Thursday, November 23rd, 2000

Luke Swims In Currents Of Life And Death

Chaim Amalek writes Luke: "How do jewish vegetarians from the land of the Southern Cross celebrate the American/goyishe holiday of thanksgiving?"

His life rippled with currents of life and death. He'd just set aside a death current - the John Updike novel "Bech at Bay" about an old novelist who murdered his harshest critics.

Death currents are composed of unhealthy ingredients such as illicit sex, self expression regardless of moral boundaries, interest in death and defecation, false excitement, fame, TV, flashing and alluring images, the National Football league and spectator sports in general.

Life currents are composed of self denial, self control, regard for moral boundaries, prayer, God, Bible.

Almost everything that is immediately pleasurable, and gives an illicit thrill, is destructive. It leads towards death.

The path toward life means obedience to God's will.

He sat at his computer Thanksgiving night, 7PM. He'd be alone all day.

He had a date Wednesday night. It took 30 minutes to get out of the Beverly Connection parking garage. He awoke at 7:15AM Thanksgiving Day and realized that he'd miss the 6:45 edition of the morning prayers at synagogue and the Daf Yomi (page of Talmud study). So he slept in and began his day near 9AM, listening to Dennis Prager on KIEV 870 AM in Los Angeles. Prager is a life force.

Tired, he spent the late morning lying in the sun listening to Prager. In the early afternoon he listened to Updike on cassette tape.

Then he watched parts of the Cowboys - Vikings game until the Vikings pulled away in the third quarter to coast to an easy victory.

In the late 1970s, when Luke first arrived in the United States, he sought to unload his unwanted self by identifying himself with quarterback Roger Staubach and the Dallas Cowboys. In the early 1990s, he found a more effective form of rebirth - he converted to Judaism.

Luke spent Thanksgiving Day, 2000, alone. He spent a couple of hours updating his website but quickly realized that dealing with pornography in any manner was toying with death. So he returned to his bed on the floor (Luke, strictly speaking, does not have a bed nor a mattress) and listened to the Updike tale take a disturbing murderous turn.

Then the phone rang and he talked to a woman who struggled with depression. Almost all the women in Luke's life are more depressed than he is.

At 6:50PM, Luke ate his Thanksgiving Meal of four slices of toasted Sun-Maid Raisin Bread covered with peanut butter and mashed banana. Then Luke went to his computer so he could talk to his readers. He didn't feel up to interacting with people in the flesh.

Email is so much more convenient. You never need to spend more than a few seconds with an unwanted person. And you can savor the communication and reread it.

Laurie Holmes Lawsuit Against Luke Dismissed

In August, Laurie Holmes agreed to drop her lawsuit against Bill Amerson and VCA Pictures in exchange for confidentiality. Laurie extended the same offer to me and I refused it.

On October 20th, my motion for Summary Judgement was heard in Department 55 of the Los Angeles Superior Court, Judge Cesar C. Sarmiento presideing. Attorney Greg Smith, a particularly craven and obnoxious guy in a craven and obnoxious profession, represented Plaintiff Laurie Holmes.

After consideration of the written pleadings and further oral argument, the Court sustained Defendant Luke F-rd's statement of Undisputed Facts and granted the Motion for Summary Judgment. This action by the Court effectively dismisses the entire Complaint against Luke F-rd.

This is a fantastic result. Very rarely does a court grant a summary judgment for a defendant in a defamation case, let alone one with First Amendment issues. However, we were successful in pointing out the defects in the original Complaint and the lack of merit of the overall claim.

The attornies representing Holmes are Park, Smith, Chang & Lim LLP, at 3435 Wilshire Blvd. Suite 2920 Los Angeles, CA 90010 (213) 386-5595, fax (213) 384-7110.

8/21/00

Laurie Holmes Seeks To Drop Lawsuit

Plaintiff Laurie Holmes, a porn star and widow of the late John Holmes, has sought through her attorneys to drop her lawsuits against VCA Labs, Bill Amerson, Cass Paley and Luke F-rd in return for confidentiality and the defendants agreeing not to sue her for frivolous litigation.

The defendants have agreed to not sue Holmes for frivolous litigation (very difficult to win) but I have not agreed to the confidentiality clause (without a $25,000 payment).

Here are the facts on the case as it pertains to me:

Luke F-rd, operates and publishes an Internet web site www.l-keford.com. The site is a tabloid-style media site that reports on the pornography industry. The site has discussions with adult film actors, actresses, directors, other publishers and publishes comments from the public (i.e., people can email Mr. Ford who may then re-publish such comments on the site).

On November 11, 1999, Luke F-rd published an article on his web site within which he re-published statements made by a Mr. Bill Amerson concerning the plaintiff, Laurie Holmes. Mr. Amerson's statements originally appeared in a documentary entitled "Wadd: The Life and Times of John Holmes." Ford states in his article that Amerson said that "`She would go out and hitch-hike around the block and turn tricks in the cars,' Amerson was quoted as saying." Ford goes on to write that "Laurie, a/k/a "Misty Dawn," according to the [New York] Post, denies having ever been a prostitute and is seeking unspecified damages." Thereafter, Ford includes a number of statements and/or emails from others, and includes his discussion with Amerson concerning the suit filed against Amerson. While both Amerson and Ford use the term "hooker" and/or terms "flipping tricks" throughout the discussion, the only time the term "prostitute" is used is as set forth above in the New York Post article.

On November 15, 1999, Laurie Holmes faxed a demand letter to Fantastic Online asserting that the statements were false and demanding to have the statements removed. Mr. Ford did not remove the statements but did publish the letter on his site. Holmes alleges damages to reputation.

WITNESS DEPOSITIONS

1. Alvin Goldstein

Mr. Alvin Goldstein is the publisher of Screw magazine and producer of a New York cable access show entitled "Midnight Blue." Goldstein is 64 years old and resides in Florida, New York, Amsterdam, Holland and maintains an apartment in West Hollywood. Mr. Goldstein's deposition consisted of questioning regarding his sexual interactions with the plaintiff Laurie Holmes, in return for money. Goldstein clearly did not take the deposition seriously. He consistently made jokes intertwined the same with his responses. Furthermore, he consistently used offensive language, inappropriate gestures and overall deplorable conduct. Goldstein essentially said that he paid any woman who had sexual interaction with him.

Mr. Goldstein testified that he met Laurie Holmes approximately two years ago on the set a film entitled something like "Hot Wheels and High Heels." Ron Jeremy was the director of the film. Laurie Holmes was one of the actresses. It was at some point during the making of this video that Goldstein told Laurie Holmes that he would like to perform oral sex on her and take her to dinner. He denies that there was any discussion about money at this point in time. About six months after that, Goldstein performed oral sex on Ms. Holmes and Ms. Holmes performed oral sex on Goldstein.

This first incident occurred at his Hollywood apartment after about five minutes of conversation. Prior to Laurie Holmes' arrival, his apartment, he had placed $200 in an open and obvious place in the room. Following the sexual interaction, Goldstein said something like "Oh, that's for you" -- pointing in the direction of the money. The money was apparently taken by Ms. Holmes. Thereafter, Goldstein and Holmes went to Spago's for dinner.

Four to eight weeks following the initial incident, another sexual encounter occurred at Goldstein's West Hollywood apartment. Thereafter he cannot recall whether he had sex with her two or three times. Ultimately, he learned that a man in Laurie's life had aids and he no longer wanted to run the risk. In follow-up questioning, Goldstein admits to never having sex with Ms. Holmes without paying her. She never refused the money nor asked what it was for.

The last time Goldstein has seen Ms. Holmes was socially within the last six months. However, no sexual interaction took place. This was at a party that Ron Jeremy or Mark Carrier invited Goldstein to. Goldstein says that he has never discussed Laurie Holmes' case against Bill Amerson or VCA Labs. However, he does recall speaking to Cass Paley. However, he was unable to convey any details of the conversation. He also may have discussed this case with Al Jeremy and Dennis Hof. Goldstein describes Hof as a pimp. He runs or owns several whore houses in Nevada. Goldstein stated that Laurie Holmes worked at the Bunny Ranch because Dennis Hof featured porno people there.

Goldstein denies having a prior conversation with defense counsel Arash Homampour (counsel for VCA Labs and Bill Amerson) wherein Goldstein said that he had sex with Ms. Laurie Holmes in exchange for money. He says he may have said that and won't deny it but he does not recall specifically. Money crossed hands. He states that he does not believe that she would have sex with him had he not taken care of her (i.e., in exchange for money).

Goldstein admitted to knowing plaintiff's counsel, Greg Smith. Goldstein refers to him as "Greg." He met him approximately one year ago through friends of Goldstein. Goldstein admits to discussing the case with Greg some several months ago. However, Goldstein was evasive on what they discussed. He says that he knows Greg but does not listen to him. Goldstein goes on to admit that he had dinner with plaintiff's counsel two nights prior to his deposition. He again denies that the case was discussed. Finally, Goldstein admits to having smoked marijuana at some point the night before his deposition. He is also taking some prescription medication.

Regarding the film in question, Goldstein saw the film at the Egyptian Theatre at its premiere. He does not remember whether Laurie Holmes was present at that screening. Goldstein goes on to say that he has interviewed Ms. Holmes on his TV Show, "Midnight Blue," and interviewed in his Screw magazine. Goldstein has no knowledge of Ms. Holmes being a fluff girl. In fact, he does not believe they exist anymore due to these video as opposed to frame shots. In the final analysis, Goldstein stated that he believes that nothing would have happened if money had not been part of the relationship between himself and Laurie Holmes.

2. Shaun Michele Sedivec

Shaun Sedivec is a 47 year old former adult film actress. She began making adult films at the end of 1979 and continued in this profession until approximately 1983. Thereafter, she continued doing phone sex. Sedivec first met Laurie Holmes in approximately 1980 or 1981 while doing "loops" (a short couple of sex scenes that are put in machines and sex shops). Sedivec testified that Laurie Holmes would generally dress up like a little girl during such filmings. At that point in time, Laurie Holmes would probably be 18 or 19. However, she looked like she was 12. Ms. Sedivec testified that Laurie Holmes would perform sex during this loop. To get an earlier scene so she could leave and do whatever else she needed to do. Laurie Holmes would show up for the loop filmings and go into another room with the man filming the videos. Soon thereafter the man would come back sweaty and she would come out and get to do her scenes first.

Sedivec testified that she worked on approximately 15 to 20 movies with Ms. Holmes between 1981 through 1983. Sedivec testified that most of these films were done in California. Sedivec testified that there were several times during filming of movies that Laurie Holmes would come back to a shoot or a hotel where the actresses were saying and brag about how easy it was for her to make money with her little specialty (i.e., portraying a very young person). The last she recalls Laurie Holmes turning tricks during the breaks of at least five movies. However, Sedivec does not recall any titles other than "California Girl" and something like "The Insides of Misty Dawn." Sedivec would say that Laurie would brag and say "look how easy it is for this, you can make $500 for this - for an hour." "It's so stupid. These men are so stupid and it's so easy." Sedivec recalls at least twice that Laurie Holmes showed her money that she had made. She recalls most of these times during the time that Sedivec lived at Bill Amerson's house.

Sedivec repeated that Laurie Holmes, while living at Amerson's house, would tell her how it easy it was to make the money for putting on the dress and doing what she did. Sedivec also stated that Laurie Holmes was addicted to drugs, in particular, cocaine. Sedivec said everyone in the industry at that time had access to cocaine. The producers would often say "do a line, it will make you perform better." John Holmes was very addicted to cocaine and always had some in his dressing rooms. Accordingly, Sedivec assumed that Laurie Holmes was in there using the drugs as well. Sedivec did observe Laurie Holmes taking cocaine on at least two occasions.

Sedivec admits to having taken cocaine during the time she was making movies, between 1979 through 1983. The last time she consumed cocaine was approximately 16 years ago. Sedivec also worked for VCA Labs and Bill Amerson. She worked for VCA Labs approximately 20 to 25 times and Bill Amerson approximately 10 to 12 times. Sedivec at one time also lived with Cass Paley. The only specific instance Sedivec can point to is the one day a gentlemen (50-60 years old with salt and pepper hair in a professional suit) dropped Holmes off at Amerson's home and then called her back to slip her a hundred dollar bill. Thereafter, Holmes brag about how easy it was.

3. Dennis Hof

Dennis Hof ("Hof") is 6'2", 270 lbs. Hof graduated from Arizona State with a degree in Business Administration. He built and sold a successful service station enterprise before entering the resort timeshare industry. Thereafter, he purchased the Bunny Ranch in 1993 and paid a $1 million license fee. He hires famous adult video stars to work at his venues as well as regular prostitutes. All of the girls that work at the Bunny Ranch (and his other brothel, "Ms. Kitty's Cat House") are independent contractors and set their own prices. At his deposition, Hof produced a number of documents relating to Laurie Holmes including a name tag, a Lyon County brothel work permit, a reverse side health care issued by Eastern Sierra Medical Group, a flyer for the Moonlight Bunny Ranch advertising that Laurie Holmes would be working the ranch that week, her hiring packet, her rental agreement and 1099s. (I have enclosed these documents.) The Moonlight Bunny Ranch has a web site as lists the past XXX stars who have appeared at the Bunny Ranch. Hof testified that the list represents XXX stars who have been to the ranch for prostitution. Laurie Holmes is a name identified on the list. Mr. Hof will make an above-average witness on his own behalf. He can clearly establish that Laurie Holmes has a prostitute's license and worked at his ranch.

Legal Analysis

There is a complete defense against civil liability based on the truth of the manner asserted. Based on the information obtained to date, it is clear that Laurie Holmes has been a prostitute at some point in her life. But the plaintiff will argue that this fact is irrelevant as the comments/slanders were made as to a particular point in time. This point in time, as alleged in the complaint, is the time within which plaintiff and John Holmes were residing at Bill Amerson's house. This was approximately 1980 through 1984. The statements made on the Johnny Wadd film were, in fact, references to that period of time.

Stating that someone engaged in prostitution does appear to be defamatory on its face. Thus, damages, to the plaintiff's reputation is presumed. However, as mentioned above, truth is a complete defense. Furthermore, case law in the federal court seems to bear out the conclusion that a slander action against a news media defendant, i.e., Luke F-rd, by a public figure (i.e., Laurie Holmes) on a matter of public concern, switches the burden of proof to the plaintiff, to prove the statement's falsity. Much of the discovery propounded to date focuses on establishing plaintiff's status as a public figure and the newsworthiness of the published comments. Ultimately, this case should be ripe for a motion for summary judgment to, at a minimum, to force the plaintiff to put on evidence of the falsity of the statements. It is doubtful the plaintiff can do this.

Luke: The legal expenses for defending Luke F-rd have run about $25,000. VCA owner Russ Hampshire has spent about $100,000 defending VCA and its employees.

Director Cass Paley has spent much of his last nine months rounding up witnesses to support the allegations of the documentary Wadd.

Now that Holmes is dropping her suit, it will clear the way for VCA to sell the John Holmes documentary. Film festivals and distributors have been loathe to touch the film over the past nine months because of the Holmes lawsuit.

Video Porn Widely Available In Europe

From the 10/24/00 International Herald Tribune: Virtually all cable TV operators in Europe offer at least a few adult programming channels. Sky TV, which belongs to Rupert Murdoch's BSkyB, offers the Adult Channel. Vivendi SA's Canal Plus, Europe's largest pay-TV operator with about 14 million subscribers in 11 countries, shows hard-core porn after 10:30 at night on its Kioske pay-per-view service. In Germany, soft-core porn is shown on commercial TV after 10 p.m., and hard-core porn is limited to digital channels such as Premiere that require a subscription and a decoder. Kioske is now bringing Playboy TV, regarded as a soft porn channel, to Europe in two weeks with a nightly four-hour block of programming starting at 8 p.m.

Porn & The Mafia

Danny Provenzano is an associate of the North Jersey-based Genovese crime family and a nephew of the infamous former Teamster leader Anthony "Tony Pro" Provenzano.

Danny's producing a two million dollar movie called "This Thing Of Ours" about a group of high-tech mobsters who jam a satellite and make off with $2 billion.

Provenzano's spent years making straight-to-video classics such as "Vampire Vixens from Venus" and "The Regenerated Man."

Danny is a friend of John "Sonny" Franzese, the 81-year-old reputed capo of the Colombo crime family.

From "The Record" out of Bergen County, NJ (11/3/00):

Franzese is no stranger to the entertainment industry, authorities say. He once had a piece of Buddah Records -- a home for a time to the Isley Brothers -- and also had a stake in the pioneering porn flick "Deep Throat."

Organized-crime investigators say they often see the entertainment industry and the underworld intersect.

"There is still a glamorous mystique surrounding La Cosa Nostra," said Robert Buccino, the former deputy chief of the Organized Crime and Racketeering Bureau in the state Division of Criminal Justice. "You will always have people attracted to it -- especially people in the movie industry."

Luke Gets Mail

Tony writes: Tony Eveready back in lockdown, what a startling bulletin. Luke I have to say that lately all this stuff about corrupt scam phone sex and Internet operations seems to be the bulk of what you write about these days. How about some really interesting personalities like Linda Lovelace or Vanessa Del Rio?

Rumdar writes: Luke..have a Happy Thanksgiving. It is a time to reflect. I am thankful to be living in this wonderful country that even the likes of Dubya and Gore can't destroy. Let us rejoice for good health, fine friends and family, shekels in our pockets and an immigration policy that allows hot Asian woman to relocate to America. And of course for your website.

Art writes: Dear Mr. Ford: I would like to make suggestion about how information is displayed on your daily update. While it is very interesting to read, not everyone who sees it will completely understand what the writers are talking about. Hence, might I suggest that you provide more of an overview with regard to background on the particular topic(s) at hand.

Kevin writes: Hi Luke, just wanted to tell you that you have a great site. I found your site from another site Alt.smoking-glamour. They posted photos of a gorgious blonde smoking and gave your addy. I was wondering if you know the status on J.R Carrington. Is she a smoker in real life? Do you know any pornstars that are smokers. I have been noticing that the Spice channel has been having alot of smoking in there movies.

QuasarmanRants.com - It's Fun, It's Frilling, It's Free

From www.QuasarmanRants.com (finally an authentic voice that the Jewish media can't control): Middle aged, potbellied hillbilly writes.... Before I comment on your website, I must inform you that I am not a female professional under 30 who enjoys the porn subculture via the internet. I'm just a middle aged, potbellied hillbilly who has nothing better to do than to obsess on confused sluts with proctological issues who aspire to be "porn stars." I used to read Luke F-rd's site, but I never got those stupid Jewish jokes. You are incredibly comical, intelligent and irreverent plus your wife has a nice rack. I liken you to Dennis Miller, I don't get his jokes either. How the f--- can I get into porn?!

Luke F-rd Live

Q writes: It seems that everytime Luke F-rd runs out of things to discuss on his internet radio show he calls me to put me on the air. Apparently someone listens to this program and they sent me this.... ? writes..... Hey- Why do you keep doing the Luke F-rd show? I thought you porn people didn't like him. Pretty funny though. It's not that "we porn people" don't like him.

Quasarman replies: Luke is actually a very nice guy inasmuch as an untrustworthy, unethical, backstabbing brute can be. He has a very entertaining website which receives a lot of traffic. I have a moderately entertaining website which doesn't. Therefore by making my presence known to the throngs of "Lukeys' out there the day may come when more than just my immediate family reads all the hard work I post here.

Unamed writes... Before I comment on your website, I must inform you that I am not a middle aged, potbellied hillbilly who has nothing better to do than to obsess on porn. Nor am I a confused slut with proctological issues who aspires to be a "star". I'm just a female professional under 30 who enjoys the porn subculture via the internet. I used to love Luke F-rd's site until I discovered yours this morning and read all your archives, which by the way set me back an hour. You are incredibly comical, intelligent and irreverent. I liken you to Dennis Miller. What the f--- are you doing in porn?!

Quasarman replies: Your flattering words mean a great deal to me. I provide this website as a free service to those of us who toil away in the often humorless world of adult entertainment. To answer your question as to why I am in porn, not unlike many others in this world I pursued my true dreams and failed miserably. My work in pornography was never meant to be more than a reasonably amusing part time job on my way to superstardom. You'll find that this industry is littered with the broken dreams of others like me who tried their damnedest to amount to something only to wind up dodging bodily fluids for a living. In the grand scheme of things I suppose it's not so bad. I've accepted who I've become and I lead a moderately satisfying albeit somewhat unfulfilled life. The thing which causes me immense vexation are those people in the industry that believe porn is a vehicle to something greater.

Luke says: I think Quasarman aka Mike McCormick is the funniest guy in porn. Listen to Luke F-rd Live and catch Mike duking it out with me and James DiGiorgio. Gene Ross starts out the show.

Taylor St. Claire

Beavis writes on RAME: Did Taylor St. Claire take the low road? f--- no. Did she take the high road? f--- no. The whole entire issue of class and dignity in porn is rediculous to me. What's the difference if Taylor gets f---ed in the ass by 3 guys in a scene when some other girl does it too, but she's a contract girl and the action is less intense and the lighting is better, etc. Nothing.

All of porn is subject to one's opinion or perception. I know guys who think that Taylor isn't gorgeous at all and is too fat. That's their opinion. I don't know why I am attracted to Taylor and they aren't. I say she's gorgeous and they just don't see it. You know what I mean. Everyone says that Jenna Jameson and Janine are gorgeous, but I don't see it. That's just not my taste hough. (Although, I will admit that Jenna is pretty hot...she looked great in her photoshoot with Taylor a couple years back) For years fans have complained about Taylor not going far enough. Never done a d.p. (actually she had done around 6 lesbian dps), never done an anal (many a dildo up her ass), not big enough facials, not into her scenes enough, etc.

Well, now she does all of those things because that is what the fans wanted. Now, fans have turned on her. "She's just another slut in the industry." "No mystery to her anymore." "God! I thought she was different. I totally lost respect for her." That is the fickle way of the industry. I am looking towards Keri Windsor and her recent decision to start doing boy/girl porn to see if she gets the same backlash.

Here is the truth about how Taylor got to where she is. She entered the business as the next step from modeling and stripping, making her debut in "Up and Cummers 19" and then later "Erotic Visions" and "Bedtime Stories". After a while, she made a name for herself through her shear beauty and elegant girl/girl scenes for David Christopher and Andrew Blake. She made the jump into boy/girl porn and did boyfriend Cameron Steele in "Infinite Bliss", which was advertised as her XXX debut.

Around a year and a half later, Cameron and her broke up because Cam wants her to leave the industry. He had no trouble with her status as a pornstar, rather with the fact that he couldn't get it up on film and wouldn't allow her to do other guys. Once news quietly got out that Taylor was now doing any guy, the offers for boy/girl scenes just rolled in unbelievably to her. These offers far outweighed the offers she was getting for her more usual girl/girl stuff. That is why that since "Players Academy", she has only done 2 or 3 girl/girl only scenes. What we never saw with her scenes wth Cameron is the fact that by her own admission, Taylor is up for anything sexually if she's in the right mood. You may not believe it, but she thoroughly enjoys doing stuff like "Ass Clowns" and "Days of Whore" and then shifting to more couples area like "Ace in the Hole".

Taylor has considered becoming a contract girl. She might even still be considering it, but she would miss working with the various people from the video companies too much right now to tie herself down.

Where Are The AVN Nominations?

AVN was supposed to release its list of nominees Wednesday but the controversy has evidently forced a delay to next week.

AVN Gossip

Many readers of l-keford.com are unaware that Stacy Boyd was former AVN managing editor Bryn Pryor's girlfriend. That's how she came to work at AVN. And then Stacy ended up dating Ken Michaels (a tall overweight young man who writes cleverly). Ken also dated Renee Johnson, who runs the AVN industry conventions.

Renee Johnson brought a sexual harassment suit against the former AVN managing editor Bryn Pryor. And to stave her off, Bryn had to attend anger management classes. Renee received a cushy job at AVN along with a company car.

Just to let you know, dear reader, what sort of character I am, a few weeks ago, I gave Stacy some gossip about myself and asked her not to publicize it. She honored that agreement. So am I a skunk for gossiping about her now?

Renee Johnson, by the way, refused me a press credential to the first AVN Expo in July of 1999.

Awesome writes Luke: "Hey mullethead -- FYI, that arrogent loser Ken Michaels NEVER dated Stacy Boyd OR Renee Johnson. Your misinformation doesn't surprise me in the least, because if the facts were straight it just wouldn't be l-keford.com! Have you moved out of your parents garage yet?? Happy Hanukah you jew bastard."

Luke says: I'm told that Ken's a buddy of Bryn's, and a member of the Arizona Mafia. And Ken definitely did date Stacy Boyd and Renee Johnson.

I believe that Stacy Boyd is now at SexTracker.

Stile writes: "Money Tree [a Flying Crocodile Inc program] called me on the phone today because I stopped using their program a week ago. At first they were sending me emails (which i thought were just automatic bots doing it) but then they called me. Surprisingly they are really really nice people and want to fight for my business. I wish more companies were like that."

Is Bryn Pryor still employed at AVN? That's the weird thing which prompted the announcement of Ken Wood as managing editor because Bryn was going to take a hiatus to produce the mainstream movie for Paul Fishbein, "The Money Shot." But one financial deal after another fell through. Fishbein could never get the financial backing for it.

Right now they plan to air a bunch of vignettes on their internet site AVNlive.com. Bryn will direct that.

But because he's not full time making a movie (written by Rebecca Grey), Bryn needed work at AVN. So Paul placed him in charge of DVDs.

Then when Stacy Boyd left the online magazine, Bryn was going to take charge of that. But now I hear that Rebecca Grey will operate AVNOnLine.

Bryn Pryor and Ken Wood hated each other. But the new man on the AVN block, Mikey Ramone, fits right in with Bryn. He's a Bryn Pryor crony.

Ramone, like Pryor, is deeply steeped in the bondage underworld.

Ramone worked manfully in both the Houston and Jasmin St. Claire gangbangs.

Ken Michaels Rebutts Gossip

AVNOnline Technical Editor (of the magazine, not the website) Ken Michaels writes: Holy s---! Four-and-a-half years of laboring in relative obscurity at AVN/AVN Online, and now I'm a hot topic. Regarding the following "AVN Gossip" items, I feel I have to put in my two cents. As for the rest, if I didn't comment on it here, I don't know about it:

"Many readers of l-keford.com are unaware that Stacy Boyd was Bryn Pryor's girlfriend. That's how she came to work at AVN."

Stacy did indeed find out about the job at AVN Online (then ia2000) through Bryn -- but Paul and Darren interviewed and hired her. Just wanted to clarify; if your source is questioning whether Stacy could do the job, I think any reasonable person would agree that AVN Online came a long way in the two years that Stacy ran the magazine.

"And then Stacy ended up dating Ken Michaels (a tall overweight young man who writes cleverly) who also dated Renee Johnson, who runs the AVN industry conventions."

I've known Stacy since June of 1998. She is one of my closest friends, but we never "dated" in the traditional sense; as for the boundaries of what constitutes our friendship, that's no one's business but our own. Essentially, it's the same situation with Renee -- also, I met Renee after she started working at AVN; the implication that she was hired as a result of knowing me is -- I was going to say "off base" -- but it's more than that; it's just flat wrong. Also, while "overweight" is an apt (some would say "kind") description of my appearance, I don't think that a height of 5'10" (in shoes, fer chrissakes) qualifies me as "tall" -- but thanks anyway.

"Renee Johnson brought a sexual harassment suit against the former AVN managing editor Bryn Pryor. And to stave her off, Bryn had to attend anger management classes. Renee received a cushy job at AVN along with a company car."

Renee and Bryn got into an argument a couple of years back over I don't remember what, and yes, Renee was very upset, but she didn't file a sexual harassment suit -- there was nothing sexual about their argument; in fact, she never filed a suit of any kind (I don't know about the anger management classes). Also, Renee was already coordinating special events and promotions at that time. When AVN bought ia2000, she was the logical choice to run the show. As for the car -- whether AVN or TCI pays for it, or she pays for it out of her salary, the money all comes from the same place, so what's the difference?

"Just to let you know, dear reader, what sort of character I am, a few weeks ago, I gave Stacy some gossip about myself and asked her not to publicize it. She honored that agreement."

True. I don't know if the situation for you has changed Luke, but at the time it sounded like it could have landed you in some pretty hot water. Stacy told me about it, and we briefly discussed whether to tell Gene, who was still working here at the time. We decided the right thing to do was e-mail you to ask if we could let Gene know; you replied something along the lines of "please don't." So we didn't. Gene later found out about the item through his own sources; I don't remember, but I'm pretty sure he also chose not to run anything about it on his site.

"So am I a skunk for gossiping about her now?"

I think you know the answer to that.

"Renee Johnson, by the way, refused me a press credential to the first AVN Expo in July of 1999."

True, but I'm told you managed to wrangle your way in anyhow (I wasn't there); if memory serves, you were rewarded for your efforts with a punch in the gut by Mark Starr and picture of Gene strangling you.

"Awesome writes Luke: 'Hey mullethead -- FYI, that arrogent loser Ken Michaels NEVER dated Stacy Boyd OR Renee Johnson.'"

"Loser" -- certainly an argument could me made for that assertion. "Arrogent" (SIC) -- ask around. I may have been a dick to a few people here and there, but I THINK anyone who actually knows me would say that I'm basically a nice guy. I'm guessing one of three things: I REALLY WAS being a dick the one time I met this guy (I have no clue who he is); he's pissed off about something I wrote in one of the magazines (if it was AVN, dude, get over it -- I haven't written for them in over two years); or, he has me (Ken Michaels) confused with someone else -- Ken Wood, perhaps (though I never thought of Ken as arrogant). As for the rest, see my comments above.

"Awesome (cont'd): 'Your misinformation doesn't surprise me in the least, because if the facts were straight it just wouldn't be l-keford.com! Have you moved out of your parents garage yet?? Happy Hanukah you jew bastard."

At least he's generous with the insults.

"Luke: I'm told that Ken's a buddy of Bryn's..."

True.

"...and a member of the Arizona Mafia."

I guess. "Arizona Mafia" is a clever in-joke coined by Tod Hunter and adopted by some of the staffers here at the offices (and, as Bryn himself has said, not an entirely inaccurate description of our clique -- but no, there are no ties to organized crime -- do you think I'd be driving a 13-year-old car with 145,000 miles on it if I were a made man? Oooohh, wait -- it's the perfect cover! God I love conspiracy theories. No, I MEAN it.)

Anyway, "Arizona Mafia" refers to a handful of employees at AVN (including me) who moved out here from Arizona, and some friends of ours who have work(ed) at the magazines. Whatever machinations may or may not have occurred regarding the "Arizona Mafia" and Ken Wood's departure from AVN, I wasn't privy to them -- I saw the ugliness on both sides of the issue (and there ARE two sides to the whole story, but I won't get in to specifics because, like I said, I only know what I observed). I told some of the parties involved (Ken included) what I thought about the situation, and I tried to give Ken some advice during the whole thing. He and I were on speaking terms when he left.

"...now I hear that Rebecca Grey will operate AVNOnLine."

That would be news to me. She freelances for AVN; at most, I'd bet she would freelance for Online. She's very busy with theatre and shooting "The Money Shot." Guess we'll see.

"Bryn Pryor and Ken Wood hated each other."

I can't speak for either man, but recently, through a mutual friend, Ken had relayed to Bryn and some others here that he had long ago "moved on" with his life. He had been angry, but had gotten past it, and wished the best for everyone. Now, who knows. Sure doesn't sound like he's moving on.

"...the new man on the AVN block, Mikey Ramone, fits right in with Bryn. He's a Bryn Pryor crony."

Anyone who knows Mike Ramone knows that he is NO ONE'S "crony."

"Ramone worked manfully in both the Houston and Jasmin St. Claire gangbangs."

And we still give him s--- for it whenever we can.

Hell's Coming To Breakfast For AVN

Dear reader, make no mistake. Adult Video News is in crisis today thanks to the revelations on my site and on Gene Ross.

And dear reader, you ain't seen nothing yet. I'm going to recapture the excitement I had in December of 1998, before I got hacked and knocked off the air for almost three weeks.

It was interesting to see how AVN would handle today's serious allegations. I've emailed AVN publisher Paul Fishbein numerous times since yesterday and he's yet to reply. I've had virtually no communication with him for almost two years.

AVN has replied to the allegations in a cryptic manner. See its site www.AVNGossip.com.

Here's an excerpt:

[Tod Hunter writes:] About an hour ago, Mark Kernes walked into my cubicle and borrowed my copy of Bartlett's Familiar Quotations. I just got an e-mail from Mark a few minutes ago:

From: Mark Kernes
To: tod@avn.com
Subject: A Shard From My Annual Holiday Depression

To Gossip Columnists Everywhere:

Words to live by: "Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And when you look long into an abyss, the abyss also looks into you." -

Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche
Thus Spake Zarathustra

Luke says: Trust Mark Kernes to turn to an atheist for wisdom. For as the Psalmist says, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." If Mark was a more religious guy, he wouldn't be as depressed by the Holy Days. Jews and Gentiles, from Chaim Amalek and myself, please make a gut yontif.

From AVNGossip.com:

The Luke F-rd Chronicles

[Tod Hunter write] In which Luke asks me about stuff Ken Wood said on Gene Ross's site, and I don't answer the questions. Those of you who aren't Luke, Ken, Gene or me can scroll down to the next bit while we talk to each other.

Hey Tod: Do you have any comment on Ken Wood's remarks about you?

No.

Do you date industry performers? Is this against AVN rules? Does AVN have a policy here?

That's none of your business, and I will not answer that question. Not to my knowledge. Not to my knowledge.

Luke says: To the best of my knowledge, Tod's hit on several members of the esteemed adult film industry, as have I. That Stacey Boyd [she helped run AVN's internet operations] is a real cutie patutie. But she's left AVN.

Tod's personal life is none of my business. I'm just curious about AVN's policy towards fraternization.

Publisher Paul Fishbein often upholds his operation as an example of journalistic probity which I find amusing. If AVN didn't pretend to run an upstanding journalistic operation, there would be no point to my inquiries.

In my heart of hearts, do I think AVN is any more corrupt or unethical than I am? No.

Luke writes Tod:

Dear Tod: I was reading your site this afternoon and I think that you are way too intelligent to be in the adult industry.

You've always treated me courteously. Sorry to have to ask about your private life. I don't think that I will ever go after you in the way I've gone after Paul Fishbein and Gene Ross. I don't know one person in the industry who dislikes you.

Your website has a nice understated touch. I read it every day.

Regarding Mark Kernes comment: "Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And when you look long into an abyss, the abyss also looks into you."

Luke says: Those are very perceptive words. I've often found myself doing things in the pursuit of gossip that are monsterous, and more heinous than the shenanigans I've written about.

Still, AVN has some serious questions to face and can't avoid them through quotations. Hell's coming to breakfast for AVN.

I had AVN by the balls in early December 1998 when I got hacked, my sources got bought off and I lost all momentum. Now I may be recapturing it.

AVN's Bryn Pryor Takes His Show On The Road

Ken Wood writes Gene Ross: "Was on my way to work this morning and passed a Cal Tran crew on the side of the road. Made me think of Bryn [Pryor] and my respect for Bryn's commitments to freeway beautification. Tell Luke F-rd I'll be glad to speak to him but all in due time."

Luke interprets: I think Ken is hinting that Bryn Pryor (former AVN managing editor) has been serving time by picking up trash along the freeway. Serving time for what?

Porn Insider writes Gene Ross: "Just got done reading your interview with former AVN managing editor Ken Wood. That is some good stuff. I'm hoping there's lots more. After reading that I can see how Ken really got f---ed over. I'd like to see more of your thoughts. You're pretty much staying on the outside, but you were asking Ken all the right questions though I wanted to hear your views on the subject. You must know, you've got to know why Paul leaves Bryn there. I've had discussions with Paul with him saying, 'You're right, I need to get rid of him [Pryor], but I can't do it right now I've got to get rid of other people.' And a week later, Ken was gone." I wish I understood this f---in' power Bryn has. It's very frustrating. Why bother calling AVN to bitch, Paul just ignores it. And what's this Arizona Mafia? Was that a legit thing?"

Ken Wood told Gene that in February, 2000: "Bryn Pryor was preparing to direct a mainstream movie called Money Shot basically based on AVN. He thought they were going to start shooting the next month, March. It turns out there were delays and that didn't happen."

Luke says: As I hear it, the delays relate to Pryor's involvement with stolen computers.

Ken Wood told Gene: "It was basically the circle of people around Bryn Pryor, his clique, if you will. They never really accepted me or accepted me as an authority figure - the Arizona Mafia which was a term used by several people at the magazine. That's always confused me because their leader, Bryn Pryor, appointed me. I always thought that I had been set up for failure by this group..."

Wood: "It was at some point about two months into my tenure that I figured out that Bryn was still effectively calling the shots. Rebecca Gray was the technical editor at the time and when she didn't necessarily agree with something that I was doing, I found out that she was going behind my back to complain to Bryn. Since Bryn was not officially part of the chain of command, this struck me as odd. She would go behind my back to Bryn and Bryn would go to Paul Fishbein and it seemed like everybody was involved in decision making except me. In my mind, I was the one person who was trying to do what was best for the magazine and was being met with resistance every step along the way up to Paul's office.

"I always had a grudging respect for Bryn because he seemed to get things done in Paul's office. If anybody had a problem or wanted something to get done, they knew who they could go to. They knew that Bryn could get the job done. People from different departments in the magazine would come to him to get things done because as soon as he held the wielded the saber, things got done." (Gene Ross)

Luke says: I hear that Bryn Pryor (Mark Logan) bought a bunch of stolen computers for Adult Video News. That's getting things done.

I hear that Paul Fishbein proclaimed that he did not know they were stolen. Byrn Pryor took the fall for it. He subsequently served time in jail, spending many of his weekends there. He served one day a week (usually a Wednesday or a Thursday) on CalTrans, picking up trash beside the highway.

AVN's Technical Editor of the time, Rebecca Grey, wrote numerous letters on Bryn's behalf, pleading for clemency.

John says: "Paul Fishbein can lie straight to your face without flinching. He's very good at it. He'll do something, then start calling people and giving them totally different stories. He's a pro at playing people off against each other."

Ex-AVN Editor Blasts AVN, Publisher Paul Fishbein

AVN's former managing editor Ken Wood gave Gene Ross a candid interview.

AVN means the porn industry's one trade magazine, Adult Video News. Its publisher is Paul Fishbein, perhaps the most powerful man in porn.

Wood describes Tod Hunter's relationship with porn star Sonja Redd.

I thought it was against AVN rules for one of its journalists to date a porner? Not that I have a problem with it.

Wood told Gene Ross that his number one job, as instructed by publisher Paul Fishbein, was to better the magazine's relationships with various companies that had come to hate AVN during the administrations of Mark Kulkis and Bryn Pryor aka Mark Logan.

Wood says that AVN's advertisers feel that because they spend money on the magazine, they have the right to tell AVN "journalists" what to write. And the more money they spend, the more influence pornographers feel they should have over AVN's content.

Ken Wood says Paul Fishbein appears to have given up on AVN. Ken tried to reinvigorate the magazine but Fishbein opposed his every attempt.

It seemed to Wood that 75% of the magazine's content was "makeup work to mend fences with people we had pissed off for one reason or another. It was reactive, not proactive."

Wood says that AVN publisher Paul Fishbein had him snoop through employee emails to try to find out my sources at AVN.

Wood paints the picture of a poisonous atmosphere at AVN. A company presided over by a suspicious and out of touch publisher who lied to and manipulated his employees and cowered before advertisers.

Ken says that AVN vice-president Darren Roberts operates as Paul's "in-house spy."

Roberts left his wife Allison for Fishbein's bisexual beautiful blonde secretary Lisa Love.

Here are some excerpts from Wood's interview with Gene. I've cut and pasted and not everything is in context.

"Paul Fishbein. He's got to be the most enigmatic person I've ever met. It seems that people who treat him like s---, get his respect. He goes out of his way to please them to do everything for them. People who try to make him happy, such as people who work for him, get treated like s---. I never understood that. It's almost like the battered girlfriend syndrome where they gravitate towards guys who abuse them. Bryn Pryor treated Paul Like s--- and he got absolutely what he wanted.

Gene: "[W]ere you asked to look at emails?"

Wood: "Yes, I was... It was always implicit as an offhand suggestion because he was concerned about people leaking information to Luke F-rd... The person he usually went to for that kind of thing was Darren Roberts who was number two. I know for a fact that he checks everyone's email there... But I know that Darren Roberts is his in-house spy. He goes into peoples' computers. He was going into my computer the day before I left. He couldn't find anything.

"When people accused me of reading their email and things like that, I'm not going to confirm or deny it, all I will say is if I did anything that was questionable, it was with the knowledge and consent of my boss, Paul Fishbein.

"Maybe I agreed with what they were doing but there were two people in particular who communicated with Luke F-rd and I never said anything about it.

"I remember the year I was in the nominations' meetings, I was struck at how arbitrary the whole thing was. I would say 80% of the tapes never got ked at. We never looked at the footage in the meetings and the tapes that we did watch, most people weren't even looking at the TV. I could tell because certain editors liked certain people, certain performers; certain people didn't like others and that's how they made their vote, really... And here's the funniest thing. When I first came to AVN, people, fellow editors, told me that all the rumors I read on Luke F-rd was all bulls---. And I sort of accepted that because these people seemed trustworthy. But the more time I spent at AVN, the more I learned a a lot of the rumors had truth to them, and that drove me nuts. That was eventually why I left.

"...[T]he administration of AVN was content to put out an inferior product. and I didn't want any part of that. Besides, there's too many ethically-challenged people there to keep my interest." (From Gene Ross)

Ken now works in a wine store on LA's westside. He plans on attending law school next fall.

In December of 1998, AVN critics told me: "Paul’s the cause of his own problems. He doesn’t know how to keep his mouth shut. Now it’s coming back to haunt him. What makes this whole mess really funny is that he is getting sucker punched by Darren Roberts. It’s the whole Yoram thing all over again. Roberts is setting himself up for the takeover. Roberts is a slick little s--- and by the time he is through with Fishbein, Fishbein will be begging for Yoram to f--- him in the ass again. Fishbein will never know what hit him... Managing editor Bryn Pryor [Mark Logan] has been out to get him, trying to make him look bad. Ask about [Pryor's relationship with] Chloe. Isn’t f---ing a porn star a conflict of interest for a managing editor? Fishbein said it is."

Pryor denied having an intimate relationship with Chloe. Read the full story here.

I've heard that Pryor was arrested and convicted for a crime in the Spring of 2000 and it may have involved AVN. I think Pryor may be directing a mainstream movie for Paul Fishbein.

I emailed Paul Fishbein: "What was Bryn Pryor arrested for in the Spring of this year and did it involve AVN? Is he still making a movie for you?"

Luke says: In case anyone hasn't noticed, I enjoy bashing AVN. I don't pretend to be impartial. I do try to be fair, generally, but I don't pretend to not have an emotional investment here. For various reasons, I really enjoy bashing AVN and Vivid, and to various extents, production companies Sin City, VCA and Metro.

I don't enjoy bashing AVN because I think it is a particularly vicious place and because I think AVN publisher Paul Fishbein is a bad man.

I enjoy bashing AVN primarily because they are number one at what they do and I enjoy taking on the big guys. That's why I am always most cruel to the most powerful people. I'm far nastier to Paul Fishbein, Steve Hirsch (Vivid), Russ Hampshire (VCA), David Sturman (Sin City, GVA West), Eddie Wedelstedt (Goalie) and Jim South (World Modeling) than I am to any porn star.

While it is morally problematic to be cruel to non-evil people, at least it is morally superior for me to express my vicious impulses on Fishbein, Hirsch and company than on helpless porn stars.

When I bash Paul Fishbein and company, I pick on people who can defend themselves and hurt me.

I would very much like to work for Paul Fishbein. It has always been him who has chosen to not hire me. He has never made me an offer to work for him and he has always turned me down when I've asked to work for him.

I have a problem dealing with authority and by going after Fishbein and company, I am working out my ambivalent and troubled feelings...

In Defense Of Tod Hunter

Lysa Stone of Astral Ocean writes about AVNGossip.com operator Tod Hunter:

Hi Luke. You know my rule, I'm silent about things unless they concern Astral but here I have to bark a bit. You're right, Tod Hunter is well-respected and liked by everyone who knows him. You and I have talked about him before and it's evident you respect him as well. I think its interesting and a bit childish that his personal life is brought up here. It has no effect on his ability to do his job. He's very objective when it comes to separating personal from professional. He is truly one of my closest friends in or out of the industry; he will review one of Astral's videos and give it 2 stars. No measure of friendship can make him give that tape a higher rating - it's a bad tape, he reviews it that way, best friends or not.

If I were Paul, I would certainly give no credence to the fact that Tod may or may not be dating a starlet. Furthermore, he can date whomever he wants. He is extremely discreet and guarded about the women he dates. If anyone knows his personal life, it's because they're looking hard and making assumptions at best. "Dating" Sonja, if that's what you could call his friendship with her, is hardly a transgression of professionalism. I would think that dating a starlet would be much more appropriate than a married executive dating someone from his own office. If Tod "hits" on people in the industry, it certainly is his right, much as it is the right of the "hit-ee" to say no. Or yes. I cannot in any way see his manor being offensive in asking a woman out. If anything, he's old-fashioned and respectful towards the women he is interested in.

Ken Wood, Tod was good to you during your tumultuous tenure at AVN. I realize you went through a lot of bad stuff over there but bringing Tod into this was pretty disrespectful and rather unnecessary.

AVN Employees Convicted Of Having Sex, But Not With The Magazine

Ashley Kennedy writes: "You mean people that work for AVN have SEX? With other real-live human beings? How dare they! I'm going to have to speak to my pastor about this posthaste, because I'm a woman with high moral standards (or is that a high woman with standard morals...). As for the "crisis at AVN today", well, I really hadn't noticed. Thanks for the update, and Happy Thanksgiving. from the dildo-infested cubicle of Ashley "The Fearless" Kennedy"

Luke Sherlock Ford inquires: "Do you work for AVN?"

Ashley responds: "Yes. I'm a blissfully new and almost anonymous associate editor, and I adore my talented and hard-working fellow employees. Why? Looking for a title for your posting? Shouldn't you be basting a turkey or something, Luke?"

Luke: "I'm vegetarian. Are you Jewish? Have we met? Are you hot looking?'

Ashley replies: "Oy vey! Jewish? What are you meshugeneh? No, I'm a born-again pagan from New Orleans (not Philly, so get over the whole nepotism conspiracy thing). No we have not met, although I'll see you in Vegas, whether I like it or not, I'm sure. I used to be a vegetarian, but after three years I realized that Doritos and Crown Royal weren't really part of a healthy diet. Any other questions? My great-grandmother's maiden name was Delph, I'm a Virgo, I surf, and I hate Country and Western. Does that cover everything? I have to get back to work now. Happy Holidays."

Luke: "Can I come to your house for Thanksgiving, Ashley? All my family is in Australia and I don't have any friends."

Ashley replies: "I don't think I can trust you unattended with my turkey."