L.A. Direct Let Me Set the Record Straight
OP/ED By Mariah Milano
When I returned to doing movies in 2007 I was amazed at how much the game had changed in 7 years. Jim South was nearly irrelevant and there were so many agencies representing girls. I was used to Jim being the main agent and when I showed up at his office to find out he had decided to close I was blown away. So I walked across the street to AIM and asked what happened and they told me he had closed a few months earlier but Seymour Butts had opened an agency upstairs called Light House Talent. I went in and after a meeting I signed up.
In the 5 months with Lighthouse I was represented well, other than a few issues I had, mainly the Justin Slayer ordeal and then Playboy writing me a check that bounced that to this day has never been made good. Seymour was getting scammed by a couple of people whom he had trusted to run the agency so he merged with Lisa Ann, who I was with for a few months. During this time since walking into Lighthouse, I had heard stories of the big agency, LA Direct. I had heard all their girls are required to escort and do bachelor parties and that you had to fuck the owner if you wanted work. I heard all this yet would meet girls repped by them on sets and realized they were the agency for all the biggest names in the business.
So after some mainstream things were offered to me and I had been agent-less for over a year I decided I needed an agent. When I found out that Mike Moz was at LA Direct I got in touch as he had been my publicist the year before with Star Factory. I really like Mike and we were friends so I decided to see what LA Direct was all about. I setup a meeting and decided to give it a go.
Before I went for my first meeting I got a few emails asking for photos and my bio, do’s and don’ts as well as my rates and my expectations from my agent. One of the emails was from Bud Lee who I had worked for back in 2000 and shot me for the cover of Video Team’s United Colors of Ass, my last professional shoot for 7 years. I really liked Bud and he was a true professional and in my opinion, a legend in the business.
Now was the last piece of the puzzle, Derek. We had met once on a set for Digital Playground but that was it. Was he really the monster I had heard about? I was about to find out!
I walked into the Vivid building in Studio City having no idea what to expect. When I got to the LA Direct offices I was immediately impressed. I first met with Mike Moz who gave me a tour and I have to say the offices are very impressive. Everyone was very nice and yet the mysterious Derek was nowhere to be found, yet. I love how there is a different department for everything. One person gets the booking, another does the travel, another does call times and yet another office handles the financing and pay. Finally I met with Bud who hasn’t changed a bit and was as nice as I had remembered him. We went into his office which he shares with Derek, who was on the phone and gave me a smile and a wave. This was it. The moment of truth. But where were the horns and the whip? I didn’t see any girls chained to the walls looking worn out and ragged! The meeting with Bud went well and I could hear bits and pieces of Derek on the phone with his King’s English and an occasional smile in my direction. He sure didn’t look like some kind of devil or beast.
When Derek got off the phone we were formally introduced and though it was brief I was more than surprised by his warm reception and he told me how happy he was that I had signed with LA Direct.
One of the most encouraging things I was told was that LA Direct doesn’t allow their girls to charge more for inter-racial scenes. To me that is one of the most ridiculous things I have heard, which I had heard from my previous 2 agents. I was also given the choice to name 10 companies I have established relationships with that I can book directly with. I wasn’t permitted to do that with my previous 2 either and I have been doing self booking for over a year so I had a few. This was an amazing thing to me. Actually several things were very surprising, one that Derek didn’t have horns and fangs and two that I when I mentioned the required escorting and bachelor parties everyone laughed. No such things are required of anyone.
So for those of you who have something to say about Derek and his agency, which I have in the past and owe them a big apology, you might want to re-think what you are saying AFTER you know some facts. Since then I have text with Derek and emailed him and gotten an immediate response every time. I was never given expectations that couldn’t be met, and was told right away that summer is slow and bookings for girls with a higher rate aren’t as common now. They got me 3 good bookings during my trip and everything went smoothly. I was given exact wardrobe requirements, directions and phone numbers. Lighthouse never gave me any director’s phone number even though I was going to be meeting them!
LA Direct is the most professional agency in the business, period. Just take a look at the girls they represent. There’s a reason that Entourage and all the other mainstream shows book through them. I have eaten my words and I was wrong to assume.
