Tuesday, July 31st, 2001

The Private Letters Of Jeremy Steele

Jeremy Steele writes: Luke, I decided to share some very recent correspondence between me and a girl who's actually a fan of mine.. Maybe it's interesting to y'all.

Jeremy Steele's cyber sweetie writes: "jay-babe.... hey hun.. as far as this redhead in florida u are beginning to like, all i ask is that u be patient and if its meant to be, it will happen.. beginning to like u as well.. just a bit hard to be like that if ua re so far. anyhows.. so ok, question for u.. if i was in the industry and u werent, how would u feel about the guys being able to f--- me and eat me? u asked how id handle it.. well true i could never watch soemoen i luv get it on wiht someone else but i really dont know how id handle it. otherwise glad u wrote and that pic makes your eyes so sweet and luvable.. heading off to work so ill talk to u tonite maybe.. hugs and kisses.. your red head."

Jeremy replies: Soozy, It's past 7 am and I still haven't gone to sleep yet. Watched Amistad for the first time. I don't watch movies much but I rented a few and am taping them off my double vcr. You poor girl. Didn't get much sleep, did you? What did you say your job is? Wow.. A job.. Forgot what that was. But, who knows.. I may have to find out one of these days.

It's almost invariably a death sentance for a relationship or potential one when a guy reveals to a girl that he's a porno star. The opposite case is not necessarily so. It's much easier and more often the reality that a so called "suitcase pimp" or boyfriend of a porno star exists, and lives with it, sometimes enjoys it. It's more plausible for a female performer to find a man who's happy enough to just get some.

I left the biz to be with my evil/psycho ex. She actually remained in the biz, although all but never worked the time I left. It was taking it's toll on her when I'd go off to work when I was still doing it. She didn't work much. One time she was booked and I offered to come. I was sort of excited to see what would happen but the director shut the door on me, so I listened. She revealed later she felt uncomfortable with me being there.. but that's a bit of a different story and theme with her.

It's the freedom to be able to do it, which perhaps would compel me more to not want to, if with someone I loved. When I was with my ex I wasn't as rock solid a performer. I was self-conscious about it. Sex with another other than the one you love is like having fine dining alone. Sex drive is something which, being a totality, in and of itself, enslaves one as an addict.

Love is something which brings one to a level of being able to fly like a bird or angel. Sex is always a hunger to be fed. If one if fed and the other not, jealousy, shame, can grow. But the hunger is always there, anyways. Porn is an extention of the world's lust for others. It's ok. But the end of the f--- fantasy is like death. Everyone moves on. Service is done. Love is the foundation for everything else. Love is pervasive, is ultimately selfless. When there is truly love, I feel there is nothing to fear, or be jealous of. A oneness from love incorporates truth. If one can look one in the eyes and find it there where it always is, then one can always know the answer, and the resolution. Possiblities are endless.

I don't know where this is going. I think when I'm with someone I love, nothing and noone else matters. But, truthfully, one never knows what may unfold. I chose to leave the business because I loved my ex and wanted to. But, it was still not enough for her. But that's another issue. I would want you to do whatever you wanted to do, and hope you'd feel the same of me. But I feel, I'd probably want noone else, when in love. But, again, I know couples who grow into interesting levels, where they want to start branching out, bringing third and or fourth parties... I'm not saying that's what I expect or look for, but I think love has nothing to fear, and love always believes in truth and honesty.

The hypothetical you asked tests my imaginative capacities. I'm sure I'd feel jealous, would wonder how much you enjoyed it, while I was sitting at home. I would want you to be honest, unlike my ex was able to be. She only revealed once we were through that working was something she'd look forward to, usually, to relieve sexual frustration. Tell me you're enjoying it, and that would probably turn me on. Everything takes it turns and circles. I know a girl who made it big in 95, 96.. Now she's a receptionist at age 25 with a 2 year old. Stuck in that job for certain reasons and will never go back to her past.

I was just thinking earlier, the bigger one is, the harder they fall. The more they gain, the more they lose. s---, I'm rambling on. Sorry about that. It's like I'm trying to commuicate something, but I'm not sure what, and I'm not feeling satisfied with what I've said as reaching some point, so I keep going on. Just remember one thing. It's something I've written and came up with, myself. All sex is masterbation unless there's love. X,O Jeremy

Max Hardcore Adds Safe Sex Advisory to Boxcovers

From AVN.com: VAN NUYS, Calif.- Max Hardcore has added a safe sex advisory graphic that debuts on the boxcover of his latest release, Planet Max 9. The graphic is shown on the left. It reads “ALL PERFORMERS TESTED FOR HIV- PLEASE PRACTICE SAFE SEX!”

“I have always had a safe sex message at the start and finish of my tapes,” Hardcore told AVN.com. “This is the first time that it is on the outside of the box.”

Luke says: This is typical of the secular liberal world which thinks that sex that does not transmit a physical disease is safe.

Ruby Keeps Stiff Upper Lip

Ruby writes: Luke, I'm trying to keep a stiff upper lip, and not get depressed or discouraged, it sucks when every thing doesn't work out the way you planned. I thought I had a good one, I was wrong! Long time coming, though. I'm gonna stay single for a very long time. I'm nursing my wounds, I hope she's happy, I didn't know her from Adam, and she walked in and ruined my life. Men are the weaker sex, and women still procreate for the reason of trapping a man, pathetic, I want no part of that. If I want good sex, I'll just work, my clients are so much nicer than regular men anyway.

Claudia Atkins Past

Lordish writes on RAME: I'm a fan of the little Russian dynamo Claudia Atkins. She's cute as a button, bubbly as champagne and an ass whore of the very highest rank. I have never seen such a small person take as much of a sexual pounding in my life, and she loves every second of it. All I know is that she left the Soviet Union. Now I've heard it said she's from Siberia, that she was a lawyer, or that she was a rocket scientist, and lots of other wild tales. Can someone clear up my Russian snow blindness when it comes to Claudia?

Richard Gordon

Frank writes: Do you have any information on someone named Richard (RJ) Gordon? He recently bought all of Seth's assets, including Clublove. I searched your site and see a reference to him throwing shows a few years ago, but that is all I saw from your site....RJ has quite the nasty reputation and I thought perhaps you might know more.

Luke says: Richard Gordon has the website RJGordon.com where he's posted a highly inflated biography of himself:

The founder and chairman of Los Angeles-based R.j.Gordon & Company, Richard j. Gordon is a trailblazing businessman and consultant operating in the front ranks of those transforming the Internet into the global marketplace of the future.

Mr. Gordon was among the first to embrace the Internet as an avenue for commerce. His risk management and fraud prevention systems were breakthrough products for thousands of merchants wanting to engage in the non-face-to-face transactions that are at the heart of doing business on the Internet, over the telephone or through television.

R.j. Gordon & Company is a diverse group of inter-related entities, and is frequently talked about as an American success story. The recognition includes rankings by the Los Angeles Business Journal as the number one fastest growing privately-held company in Los Angeles County and, from Inc. Magazine, as only the 5th company ever to be admitted into its Hall of Fame -- making the Fastest Growing Inc. 500 list five years in a row.

Mr. Gordon has also emerged as a leading advocate for electronic commerce in the media and in government and industry forums, having founded the Electronic Commerce Association, a leading trade advocacy group for e-commerce issues.

Richard j. Gordon becoming the founder of a dynamic, precedent-setting company should come as no surprise to those who have known him since his childhood in the working-class Sunset Park section of Brooklyn, NY.

The second of three children of an immigrant father and second generation American mother, some of Mr. Gordon's most vivid childhood memories are of his entire family working just to keep food on the table. One of his mother's jobs was to shovel coal for the furnace of their apartment building, a job young Richard took over at age nine.

It was at about this age that young Mr. Gordon joined the Boy Scouts of America, an activity which tapped his natural spirit of determination and quickly became a second center for his life. At age 12, he became the youngest Eagle Scout in America. The Brooklyn Spectator spotlighted his story, which led Richard at age 13 to begin writing a weekly column. Later, the column became a feature entitled, "A Teenager's View Of .........", through which he met and interviewed many of the best known people of the time, including Bishop Fulton Sheen, astronaut Alan Sheppard (shortly after he returned as the first American to fly into space) and many prominent elected officials.

In 1963, Mr. Gordon won a Congressional appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy from legendary U.S. Rep. John J. Rooney. There, as part of his language studies, he developed some of the first algorithms to conjugate French verbs. In 1965 he authored one of the first computer programs that could translate from English to French and vice versa. As a Midshipman, he won the opportunity to do continuing research with the staff of the prestigious Brookings Institution.

After graduating from the Naval Academy in 1967, Mr. Gordon served as an operations officer on destroyers in the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea as well as undertaking duties with the amphibious fleet. He was the first member of his graduating class to be promoted to the rank of full lieutenant. He was 22 at the time.

In 1972, he was assigned to recruiting duties in Albany, NY, which included a three-week training course in salesmanship under the celebrated master salesman, J. Douglas Edwards. With his natural sales abilities honed, within three months his district rose from seventh to first among the nation's nine recruiting zones, even with the elimination of the draft.

After resigning from the Navy in 1973, Mr. Gordon opened his own life insurance brokerage. In his first year, he was selected by Mass Mutual Life Insurance Company as a member of the "Freshman Five" for ranking in the top five in sales among several hundred new agents recruited that year. The business grew and expanded into equipment leasing and real estate development. In 1978, he formed PetCare, Inc., as the first Blue Cross-type of health insurance company for family pets.

Moving to Los Angeles in 1983, Mr. Gordon operated a financial planning and business management company through much of the 1980s. He formed R.j. Gordon & Company in November 1985.

While working on an assignment for an international client in 1987, Mr. Gordon conceived a remarkable invention: an enhanced facsimile system that would provide secure transmissions and remote manipulation of facsimile via a touch tone phone. The system was also integrated into voice mail and paging networks. Mr. Gordon was granted U.S. Patent #4,994,926 for this system in 1991. Several additional patents on the technology have since been granted in the U.S. and several foreign countries. Although Mr. Gordon has sold the rights to this invention, his technology remains the core of all PC fax programs.

In late 1989, R.j. Gordon & Company was hired to assist a client with a serious credit card chargeback problem with Visa and MasterCard. In response, Mr. Gordon developed specialized techniques and processes that reduced chargebacks from 25% to less than 5% almost overnight. The issues at the root of this client's problems turned out to be very widespread and rapidly growing areas of credit card fraud.

Mr. Gordon developed an on-line, real-time risk management authorization network that runs in front of Visa and MasterCard credit authorization systems and provides clients with an enhanced risk management and fraud prevention system. This rudimentary system was the first-ever global risk management system designed for real-time credit card processing for electronic commerce.

With this technology as its foundation, Mr. Gordon formed Electronic Card Systems, Inc., (ECS) in 1992 to serve the unique credit card account needs of merchants who sell their goods without their customers being physically present. In 1994, he created Electronic Authorization Systems, Inc., (EAS) to commercialize the risk management processes he had developed. These companies were eventually merged to form creditcards.com and in 2000 Mr. Gordon sold control of the company to an investor group.

Deep Throat writes: Luke - he also has a criminal record - including several felony convictions! While resume inflation is pretty common, Gordon's bio on his website seems to stretch things quite a biit ...

First of all, he is a CO-holder of a patent, not the only one.

BUT ... unless he is a superman, this part "After graduating from the Naval Academy in 1967, Mr. Gordon served as an operations officer on destroyers in the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea as well as undertaking duties with the amphibious fleet. He was the first member of his graduating class to be promoted to the rank of full lieutenant. He was 22 at the time" presents a bigger obstacle.

While the Naval Academy confirmed that he graduated in 1967, they said it would be very, highly unlikely that someone would achieve Full Lieutenant rank at age 22 since graduates are 22 when they graduate as Ensigns ( next rank is Lt.jg (junior grade) and then Lt.) They would not give me more info about his record without his social security number and a letter from him, but they also said that the vague description of his service, minus Unit numbers and ship names also raises suspicions. and this:

"Mr. Gordon developed specialized techniques and processes that reduced chargebacks from 25% to less than 5% almost overnight."

As you know, if you have 5% chargebacks, Visa nails your butt to the nearest tree. and this:

"Mr. Gordon developed specialized techniques and processes that reduced chargebacks from 25% to less than 5% almost overnight...the first-ever global risk management system designed for real-time credit card processing for electronic commerce."

Nobody, but nooooooooobody I have spoken with have ever heard of this or Mr. Gordon. There is a lot more of this, and equally important is what is NOT there: there is no record of expertise other than salesmanship .. no names of clients just as there are no names of destroyers, fleets and naval units and task forces. My BS detector is screaming!

Luke Leaving Porn

I can't take it anymore. I'm leaving porn. I wish to return to my former synagogue. I was told that I could return once I abandoned all connection to the porn industry.

So I plan to sell this website, or at least the contents of it, and seek other employment. Anyone who might have a non-porn job for me, or would like to buy the content of this site, please Email Luke. From now on, I wish to live my life fully as an Orthodox Jew.

I plan to continue to update this site until all advertising contracts are fulfilled. I'm not going to change my life at the expense of those I've made commitments to.

I made this decision at a Torah lecture last night and I am even more determined to go through with it this morning. I've been thinking seriously about leaving porn since 1996.

I'm leaving for the following reasons:

* Most of the people most important to me are Orthodox Jews and I most want to fit in with them.

* Pornography has numbed me and I feel in a creative rut.

* I can't shake the feeling that by maintaining any connection to porn, I socially isolate myself.

* I want to find a woman to marry and most women can't handle the work I do.

David writes: Well, you don't necessarily have to sell l-keford.com. Right now, your name is your brand and it could be potentially marketable later on -- especially if you quit the porn industry.

You seem to think that people read your site for all the porn gossip. That's not really it. It's your voice as a writer. Regardless of how self-indulgent it gets, or pedantic, or looking for red herrings, your personality shines through making it more interesting than it should be.

Also, the reason your stuff is so interesting is because you do analyze this porn from a moral perspective and the contradiction between mind and body that is actually a Christian conceit. If you don't want to cover porn, don't cover it but you should stick with some aspect of pop culture. If you're going to write about Judaism, analyze it with some pop culture.

Also, you need to understand your power as a ``myth.'' Luke F-rd, Aussie nerd, comes to LA, reinvents himself and manages to develop a certain name and reputation without leaving his home.

Luke F-rd, would-be journalist, who scares the industry by flying off and printing every rumor that comes through.

Luke F-rd, the name is so film noir, people would swear it's made up. Why not take a sabbatical from the site, while still owning it? You might need it as a vehicle for other projects. You can write and you can think so there should be some work as a ``pundit.''

Mazeltov with the religious studies but don't discount the value of your name and reputation -- especially if you quit and do other things.

Have you thought about writing essays about 21st century moral choices? If you become Orthodox, will that mean you shut yourself off from those who are not jews? I'm not sure that works.

I think you still have a bit of the prostlyte in you and, besides, your natural inclination is to be a person who unites things that don't expect to be united.

On the other hand, you probably need to do the deep study and meditation and struggle and sacrifice now so you don't have any regrets later on.

I know you probably hate all that new age, astrological, feel-good AA-inspired stuff but one saying makes sense: You're not a finished product.

Curious writes: It's a cold, cruel world out there Luke. It's a world that frowns on plaid shorts, stripped shirts, black clodhoppers with white socks and yarmulkes. A world that expects a full day's work for a full day's pay. No more CFS excuses. A world that rarely pays you to watch beautiful women engage in lewd sex acts. Can you accept that?

If you wish to sell the site (which I don't not believe you do but I'll bite) you must first rename it and continue to nurture it for at least another six months. Any name suggestions from the panel? I suggest www.amalek-speaks.com

BTW the slaves don't necessarily go with the plantation. What will we do? We provide much of the content at no remuneration. Does the site have as much $$ value without us? I need an agent.

Rumdar writes: I just got back from T-land last night. This certainly could be a shocker. But, I don't believe you either. I think you are too lazy to do anything else. LF.com is far too easy a gig. Besides, there is a lot of good you can do for mankind through LF.com (see "sewing machines for Ho's and Orphans") ..as an Ortho Jew without portfolio (i.e., column), you will have to work at least 40 hours a week and be just another yiddle on the scene. Your ego couldn't take it. I read an interesting book recently "But I Don't Give a Hoot!: The Life and Times of Bernard Trink, Bangkok's Nite Owl" by Jennifer Bliss. He went from backpacker to long time columnist (30 years) reporting on the sleaze scene for The Bangkok Post. Like LF he has his fans and detractors. Your column could/should be more like his.

I believe I will give up teaching and do something I have always wanted to be involved in. Running sex tours to Asia. Discounts for all former LF Advisory Com. Members, although to get Amalek over I will have to charter one of those huge Ruskie cargo numbers. The same kind that flew the spy plane out of China.

Putative Marc writes: I sense that a broader semi-mainstream media opportunity would actually make you feel more fulfilled than trying to fit in with these particular shul folk. yes, you could probably find some job stocking shelves or as a cashier ... is this really what you want? again, i WANT you to get out of porn. i'm just wondering how we can make this hara kiri work to our collective benefit.

Mark Kramer writes: Sure gonna miss you. But I can't fault a man for following the dictates of his heart in these heartless times. It was a sweet ride while it lasted.

JRob writes: Luke and Janine could synchronize their retirements and "comebacks" Two years on, two months off, two years on, etc.

I have no doubt whatsoever that Luke is absolutely, irrevocably, dead serious about leaving porn. Every porner who announces her retirement on l-keford.com is committed to leaving porn to pursue music, or feature dancing, or marriage. Or else, they are fed up with the life and mean to make a new beginning. They all come back. Its easy, it pays, and it is different than most joe-jobs.

Luke F-rd will re-think the whole issue the first time he asks a prospective employer, "You want me in at 8:30 a.m. every day? Monday THROUGH Friday?"

Fred Skeptic writes: Anyone want to take bets as to whether this will happen?

Luke replies: Ok, I will bet money on this. How much do you guys want to wager? I will bet you that I am not earning my living from writing on porn two months from now.

Rumdar writes: I'll bet you the cost of a new pair of Klondike Klodhoppers (for your new job) and two pair of white socks.

Chaim Amalek writes: I think Luke plans on turning the web site over to gambling.

A trim, muscular and fit boy like Luke can find a job as a secretary, paralegal, or clerk at Kinko's. (Hell, if I had his looks, even I could find a job). But doing what? I say Luke will ditch the site only if he can parlay it, quickly, into something in mainstream media.

Seriously, to what shall we ascribe this epiphany of yours on the road to Damascus?

Luke replies: Feeling isolated from my community.

Chaim Amalek replies: But Luke, you just don't get it. The gedolim of Hollywood are not your community - the PORNERS are your community. All the hookers, pimps, good time Charlies, gay comfort boys, itinerant preacher essayists, wanking willies etc. THESE are your community. And you will never have cause to leave us; we accept you just as you are. You need never grow to be at peace here, Luke. So settle in, at 35 you still have quite a few years to spend in our company!

GOOBLE GOBBLE GOOBLE GOBBLE
ONE OF US
ONE OF US

Get used to it!

DaisyLove writes Luke: I have a question for you...why were you on the radio this morning promoting your site and your tours if you had already decided that you are leaving the industry... Just when I was interested in your daily reports you have decided to stop!!

Luke says: I was booked on the radio show two weeks ago and felt I had to go through with it.

Seaver writes: Dear Luke: Long-time reader, first time writer. I've been a fan of your site for a few years now, and as a jewish man, working in the (legit) film industry here in Los Angeles, I've enjoyed immensely your talent as a writer and your indefatigable ability to share with the world your tortured moral and societal quandries. :)

As much as I will miss you, I applaud your announcement and hope you stick to it. Porn is a dead-end for you (and I am a fan, have no issues with those in the industry, and will always fight to protect their first amendment rights to produce and distribute their work). Let's face the bald fact in the light of day: as much as actors and other talent in the porn industry write and rant about how they really are happy and well-adjusted people, the vast majority are not. Most of the women have either substance abuse, co-dependency, or severe emotional problems stemming from their childhood. Others may rail at me for saying this, but we all know it's true. The men are controlling, a lot of them abusive, and certainly cannot be called feminists. Again, people can live as they want to live. But if you truly do not enjoy it, if your heart honestly belongs elsewhere, then leave and don't look back. You'll probably feel cleaner and reinvigorated - not because trafficking in the porn world is "dirty" - but inevitably you feel dirty doing it. And that won't change.

So go, go with God, you'll be surprised how much happiness is actually out there for you. As King Arthur was to have said: "I did not know how empty was my soul until it was full again."

Jason Sechrest from JasonCurious.com writes: Luke, I wish you the best in whatever you do and I know that with your creativity and ambition you're bound to be successful on any path you choose to take. Keep reading your "Gatway to Happiness" books though! I could be wrong, but I don't think being isolated from your "community" is the problem at all. I think you've always just felt a little isolated from your own self. I'll miss you! :o(

Ken writes: As a former orthodox, but as one who is still proud to be a Jew, don't quit the web-site. Orthodox Jewry is like being part of the Fetish scene, once it in you blood you can't quit. And porn is something that you are into. Let me tell you about orthodox Jewish Women--they are wonderful, as was my mother of blessed memory, but, you will be disappointed if you marry one because the problem is this: You are Jewish as anyone of them, but you are a convert. Converts are never truly accepted, except by another convert. The frumniks will look at you and ask you where and who converted you to see if you are worthy enough to be a member of the minyon. You may know the law, both oral and written, but you are not part of the culture. One of the things that turned me off about the Orthodox, is the way some of them refer to converts behind their backs as a shaygetz or a shiksa. My solution is for you is to find a non-religious, but ethnically Jewish female and slowly bring her back into the faith. That way the both of you will some religious experiences together.

Heather Barron writes: Dear Luke, Funny, I should read that you are considering abandoning l-keford.com because I am in the same place mentally and emotionally with HeatherBarronXXX.com.

The recent hosting dilemma made me reconsider the whole thing and next week I have the opportunity to interview for a regular job outside of the industry. Part of me wants to get out. Part of me doesn't. I'm content with just making ends meet provided I can call my own shots and that's the hardest part of this, freedom. Is it even possible to come down from "adult" without crashing and saying "Now, who the heck am I without all this?" I spoke to a high profile entertainer yesterday, who said to me, think of this...You are an actress (your case, actor) who's just finished a role in a blockbuster movie. You were filming for well over a year. Now the film is out, the reviews are in and there isn't a next project on your agenda. You must come out of the skin of the character you were once in and you must find yourself again without rolling into the next character because there isn't one to roll into.

I also felt morally challenged since I do consider myself Catholic and would also like to remarry someday when the time is right. Any association with adult material makes it hard to blend into the real world (as if we want to?) and you soon find that most of your friends and contacts are in the biz and you can be sitting in a restaurant saying to yourself, all these people around me probably don't spend there days analyzing cock, pussy or even know what a DP is? You might even imagine yourself in a transparent "Smells Like PORN Spirit" T shirt.

The outcome I reached was that I wanted to do something equally as creative without the direct affiliation with nudity. I am creating another site that will showcase my work as a screenwriter. HBXXX will probably go back up soon because my fans tune in there and it's my means of communicating to them daily...I will put up the second site in the hope that it will be profitable and feel out HBXXX over time. If one needs an association with the sex industry or nuddie pictures to stay "in demand" then there is something terribly wrong.

I, personally, think you are a very good writer and that doesn't mean you need to go work for Kinko's. Continue l-keford.com just long enough to create a second site or get another job as a writer or commentator that is more legit entertainment oriented. That way, you will not be shunned by your religion. You do have a dry sense of humor so I'm hoping you won't disappear and that you will continue to be publicly critical. Your research on l-keford.com is One man's study of human nature and the business expertise or lack thereof of the adult community. Unfortunately, the dregs tend to conglomerate in porn and sponge off other but there are a lot of those in legit entertainment too so don't think things will be so rose colored outside the Porn House. There are just as many scams in banking. Banks are just better at hiding them.

When the rent is due, the bills are stacked high and you need food in the fridge it's hard to remain steady on your knees before God (me being Catholic) saying "I'm not going to do this again. I'm going to be a good boy." But you can say "I'm going to find a way out of that hellhole and please Lord, email me with my next income producing venue."

Chaim Amalek writes: NOW - TIME TO THINK LIKE A JEW! Since you plan on leaving anyway, why not make the porners PAY for you to leave? Make an announcement that you will stop writing about people PROVIDED that they pay you x dollars, where x is the most you think that they would pay, plus 33% for me - our pound of flesh, as it were. Since your silence is in the offing, why not make them pay for it so that you will at least be comfortable? Of course, if you return to porn, perhaps your legs will get broken, so you had better be certain of this move.

Remember, just because you stop posting news about Christian girls who work as prostitutes does not mean that you cannot continue to post the political essays of Dr. Pierce.

Chris writes: I have been a daily reader since Christmas 2000. Please do not abandon the site and your loyal fans. Shift the focus to some other aspect of popular culture, but don't deny us your talent.

Geoffrey Jones writes: Luke, It has been obvious that you have grown apart from the "Porn Industry" for quite sometime now. Trust your gut on this one and go after what you want in life. Life is much too short to work with something that just does not fit your religious views, internal social acceptance quota, or future goals. In reality for most involved, porn is just a business and not an overall lifestyle. Too many people on the outside or fringes of this business have a distorted unrealistic picture of the people that work within the porn industry. Most in porn work for the same reasons as the others outside of this business, simply to make forward or even steady progress in life. We all need to eat, sleep hopefully in a comfortable bed, and we all desire shelter. There are also the people who get into the business for the fast life, sex, and other not so widely socially accepted byproducts of the business. Those are the ones that the general society mostly associates with this business, but they are not the majority. Go after your dreams Luke, but please remember the good along with the bad in your past.

Rumdar writes: You know guys we are being very selfish. At a time of crisis in Levi's life we babble, "what is going to happen to us"..How self centered we are. Let us put our collective heads together and suggest some viable career choices for our boy. Here are a few random suggestions.
1. Multi Level Marketing Water Purifier Salesperson.
2. Disgruntled Postal Clerk (must pass test)
3. Move to West Virginia take up Coal Mining (Klodhoppers come in handy)
4. Work for the County picking up dead animals on the highway.
5. Mogan David wine distributor.
6. Salad Specialist at Luby's Cafeteria
7. Move to Israel, sell "Time Share Condos" along the Gaza Strip.
8. Deliver Phone Books, (John Wayne Gacey van comes in handy)
8. Become the first Jewish suicide bomber, blow up an abayah factory.

Levi, this should get you started. Come in fellas send in a few more suggestions.

Fred writes: 1. This is a mid-life crisis. Yup, that's what it is. I went through a mid-life crisis, and thought about quitting my job as a lawyer, buying a fire-engine red Porsche, moving to LA and trying to pick up 18-year-old porn strumpets. Well, what do porn journalists do when they have a mid-life crisis and they're already spending their time with 18-year-old porn strumpets? They dream of ditching their vans and joining an Orthodox shul. (I suppose it's cheaper than the fire-engine red Porsche.) Luke--the next time this happens, tell your therapist that you're having a mid-life crisis, and ask her what you should do.

2. Since Luke is (allegedly) leaving l-keford.com, I think the LF advisory panel should be authorized to start posting baseless rumors on l-keford.com. I notice that there is a suggestion that Luke coordinate his "retirement" with Janine. I report it here first. Luke and Janine are an item. They are starting a relationship. When Janine first saw that photograph of Luke in shorts, white socks and black clod-hoppers, she fell head over heals in love with Luke. The folks who were there at the time could almost hear the violin music playing. It was really touching. I myself was overcome with emotion. We at the LF advisory board have been trying to track down Janine and Luke for an interview, but they have been trying to keep out of the public eye, sequestering themselves in a hidden private love-nest somewhere in the San Fernando valley. (It's the hidden private love nest with a white van (in need of a wash) parked outside.) You heard it here first!

Luke says: I need to start thinking like a Jew. How do I put a price tag on l-keford.com? I get over 7000 unique IPs per day hitting my site during the week, and over 6000 uniques on weekends. I'm willing to stay on in a consulting role for six months after the sale of my site and share my rolodex. How about one year's revenue as a price?

Let Meek Luke Fade Away - Manly Luke is Born Anew!

Chaim Amalek writes: Luke, ignore the nay-sayers. Secular humanists like Fred simply are not willing to concede that there is a God-given moral code which prohibits your involvement in pornography. Such men want you to spend the remainder of your years in their lonely and unfulfilling spiritual ghetto, populated by false imagery provided courtesy of Sumner Redstone and porno/Juden - don't join them!

I think God has other plans for you. Like reconciling real torah-judaism with white supremecy, and thereby saving the white race (on whose largesse we jews depend for so much) from being smothered by a brown tide of third world immigration. (Fred, do you think all those WOGS and Kaffirs swarming into our land give two s---s about the existence of a jewish state in the middle east? No - they are too busy trying to get the entire populations of their home villages resettled here. A brown America is an America that Israel cannot rely upon as an honest partner for peace. This is a lesson that the Pierce's of the world have yet to learn.)

But first Luke, you must obtain true media power in the world beyond pornography and masturbation. You need to build, by stealth and cunning, a pulpit, and turn this pulpit into an iron Zitadel of truth! This is your time, Luke. You are done being a shy camp follower of modern culture. It is time for you to lead! Arise, arise, and save your adopted people and your blood race!

Rumdar writes: Amalek, Do you want Levi to join The Border Patrol? Luke perched on a watchtower along the Rio Grande? Levi chasing wetbacks through the desert? Splendid suggestion. Dr.Pierce is gonna be proud I tell ya!!!

Luke Gets Mail

Ian writes: Hi Luke, Can you (or anyone else) tell me what has happened to westcoastdebutantes.com, a nice little site of which I'm a member? It still exists, but I can't get on to it as a member, and the email address no longer works. I understand that the site recently changed its server (whatever THAT means!), which might have something to do with it. Does this kind of thing often happen on the net?

Ian writes: Hi Luke, You say: "I've long had a fascination for evil. I was fascinated by Marxism for years, .." That's a very Republican American thing to say. I'd thought better of you. Because the regimes of Pol Pot, Mao Tse Tung and Stalin turned out to be evil (assuming that is what you believe) does not at all mean that the doctrines that inspired them (or were said to inspire them, however much they strayed from them) were themselves evil. On the contrary, I think that the ideals of Marxism (or socialism, which is what inspired Marx, however much he described it as scientific materialism) were very conventionally moral. Motherhood and apple pie, if you like. They were against exploitation of the poor by the rich, the weak by the powerful. They were for the brotherhood of man, justice for all, and favoured a belief in small government (even smaller than the Republicans believe in) because Marx believed that in the end (in the socialist Nirvana, if you like) the state would wither away.

The trouble came when action had to be taken to put such ideals into practice. Stalin and Lenin believed that the exploiters (and there were millions of them) should be wiped out - and so did Pol Pot. Mao Tse Tung came to believe that ideas about desirable progress which flitted through his head should be made compulsory on all Chinese - leading to such absurdities as the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution. The ideas of Jesus were translated in Europe into the Inquisition (does that mean that Christianity is evil?) And we mustn't forget the Jews. Themselves persecuted throughout history, they have taken to persecution with a vengeance when they have found themselves a bit of power - in Israel, I mean. But I certainly don't believe Judaic ideas to be evil. Peculiar, perhaps, but then any dogmatic religion finds itself defending the absurd.

Quasarman Interviewed

Goddess interviewed Quasarman and his wife Lisa. Here's an excerpt:

According to Luke F-rd's crackerjack statistics, a "porn marriage" has about a 1% chance of surviving, and that's if everything goes in your favor. Keeping this in mind, tell me--if you're Australian, and you convert to Judaism, does that make you a full Jew? An Aussie Jew? Or just some narcissistic Jew wannabe who sits around all day reading love letters from Lynne L-patin?

"He's right. Porn marriages are doomed. We do not have a porn marriage, however. Luke is a confused and disturbed individual who is about as authentically Jewish as Yassar Arafat."

Seriously, though, do you think being in porn adds a stress to your marriage that other couples don't encounter? Or do you think Luke needs to get a life and worry about his own non-existent marriage?

"It adds a certain amount of stress, but being that I don't actually perform sexually in movies (or at home that much either) it's effect is negligible. I'm just a camera guy who happens to point his camera at people fornicating for money."

Mike, what do your in-laws think of your job? What does your own family think of what you do?

"My family is ecstatic that I'm not on public assistance. Her family doesn't bring it up unless absolutely necessary."

Were you already directing porn when you met Lisa, Mike, or did that career choice come after your marriage? I'd like to know her reaction.

"I was a lowly production assistant/struggling musician when we met. My involvement in the industry grew gradually enough that it was never a shock to her."

PBS Documentary Frontline Airs October 4th

The documentary series Frontline opens its new season October 4th with a program on the porn industry. A 90 second advanced clip from the documentary was shown to 40 TV writers last week.

AVN.com reports: The clip included shots from a porn set, where some very rough, pushing-the-edge-of-the-envelope sex was being taped. The clip made it clear that the actress in the scene agreed in advance to some rough treatment but, according to Michael Kirk, producer and director of “American Porn,” she got much more than she bargained for. “They wanted to surprise her, force some realism. And she knew she was going to get slapped, and I mean really slapped. But she didn’t know the extent to which she was going to get hit, didn’t know the extent to which she was going to be beaten.”

“I saw one of the great adult movie taboos being broken,” Kirk told the TV writers. “The rules are: no drugs, no violence, no non-consensual sex. And I saw a woman basically get sandbagged by the director. She (the director) had her beaten and the woman didn’t know it. And we pulled out. It just seemed completely inappropriate and was very hard for me.”

The program will discuss Seymore Butts' obscenity trial.

Veteran VCX Salesman Harry Young Dies Without Telling His Story

From AVN.com: NORTH HOLLYWOOD, Calif.- Harry Young, national sales manager for VCX, died on Sunday. He was seventy years old and died of a massive heart attack. Young was a veteran of the adult industry and most recently national sales manager for VCX, best-known for its classic releases starring performers like Seka and John Holmes.

VCX president Rudy Sutton told AVN.com, “Harry was an ex-Marine and he had been in the adult business from day one. He started out just making movie deliveries to theatres back when they had films. He was with us here for seven years and he was in the adult business for thirty years before that."

Luke says: I went over to Harry's house in 1996 and took him to brunch at Canter's Deli on Fairfax Blvd. I got nothing from him after I said that I believed the Mafia played a significant role in porn distribution. Harry was around forever but he took his secrets to the grave.

I saw Harry frequently at trade shows, including for the final time at Erotica LA. He was an outspoken Jewish pornographer, covered with gold chains and other jewelry.

Geoffrey Jones (geoff@discreetadultdvd.com) writes: Luke, I just came home from an extended dinner with my attorney and clicked on l-keford to get my daily dose of news when I saw that Harry Young had passed away. Harry was one of the first sales guys that I spoke with in the industry. He immediately recognized that I was a little green and needed some direction when it came to setting up direct purchasing programs with adult film companies. He was helpful with advice and he wasn't stingy on sharing his well rounded knowledge and past experiences anytime that I called into VCX. I really looked up to him and his ability to always make me laugh even on those days when I just wanted to say screw selling adult dvd's online and go off and sell used bicycles in China. He had this crusty voice that sounded like he had smoked a carton of cigarettes a day back when non filtered Lucky Strikes were considered a smoke for the weak. He would always call me "Baby" as in hey baby or that's right baby, he had that old school Hollywood vibe working on his side. If that came from anyone else I would call them on it, but from Harry it was always okay with me. He was one of a kind and I will always be indebted to him for his guidance and friendship. God bless, Harry you will always be greatly missed.

AIM Says 72 Performers Affected By New STD Outbreak

From Gene Ross:

AIM's Sharon Mitchell confirms that at least 72 performers have been tested in separate STD outbreaks that occurred last week. Mitchell says these latest outbreaks may force AIM to revamp its policies on notification.

Gene: On Friday we got notice that one of the girls we wanted to use for a shoot was unavailable due to a chlamydia outbreak.

Mitchell: Last week we had two outbreaks. The first one at the beginning of the week turned out about 52 people. That was for gonorrhea. Then, Friday, there were a number of people, about 20 people exposed to chlamydia. We asked people to come in and test and call Dr. York and get some medication. On the first one we had a young lady test positive for gonorrhea. The problem I've had is in HIV we're allowed to release the results by stage name only. We don't do that with STD's. But I'm changing that policy as of today...

For some off reason, the talents uses an STD against each other as if someone's better or worse than someone else which is ridiculous. So what I'm going to do and I'm not 100% sure on this is make everything open release by stage name- anything we have to report other than HIV. I did a genealogy just for the heck of it and it reaches 198 people in three days and that's kind of scary. Right now we're asking everyone to come in and take the free Chlamydia/Gonorrhea test that we have here at AIM just so we can get a baseline if who needs treatment and who doesn't.

Gregory Bowman writes: E Gads! Chlamydia! Gonorrhea! I waited to see if I would get the call saying I had been exposed. Voice mail-no STD message. I'm worried now. I don't have any symptoms other than a case of priapism but thats normal for me. I sit and wait for the call.......nothing. I wonder if AIM has my number? I sit and wait and start to feel a tingling. Is it the Mexican food I ate yesterday? I am scared now. Screen name........I wonder if Sharon Mitchell remembers I go by BOBO the chimp........I sit and worry. I wonder if I can sneak a pee sample in at AIM without running into any people I don't want to see? I worry. So in a desperate move, I urinate in a mason jar, attach a ten spot to it with my screen name, BOBO the chimp, leave it outside the door at AIM. My urine! sitting on Ventura Blvd. I just hope a bum doesn't think it an off label pale ale and walk off with it. IM WORRIED. Maybe Tom Zupko will drive by and become aroused by my bladder contribution and smear himself with feces as he drinks it. I am worried. Honest!! the opium in the urine was from Costco poppy seed muffins!. Im worried. And my urethra begs for AIM to test my urine. I don't want the the icky "CLAM" idia. Please GOD, I will never eat pussy without saran wrap again. Wait, I have a prescription for Erythromycin that I never used! Im saved!...............thank goodness AIM is there just in case my pee pee burns in the middle of the night. I am not worried. Your financial contributions? nathans_parable@yahoo.com

Blind Guy writes on BigDoggie.net, a web site for johns: AIM's Sharon Mitchell said that last week 72 performers in the adult film industry tested positive for STDs (52 with gonorrhea and 20 with chlamydia). No names were released but Ms. Mitchell said that AIM would reveal the names of those that test positive for STDs from now on. Luckily, these particular STDs can be cured easily but also be aware that many infected with chlamydia have no symptoms. Let's have fun but be careful out there, guys.

Who's The Most Cerebral Pornographer?

Christian Mann, owner of Video Team.

Houston Punched At LA Nightclub

Porn star Houston, the lead character in the Houston 500 gangbang, got punched in the Los Angeles nightclub Miyagis Friday night.

While dancing on the Sunset Strip, Houston was approached by a woman who asked, 'Are you Houston?' Houston says yes. The woman punches Houston in the nose and lays her out cold.

Houston believes the girl is from Scottsdale, Arizona. Houston seeks Jenna Jameson's number so Jenna can have the girl taken care of.

Houston, who married in January in Las Vegas, is now available on the escorting site Exotica-2000.com:

"Houston 5' 7" 34D- 25-35. Houston's high cheekbones and wide, slyly knowing eyes give away her Norwegian background, but between the sheets she's 100% pure American sexual predator. The veteran of nude layouts and exotic dancing proved a natural porn queen, her supremely stacked frame and raw attitude serving as utter turn-ons. She got into porn at the age of 27, and although she may be a bit older than most pornstresses her energy and enthusiasm never flag. Fans looking for an introduction to this sultry sexstress should check out her work in 'Russian Roulette' or her incendiary work in 'Angels In Flight.' A performer who's much more into men than women, Houston is one of the hottest, best-looking additions to the ranks of hardcore in recent years."

Perhaps Houston slept with the woman's boyfriend or husband, either through escort work or the Houston 500?

Houston once loudly proclaimed that she would never do escort work.

Contrary to the conventional wisdom, a wife working outside the home as a prostitute tends to have a deleterious effect on the health of the marriage.

Houston recently had about her tenth plastic surgery, this time to reduce the size of her breasts.

Gilles writes: That Exotica-2000 site can't be taken seriously. Who would believe Alexa is escorting? Could have been the same for Houston but if you check out at the bigdoggie.net site,there's reviews of her so, she do or at least did. You said she said she was "never to escort"? Wasn't the same same girl who said she was hating anal? Money change it all.

7 Lives Xposed

BEVERLY HILLS, CA, July 30, 2001 -- Production is underway on Playboy TV's new original series, 7 Lives Xposed, a weekly half-hour reality-style series that will premiere on the premium pay service, Sunday, October 21. Production of the 13 episode package is slated to run through August.

7 Lives Xposed takes place in a bohemian loft in L.A.'s ultra-hot Silver Lake district where seven ambitious young adults seek fame and fortune by having their sex lives broadcast daily on the web from 40 cyber cameras. The entrepreneurial mastermind behind this "love shack" is adult star Devinn Lane who entices the group together with the promise that the more sexual interaction they have, the more profit their website reaps. However, more than passion erupts when these sexy, free-spirited personalities are brought into very intimate quarters.

A provocative online component to the series, www.7livesxposed.com, is being produced concurrently through Playboy.com.

Sol Weisel, Executive Vice President of Production for the Playboy Entertainment Group Inc., commented, "7 Lives Xposed is our most unusual original project to date. We took the most interesting elements of reality television and combined them with scripted drama and a very sexy young cast," he explained. "This combination has created a unique and very sensual series that will provoke heated audience reactions week after week."

Playboy TV Networks are the pay-per-view and subscription television networks of the Playboy Entertainment Group, Inc., the world's leading producer and marketer of branded adult entertainment. Playboy TV is available in more than 20 million U.S. cable households in the U.S. and Canada and to over 9 million home satellite owners via DirecTV and Echostar. In Canada, Playboy TV is available through Shaw Communications and Videotron cable systems, and ExpressVu and Star Choice satellite systems. Playboy TV offers more than 1,700 hours of high-quality adult programming to over 135 territories, with networks in Japan, the United Kingdom, Latin America, Scandinavia, Israel, the Netherlands, New Zealand, France, Taiwan and Spain.

XXX writes: Playboy.com is putting up a feature on DVD porn around noon EST on 7/31, with a set visit to a Vivid shoot, a Q&A with Stevie, and a Q&A with Joone of Digital Playground.

New York Times Publishes Another Clueless Academic

Here are some excerpts from today's article by anthropology professor JUDITH LYNNE HANNA in the NYTimes.com:

LAST year "nude erotic dancing" seemed to have become an officially endangered species in the United States. The Supreme Court gave localities the authority to ban all nude dancing in a First Amendment case, City of Erie v. Pap's A.M. (a nude dance club). The requirement of G-strings and pasties, the court said, is a minimal restriction that does not diminish the erotic message.

Many people believe that nudity is a form of costume and that performers should have the freedom to communicate their artistic messages through costume without state interference or police harassment. Yet after the court's decision, local governments from Arizona to Florida have been banning nude and even partial and "simulated nude" dancing. And the threat of further assaults on nude dancing looms large.

Although not considered high art, erotic dance is dance nonetheless. It is purposeful, intentionally rhythmical, culturally patterned, nonverbal movement that communicates, in time and space, with criteria for excellence. It is a learned skill requiring imagination and expressiveness. Some erotic dancers learn their art by watching and being coached, as most people in the world learn to dance; others draw on their training in various dance genres, including ballet and gymnastics.

My education in the world of the modern variant of erotic dance clubs, or so-called "new gentlemen's clubs," began in March 1995, when Bruce McLaughlin, a planner based in Clearwater, Fla., and Gilbert Levy, a lawyer representing erotic dancers and club owners in Seattle, discovered my anthropological research on dance as nonverbal communication. They asked me to be an expert court witness in a First Amendment case, applying to erotic dance the semiotic, socio-linguistic paradigm I had used to study dance in Africa, on school playgrounds and in American theaters.

A well-managed club with complete nudity is no more likely to be linked with prostitution and sexually transmitted diseases or drugs than social dancing in restaurants, community centers and municipal theaters.

The legend is that the clubs are gangster-run strip joints, though since the 1980's close to 3,000 well- run, often luxuriously appointed, gentlemen's clubs patronized by male and female professionals and businessmen have appeared around the country. What is considered risqué evolves with society's concepts of indecency, immorality and even nudity. Ballet, perhaps the quintessential example of high-art dance, was widely considered disreputable almost until the 20th century; the sight of pantaloon-covered legs when a fully clothed dancer pirouetted was as scandalous as complete nudity is today for some people.

A famous man once wrote: "Our whole public life today is like a hothouse for sexual ideas and stimulations. Theater, art, literature, cinema, press, posters and window displays must be cleaned of all manifestations of our rotting world and placed in the service of a moral, political and cultural idea." The man was Adolf Hitler, writing in his manifesto, "Mein Kampf."

Frank writes: Honestly, prose like this is impenetrable. It really is beside the point if she has a good point or not. The real question is who the hell edited this crap? Even though I bothered reading it, I still don't know what it says. The word "feminist" and "liberal" just flashed above the piece, and my brain tuned out.

The immigration thread on your site is much more interesting to me than porn, but no one really wants to read that sort of stuff on a wanker web site. It is not that I am against sex, it is just that the stuff you deal with deals not with sex but with failure to get sex, which is what drives the market for porn. Very depressing.

Webmaster Gossip

I heard that feuding webmasters Brad Shaw, MikeAI from AmateurIndex.com and Evan Horowitz settled their differences on the D-MoneyShow.com radio program Friday afternoon. Evan and Brad are cosponsoring a charity golf tournament together for a charity set up by the XPays founders Evan and Michael to help the paralyzed.

Brad Shaw writes: "Luke, Evan and I have settled nothing. This is news to me. I believe he and MikeAI had a conversation in D$ chat room, I was not involved, nor do I care to be. Once Evan publicly apologizes to me, we can talk. Until then, nothing will change and I will remain to believe he is a pot head cockholster."

Darren, the Jimmy Carter of the adult web, tried to instigate peace between the two. By contrast, when I had Brad and Evan on my show about a year ago, I tried to heat up the war between them.

D$ aka Darren Blatt received a gushing two page profile in the August AVNOnline magazine. It helps that D$ dates AVN's VP of sales.

Gregory Bowman writes: "Luke: I have recently been informed that certain web masters of adult content web sites are promoting charity events. Given the poor scorecard of ethical behavior thus far exhibited by these web masters included back and forth hostile and childish feuds, I find it immeasurable inconsistent that these people would share their ill gotten booty by hosting charity events to such vague charities as the paralyzed and for child abuse.

"In no way am I suggestion that this is A SCAM. A SCAM, A SCAM. Did I say SCAM? I am merely pointing out that these self absorbed children are seemingly not the type to attend to philanthropic needs without an agenda. I would certainly look into the details of their so called charity events to ascertain if the money is going to charity, or pockets elsewhere, before donating to their cause. Additionally, it would be interesting to see how they have structured these events, most probably, in resorts where they can spend thousands and write it off as a charitable contribution or business expense. To think that they are so charitable while reading about their antics and lavish parties, some with illicit drugs and prostitutes, rubs this writer the wrong way.

"I would suggest your readers take a serious look at this kind of behavior of fund raising by these porn web hosts. To be forewarned is to be forearmed. I do hope the money is being rasied for a good cause but that would be akin to hoping Charles Manson would be a good babysitter for my children. A leopard rarely changes its spots and certainly a snake is always a snake. Comments? Nathans_parable@yahoo.com"

Kevin Blatt looks like a thug in the August AVNOnline mag, as he increasingly goes with the porn oriented look. He's been hardened by his years in porn.

The new webmaster board of note is Oprano.com, owned by Mike AI and Serge Birbrair, who reportedly lost much of his fortune in the stock market slump.

I hear that Rick Muenyong, the founder of YNOT, is returning to the internet porn business. He already operates Ranks.com, EroticRanks.com and AmateurRanks.com. "Many people respect and admire Rick," says a source. "When Rick left the business, people said, 'Wow, there's a kid who's way too honest and innocent to be in porn.' Rick has many contacts and can generate tons of traffic. People will welcome him back with open arms. I hear Rick will start up a new webmastser resource center. He always brings something new to the table.

All the big amateur programs took off in the last couple of years, and with AmateurRanks.com, Rick's capitalizing on that.

Muenyong writes: "Hi Luke, I can't comment on everything I'm working on, but Ranks.com is definately focusing most of it's upcoming services toward the adult business, due to obvious economic conditions in mainstream. One site that I will fill you in on is AmateurMasters.com, an AmateurRanks.com spin-off for webmasters. It's essentially a run at creating the best possible community and resource for amateur webmasters. We plan on working close with YNOTmasters.com (hence I kept masters in the name), the two sites will compliment each other nicely.

"In addition, to celebrate the launch (which I'd project mid to late August) of AmateurMasters.com, we're holding a private amateur-themed event called AmateurFest 2001: http://amateur.ranks.com/party.html (I'll soon have a full site up at http://amateurfest.net/ ) You're welcome to cover this event... should be one of the largest amateur parties to date."

The present YNOT seems to be on auto-pilot. They've got a loyal base of webmasters who like Bob and Otto. I don't see a lot of business getting discussed on there.

I'm not hearing anything about Sex.com. Sex.tv, owned by Fenton in Britain, will be launched in a couple of weeks, and people say that it will be what Sex.com should've been.

The Sweet Entertainment Group (SEG) has taken over PersonalPorn.com, a big content site that stole images from many porners. PersonalPorn.com settled for pennies on the dollar with everyone but the Sweets who went after them relentlessly. SEG will relaunch PersonalPorn.com in a few weeks.

Faye Sharp's Cybernext Expo runs August 23-26 in Miami.

Ron Levi's Cybererotica hosts a webmaster show in Portland this weekend.

While webmasters run off to these other shows, AVN's twice a year shows in Las Vegas remain the granddaddy events for the community. I wonder how AVN regards all these other little shows? Does it cut into their business?

Joseph Elkind of CEN has been flying back and forth to Europe frequently, dealing with big and powerful European pornographers like Private.

JoeE said on Evan's AdultGossip.com show that he's spending about $200,000 a month in legal bills fighting AOL. I can only imagine the millions that the Bottos of RJB Telcom must've shelled out in their battle with the FTC. The Bottos have kept a low profile waiting for their FTC settlement to come through.

And to think I live for a year off about $20,000 not counting my therapy.

XXX: "How do you date with no money?"

Luke: "I take my dates to synagogue. Get some tasty free kiddish (snacks) afterwards."

Porn biz is stagnant now.

I hear Gail Harris is selling her business to Playboy. Gail's cute and sweet and everyone likes her.

XXX says: "Andy Edmond walked away with nothing from Flying Crocodile Inc (after running the company for about two years). An accounting of the records after he left showed that he was taking out $300 a day on a corporate American Express card. It amounted to $67,000 a year, with which he was buying drugs. Because of this, it voided whatever agreement he had with Flying Crocodile to pay him X amount of dollars over the years. Which would've made him a millionaire. Now he gets nothing. I think FCI threatened criminal action over this for embezzlement. And the plea bargain was that Edmond did not get paid and in exchange, he didn't go to jail."

Rick Solomon writes: "Luke, My god man, where do you get this bulls--- on Andy? I've known Andy since he first arrived on the Adult scene. I'm so sick of seeing you post this crap about him. Your post today from XXX has nothing to do with the guy I know. He didn't embezzle money from FCI. Shawn Boday, the current CEO, is trying to steal the company from Andy. This is just a tactic in their game of dirty pool. It's all in the court system now. There have been an innumerable amount of power struggles inside of FCI that still exist today even without Andy there. Your gossip column has been utilized as a tool to sway the opinion of the webmaster community and you have been more than happy to oblige with your contradictory agendas. In the interim your yellow journalism just misinforms the community that pays your rent.

"Last I heard Andy Edmond is on the verge of exploding back into the business world with another one of his genius business ideas, and lets make no qualms about it. Andy IS a genius. Time will tell. This crazy business shifts and flows daily to the lowest common denominator. You, Luke F-rd, are a big part of facilitating peoples low expectations for the business community ethics or their lack of, in the Adult sector."

Heather Barron (ClassySpankMe@aol.com) asks: Is my experience with adult hosting companies that unique? The last experience was my 3rd web hosting company. The 2nd, roped me in and then told me that they'd have to charge me well over $400 a month for a dedicated server because they didn't handle adult sites on other platforms. I got out of that situation fast. The 3rd, hit me with the traffic blackmail scam. I bailed.

I'm now debating my options and would like some industry feedback. How common are the altering of bandwidth stats by hosting companies and the bait and switch scenarios? Some offer high disk space and then hit you with exorbitant per gig charges for data transfer. Others, do the reverse. Are other adult webmasters experiencing similar situations? Are there any straight shooting hosting companies that host a lot of adult sites and will lay off about trying to sell you web design and constant unnecessary upgrades?

I just called one hosting prospect and they said "We host thousands of adult sites." When asked for specifics, they could only name one and that www. didn't work. Would appreciate some feedback. The sales guys at half these companies don't know the tech issues and they gloss over them readily.

Christine at WildCherry.net writes: Dear Luke, The subject below is incorrect in her statement, Heather Barron Waves Goodbye

WILDCHERRY'S SIDE: She is disgruntled, because I gave her her stats and she had to pay and overuse (monstrous credit card charge) of $48.00 overuse, most hosting company's now are charge $10.00 dollars a gig or more overuse. Miss Barron thought that we as a hosting company should look at her stats we provider her to view herself, on a daily basis to see if she has gone over in bandwidth. She claims she doesn't 5 minutes a week to check this. because she is a busy women, with other thinks to do which I will not say what she told me, this is not my place to say.

As far as Miss Barron traffic I don't think 2000 hit a day will help my 84,000 hits a day on my site alone. Miss Barron was very offensive over the fact that I viewed her web site and made suggestion to lower her bandwidth. Her pictures on her front page where 200k a piece we suggested to her to cut them down in size or make thumbs to the big pictures but she would not hear of that. Any webmaster knows that you do not have pictures this big downloading everytime some one hits your page.

Miss Barron was not asked to market any materials whatsoever. We just informed her that we have a bunch of amateur girls starting their on paysites and would she like to be included in our lists of amateurs. These amateurs are not nameless or faceless. She was not pressured it was just a question. Maybe men and women do not communicate on the same level this is true, but I see that people should not jump to conclusions before asking questions.

Miss Barron statement ( I am open to suggestions ) This is to be debated. Well I wish her luck on the net. But if she doesn't take the advice of people trying to help her lower her bandwidth, she will have problems with her next hosting company as well. Thanks for listening to the other side.

Farrell Timlake writes: As a fan of Heather, I gladly extend our help to her in her time of need. Homegrown runs off of its own private ISP and we have plenty of bandwidth. There are numerous ways to reference who we are and the way that we do business. We are not looking to rape her trust and pillage pocket book as others have done. I am absolutely positive that we can provide a fair solution to resolve her difficulties. Her site should be kept up and on the web for all to enjoy. I hope she will contact me, timlake@homegrownvideo.com, to discuss arrangements. The World Wide Web would not be the same without her humor and sex appeal.

I hope I have not previously offended her with my sometimes caustic manner. In truth, behind the brutal, steely exterior of my blunt jibes and jagged, rusty razor sharp wit, I am actually a mostly decent fellow, as far as dirty scourge of society pornographers go, at the very least. Perhaps Brandy or Jenna would be so kind as to put in a good word for me…