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I talk by phone with the black director/producer Monday afternoon, January 31. Luke: "When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?" Alexander chuckles: "I wanted to be an architect. I liked to play with little Erector sets and I liked to build stuff." Alexander grew up in LA but also lived in other parts of the country. Luke: "Did you have experiences with the porn industry while growing up?" Alexander: "Nah. I became interested in erotic stuff around the age of 12. I liked to read a lot. My family had moved to Philadelphia and my grandfather had a bunch of novels in the bathroom. I found them and I started reading them. From there, I caught the bug and I've been an open person since then. "The interest in adult didn't happen until I was going to the University of Hawaii and I started taking production classes." Luke: "What kind of crowd did you hang out with in highschool?" Alexander: "I played sports. Everybody who was popular. Football, basketball players. "I double-majored in political science and communications. I graduated from the University of Hawaii in 1992. "I did a lot of stuff after that." Luke: "How did you get into porn?" Alexander: "About six years ago, me and [Alexander's ex-girlfriend] Diana [Devoe] were a couple before we got into the business. There were a lot of feature entertainers who were coming to Hawaii. We had a friend who was a photographer. He knew we had an interest in doing adult stuff so he would call us and we'd hang out [with the feature entertainer]. "Anna Malle came out. I did my first shoot with her in Hawaii. It didn't go so well. It was twelve o'clock in the afternoon and they wanted to shoot it on the beach with everybody around. "Hank [Anna's husband] was shooting the same. It was the first time I'd try to do something in front of the camera. It didn't happen. He gave us some contacts to come out, such as Reb [Sawitz] with Pretty Girl International. She got into some videos. Some companies shot us together. I got the idea that I didn't want to be talent. I wanted to shoot. "Ed Powers gave me the chance to shoot my first scene. I shot one for Elegant Angel. Then I went to Westcoast Productions. Every time I had the opportunity to pick up the camera, people had the opportunity to see what I was doing, and it spun from there." Alexander's relationship with Diana ended about two years ago. Luke: "What do you love and hate about working in this industry?" Alexander: "I love that I get the opportunity to create something and have people give me instant feedback when it hits the market. I've changed the way black porno is perceived by people. "Being a person of color in the business, you get overshadowed. A lot of the black performers only look at you from the performer's point of view. As a director, I've done a lot of stuff. I've shot features. My body of work is diverse. It gets recognized by AVN, but by the general population of adult, I don't think I get enough credit, the credit that is due to me. I'm coming at it from a different point of view. I'm a black guy working for Westcoast. That company has traditionally gotten a lot of press and it is because of my work. "I feel that a lot of people who are not black have an easier time working in this business because the business is structured so that 99.9% are not people of color. There is a small percentage of us who are doing a lot of great things but we don't get recognized." Luke: "What do you hope for?" Alexander: "I hope to become a part of adult history." Luke: "What do you tell strangers you do for a living?" Alexander: "It doesn't come up. When I go to a club, it doesn't come up. People don't recognize me." Alexander believes that porn has helped him build bridges to people and expanded his world. "Meeting fans is the greatest thing ever. At [Adult Entertainment Expo], not just fans, but everybody was coming up to me. Distributors. Retailers. Congratulating me on producing stuff that was really good and selling good." Luke: "How does your fiance [a mainstream model] feel about your adult work?" Alexander: "She knew what I did when we met. She thought that when she came to my house she'd see girls all over the place and random sex having but I keep those two things separate. At home, I don't watch porn. It wasn't a big adjustment for her to make. She said, 'I thought it would be a lot worse.' It was an eye-opener for her." Luke: "Do you date the talent?" Alexander: "No, man. I've got a girl." Luke: "Is it tempting?" Alexander: "Most definitely. Girls come and they want to do a scene with me. No, it's not going to happen. Being around females is tempting. That's why we do what we do. That's why men especially want to be involved with the business because of the women. "I just want to leave a little bit of Devoe behind." World Modeling On Tuesday, Jan 25, 2005 I fought my way through 70 degree temperatures and overcast skies late Tuesday morning to Jim South's office on Van Nuys Blvd. Jim Junior had four girls sitting around waiting for their driver (to take them to auditions?). I snapped these photos: Lisa Daniels Lisa Daniels Jerri Candance Victoria Savannah Stern Savannah Stern Victoria Victoria Jerri Candace Jim Sr and a friend are carrying boxes of soda and water upstairs from a Costco dropoff. Junior's back is hurt so he can't carry. Junior says business is good. Senior says business is bad this time of year. There aren't many shoots in December and January and all the managers out there like LADirectModels.com have carved away much of World Modeling's business. Then I stepped next door into Alexander DeVoe's office. Alexander. Alexander. Joachim Kessef. Dulce Dulce Joachim is from Paris. He's been in porn for eleven years. He flies to Los Angeles to work several times a year. He's returning to France February 1st. Joachim directs for New Sensations. Alexander DeVoe started in porn in Hawaii in 1997. He moved to Los Angeles in 1999. Blonde Brit Alisha Rhodes sits on the couch having her make-up done. She's been in porn over four years. Alexander's wife walks in. I ask her if she is talent. Not in porn. She does mainstream modeling as well as assist Alex (from behind the scenes) with his porn shooting. West Coast distributes DeVoe's movies.
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