Monday, January 3, 2000

Strip Club Scandals

Luke talked Saturday night by telephone to booking agent in the strip club scene who gave the lowdown on his rivals.

XXX: "You've never written about Lowell Smith's arrest [and conviction around 1993 in Florida]. He spent two years [actually 13 months, released in 1995] in federal prison for some white collar crime (counterfeiting and fraud)."

Lowell: "Technically speaking, those were the charges."

XXX: "Lowell Smith tells everybody that he got $10,000 from the guy who beat him up last year, Michael Morrison. Michael could not afford to go to jail, being a convicted felon."

Lowell denies receiving any money from Morrison. Lowell says he's had no contact with Morrison since Michael flattened him at the 1999 CES.

Lowell: "Looking at the way that facts have been distorted, this can only be Richard Machelli telling you this... If he's been in the business for 28 years, I must not have heard of him for 21 of those years. He's such a minor person in the business. He's a cripple. He broke his ankle in a club in Connecticutt. If he's such a big agent, how come he never goes to any of the trade shows? Nobody has even seen this man. He has as much of a chance representing the Vivid Girls as I do of being the first man on Mars.

"I'm not really Lowell Smallowitz. My grandfather from Romania was named Smallowitz and when he came into this country at Ellis Island, the immigration official told him that you are now Smith.

"I'll give you a quote about Richard Machelli. When he does his next booking, it will probably be his first."

XXX: "Lowell's trying to make himself look big. He's been doing that since he came out. He's been recruiting girls to work at the cat ranches [illegal brothels in Nevada]. He also works with escort services in Las Vegas."

Lowell Smith firmly denies these charges. He says he has never booked anyone for escort work. Other sources disagree.

XXX: "Lowell Smith is not a registered booking agent [for strippers]. About five booking agents are not licensed, including your good friend Charley Frey. And Marty Foyer (who operates out of his house). They're supposed to register with their individual state. Certain states you don't have to, but in Florida, New York, and Nevada and many others, you have to register."

Luke: "But they can say they are talent managers rather than talent agents."

XXX: "Were you at the club owners convention last year? Lowell was running prostitution there... He had a couple of hookers."

Lowell denies this. He also says that most of the clubs he deals with are not owned by Arabs. "What's Richard going to do? Threaten to tell them that I am Jewish?"

XXX: "The agency Legacy, with Michael Rose in charge (out of New York) and Jeff Russell (Texas) and Lydia Parks (North Carolina), is not licensed.

"Charley Frey cooperates with law enforcement. A couple of years ago, a Russian submarine off the Florida coast was caught by the feds trying to smuggle drugs to a place [strip club] called Porkies. Charley Frey had his office there. Charley didn't want to pay his rent, so he called the police. That was a drug deal that Charley was part of but then he set them up.

"Charley has had many speeding tickets over the past few years but he has no points off on his Florida drivers license because he cooperates with the feds... Charley takes an attorney with him for every moving violation... Even when he testified against Michael J. Peter on state charges, Charley got paid for that. Everyone says Charley is a rat.

"And Charley's been intimidating girls by threatening bodily harm.

"Charley got beaten up at a club called Tens in Fort Lauderdale in October. And Marty Foyer just watched."

Charley Frey says: "What can I say...I have never in my life heard more unadultered bulls--- than that of this so-called agent. So far fetched is the nonsense he has spouted that it is not even worthy of a point to point response."

XXX says: "Marty doesn't book anybody. The Lee Network has all his girls.

"The owner of the [stripper booking] agency Pure Talent (licensed out of Florida) is married to a business partner of Don Waite, a part owner of Exotic Dancer magazine."

XYZ: That allegation is totally untrue.

XXX: "Pure Talent makes up phoney credits for many of its dancers, turning house dancers into features.

"Spearmint Rhino is doing terrible. They use The Lee Network strictly. Spearmint Rhino in Las Vegas is doing terrible. It has a predominantly black crowd, black staff. That's friction in Vegas. They bought three clubs on the East Coast in Florida (Tampa, Miami and Keyes) that have gone out of business. SR don't know what they are doing. They said they were starting their own movie company but have not done anything yet.

"Deja Vu is getting hurt by the government. The state of Washington is restricting a lot of things. Charley Frey dropped a dime to the feds on Harry Mohney [convicted felon who owns Deja Vu]. Harry is on federal parole. Lowell Smith also dropped a dime on Deja Vu.

"Lowell talked to Metro [another name for the Las Vegas police department]. Lowell said something like, if I can't get work here, Deja Vu might as well not get work here because Harry is as much of a convicted felon as I am. A convicted felon can't register a corporation in Nevada. Lowell says Harry was using different titles. After that, Metro left Lowell alone for a few weeks.

"Lowell is paranoid. Lowell is afraid of cops. He's petrified of cops. If you knock on his door and say police, he'll go through the wall. He likes to get the cops on his side, if he can. His real last name is not Smith, it is Smallowitz. He started his career in New York City on 42nd Street. He went to Florida. Got in trouble with the authorities. Went to Vegas. Went to prison. Been in Vegas eversince. His company is a non-existing company."

Lowell says he's had a Las Vegas business license since 1995. And he welcomes Richard Machelli to walk up to his house and yell about the cops.

Lowell says he has excellent relations with Deja Vu and Harry Mohney and has not finked to the feds on them.

Lowell: "Almost all the people Richard wants to represent, I have contact with. And they want nothing to do with him.

"Richard, I'm sorry to have to say all this about you and I know that you are mad at me because I told a club owner a long time ago, when asked for a referral, that I had no knowledge of any booking that you have ever done. I'm sorry to have had to have told the truth about you but if you can prove otherwise, I am all ears."

XXX: "Lowell has been warned to cease and desist on a lot of people. He's been harassing girls. Giving them ultimatums such as work with me or you don't work. Or telling the girls that you have to sleep with him to get a job. Most of the clubs he deals with are owned by arabs.

"Lowell co-books with Universal, owned by Eleanor, originally from Massachusetts, she now owns a club in Connecticutt. She's on the up and up. She's legit."

Lowell says he does co-book with Universal but that there have been no cease-and-desist orders executed against him. And that he does not tell the girls that they have to sleep with him to get work.

Porn director Bud Lee started The Lee Network around 1990 before selling it around 1994. It's become the premiere agency for booking strippers.

XXX: "Lee Network claimed they had opened up an office in Van Nuys, California. They used a dummy phone number out of Florida. Lee Network is run by Canadian Tony Indovino who also owns an agency in Toronto. "Steve Chase" is his so-called partner but that is not even his real name. The Lee Network doesn't do the phoney credits as much as others. They're pretty much on the up-and-up. But they've only been around six years. Some guy in Pennsylvania (Al Diamond, with clubs on the East Coast) owns The Lee Network totally. It's just registered under different names.

"The agency is owned by someone else but the license is in the name of Steve Hardick (Chase) and Tony Indovino. The information is open to public records in Tallahassee, Fl."

Luke: "Do club owners buy it [that many house girls are getting passed off as feature dancers by using phoney credits]?"

XXX: "They don't even know. They believe everything they hear. They're conned. They get the pictures and the credentials... And in the industry, nobody ever gave a definition of what a feature dancer is. If you claim you were in a magazine, you should identify the month and year. But nobody ever gives that. A lot of girls say they did movies when they never did them. They get boxcovers made for themselves.

"[The stripper act] Scandalous had a club shut down last year for doing a sex act on stage. A month or two later, they went to another club in New York and had that club shut down. And now they're playing games. They go to certain clubs and don't go to other clubs, but they're rates keep going up.

"The group Scandalous were a duo now they became a trio. They use to own a magazine and they appeared in every issue. They may have appeared in Penthouse but not too many magazines. They appeared in a few magazines, not too many to speak of. They haven't been in any movies but they appear at the East Coast Video Show, Club Owners Convention and CES. They aren't real features. Check their web site www.scandalousduo.com."

Mike South writes: Actually Luke this one is only partially correct Adara's partner (called Michele Michael in my vid) HAS done Hardcore. She shot for me in Mike South's Southern Belles 2000 Vol. 1 and does full on boy girl and a big facial pop. Adara on the other hand likes to hang around pornstars for the publicity value but she has never done hardcore and I seriously doubt that she will. She tells people on occasion that she is going to get into porn and that she has contract offers from Vivid and Wicked but when I contacted people at both companies who would know they said, and I quote "Adara? Adara who? Never heard of her."

XXX: "The Lee Network thinks they own the girls [rep them exclusively]. There are certain features we're trying to reach and we've been told by the Lee Network to leave them alone. I'm not listening to them. Ninety five percent of their girls are independent.

"I don't think anyone should be exclusive 52 weeks of the year. But the agents are giving them that ultimatum. You don't do that and you don't work.

"I can give you a hundred girls names who go out as features and aren't even real features. Contest girls don't exist. You have to buy your way into the contest. They're not real. The only two real contests are Miss Nude Galaxy (done at the Ponderosa in Indiana) and Miss Nude Illinois (Big Alice in Peoria). The others are fake. They're not registered anywhere."

Luke: "Who would they have to register with?"

XXX: "The contest and club have to be registered with the state to be a real contest. The Miss Nude World contest is a big farce. You have the new magazine Exotic Nights which only covers the contest scene with house girls.

"There's an East Coast girl named XXXena who's trying to be passed off as a porno star. She has no credits. [Not to be confused with the California girl XXXena who's a contract girl for Leisure Time.] There's another Savannah... All this crap...

"Jade St. Claire is the name of another phony feature. She appeared on the Howard Stern show saying she was Nude Miss World. He laughed her off the air. He asked when she was Nude Miss World. She said three years ago. He said, 'Why didn't you put the year down? To make me think you're current? Get off my show.' And he kicked her off the show. She only does these phoney contests.

"Nikki Lynn is going out for the same price as Brittany Andrews but the difference is night and day. Brittany is an established star. Pure Talent books Nikki Lynn at $3500 for twelve shows.

"Brittany Andrews charges $3700 for 12 shows, with a prepaid ticket. She needs a window seat. And a nice hotel.

"When Marty Foyer showed up for the club owners convention, he sat in the corner for the whole thing. Marty got really fat. I call him 'Shamu' [after the whale]. He had nobody to talk to. He was greeting everybody as they came in.

"Marty doesn't even know the name of his computer. Last time I spoke to him, there was a storm. He was under his table... He's always looking over his shoulder. And if you call him before 4PM, he will not answer the phone without an atittude. He looks for business anyway he can. Two of the girls he spoke with, he promised them work, were Penthouse Pets and nobody has seen them since. One moved to Rhode Island. Marty's name does not come up. Anything he had, he lost.

"Marty's uncle doesn't even speak to him anymore, and he started Marty in the business. Marty plays the telephone pretty good. As soon as you tell Marty something, everybody hears about it within an hour.

"Charley Frey has dyed his hair. So he's not a blonde anymore. He's a brunette. And he brings his own bodyguard.

In the sex business since 1978, Richard Machelli of Purr-fect Productions International (purrfect-1@mindspring.com), a stripper agency out of New York, partners with Dominic, a former US attorney.

Richard: "I owned clubs (Foggy Bottom, Camelback Lounge) in Phoenix, Arizona. I worked for Michael Peter...

Richard: "But the other agents are just conning girls, ripping them off financially. Taking more money than they deserve to get. We just take 10%. The other agents will take 14-16%. Charley Frey gets 45% from some girls.

"We provide security for girls. We check the clubs before we put the girls in there. And we're open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If they have trouble, they can just call us. And we have an attorney on retainer... And we'll be providing medical coverage.

"A friend of ours got beaten up in a club and the agency she was with said she deserved it.

"Sadie Sexton had a heart attack at age 21. And she's still featuring.

"I turn girls down unless they have credits that are checkable. We have a couple of girls that still owe us an agents fee. We'll send the girls one final letter before we turn it over to an attorney. We don't mess around.

"We're not prejudiced either. We have black features we cannot even book in clubs because of the agencies. The clubs are being controlled by these other agents who don't want black girls. There are very few clubs that will take a black girl. We're trying to work deals with clubs to take them [black girls] to prove a point. And we're talking porno stars, not just the magazine girls."

Luke: "So most clubs won't take black girls?"

Richard: "Most of them [black girls] are told by the agents that it is not going to work out. If you look at the situation with most clubs, the owners are idiots. I've never seen such a retarded situation where the reason I am using an agent is because I am friends with them. When it comes down to money, noone has a friendship. You've got to be strictly business.

"And you don't rip off a girl's rate. Remember Rayveness? She was going for $250 a show but now her agent claims she's going for $150 a show. And the agent doesn't even book her. They're lying to the public.

"Ten years ago, there were only five agencies in business. Now you have about 15. A lot of false people working out of their home. When I was working for Michael Peter at Goldfingers, we never heard of these people."

Luke: "Do girls with small breasts, A or B cup, get pressured to get boob jobs by many of these agents?"

Richard: "That's the whole kickbang thing. They get kickbacks from doctors."

Luke knows, and has seen firsthand, doctors getting kickbacks from porners for referring talent.

Richard: "We had a 21-year old girl Cindy out of Syracuse, New York. We were telling her not to do anything she didn't want to do. We wanted to start her out with magazines. The Lee Network took her to do movies. They told her that with her bodies, magazines won't do her. She needs to do [porn] movies. I spoke to her today. She was upset.

"They told her there was no future with magazines. If you want to get far with us, you have to do movies. Charley is doing the same thing. He was pushing girls towards Metro for a while. He was telling people that he was a part-owner of Metro.

"Another girl was told by the Lee Network that she was too small [breasted]... But there are movie companies out there who will shoot her... We recommend girls to board-certified doctors who've done Playmates, Penthouse Pets or girls in the industry. And we don't take any kickbacks. Not a damn thing.

"The Lee Network claims to have exclusive dealings with Vivid. The other movie companies are flexible.

"Frank Baine owns Continental. They claim that they represent all these porno stars. Many of them have never done a movie. You've heard of Racquel Darrian? Well, they're using a girl with a name very close to that. I told the club, check it out. It's not real. They did and cancelled the booking. Why should Racquel Darrian's name get ruined? This is what the whole crap is. They use names that are fake and credentials that are fake.

"Continental has nobody real. They go for the contest girl. They have a deal with one of those schools up in Wisconsin that charges $200 a week and makes them features. Pure Talent is starting a talent school too. Everybody's doing it for the money. They tell the girls that they can become features by watching movies. At the end of a couple of weeks, they pay you $100 for the night and say you are a feature. They give you a bunch of phony credits.

"Continental send a girl to a booking that pays $1000 for twelve shows. She pays her own transportation. And her own hotel. She comes home with $300 a week.

"We travel about 35 times a year checking out clubs. There are clubs I don't book anybody.

"We're trying to get girls into different things like motorcycle magazines that we have friends at... Some girls might even do commercial work.

"Two years ago Charley Frey threatened us that he'd burn down our office. We went down to Florida looking for him. He locked himself in the office with the police outside. But that's Charley, he's noted for that.

"He tried to open a club in Longbranch, New Jersey, two years ago... And he had Ron Jeremy at a hotel a mile down the street, with Jasmine St. Clair. He tried to open up his club but the police had it padlocked. The police told him, you can't open. The city is not letting you open. So he called 9-1-1 on them [which dials the police department].

"Charley is scamming people. He's threatening clubs. You don't know who you're pushing around. You don't know who my connections are. That's his game.

"There aren't many good clubs around anymore. Most of them are dying out. The features are fake, there's false advertising... There's no money coming in. Ridiculous prices. Is Houston worth $20,000 for twelve shows? Would you put Houston above Jenna Jameson? Charley does that."

Luke: "He's quite a hustler."

Richard: "He goes into clubs and tries to make deals behind everyone's back.

"The Lee Network has been telling bookstores that you have to book a feature every week if you're going to make money. But the bookstores can't afford features."

Richard resides in New York six months of the year and in Dallas the other six.

Richard: "Texas is just a bedlam of stupidity. Caligula 21 in Dallas burned down because of a problem between husband and wife. Nice way of getting out of the business."

Bianca Trump writes: "Oh and hey....who the hell does this guy "feature agent" Richard book? All the bad mouthing he did about alot of great agents......who is he?What talent does he book? What clubs does he book? I've never even heard of him. All that stuff is BS I book with all the agents.....yes all. No pressure to be exclusive, no lieing about my credits, no price wars amongst each other. Different clubs book through different agents so it all works out well for all of us. He is filling your pages with poop. He sounds bitter."

Ann Marie Hayek operates Pure Talent at 213 Belcher Road, Clearwater, Florida 33765, (727) 796-9600 Fax (727) 723-7355. www.pure-talent.com Email: hotfeature@aol.com.

Richard: "If you go on her website, a lot of her girls do not even have credits. She has names of magazines with no month and no year. She even has a girl claiming to be a Penthouse Pet who is not a Pet. Vanna Lace (vannalace.com)."

Intrepid investigative reporter Luke F-rd surfed over to vannalace.com and found this: Welcome to my website, VannaLace.com! Here are a few details and frequently asked questions for my internet fans. I'm a graduate of the National Ballet School of Canada and I achieved the Championship title of the Master Division in September 1997. I love performing throughout the World entertaining my fans. Where are you from Vanna? I'm from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, but now I make my home in sunny Southern Arizona. What are your measurements? I'm a perfect 36DD - 24 - 36. Where will we see you next? Look for my latest Penthouse layout coming soon! If you'd like to see me at an adult venue near you, request the club owner or manager to contact me for a booking! For Bookings Call: Skyyline Promotions (520) 749-0110.

I'm the 1997 Penthouse CoverGirl. I've held the titles of Ms. Nude Canada and Ms. Nude World. My television appearances have included HBO Star RealSex 4, the Joan Rivers Show, the Montel Williams Show, Jenny Jones Show and I've also featured on MSNBC. I was the first Ms. Nude World to feature in Penthouse Magazine and HBO. I am also the spokesmodel for Entertainment and Sports Today. What kind of shows do you put on? I have 60 dynamic shows. My Signature acts include: The Fire Show, Classic Ballet, a Sign Language act dedicated to the hearing impaired, Sexy Suds Show, and the Famous Fan Dance!

Richard: "Club owners in California are retarded. I spoke to somebody yesterday in La Habra who does not know what he is doing. There were 40 partners in the place. You're guaranteed to lose money in this business if you don't know what you are doing. They used to deal with Lowell [Smith] before he screwed them up."

Luke asked Lowell: "Do you remember screwing 40 partners in La Habra?"

Lowell: "No. I only once dealt with a club in La Habra."

Richard: "Lowell is interesting with his agency. He's promising girls everything... He works out of his house. He's not registered."

Lowell: "I am interesting. I am downright fascinating. Do I promise the girls that they will make money? Yes, if they do their jobs, they will make money.

"If Richard spent as much time trying to get bookings as giving you this erroneous information, he might've booked someone in all these years."

Smith remembers talking by phone to Richard Machelli while Lowell lived in Florida in the early '90s.

Lowell: "We were friendly. He'd call and talk volumes... And everybody, including me, after a half an hour of the same garbage, always has to pretend that they have another phone call just to get rid of this nuisance.

"Richard has a partner? He must have a mouse in his pocket. That's the 'we.' I've booked Phoenix and I've never even heard of those two clubs [Richard says he owned]."

Luke: "I guess Richard is going to sneak up on a lot of people."

Lowell: "I don't think so. I think he'll just bore them to death. He's not going to sneak up on anybody. He's going to limp up..."

Richard: "Pure Talent books Rayveness for a thousand dollars less a week than she asks for. So I'm trying to get in touch with Rayveness, who's part of Juli Ashton's Risque Business company.

"Alisha Klass is asking for $5000 a week for 12 shows. I don't think she will get it... Continental promised her that but so far she hasn't gotten anything for that price. One club she went to she got $2300 for 12 shows.

"I respect Rocki Roads. She did everything on her own.

"One guy Michael [a booking agent] claims to be a movie producer. He's not. We booked one girl for him as a feature and we haven't been paid yet. If we see him we're going to knock his teeth out for lying.

"Reb Sawitz [talent agent] is an interesting guy. You put a call through to a girl and he won't put the call through. He'll say the girls don't want to talk to you."

Porn Stars Settle Suit Against Charlie Sheen

Porn stars Teri Star (Erin Sieman) and Charlese L'Amour (Christina Lee Stramaglia) have settled their suit with Hollywood star Charlie Sheen. They claimed Charlie's bodguard assaulted them.

According to Reuters: In the lawsuit, Sieman and Stramaglia claimed they were "intimate friends" of Sheen who were invited to his home in the posh seaside enclave of Malibu last July 26, only to find no one answering the gate when they arrived. Sieman and Stramaglia said in the court papers that they climbed a fence to get in, but were met by a bodyguard, Curtis "Zippy" Hunt. They claimed Hunt punched Sieman in the face, breaking her nose and cheekbone. When Stramaglia tried to intervene, the women claimed, Curtis lifted her off the ground by her hair, threw her down and kicked her.

The women, who identify themselves as actresses in court papers, claimed Curtis called Sieman the following day at Sheen's instructions and threatened to kill the women if they reported the incident.

Sheen, the son of actor Martin Sheen and brother of actor Emilio Estevez, is on probation for a battery conviction against his former girlfriend. Martin Sheen took out an arrest warrant against his son last year to force him to undergo drug rehabilitation, an action the younger man said saved his life.

Emett writes: Dear Luke, I understand Terri Star and Charlese L'Amour wanting money for their injuires, but why sue Charlie Sheen? It was his bodyguards who did the damage not him. And even if Sheen threatened them, they still cannot prove it and get any money off of him. I say they should had just played their cards right and sweet f---ed the money out of him. But in any case these women do deserve money for their injuries and Sheen has the money to give. He should had just played his card rights in giving them the money the wanted and get a decent f--- out of it. Both of them lost out on a good deal!

Gonzo Porn As Anti-Porn: The Decline of Eroticism in 1990s Adult Cinema

By Louie Scorbick (galifrey@aol.com)

What is porn? People have been arguing this since Clara Bow first swam naked in the 1920's, and still no two people seem able to agree. Some call art what others call disgusting. Some enjoy watching close-ups of banging genitals, others view that as a horrifying sin. Judgement, recrimination, shame, arousal -- the emotions and societal values intrinsically tied to pornography are many and varied. They are what gives porn its lifeblood. As Woody Allen once said, "Sex is only dirty if it's done right." The dirt is needed. It's what defines the very concept of porn.

Yet for all those harping on the definitions, so little attention seems to be paid to the quality of porn itself. Good porn and bad porn. What works and what doesn't. We debate the merits of good and bad art, literature, film, and every other social product, and yet porn is hardly ever held to any aesthetic criteria other than whether or not the "chick is hot" or "has big tits". Surely there has to be more to porn then this.

And yet why is the industry so quiet on this subject? That's easy. Money. Porn knows it sells fantasy and it knows if objective analysis is brought into this equation, the curtain is pulled back and the Wizard is revealed to be nothing more than a goofy old man (Ron Jeremy?). And this is a billion dollar industry. We can't have that going on.

Pornography, unlike most other forms of entertainment, focuses primarily on the selling of an unattainable sex-fantasy dream. Porn in actuality has very little to do with what it's selling. Like PT Barnum duping people into his carnival with grandiose promises of "the most shocking displays ever," porn is another manifestation of the classic seller's con.

An old adage states that porn is never as good as you anticipate it'll be. You pop the tape in the VCR panting, eyes wide with expectations of being taken to new levels of erotic delight, only to sigh and fast forward through the repetitive gestures by the often-uninterested performers. And when it's over, and you've gotten off, there's a sad emptiness in the air of unfulfilled promise. Until time passes, and you forget. And the allure begins all over again. And you run to the video store once again, where box covers tantalize you - the next time will be better, they promise. And you hope they're right.

And every so often they are. Occasionally you'll find a good scene. That scene that you'll play over and over. There's something different there. Something "real". And you're happy. The woman is exceptionally beautiful. The sex is unusually arousing. The two people move in a way that blows your mind. And for one moment, you know what all the fuss is about.

So what makes good porn? To paraphrase a certain Supreme Court Justice, "I can't define it, but I know it when I see it." It's something you see. An expression on a face. A moment of interaction between two people who look, even for one fleeting moment, to be feeling exactly what you fantasize you'd be feeling if you were there. But these moments are few and far between.

To properly understand the payoff of porn, one has to look further then the obvious - the carnal satisfaction. Pornography arouses through the concept of connection. The idea of illicit acts of pleasure that the viewer himself might never dare act out, being performed by strangers for his pleasure. Porn as a fundamental concept is aware at all times of the viewer. It is shot in positions for the viewer, it is scripted for the viewer and it is performed for the viewer. Other than the occasional amateur tape, the porn movie is an assembled work of staged shots aimed at the masses of nameless, faceless porn viewers. But the connection here is much more intimate then one would think. People don't pay to see f---ing. People pay to see PEOPLE f---ing. It is the faces of those on camera, their personalities, their raw emotions that the viewer connects with. What they feel is what we feel. If they're having fun, so are we. To call porn stars actors would be an overstatement, but they do have to create empathy in the viewer. And when they do, and it all comes together in a scene - this is good porn. Because it's based on empathic emotion. Not just jizz.

When Porn truly hit the mainstream in the 70's, the performers found their acts liberating and arousing. Sex was a form of equal rights, women and men came together to make statements of freedom and liberation. Okay, maybe not that grandiose, but Porn was new, young, fresh and exciting. And the people began buying.

As porn grew in the 1980's, finding outlets like the Playboy channel and VHS distribution, pornographers and stars found an audience developing, and the two, shunned by society as a whole, came together. Wannabe auteur directors like John Leslie began producing some of the most creative and erotic works hardcore had ever seen. Stars like Harry Reems and a young, thin Ron Jeremy showed a fun loving sense of humor and self-deprecation. They enjoyed what they did, and were happy to have an audience. Passionate performers appeared like Vanessa Rio, Kathleen Gentry, Randy West, Seka, people who seemed to love what they do for the camera. And for a brief time, audience and performer connected. It was them against the Reagan Era. And excellent, arousing work was produced. The people on camera loved what they did, and it showed.

And then the 90's hit, and the MTV generation took over porn. With a "who gives a f---" attitude, glazed eyes and self-involved narcissictic slant, gonzo porn began to gain in popularity. While mainstream companies like Vivid attempted to keep erotic porn going (with marginal success), the new boyz fired up the camcorders and hit the low budget trail blazing. People who looked like they didn't even know if they were having sex or wrestling, a devil may care 'tude screaming "hey, the audience is a bunch of suckers and I'm glad to take their money for this," these porno people viewed sex as power. Banging away to boost their own egos. No pleasure here. Just self gratification. And certainly no intimacy between the two people in the scenes. And for some reason, people bought in.

So who leads the charge? The names jump to mind - the cold robotic wood-men like TT Boy and John Dough, zombified performers who look like they don't know if they're taking out the garbage, doing the dishes, or banging a hottie. Bratty, inflated bitch-chicks like Shane, Jenna Jameson and Bionca Trump, using sex as their means of power. You can feel the condescension oozing off the screen - these folks think they're pulling the greatest scam on their fans, taking their money for showing a little sex. It's us against them, in their minds. Laughing at porn conventions at the suckers who want their autographs. Feeling like movie stars. Thinking they've conned the losers right out of their money.

But they're against the wrong crowd. They're against their own fans. Gonzo porners like Seymore Butts and Shane, f---ing without a care in the world, offering up the most generic disposable porn ever seen are dominating the industry. And it is through this that porn, for the first time in it's history is not only unerotic, it is fast becoming irrelevant. The curtain has been pulled back. The fantasy is gone. Sex really is just a bunch of limbs after all.

Why does this porn fail? Because it lacks heart. These people feel nothing on camera. They're not afraid they might be ruining their lives, they're not nervous of what their parents might think, they're not aroused or excited or titillated by the very concept of what they're doing. s---, they might as well not even be alive, since they seem to feel nothing on camera. They're bored and they need money. And they know you're just the sucker to give it to them.

They've taken the very lifeblood out of porn - the illicit eroticism. Now it's like watching people play chess. To quote Dustin Hoffman in the Graduate, "What happened between me and Mrs. Robinson, it meant nothing. We might as well have been shaking hands." And so the porn industry in the new millenium. The professionals who worked hard for their fans have retired, and now a bunch of gonzo young bucks fill the hours of tape with little more than self aggrandizing odes to their own ego. They might as well be shaking hands. Because it sure ain't sex on any real level. And that's about the least erotic thing I can think of.

Steve Neece writes: Right on, Louie Scorbick !!! Finally, someone who feels as I do (at least about some things) . Luke, will you be at the CES and the AVN awards? IF they won't let you into the awards you at least owe it to yourself to attend the CES . One thing I would like you to comment on if you attend.

I notice the affection that the performers from the Golden Age greet one another, both men and women. While I notice some affection and bonding among todays female performers I see very little between the genders. This is in stark contrast to the performers of yesteryear . Have you read "Dorothy and the Wizard of X" by Linda Alexander ? She wrote a book centered around Eric Edwards. One of the things that most impressed her was at the 1997 Legends of Erotica awards and how numerous former co-stars, retired for 10-15 years and most no longer in the industry, greeted him with such affection and passion. Many were married with families and mainstream jobs but they had fond memories of scenes with Eric. Who are the Eric Edwards, John Leslies and Richard Pacheco's of today ? If they (in their prime) were around today you can bet that a lot of female hostility would be blunted . Interestingly, Alexander describes herself as a Born Again Christian with misgivings about the industry but who nonetheless came to care very much for Edwards. Hopefully she has become a broader minded person through her association with him.

Also of interest, I was recently watching the end of a video on the Spice Hot channel when Missy in a voice over said that sex with someone you love and care for is one of the best ways to get closer to god . I only saw the last few minutes and didn't catch the title but the credits said Missy wrote the script and directed it . Seeing how afraid most of the industry most of the industry is of this subject I have to imagine she probably had to fight to get it in and would seem to feel strongly about this. A number of other female performers seem to have strong opinions along these lines . How about a debate, Luke ? Does the concept of positive sex being next to godliness offend you ? Could you stand up against such sex positive believers as Jeanna Fine, Charlie Latour and goddess worshipper Annie Sprinkle? I would pay to see that !!

JBHunter writes: Luke, I don't know where you got the article "Gonzo Porn As Anti-Porn: The Decline of Eroticism in 1990s Adult Cinema'' by Louie Scorbick, but, unfortunaely, it's one of the most accurate and perceptive things I've seen on your site. As someone who was around both during the golden age of porn (as a fan and a participant) and, later, as talent and producer during the post-Staglione gonzo revolution, I'm sad to say that Scorbick has hit the nail on the head.

What was once a revolutionary, tightly knit group of outsiders who found a calling as sexual outlaws and missionaries, (think Jamie Gillis, Mark Stevens, Annie Sprinkle, Serena, even Tommy Byron)-sex-positive, wise beyond their years erotically charged folks who bonded through the very nature of being outcasts with a mission, has become, by and large, an industry filled with the sexual equivalent of disconennected internet millionaires whose mantra is "take the money and run". At one time typical off-hours discussions among the talent centered around pleasure, awakening, self-acceptance and group cohesiveness against a judgemental, hypocritical society.

Now it's more likely to center around contracts, international distribution rights, egos. petty rivalries, and day rates. I miss the days when porn stars felt- and really were- doing something important that they needed to do to complete themselves. Now, more often than not, the industry has come to resemble a giant work-release program. With few exceptions- Roxanne Hall, Sunset Thomas, Missy, Roxanne Blaze and a few others come to mind- the sex industry has become less about sex and more about industry. I'm all for making money at something you love and care about, but if money is ALL you care about, you might as well be selling widgets for Hardware.com.

Bianca Trump is selling her implants on EBay. She writes there: You can have the key to what started all the controversy. I had implants since 1990. One ruptured in 1999. I had them both replaced. The ruptured one was discarded and the other is the one up for sale. I will autograph it if you want. I will also provide medical record proof if ness. Also it will come with a polaroid of me holding it. It is a 750 cc textured silicone implant. Buyer pays shipping.Shipped upon payment.

So far, Craig Vasiloff of FANtastic! has the highest bid - $200.

Brandy Alexandre writes on alt.sex.prostitution: You know, with the level of email I've gotten in recent days asking me if I do escort, or will make a one-time exception, maybe I should consider escorting. What do you think? Anyone looking for sex with a 35-year old secretary from Los Angeles?

Seth writes: Luke, it sounds like Brandy is pretty hard up for money... just not as hard up as the guy that would actually pay her.

Luke Gets Mail

JimGunn.com says: Fort Lauderdale, FL- Jim Gunn Productions is proud to announce the first title in a new series of all-girl movies entitled "Lesbian Cheerleader Squad #1". This seven scene, all-girl extravaganza features a cast of entirely BRAND NEW talent. Jim has cast eight of the youngest, most nubile female video newcummers, many in their adult video debuts, for this all-outdoor East Coast production. Several eighteen-year-old Florida models lick pussy for the first time and even slam strap-ons with glee in not one, but two four-girl orgies.

Barely legal bisexual beauties, darling red cheerleader costumes, big toys, great photography and digital video quality enhance the production values of the first movie in what is sure to be a successful ongoing series. Super saleswoman Gigi Appleton of Avalon Enterprises will be handling domestic distribution of the newly created Jim Gunn Productions line at 888-777-0969.

Jim: "This is the first title that I own. I have a distribution deal with Gigi at Avalon."

Cindy Plenum writes: Dear Luke: Happy Plenium! I got this email from some French guy named Laurant who saw your bio of me on your web site and wants to interview me for "La Spirale", a French webzine. I want to increase my fame, but I also want to protect my reputation. Do you think I should chance it? You are a media star - how should I handle this?

Luke: Just do it.

Todd the smut king writes: in response to lorelienixx she is so right.i was watching virgin kink when a new girl named angelina was filming a scene.she thought she was filming a girl girl when suddenly the lady giving the interview brings out a big goof.angelina seems stunned at the view of a guy and tries hard as hell not to look disappointed.it was so obvious that it was sickening.someone is doing shady business at toxxic.

Den from cavr.com writes: Luke Could you please announce that voting for the Best of 1999 is now open. Features 17 categories and the ability to click on the item before voting to see a jpg of the performer and her list of 1999 movies. Or, in the case of a movie, the actual review. And, of course, open to the public for voting via the internet. http://www.cavr.com/vote2000.htm

Brandy Alexandre writes: I added a tribute page to my website for the cat. Just too many people sent her holiday wishes, I couldn't neglect acknowledging her contributions to the website and my life any longer. This is the only page on my site with pictures of "pussy." ;) http://kamikaze.org/kamikaze.html

Joy writes on RAME: According too her website(http://www.totallyteri.com) Teri Weigel recently did a bukkake scene for JM producions American Bukkake #7. It will be released in mid March. I guess now Teri can be taken off the cum dodgers list.

Egg writes: Looks like the cooks at AVN are the ones with Y2K problems. www.avn.com reads Sunday, January 2, 192000 in the upper right hand title bar.

VegasVic writes on RAME that Excaliburfilms.net is not Y2K compliant: I logged onto the site to check out the latest news and releases, and I discovered that the site isn't Y2K compliant. If you click on "latest news", you'll see that the site has reverted back to the January 1999 news, and the ticker has reverted back to counting down to Y2K (365 days, 22 hours, etc.)

Mike writes on RAME: Although RAME has frowned on posts regarding drug use by those in the adult video business in the past I feel this is a legit post considering this recent release from Seymour Butts contains quite a bit of drug use. This video is shot in Amsterdam and you can guess from the title "High From Europe" what the tapes theme is but it didn't impress me one bit. Drug use in videos isn't good for anyone involved and in my opinion just goes to show the level of those involved in the adult industry. A video like this can't do anything positive for the industry, its garbage in my opinion.

Emmet writes: I cannot believe how many famous porn actress are married! Jane Lixx, Inari Vachs, Alana, and Heaven Leigh! How can their husbands be so supportive when someone is screwing the hell out of them? And vice versa. Either the men or the women are incredibly horny and will put up with anything for sex or they are truly in love. In any case I still cannot see how either partner can the other have sex with another person.

Goddess: Tell Emmet that any twit can get married. It's STAYING married that seems to pose a big problem for porners. That's one "trick" they haven't mastered yet.

Emmet: Alisha Klass is one superhot starlet. I say she could find work anywhere, especially in Anabolic! But first she has to get rid of the tattoo on her back. I still do not understand why she branded herself? These days you can get a sticker paint tatto that will come off in about 4 or 5 days. Compared to tattoo getting removed for about a $1000. Second, she has to lower her rates! Five grand every 12shows?! Then again a porn actress puts her entire life (Socially, Physically, and Mentally) on the line to please men and women. Never mind. Every famous porn actress should get five grand a show and per movie. Especially since no one does 100% disease and viral check on porn stars. That's the main reason how and why Cherry Mirage had to leave Extreme. Byron and AIM just like f---ing people over and like to put the blame on the actor and actress.

David Gardener writes about Saturday night's Mad TV show on Fox: They had some great Mulder and Scully make up, stylized camera angles and X Files-type incidental music. Set up: AVN reported 6 of the industry's top contract girls had disappeared in the last month under strange circumstances and M&S went to a shoot to investigate. Some sleazy director with a hairy chest pouring out of his unbuttoned to the waist Hawaiian shirt was nervously looking at his watch and yelling that he neeeded wood. Scully started scraping cum samples from everywhere into an evidence bag while Mulder interviewed a porn girl who was doing a scene at the time. A masked cue card man was holding up her lines..."oooh, oh, ooh, yeah daddy" so these are her answers to his questions. Meanwhile Scully is scraping cum off the ceiling while the director says something about the most incredible money shot he'd ever seen. They end up being taken into a spaceship where the cue card guy takes off his mask to reveal he's an alien. All the missing porn babes show up. Turns out the gov't has traded them to the aliens (for what I'm not clear) so they could stimulate waning testosterone levels of the alien men enough to head off the extinction of their species. M&S are zapped with some kind of memory eraser so they won't remember being abducted.

Amused in Modesto writes: Luke - All porn starlet web site's feature some sort of on-line store featuring autographed photos, used panties, artificial vaginas and other assorted, over priced crap. I recently went to the Teri Weigel site and cracked up when I saw that Ms. Weigel has her own line of multivitamins. No doubt chock full of vitamin DD.

Luke needs a recommendation for a good Los Angeles escort service. Just for professional interest.

From Monday's New York Daily News, Mitchell Fink gossip column: "Say what you will about Larry Flynt, the man is definitely not cheap. His wedding gift to his nephew Jimmy Ray Flynt 2nd was a sit-down dinner for 300 at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Casey Exton, longtime friend of the Hustler publisher, told friends at Da Tommaso that it was the most lavish wedding he has ever seen. The bride, by the way, is Jayne Trimble of Lexington, Ky." Casey Exton=Harvey Shapiro publisher of Outlaw Biker and other fine periodicals.

Rodger Jacobs writes on RAME: Rob Black did not and does not "deal with" any issues in his videos. I have interviewed him twice for magazine articles and he has never articulated anything, in his manic defense of his often over-the-top product, to indicate that he has a strong grasp on the subjects of drug addiction, rape, female domination, etc. In fact he made the following remark to me when I interviewed him for my feature story "Extreme Porn" in Hustler: "Anybody can shoot Tommy Byron's dick coming out of Liza Harper's ass. It's been done a million times. But when Liza is playing a drugged-out hooker and Tommy is her pimp, then you have something really interesting." Hardly the observations of a film-maker taking a deep look at social issues.