Thanks Jon
NL-This interview with Mr. Marcus is from 2004 when we had the HIV outbreak. His views are very interesting when mirrored with what we know happened recently.
from http://www.xbiz.com/articles/80453/interracial
XBIZ: Do you think the adult industry mirrors society in any way?
Mr. Marcus: This is a great question, because, yes, I think [porn] holds the mirror up to society and says, "Hey, this is what you guys are like." We’re actually all collectively kinkier and perverted than we want to believe, or what is polite to share. Porn captures many forms of sexual expression. I hope it leads people to be more sexually expressive and adventurous. It should be a positive thing.
XBIZ: Tell us about your plans to organize talent in 2004 when a handful of performers tested HIV-positive.
Mr. Marcus: Basically this happened when [black male performer] Darren James was reported as HIV positive all over the news. The state of California has laws in place to prevent "outing" people’s confidential medical records, but he was put out there to dry. He receives a devastating blow and then all of a sudden his face is everywhere on the news.
More than anything, I understood his pain. This story pulled me in in a weird way because I was in one of the clips they showed on the news, so I was getting called constantly from people thinking I was involved somehow.
XBIZ: I just didn’t see anyone protecting him from the onslaught of the media. He deserved his privacy.
Mr. Marcus: I wanted to do right by Darren. Here he was, a black man being vilified on the nightly news, so I wanted them to look at me too and use me as an example of a black guy who was trying to make some good of all this.
XBIZ: Had there been attempts for performers to organize or unionize before?
I don’t think unionize is the right word. The big companies back in the 1960s and 1970s didn’t want performers to organize as a group. When the debate came up, there was a large group of old-school people who don’t want to see this industry change.
It’s a moral obligation for this industry to protect its performers.
Our organization didn’t stick despite our dominant front because performers are ultimately a transient group; here today, gone tomorrow. How could we represent this group if our constituency was constantly changing?
There has to be some amazing plan in place to make it work; I didn’t have it. I’m not some great motivational speaker, I just wanted to put people in the same room and hoped ideas would materialize from that.
A lot of people don’t know this, but I sought the advice of the president of AFTRA (the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists). He sympathized with me but thought we weren’t well organized. He told me he had to take care of the reality stars first and I told him that porn stars are the real reality stars.
I think we tapped into something important though, looking back. As the business grows, some sort of performers’ organization is inevitable. It’s not a dead issue.
However, the meetings did turn into a form of therapy for some performers and we did learn more about AIDS and the transmission of STDs through Sharon Mitchell.
Mr. Marcus: This industry needs benefits. It needs the social services that are afforded to many other industries. We need medical care, mental healthcare, pensions, residuals like Hollywood actors’ and drug counseling. The adult entertainment industry makes so much money, I know this is possible to achieve.
Unfortunately, it takes a tragedy or dire circumstances to get people to change.
Marcus’ comments at the end are good; in an ideal industry there would be physical, dental, mental, emotional, medical and spiritual healthcare because life in the fast lane and under the hot lights, and the consequences of, can at times be brutal as a frequent XPT poster. Ideally, there would be residuals, too. I don’t exactly understand his villifying a black man comment, although I do know myth holds that Africans (and gays) are to blame for AIDS. No one claimed that white dope addict (dope and other stressors are common causes of false positives, as well as immune deficiency) chick villified whites. But, you never see AHF putting billboards up in ANY affluent, white neighborhoods. They only want to target their bogus tests on “undesirable” urban dwellers.
This was a good interview from Mr. Marcus in the past. Also I understood his points, but this disease or the any other disease does not care what color a person is or where they live. It’s about how both parties protects themselves and make sure everybody get tested. I will say the response is different, when people want to use race as a excuse for dumb comments or actions and some people will not understand that point.
So it’s really no excuse for any grown ass adults, not to take responsibility for their lives no matter the person race or whether they are in porn or not!!
His choosing to cover up his VD test was not done because he was a black man. He has mentioned that he is being villified because he is a black man. To me race had nothing to do with what happened.
Funny thing is if he was Manuel Fereira, Marco Bandaras or Jeremy Steele and he fudged his test and got caught the same thing would have happened. Then again Steele is too smart to do something so stupid and would not have been in that situation in the 1st place.
That sounds exactly like what Mr. Mucus is doing KF. And the whites have also had a guy back in the 90’s make a fake test too. So its 2 blacks so far and one white guy. All you need now is somebody like Talon, and some Asian dude to be next. What do u think Brotha? Alex….
If it was me who got doing that the collective reaction would’ve been 1000x worse. After all, I get villified for pinching a girl’s nipple who I was booked to have sexual intercourse with (meanwhile, Nick Manning will walk up to a girl he doesn’t know at a public place, whip out her tits and feel them up, who’s not even in porn and no one makes beef of it). But if I were caught doing what Marcus did I’d say I’m being villified because I’m white, since that makes just as much sense as me unnecessarily forging my test in the first place.
Sorry i kept spelling vilified w/2 l’s, whooops
Darren James contracted HIV back in 2004 but he unknowingly infected other perfomers. He never faked an HIV test to keep working so his situation is different from Marc Wallace and Marcus.
I think Marcus believes syphilis is not that big of a deal b/c it can be cured so easily. He realizes he fucked up by getting caught and becoming the face of the syphilis outbreak (whether he was actually patient zero or not) but he probably thinks people are coming down on him too hard because in his mind nearly the entire adult talent pool IS or HAS BEEN infected with some kind of curable disease at some point in their porn careers. And medical privacy is more important to him than performers catching a disease that can be remedied with a penicilin shot. This is just the opinion I’ve formed about Marcus after listening to his radio interview a few weeks back.
There are probably many others in the industry who share Marcus’ views concerning medical privacy and curable diseases but nobody would dare come out and express their beliefs publicly for obvious reasons. Heck even Marcus didn’t flat out admit to these views as he instead shifted blame to his personal doctor and he arguably downplayed the overall seriousness of syphillis.
Bang Bros recently released a flick that includes the infamous Marcus scene they filmed in which his genital area is visibly infected with stage 2 syphillis. Do they think nobody would notice an obviously sick performer in one of their scenes or do they just not care? I suppose the industry is mixed with performers, producers, and directors who care a lot about safety and others who don’t care quite as much.
“I suppose the industry is mixed with performers, producers, and directors who care a lot about safety and others who don’t care quite as much.”
I wouldn’t give the industry that much credit, money drives the industry. You seriously think safety is a top concern when product has be generated quickly with low overhead in order to maximize profits?
Re: the bang bros syph dick scene. For real?? Damn. So much for not spreading it. Yeah, how could they just shoot that shit? Are there STD fetishists out there? That only aids n abets Weinstein’s political/financial crusade!
Ya he had black spots all over his dick. Looked like chocolate chips on black skin. I can’t believe no one noticed. Not the girl that he was putting his dick in, the cameraman or anyone else on the set.
In the girl’s defense I think she was an eastern europe import so she probably spoke poor english and was not too common sense savy.
Maybe she couldn’t see close up without her glasses? Maybe she thought black guys have chocolate chip looking dicks? What was production’s excuse? It sounds like NO ONE involved had any common sense!
I will say this was a nasty picture. Then again this is the porn business, so it’s all about the money and not health. Also Karmafan Lylith lavey is American, but does it really matter?? It a matter of a people protecting themselves, and she should have spoken up. The movies company is there to make money and nothing else. She did mention that test were taken after the movie and she did not catch anything, so hopefully that is true.
Jeremy you continue to make a ass out of yourself again, saying maybe she thought black guys have chocolate chip looking dicks??? So what the fuck is wrong with you?? It’s like me saying white guys like wearing woman high heels and stockings like you did in your movie. You see how stupid that sounds!!!
Just grow up and your jokes are not funny.
Why do all those white guys in Porno, want to dress up like ladies? and I have chocolate chips on my dick. I don’t have syphie. White girls love our big black dick, huh Alex?. Stay up bro!!
That was a joke, dumbass. Wow…
Chalmer I don’t worry about it man. I see Jeremy comments and laugh. So when you live the American dream and not a stereotype, some people can’t handle it!! Also it’s fun having a big black dick, but I prefer asian, black or latin woman. So if white lady has a ass like Sara Jay, then it’s all good!!
Jeremy you made my point asshole!!! How is that funny, when it is about people health??? I told you before your jokes are stupid.
You’re too stupid to understand but let me try again… I was trying to figure out how the fuck someone would work with him in his condition, as well as why he showed up to work and why it was shot. I was not laughing aboit it, even though the whole things a joke like your skills of critical thinking.
And congrats, Alex, u finally have a friend and supporter. The fact that his name is Rick Madrid says it all. Rick really needs a friend, too, and now u two can b BFFs. Awwwww.
The more you talk the dumber you sound. When you get call out for it, you change the subject. It just like two face Mitt. Also all that BFF shit, I will leave that to you and your buddies. I think some people on LIB are starting to see, what a clown you really are Jeremy.
I’m stupid for trying to explain your stupidity to you. You hear that Travis, Walter, etc… you’re all my buddies. Your opinions r just coz yor tryin 2b popular. I think Third, another buddy, described u well, u uppity ass muthafucka! I pity the fool!
Jeremy you have nothing, and your comments back that up. Also since you don’t listen, I will say it again. The comments posted on LIB, by you and your boyfriends have no effect on my life.
So since you are a old wash up porn actor, you and your boyfriends can have your fun on LIB. Since it clear you need it. I will just laugh at all your dumb ass comments!!!
Alex you hit that right on the head again. JermaTurd’s buddies are his Butt Buddies. again Third is his second alias. I.P. addresses show up from his Laptop. ooops! Busted!
Jeremy and i dont agree on anything except the fact that you alex are a brain dead moron whose been drinking the bama kool aid for far to long. as far as Rush goes , i defy you to find a “hate filled lie ” said by him on his show unlike the lies spewed forth from bamas sewer hole, (documented lies ) even the left is starting to turn on him, like rats leaving a sinking ship. now jeremy will say i have been drinking the right wing kool aid because i choose to participate in a flawed system, and he may have a point, but i choose to play and not just take my ball and go home.
my bad, wrong thread
Well, I obviously won that conversation.
And the Winner of The MopeTard award…. Rick Madrid!
Travis again with a point less comment. This dumb old ass clown keeps talking with no facts and trolls for the right wing kkk!!! The right wing kkk have to lie, cheat and steal to win elections:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/republican-campaign-worker-charged-with-voter-registration-fraud/2012/10/19/c07cc378-1a01-11e2-94aa-9240e72ee00b_story.html?wprss=rss_local
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/10/20/1145044/-Threatening-Voters-Employees-and-Customers-Is-A-Sign-of-Weakness
Jeremy the only thing you won, is begin a nasty fake ass on LIB!!!
Nasty fake ass??
“Very, very L.A.”… wow you talk just like Rick Madrid. This is amazing. And posting on every thread out of nowhere attacking me… Hmm..