She doesn't escort _yet_. Give the girl a few months to be degraded, have her self-esteem destroyed by the men around her, and develop a drug problem. If you've seen her interview and talking segments, you already know she ain't the sharpest tool to have rusted through and been thrown away in the shed. I think we can all be pretty confident she'll come around with time.

Kevin Moore would not agree.

Sometimes a photo can make you angry

XPT commentary on my PSK pictures:

James writes: Was Katie Gold a balding 1950's greasy mobster all along?

Look at my guns! I can bench 405.

I can't hate anyone with the balls to be seen in public like this, but you can. Comments please. This one is just too much to process right now.

Smiling Arab writes: "I don't know either, but we can do word association... "Crying... bleeding... subway...""

Random writes: "I consider myself a very tolerant person. I don't hate gay people or wish them any harm, physically or emotionally. I respect their lifestyle choice. That said, this photo makes me want to bash some homosexual skull."

Random writes: "I wonder if people give Luke s--- when he takes pictures because they just know they're going to be mocked on this board.

"This guy has the tackiest shirt the hands of poor Indonesian children have ever made. Even Seymour Butts would say "Damn bro, that's an ugly shirt"."

Random writes: "Yes, these photo are a lot clearer. I'm not sure this is necessarily a good thing, though. It almost makes some of these people look presentable. We can't have that now, can we?"

Loren Mizrachi, Angel Felon Interviews

Tuesday afternoon, Loren Mizrachi phoned me back.

I met the couple at PSK a month ago.

Mizrachi grew up in Malibu.

Duke: "Rich kid?"

Loren: "We were middle-class. My first car was when I was 19 and it was a beater. It didn't have reverse."

Duke: "What kind of student were you in highschool?"

Loren: "A wise-ass. I was one of the few punkrockers in highschool. I would get ---- thrown at me. Teachers would be intimidated and kick me out of the class for minor things. About my Junior year, I did the alternative highschool route, where all my friends were. I graduated at 17. I was shoved out the door, not really career-oriented, or knowing what I wanted to do with the rest of my life."

Duke: "What kind of crowd did you hang out with in highschool?"

Loren: "A tough crowd. We were all punkrockers. During our lunch break, there was a liquor store where all the punks would hang out at. There'd be 30-40 punkrockers as though we were waiting to get into a concert. It looked cool. Mohawks and spiked leather jackets."

Duke: "How old were you when you lost your virginity?"

Loren: "I was 13. My sister's girlfriend, who was 15, threw me down on the ground and f----- the ---- out of me. I got raped. She was a gnarly girl."

Duke: "Were you traumatized?"

Loren: "Not at all. When I was nine years old, my dad took me to an Israeli film with full-frontal nudity. I was always around nudity. My dad was a freak like that. Him and my stepmom would walk around the house naked and hump like bunnies. I was well aware of sexuality at a young age."

Duke: "How many women had you slept with by the time you graduated from highschool?"

Loren: "You could probably count them on two hands. I wasn't a slut. I was in a band, so we had our groupies. I had a girl for a solid couple of years. I was down-to-earth and monogamous."

Duke: "When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?"

Loren: "A firefighter."

Duke: "What happened to that dream?"

Loren: "I was pursuing it for a while. I was EMT (Emergency Medical Technician) certified. I was trying to get into a fire academy. I was attending junior college fulltime and getting my AA in fire science. I was about 22yo when I got my first and only DUI (Driving Under the Influence). That shattered my opportunity to become a civil servant.

"I continued to pursue my medical career as a nursing assistant in a hospital as well as an ambulance driver. One day, the shipping company I worked for, had a post-production house on-site and was interested in doing audio-engineering. I was freelancing for the producer...doing an online radio show and became their freelance editor. It was 1997."

Duke: "How did you get into porn?"

Loren: "One of our editors said there was somebody hiring in Calabassas. I went to them and did an interview. They informed me they were an adult company and did I have a problem with working with that? I didn't. I had never dabbled in porn. The closest I had gotten to porn was a Playboy magazine.

"I had just gotten married [at age 27, it lasted six years until 2004]. I asked my wife if it was ok with her. She gave me her consent. And I started working for them. It was September 1998."

Duke: "How did working in pornography affect your marriage?"

Loren: "Only at the tail-end was I told that...because of the hellacious hours I worked as an editor. There's no such thing as an eight-hour day. As well as shooting. I was at the studio 12-14 hours a day. I had two daughters. It was tought to support a full family and be a participant. She worked on the weekends and I was with the kids all weekend. The relationship became platonic towards the end when things started going awry. You can always tell when a woman is mad at you because she withholds sex. It's a powerful tool."

Duke: "Were you screwing around on her?"

Loren: "No. Only towards the end."

Duke: "When did you become a director?"

Loren: "My third year in the business [2001]. I worked at Video Secrets [from 1998] for three-and-a-half-years. We started doing livestreams. Our studio was a corporate office. We converted it. The back room was where I shot. I had a nice drop-curtain and change sets. I could put in a little chair and bed. Set designing. Lighting. Learning the trade in pre-production. I learned everything there."

In 2001, Video Secrets let Loren go. He worked at AVN for nine months. He shot behind-the-scenes footage and composed music to match with the video. "There were a ton of mini-DVs that had never been archived or labeled properly. I went through every tape, made a spread Excel sheet, and logged all tapes from the beginning of time. It was a horrendous job, but it was job security. And it's AVN. It was cool to work there."

Duke: "Because it is at the center of what is going on?"

Loren: "Yes, plus it is five-minutes from my house. I could light up a cigarette and snub it as soon as I was at the front.

"They ran out of work for me. I was left freelancing. I tried to go mainstream. What a joke!"

Duke: "What kind of experience was that?"

Loren: "A negative experience. The crossover is horrendous. There's no way. The minute you say adult content they are not interested. I was inches away from an interview at Paramount and as soon as I told the lady I dabbled in adult movies, she's like, 'Hu huh. We'll contact you.' I didn't need to say it. I blew it.

"I was hanging out at the beach one day with a friend. His kids and mine. He said a company named Dreamtank was hiring. They reminded me of Video Secrets when they started -- a handful of the best of the best.

"Just prior to my being hired, the cameraman quit. The owner explained it was trial-by-fire. 'Go in and shoot it.' We do between 13-16 shoots a month. We shoot content for a company. We provide them with all the encoding and uploading.

"They were big shoes to fill starting off. Eventually I gave them the type of video they wanted and they hired me fulltime."

Duke: "You never get tired of looking at beautiful women all day?"

Loren: "No. I find myself objectifying women now. If you see a beautiful woman walking, boobs, you scope them out real quick. My eyes are tried for that.

"When you see a model, they'll take off their shirt in front of you and still look you in the eye. That's a test. I've seen enough boobs to be able to stare them in the eyes and not look down.

"But I've got a beautiful girlfriend now [Angel Felon, who is listening in on our interview]. I get home with blue balls and ---- the ---- out of her."

Duke: "How did you hook up with her?"

Loren: "At a shoot. It was a solo masturbation scene [in December 2004]. She was an up-and-coming porn star out of Denver, Colorado. She was giving me... We kept on locking eyes. Her eyes are so beautiful. She wasn't looking at the camera at all. Towards the last toy, she threw the toy down, said 'Cut!', and said, 'Are you going to ---- me or what?'"

I hear Angel laughing with glee.

Loren: "There's no shame in that. It was hot. I got her number afterwards. She went back to Colorado for a few days. Since she's been back, we've been a solid thing. I've been a good boy."

Angel: "And I've been a good good girl."

Duke: "How many times have you guys had sex?"

Angel: "Over 200 times."

Loren: "She's 12-years my junior. She just turned 24. She's also the kind of chick you can hang out and have a beer with. A complete friend. Not quite one of the guys but really down to earth. A girl you can actually converse with and not think about sex all the time. Even in my marriage I was without that.

"Angel is like an open-book. She's always willing to listen and give advice. I'm showing her how to edit and encode. She's a bright girl. She's a sweetheart. She makes an old guy happy.

"I took her to her first punk show last weekend -- some old-school punk bands out of Malibu. She loved it. Because that's my passion. I play the guitar for her and ham it up. She loves that. She lets me serenade her [with songs from Social Distortion, Green Day]."

Duke: "Are you a big Air Supply fan?"

Loren: "I'm sorry. Could you say that again, please?"

Duke: "Are you a big Air Supply fan?"

Loren: "Yeah. Come-on, I grew up in the '70s. I remember all those. Punk was a reaction to disco. They needed something to scratch it out. My parents were into disco and I thought the Bee Gees were the devil."

Duke: "How have your friends and family reacted to your participation in porn?"

Loren: "Dad says atta boy. Mom doesn't quite know. Friends, at first, were envious. After a while, they became bored with my stories.

"My work is sexually intense. I don't have a production assistant. It's just me and the models. It's an intimate set. Sexuality floats but since I've met Angel, I've been a good boy."

Duke: "You're not allowed to have sex with other girls?"

Loren: "She did give me her blessing as long as I use protection, but I don't have a desire to. She ---- the ---- out of me. Why would I want anything else? She stopped doing boy-girl for me. I never asked her.

"When I'm intimate with someone, it's just me and them. I can't imagine all the lights, camera, action going on. Maybe if I just stared at her eyes... POV would be a good place to start. I've got great pops, right honey?"

Angel: "He's got the best pop shot in town."

Loren: "I nailed her in the eye last night from four-feet away."

I get Angel on the line.

Angel: "I never wanted to grow up. I still haven't. I always knew that I'd be some sort of superstar because I'm a ham. I never thought I'd be a porn star, but I'm not really. I've just done a few things."

Duke: "What kind of crowd did you hang out with in highschool?"

Angel: "I was the cheerleader - pot smoker - good girl - girlfriend. I had a boyfriend for six years, all through highschool. From 14-20. I lost my virginity to him. I never had a one-night stand or had sex with anyone who wasn't my boyfriend until I got into porn. And the first shoot I did was Meatholes [director Kahn Tusion, in August of 2004]. But that's what got me on Howard Stern."

Duke: "What kind of student were you in highschool?"

Angel: "I was a good student. I went to alternative highschool."

Duke: "What's alternative highschool?"

Angel: "That's when you don't fit into traditional highschool, so you go to where all the f--k-ups go. But I was a good-girl-f--k-up. I only went there because my boyfriend was there."

Duke: "That's where the troubled kids went."

Angel: "Yeah."

Duke: "Those who flunked out of the original school."

Angel: "I didn't flunk out. I chose to go there because my boyfriend was there."

Duke: "What was the most difficult class you took in highschool?"

Angel: "Home Ec. I'm not domestic."

Duke: "Did you go to college?"

Angel: "I went to beauty school. I went to EMT school also. I graduated from both. I didn't pursue either one. I went through this bad phase in life when I was a really bad kid and very felonious acting. I used to have a friend in car-theft. I made my living feloniously. That's all I can say. That's how I got the name Felon. That's how I got into porn. I knew I couldn't go back to work for regular money at an hourly job. I didn't have a boyfriend, so I used porn as my sexual teacher."

Duke: "Was your boyfriend 14-20 doing felonious stuff?"

Angel: "No. Yeah. He was doing felonious activities too. I was a good girl until I wasn't [after graduating highschool in 1999]."

Duke: "How did you get into porn?"

Angel: "I saw an ad in the paper. Good money. I called. It was an agency in Denver who wanted to do some test shoots. They took some pictures and they turned out really good. From the second I saw the pictures, I said, this is what I want to do. I want to go to LA.

"I didn't get to go to LA for a year until they called and said there was an agency that wanted to fly me out. Dick Nasty flew me out here. It started off slow because I was chubby [20-pounds overweight]. I had just gotten out of jail. I had to spend ten-days in jail. I'd just had my first run-in with the law, which stopped my felonious activities and made me realize I had to get a real job and porn was it.

"I learned how to have casual sex without emotional attachment. I figured porn was the best way to do that and earn a legal paycheck."

Angel's done about 20-movies.

Duke: "What do you love and hate about the industry?"

Angel: "I love that I got to meet Loren. I love that I got away from where I was from. It helped me see the bigger picture in life.

"I hate that girls are always considered sluts. Everybody in the business wants to f--- you."

Duke: "You hate that?"

Angel: "I do. I think I'm rad. It bothers me that that is all that they want from me. I'm way cooler than just sex.

"Another thing that bothers me is STDs and the way it is handled. I probably shouldn't get into that. I don't agree with some of the ways people handle their STDs. They continue to work.

"I don't think people see the bigger picture and the value of human life. That's scary to me and enough to me to never want to do boy-girl again.

"I'm very political minded. My mom's a politician at the state level. She's gonna run for mayor. She's part of the City Council. She knows what I do.

"My quality of life is much better since I got into porn. Porn helped me get off drugs. It showed me things that I didn't think were possible. Now I'm an orgasm addict.

"I'm working as a personal assistant [in porn] and learning things that you can't go to school to learn.

"There's a lot to be said about people in this business who last a long time. A lot of people get in and dabble but don't go anywhere. The ones who stay around have a lot to teach the young ones."

Gene Ross Interviews Stoney Curtis - The Guy Behind PornStarPerformance.com

People such as John Bone have been talking about doing such a site for years. Stoney finally did it.

Jason Curious Night At Porn Star Karaoke

Keiko Jason Sechrest Daphne Rosen Kayla, ex-BF David Kayla Kayla, David Kayla, David Loren Mizrachi, Angel Felon Lynn LeMay, Michael DeLuise Jason Sechrest Wankus, Kristen Wankus, Kristen Wankus with karaoke hostess Kristen Lynn LeMay, friend Rusty Nails, Lynn, Lexxy Foxx Lynn, Lexxy Foxx Lynn, Lexxy Foxx Lexxy Foxx Lexxy, Lynn Chloe Tyler Faith Tyler Faith Tyler Faith Scotty Schwartz, Tyler Faith Scotty, Tyler Tyler Faith Angel Felon, Loren Mizrachi Loren, Angel Loren, Angel Loren, Angel Loren, Angel Katie Gold Lisa Sparxxx Jason Sechrest, Evan Seinfeld Violet, Shay Sights Chloe Chloe, Julie Meadows Chloe, Julie Chloe, Julie Ethan Cage, Lexxy Ethan Cage, Lexxy Lexxy Lamore Lexxy Lamore Lexxy Lamore Angel, Wankus Lexxy Lamore Jason Sechrest and friend Kristen Kristen Julie Meadows, Mickey G Jersey Jaxin, Wankus Jersey, Wankus Jersey, Wankus Lexxy Lamore Angel Angel Tyler, Wankus Tyler, Wankus Tyler Faith

I walk up at about 11pm. Gram Ponante's outside with Wankus. His first question to the programming director of KSEX: "Why do so many people hate you?"

Kayla Quinn (formerly Kayla Marie St. Claire) says she's lost 34-pounds on the eat-less-move-more diet. She's with her ex-boyfriend David.

She had him leave her home a few months ago.

Here's an interview with Kayla.

I see Chloe for the first time in almost two years. She says she had a spinal-fusion operation (cost $550,000 but she had health insurance). She was stuck in a cast for six months. Her boyfriend saw her through the ordeal before dumping her at the end.

She looks paler and skinnier and more fragile than ever before. She says she will be back directing porn within a few weeks.

Angel Felon is wasted. She's drunk three Colorado Bulldogs and a couple of shots.

"She's a fricken' lightweight," says her boyfriend Loren Mizrachi.

Lynn LeMay has patched-up her relationship with Michael DeLuise, the son of the actor Dom.

Jason Sechrest gets up, take the mic, and does a minute of stand-up comedy. He says the leading example of the heterosexual man in Los Angeles is American Idol host Ryan Seacrest. "How sad is that? Highlighted hair, plucked eyebrows and more make-up than Jon Benet-Ramsey."

He dedicate his song to straight men. He says he understands why many of the heterosexual men in the audience stray to doing gay things. Jason says he's had sex with some of the putatively heterosexual men in the audience. "I won't say anything until I leave the industry and write my tell-all."

I meet Lexxy Foxx. She's sitting on Lynn LeMay's lap. In the industry five months, she's done about 40-movies.

Evan Seinfeld says Tera Patrick has the two best-selling titles of the year, outselling Jenna Jameson. The Tera Patrick Agency has about 30-girls and about five guys. They've drawn talent away from Exotic Star Models and other competitors. Evan says their agency knows how to treat girls right and make sure they're protected and that they don't work with extreme guys who could hurt them.

Evan has a memory like an elephant. He does appreciate that I greet him when I see him and look him in the eye.

Paycom Called...

GregTX writes on JBM: "We cannot have any links to gambling sites in our members areas.. or visa will not approve the new site."

TaDoW writes:

You shouldn't feel so bad .. we were told that we couldn't offer plug-ins inside our member's area .. Or advertise the fact that we offer them on the tour. and, to add a little flavor ... when I asked "WTF are you talking about?" they told me to just remove them until we got approval and then go ahead and put them back in ... better believe I'm saving that email for when they try to stop paying us for violation of TOS (Terms of Service).

Brad Shaw writes: "Some of these Visa rules I am hearing are nuts. Since when did Visa get into the porn business?"

TondaB writes: "The thing I can never figure out is why one processor has one rules and another one is totally different. I guess it must depend on the bank but you would think Visa is Visa is Visa. Interesting to say the least."

DavetheTruth writes: "We had to take our links to streaming video sites down a long time ago."

JMScore writes: "The banning of gaming links was one of the original rules when the "IPSP" model was rolled out. This one is a legality issue....gaming sites are illegal in the US and you're a US merchant so they consider any association being a problem."

Kandi Kream

Julian St. Jox, Kandi Kandi Kandi

I stood with the 19yo Kandi and Julian St. Jox last Thursday, May 5. It was raining. They were smoking. I was tape-recording.

Duke: "Why do you have to be so difficult about your name's spelling? Why?"

Kandi: "Because there are so many Candy's out there already."

She's been in the biz seven months and done about 50-movies.

Kandi admits she frequently shows up to set late.

Duke: "When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?"

Kandi: "I don't know. I still don't know.

"I smoke a lot of weed, but that's it."

Julian and Kandi share a bud.

"The dark side of the porn industry," jokes Julian.

Kandi's voice seems to change after she inhales. "He wants us to be related so bad," she laughs.

"No, I don't," says Julian. "Kissing cousins."

"I like it," says Kandi.

Rob Spallone says there's a different smell on white sets as opposed to black sets. He insists he is not prejudiced.

Duke: "Compare and contrast."

Rob: "I know what 'compare' means but I don't know what 'contrast' means."

Call girls who would go abroad

From the New York Daily News 5/11/05:

An indictment unsealed yesterday alleges that New York Elites sent prostitutes around the world at the request of well-heeled customers.

The indictment was filed against alleged ringleaders Elena Trochtchenkova and her boyfriend, Rady Abdel Salem Abbassy, who were initially charged with dispatching hookers to 22 cities in the United States.

The indictment alleges that prostitutes were dispatched to other locales on two-week "tours." It did not specify where outside of the U.S. the hookers were sent.

While on "tour," prostitutes work out of hotel rooms booked by New York Elites or Exotica 2000, the indictment said.

The indictment also alleges that Trochtchenkova and Abbassy used money derived from the prostitution business to fund a Brooklyn seafood eatery, Barracuda Restaurant in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.

Prosecutors said the hooker ring took in $13.5 million between 2001 and 2004.

Hustler - A House Of Cards?

A good source writes: "I am hearing that interesting things are going on over at LFP, and I don't mean in a good way. You should do some poking around and see what the buzz is."

Another source writes: "Yes, you're correct big things are happening at LFP. I have worked for Hustler for a long time. The house is in bad shape, out of control, it is because Larry is not with it anymore! There are a bunch of morons trying to run this place! No one can do what Larry did, but it looks like his time is over. No one knows what's going to happen even Jimmy, Larry's brother, is upset at the events lately!"

Whatever Happened To Penny Porsche?

David writes: "After my short discussion with Penny on how her "agent/pimp" was publishing and advertising that she was available as an escort, she changed her number. Do you know what's going on? We were scheduled to shoot on Sunday but didn't hear from her."

Internet advertiser disputes 'adware' label

John Cook writes 4/2/04 for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer:

Thieves. Hijackers. Online devils. Those are a few of the opinions that people voice about 180solutions, a Bellevue online advertising company that announced $40 million in financing this week.

John Cook writes 7/10/04 for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer:

During a three-week period in June, Bellevue-based 180solutions routinely seized revenues of online merchants and affiliates by siphoning commissions through a tactic known as "thiefware" or "stealware," according to a report released this week by Harvard researcher Benjamin Edelman.

Kim writes John Cook 11/26/04:

John, I am a little late discovering the activities of a company called 180solutions, but now that I have found them, I want them out of my life. I work on the internet. I design websites, and I am a free-lance writer. A few weeks ago, my computer was attacked by 180solutions spam, and it has not stopped. I called them on the phone, and they did not return any of my calls. I emailed them, and they sent me an *uninstall* program that did not remove anything. I have had it with these adware spamming low-life invasive lying-cheating scumbags! I use Norton, but I hesitate to follow their directions as to how I should remove this adware.

Eventually, I will hire someone to come to my home and physically remove this junk, or I will reinstall IE Explorer which I detest, but feel compelled to use since most of the internet is tied into Bill Gates" defective and inferior Microsoft programs. I have threatened to sue 180solutions, but after reading your article and others, I have realized that businesses actually believe that 180solutions is worth using to trap people like myself. I feel violated. I feel cheated.

You were far too kind in your article about them. They are going to be the downfall of the internet. I have been fighting hackers for years. Now I have to fight adware lying deceptive monsters like 180solutions. I know there must be thousands of people like myself who have been invaded with this program. Please investigate 180solutions, and please don't do a *fluff* piece about them. They are evil. They couldn't care less about the innocent public who are being annoyed and harassed by their unwanted adware which I feel is in the *virus family* and should be investigated by the government.

............

I just read the other articles, and I feel a little better because I know there are many people like myself who are totally frustrated with companies like 180solutions. I am even more upset with the companies who choose to do business with the spamming adware companies.

For what it is worth, I use Spybot, Adaware, Norton, Trend Micro, and AOL spyware detection programs. The only one that listed 180solutions is AOL. (attached) but the program is still on my computer.

The internet is such a wonderful place. I was late coming to the world of computers...about ten years ago. It has flown by, and I have seen it gradually become a mine field with people hacking you and your computer to death daily, stealing credit card numbers and very personal information which they use against you. Viruses, uncaring companies like Microsoft who do not bother to make their browser safe and secure, and the government who thinks that it is okay to pass The Patriot Act and take away our First Amendment rights, make it very difficult to relax and use the internet as it was intended.

CCBill Eating Paycom's Lunch

There are two major credit card processors for online pornography - Paycom aka Epoch and CCBill. Epoch has been number one for more than years. But about three months ago, they fired their widely-respected CEO Chris Mallick for his free-spending ways. Since then, I've heard CCBill has been eating Paycom's lunch. CCBill has been willing to take on riskier clients than Epoch. Under Mallick, Epoch shied away from processing for dodgy companies.

Now the pressure must be enormous for Paycom/Epoch to stay processing riskier clients or they will lose all that business to CCBill.

What's Up With IDownload, 180Solutions?

I apologize for my initial inaccurate report.

Arlo (Hooper) writes from IDownload:

Luke, Your reports are almost 100% factually incorrect, you seem to have merged quite a few different stories into one. We have never had any processing issues, we have never done business with Ian Eisenberg, we have never done any business with charlo. Perhaps it would be prudent for you to seek comments from the involved parties before printing blatently false stories.

7/28/04

CNETnews.com reports:

180solutions on Monday filed a lawsuit alleging that two of its partners loaded its ad-serving software onto people's computers without first getting their consent. The lawsuit, filed in a Superior Court in Washington state, claims that Internext Media and its distribution partner violated an agreement with 180Solutions. Aztec Marketing distributes Internext Media's Web browser toolbar.

180Solutions, based in Bellevue, Wash., is seeking monetary relief and the immediate removal of its programs from Aztec's systems.

Related Link More information.

Here's a related post: "Arlo Gilbert, or at least someone who claims to be him, posts regularly as "Hooper" at justblowme.com, claims a 7 digit income, and talks about all his attempts to make money running sex sites including maninpink.com, which no longer exists. He also ran clickfeel.com, another add click revenue service which also no longer is active. He brags about making lots of money off of spyware removal software, which is pretty laughable. Anyway, if this guy really is Arlo, here's his picture: Another guy named "wiseman" claims to be the sales director for Arlo/Hooper and their various web enterprises including idownload.com. Here's some interesting reading (warning, it's pretty porn heavy)."

What's Up With .XXX Domains?

Who's going to own the .xxx domain? Ron Levi? Free Speech Coalition (FSC)? David van der Pool?

Will some of the proceeds go to the FSC or ASACP?

A source at AVN says AVN has and plans to have no ownership interest in the xxx domain registry and has not killed or suspended an article on the registry.

I hear a couple of major industry articles on the .xxx domain have been suspended, perhaps because their publications' owners have a financial interest in the .xxx domain system. Supposedly Jason Hendeles was able to get the stories suppressed.

Jason is leading the effort to get ICANN (Internet Corporation For Assigned Names and Numbers) to approve .xxx domains.

My opinion on .XXX domains? They would be good for society. They might restrict porn to its own online redlight district and keep it away from people who don't want it (and from those who should be protected from it -- children). It would be a far more socially responsible thing for the industry to do rather than showily raising money for tsunami relief via prostitution and donating to the anti-child porn fight.

Who stands to profit from .xxx domain registry?

ICANN has confirmed that the .xxx domain registry was discussed at a recent meeting.

Jason Hendeles won't say who the leading pornographers are who are behind the .xxx domain registry, but according to a report he's let slip that Python supports his venture.

Out of the gate, Jason wants unanimous support for .xxx domains. But who would care aside from the big guys who have an ownership in the registry? But Jason is adamant he has 100% support from the webmaster community.

I called Jason Hendeles Tuesday afternoon. He said there wouldn't be any news for ten days.