Posts
Showing posts with label porn. Show all posts
Showing posts with label porn. Show all posts
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Screw The AVN . . .
I'm far more interested in the upcoming Tranny Awards.
I mean, sure, the AVN is incredible, what with its 100 categories . . . but they only offer one trans award- Transsexual Performer Of The Year. Ahem, excuse me, but are you serious?
I've been spending a lot of time lately on the Hung Angels Board, and there is some serious lacking in trans porn, from repetitive male performers (no more Christian XXX!), a lack of specialization or fetishes, and stereotypical pitfalls (if you're a transwoman interested in BDSM, you better be a top, because T-girls being bound and lovingly tortured is almost impossible to find). And that's not even beginning to address the other, unspoken problems in porn- the way that, for instance, many genetic female porn stars refuse to work with TS performers or men who have been with TS performers, for unsubstantiated fears of disease. In short, the "shemale" or "tranny" porn genre is riddled with stereotypes and is really one-dimensional, missing out on the creativity and diversity that marks more mainstream porn.
Just like the paltry gay awards given at the AVN weren't enough, and it spawned its own GAYVN Awards, I'm excited about the Tranny Awards. I'm a firm believer in incentives, and what could inspire better trans porn than cash prizes totaling over $10,000, plus the fame and recognition that comes with being an award winner? The Feminist Porn Awards has brought a lot of cool flicks, performers, and filmmakers to my attention. I'm looking forward to the same happening with the Tranny Awards.
Of course, this is the first year and, as it stands now, the Tranny Awards isn't a real, tangible event that you can dress up (or undress down, rather) for . . . yet. It is online only now, but "depending on the demand and popularity of the award, we may consider future awards to be held at a live venue." I can only hope! (And we can only hope that it shows itself to be honest and forthright, not a scam like what Erika Lust experienced).
But seriously. Despite being hosted by the ever-cool Belladonna (who, and I just have to sneak this in here, OMG might be working with Jiz Lee!), the idea of the AVN just kind of bores me. But the Tranny Awards have got me excited. Check back with the website on January 9th to find out the winners, and see if nominee and Crush Object Mandy Mitchell made the cut!
I mean, sure, the AVN is incredible, what with its 100 categories . . . but they only offer one trans award- Transsexual Performer Of The Year. Ahem, excuse me, but are you serious?
I've been spending a lot of time lately on the Hung Angels Board, and there is some serious lacking in trans porn, from repetitive male performers (no more Christian XXX!), a lack of specialization or fetishes, and stereotypical pitfalls (if you're a transwoman interested in BDSM, you better be a top, because T-girls being bound and lovingly tortured is almost impossible to find). And that's not even beginning to address the other, unspoken problems in porn- the way that, for instance, many genetic female porn stars refuse to work with TS performers or men who have been with TS performers, for unsubstantiated fears of disease. In short, the "shemale" or "tranny" porn genre is riddled with stereotypes and is really one-dimensional, missing out on the creativity and diversity that marks more mainstream porn.
Just like the paltry gay awards given at the AVN weren't enough, and it spawned its own GAYVN Awards, I'm excited about the Tranny Awards. I'm a firm believer in incentives, and what could inspire better trans porn than cash prizes totaling over $10,000, plus the fame and recognition that comes with being an award winner? The Feminist Porn Awards has brought a lot of cool flicks, performers, and filmmakers to my attention. I'm looking forward to the same happening with the Tranny Awards.
Of course, this is the first year and, as it stands now, the Tranny Awards isn't a real, tangible event that you can dress up (or undress down, rather) for . . . yet. It is online only now, but "depending on the demand and popularity of the award, we may consider future awards to be held at a live venue." I can only hope! (And we can only hope that it shows itself to be honest and forthright, not a scam like what Erika Lust experienced).
But seriously. Despite being hosted by the ever-cool Belladonna (who, and I just have to sneak this in here, OMG might be working with Jiz Lee!), the idea of the AVN just kind of bores me. But the Tranny Awards have got me excited. Check back with the website on January 9th to find out the winners, and see if nominee and Crush Object Mandy Mitchell made the cut!
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
"The Crash Pad" Online . . . Finally!
This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Betrayal, or Becoming What I Hate
I give up all my ideals and morals to become seduced by the sweet siren of the Internet, after the jump.
I'm just old enough to be one of the transitional generation- the switch from CD's (and before that, cassette tapes- gasp!) to MP3's, DVD's to Netflix, and virtually all tangible media to some sort of digital form, transferred as information over the Internet. It's pretty dang cool.
And, of course, a bitch to police.
Producers work hard to add DRM restrictions to their media, as hackers work hard to get around them. Lawyers shut down Napster, as people everywhere plead the innocence of their downloading. Viacom pulls my beloved slash fanvideos from Youtube, as the fangirls go underground and trade them on Bongo. More music and videos are being uploaded, downloaded, traded and shared on the Web than ever before. Most of it is, of course, technically illegaly.
I have always been a firm believer in intellectual rights. If you make something, it belongs to you. Your work and energy went into its creation, and therefore you deserve just compensation for it. While friends were off talking about downloading songs, I was humming "Don't Download This Song" and proudly proclaiming that I bought all the media I consumed. "It's theft!" I chided. I was happy to support the musicians and filmmakers I loved, safely nestled in my clean conscience. While I generally gave leeway to reproductions like Youtube fanvideos that clearly stated the owners of the media (I have the "Fair Use" clause of copyright law nearly memorized), it was the downloading of something you hadn't bought that really got my goat.
And then I got tech-savvy.
It started off slowly- a legitimate download from a porn site membership was going too slow. One forum suggested Internet Download Manager, which was promptly installed and, sure enough, sped up the downloads quite remarkably. But unexpected was the new feature, a tiny clickable button appearing over every video and song player that I encountered, asking me if I'd like to download it with IDM. At first I ignored it, said "no" when the inevitable box would pop up, but then gave in out of curiosity. And it worked just fine enough. I tucked away that piece of information, downloaded a few things I really, truly loved, and let it be.
Fast-forward; now I'm working on another of my beloved Xtube videos, and I try again and again to import the stubborn video, which I legally bought and purchased from an online retailer, into my Windows Movie Maker. I consulted troubleshooting websites, and stumbled into the big wide world of DRM restrictions. There were tons of eager people sharing programs, discussing how to fight Windows, new updates, and all the time almost frantically proclaiming that this stuff was not meant to help illegal downloads, but rather to help people be able to, say, listen to their DRM-protected Itunes song on another music player, or transfer them to a CD so the could listen to them on stereo. Perhaps true, but it sure sounded like a "Thou doth protesth too much." sort of situation. But I did it, too- cracking the DRM code on my bought video and using it as I saw fit.
And then there was the whole question of file transfers. A fellow Crash Pad Series afficionado on Xtube vigorously agreed about the lack of queer porn and offered a trade of some of the missing links we had in our collection. And whaddya know, but I took it, with the help of Megaupload.com . . . and felt little guilt, surprising myself.
And then, while searching for some movie or another, impossible to find, Google offered in my search results one listed "Bittorrent". Up until then, I'd heard once or twice of this mysterious service, and while in Japan, got a firsthand taste of the wonders it could bring. Locked miserably with the few DVD's we had brought with us and the impossibility of renting any (due to lack of a TV with a DVD player and the 3-times region-switching rule of our laptops), a fellow exchange student searched around online and, two or three hours later, there it miraculously was. I tentatively asked about it, and got a confusing answer, something about sharing and seeds and leeches. I gave up, only to be so desperate for the movie that I downloaded the program and gave it a whirl. Though it took forever (at this point, I hadn't mastered said concept of seeds and leeches), it actually worked. I'd successfully downloaded a movie from the Internet.
I should have felt more remorse, more guilt . . . but all I felt- and sadly continue to feel- is mostly joy. I'm starting to think all my posturing before was just the result of not knowing how to access all this media-stealing technology. The minute I found out, I became just as much a thieving fan as the rest of them. Can we say 'hypocrisy'?
I try to somehow justify it in my mind- no, no, I only download movies I can't get at my local Blockbuster, you know, the rare and hard-to-find! Of cousre, it's all bull . . . the type of movie downloaded hardly matters, and even if it did, I'd probably be more guilty, since the big companies (Warner Bros., etc.) have the money to spare on their popular movies, and the little companies with their indie films struggle. There's always the old argument that illegal downloading doesn't really matter; real fans will go and attend the concerts, buy the DVD's and the fan merchandise. And perhaps that's true for some. But I'm not sure it's true for me. I keep on working to support the kind of music, films, and porn that I like by purchasing it, but the temptresses of Internet downloading are calling to me in the night. I'm running out of space on my hard drive.
And I've become what I hate- the glib young gal shrugging off the accusations that it's stealing, or, perhaps worse, knowing that it is and just not caring. I try and tell myself that I'm not alone- everybody does it. But that doesn't make it right, and my heart knows that.
And yet off again I go, hunting for more free stuff. :(
I'm just old enough to be one of the transitional generation- the switch from CD's (and before that, cassette tapes- gasp!) to MP3's, DVD's to Netflix, and virtually all tangible media to some sort of digital form, transferred as information over the Internet. It's pretty dang cool.
And, of course, a bitch to police.
Producers work hard to add DRM restrictions to their media, as hackers work hard to get around them. Lawyers shut down Napster, as people everywhere plead the innocence of their downloading. Viacom pulls my beloved slash fanvideos from Youtube, as the fangirls go underground and trade them on Bongo. More music and videos are being uploaded, downloaded, traded and shared on the Web than ever before. Most of it is, of course, technically illegaly.
I have always been a firm believer in intellectual rights. If you make something, it belongs to you. Your work and energy went into its creation, and therefore you deserve just compensation for it. While friends were off talking about downloading songs, I was humming "Don't Download This Song" and proudly proclaiming that I bought all the media I consumed. "It's theft!" I chided. I was happy to support the musicians and filmmakers I loved, safely nestled in my clean conscience. While I generally gave leeway to reproductions like Youtube fanvideos that clearly stated the owners of the media (I have the "Fair Use" clause of copyright law nearly memorized), it was the downloading of something you hadn't bought that really got my goat.
And then I got tech-savvy.
It started off slowly- a legitimate download from a porn site membership was going too slow. One forum suggested Internet Download Manager, which was promptly installed and, sure enough, sped up the downloads quite remarkably. But unexpected was the new feature, a tiny clickable button appearing over every video and song player that I encountered, asking me if I'd like to download it with IDM. At first I ignored it, said "no" when the inevitable box would pop up, but then gave in out of curiosity. And it worked just fine enough. I tucked away that piece of information, downloaded a few things I really, truly loved, and let it be.
Fast-forward; now I'm working on another of my beloved Xtube videos, and I try again and again to import the stubborn video, which I legally bought and purchased from an online retailer, into my Windows Movie Maker. I consulted troubleshooting websites, and stumbled into the big wide world of DRM restrictions. There were tons of eager people sharing programs, discussing how to fight Windows, new updates, and all the time almost frantically proclaiming that this stuff was not meant to help illegal downloads, but rather to help people be able to, say, listen to their DRM-protected Itunes song on another music player, or transfer them to a CD so the could listen to them on stereo. Perhaps true, but it sure sounded like a "Thou doth protesth too much." sort of situation. But I did it, too- cracking the DRM code on my bought video and using it as I saw fit.
And then there was the whole question of file transfers. A fellow Crash Pad Series afficionado on Xtube vigorously agreed about the lack of queer porn and offered a trade of some of the missing links we had in our collection. And whaddya know, but I took it, with the help of Megaupload.com . . . and felt little guilt, surprising myself.
And then, while searching for some movie or another, impossible to find, Google offered in my search results one listed "Bittorrent". Up until then, I'd heard once or twice of this mysterious service, and while in Japan, got a firsthand taste of the wonders it could bring. Locked miserably with the few DVD's we had brought with us and the impossibility of renting any (due to lack of a TV with a DVD player and the 3-times region-switching rule of our laptops), a fellow exchange student searched around online and, two or three hours later, there it miraculously was. I tentatively asked about it, and got a confusing answer, something about sharing and seeds and leeches. I gave up, only to be so desperate for the movie that I downloaded the program and gave it a whirl. Though it took forever (at this point, I hadn't mastered said concept of seeds and leeches), it actually worked. I'd successfully downloaded a movie from the Internet.
I should have felt more remorse, more guilt . . . but all I felt- and sadly continue to feel- is mostly joy. I'm starting to think all my posturing before was just the result of not knowing how to access all this media-stealing technology. The minute I found out, I became just as much a thieving fan as the rest of them. Can we say 'hypocrisy'?
I try to somehow justify it in my mind- no, no, I only download movies I can't get at my local Blockbuster, you know, the rare and hard-to-find! Of cousre, it's all bull . . . the type of movie downloaded hardly matters, and even if it did, I'd probably be more guilty, since the big companies (Warner Bros., etc.) have the money to spare on their popular movies, and the little companies with their indie films struggle. There's always the old argument that illegal downloading doesn't really matter; real fans will go and attend the concerts, buy the DVD's and the fan merchandise. And perhaps that's true for some. But I'm not sure it's true for me. I keep on working to support the kind of music, films, and porn that I like by purchasing it, but the temptresses of Internet downloading are calling to me in the night. I'm running out of space on my hard drive.
And I've become what I hate- the glib young gal shrugging off the accusations that it's stealing, or, perhaps worse, knowing that it is and just not caring. I try and tell myself that I'm not alone- everybody does it. But that doesn't make it right, and my heart knows that.
And yet off again I go, hunting for more free stuff. :(
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Behind The Scenes Of Queer Porn, 3 Views
This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Monday, November 3, 2008
When Non-Fetishists Shoot Fetish Porn
This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.Friday, October 31, 2008
$2,096 Closer To Equality!
Well, first off, Happy Halloween! Be sure to be safe and all that tonight as you celebrate this delightful Paganistic holiday, flouncing around in your incredibly slutty costumes, as I'm sure you are.
Secondly, rock on, you awesome people! Of course you remember my urging you to buy porn AND simultaneously support "No On Prop 8" campaign, and ya'll came through.
The official numbers are out:
Comstock Films raised a whopping $1,596! Pink & White Productions raised $500! Both numbers are awesome!
Together, we can keep Shine Louise Houston (and many, many others!) married and able to do so.
And even though it's not directly Prop 8-related, I did a little something on my part (other than donating and blogging, that is):
It's not much, but it's something, right?
Secondly, rock on, you awesome people! Of course you remember my urging you to buy porn AND simultaneously support "No On Prop 8" campaign, and ya'll came through.
The official numbers are out:
Comstock Films raised a whopping $1,596! Pink & White Productions raised $500! Both numbers are awesome!
Together, we can keep Shine Louise Houston (and many, many others!) married and able to do so.
And even though it's not directly Prop 8-related, I did a little something on my part (other than donating and blogging, that is):
It's not much, but it's something, right?
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Monday, October 27, 2008
More British Mystery Theatre
I can't seem to stop tripping up over the faint web tracks of real lesbian British porn . . . first it was Angie Dowling, now it's the mysteries of "Candy Stars".
The Candy Bar sounds cool. I mean, I'm hardly a party girl, but descriptions of the UK club make me want to hop on a plane and visit jolly old England, stat. Apparently the club had a very crucial role in shaping dyke culture in the area from its 1996 opening, and it exploded in terms of popularity- becoming one of the first women's venues in the UK to be granted a striptease license. That's right, they have strippers. For lesbians. *Gulp, pant, pant* And they are made sure to get paid a good basic wage (unlike many/most male stripjoints)! Swoon. They've won a ton of awards, and boast quite proudly of all the celebrity visitors they've had frequent the bar (yawn . . . like I care. Unless they got up and stripped. Then I approve very muchly). Point is, it makes me think of really cool, trendy dyke hotspots- something you see in "The L Word". I wanna go.
The network of bars, owned by Kim Lucas and Soho Clubs Ltd, which have spreading the Candy Bar franchise (or were planning to spread) from the UK to Australia and South Africa, seems pretty huge. They aren't just in the business of local partying- add organizing group trips to other countries, starring in documentaries, and making their own films, to the list. (And they've had their fair share of controversy, as evidenced by what happened in Greece). But in terms of more positive news, they've been featured in four documentaries and, even cooler, have produced their own short and full-length films, including "Big Sister" (a lesbian spoof of "Big Brother") and "Lesbian Pop Idol", a sort of "American Idol" done from the karaoke gals in the club. And, apparently, a porno.
The only problem is, I can find out almost nothing about it. I know that it must exist- I've seen pictures of the DVD, descriptions of its contents, and it is still listed as available for purchase here and here. Going by the name "Candy Stars", or "Candy Stars Uncensored", it carries this tantalizing teaser:
Ruby Fox is the new girl in town. Just off the bus from deepest nowhere, she is an innocent babe in London’s lesbian playland. Cute and up for adventure she plunges headlong into the exciting, hedonistic and sexually charged world of Europe’s hottest Lesbian scene. In one short weekend she makes a good friend, a dangerous enemy and has more sex than she has ever had in her entire life. Witty, pacey and with sizzling sex, it a real life lesbian adventure which introduces seven OF THE HOTTEST new lesbian stars.
Unfortunately, but for those two sites, it seems like "Candy Stars" has been wiped off the virtual map. You find links purporting to have it, only to have the page deleted and the information gone. There are the briefest mentions of it, but nothing concrete. It's certainly not listed as one of the film projects Candy Bar worked on.
I'm fearing that the case may be what one post offered (but which got no reply): for whatever reason, the movie was pulled from release by the British Board Of Films Certification. Unfortunately, I can't find any information to substantiate that.
I'm not sure what exactly remains of Candy Bar. Earlier this year, they lost their permanent space and are now more of a touring act, having regular "nights" at various hosting bars. If you happen to be in Britain, you can find out where to find them (and hence inquire about their porno on my behalf) at this site or their Myspace.
So . . . does anybody have any more information about "Candy Stars"? Can someone shed light on the topic? I guess I'll continue to search around.
- Your Private Eye, Gwen
The Candy Bar sounds cool. I mean, I'm hardly a party girl, but descriptions of the UK club make me want to hop on a plane and visit jolly old England, stat. Apparently the club had a very crucial role in shaping dyke culture in the area from its 1996 opening, and it exploded in terms of popularity- becoming one of the first women's venues in the UK to be granted a striptease license. That's right, they have strippers. For lesbians. *Gulp, pant, pant* And they are made sure to get paid a good basic wage (unlike many/most male stripjoints)! Swoon. They've won a ton of awards, and boast quite proudly of all the celebrity visitors they've had frequent the bar (yawn . . . like I care. Unless they got up and stripped. Then I approve very muchly). Point is, it makes me think of really cool, trendy dyke hotspots- something you see in "The L Word". I wanna go.The network of bars, owned by Kim Lucas and Soho Clubs Ltd, which have spreading the Candy Bar franchise (or were planning to spread) from the UK to Australia and South Africa, seems pretty huge. They aren't just in the business of local partying- add organizing group trips to other countries, starring in documentaries, and making their own films, to the list. (And they've had their fair share of controversy, as evidenced by what happened in Greece). But in terms of more positive news, they've been featured in four documentaries and, even cooler, have produced their own short and full-length films, including "Big Sister" (a lesbian spoof of "Big Brother") and "Lesbian Pop Idol", a sort of "American Idol" done from the karaoke gals in the club. And, apparently, a porno.
The only problem is, I can find out almost nothing about it. I know that it must exist- I've seen pictures of the DVD, descriptions of its contents, and it is still listed as available for purchase here and here. Going by the name "Candy Stars", or "Candy Stars Uncensored", it carries this tantalizing teaser:
Ruby Fox is the new girl in town. Just off the bus from deepest nowhere, she is an innocent babe in London’s lesbian playland. Cute and up for adventure she plunges headlong into the exciting, hedonistic and sexually charged world of Europe’s hottest Lesbian scene. In one short weekend she makes a good friend, a dangerous enemy and has more sex than she has ever had in her entire life. Witty, pacey and with sizzling sex, it a real life lesbian adventure which introduces seven OF THE HOTTEST new lesbian stars.Unfortunately, but for those two sites, it seems like "Candy Stars" has been wiped off the virtual map. You find links purporting to have it, only to have the page deleted and the information gone. There are the briefest mentions of it, but nothing concrete. It's certainly not listed as one of the film projects Candy Bar worked on.
I'm fearing that the case may be what one post offered (but which got no reply): for whatever reason, the movie was pulled from release by the British Board Of Films Certification. Unfortunately, I can't find any information to substantiate that.
I'm not sure what exactly remains of Candy Bar. Earlier this year, they lost their permanent space and are now more of a touring act, having regular "nights" at various hosting bars. If you happen to be in Britain, you can find out where to find them (and hence inquire about their porno on my behalf) at this site or their Myspace.
So . . . does anybody have any more information about "Candy Stars"? Can someone shed light on the topic? I guess I'll continue to search around.
- Your Private Eye, Gwen
Friday, October 24, 2008
Monday, October 20, 2008
Champion, Ya'll
Just in case you might have forgotten about it, Pink & White's mixed-martial-arts boxing real dyke porno is still trucking along towards its eventual 2009 debut (sigh . . . it seems so far away!). But nevertheless, a PG-13 trailer has surfaced, and some pictures! Just to keep you hungry for next year's main course :)
The pics are tasty, but only the trailer can satisfy your need for the fighting, the movement, the action, and . . . the DRAMA! Lol. I love the lightning-fast editing at the end.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Girls Gone Wild, Dyke Style
Isn't it about time we updated the BurLEZk Live movies? The movies (the original and its sequel) contained stripteases, performance art, and other erotic burlesque at a lesbian bar, combining real-life lesbian sexiness with the charge and thrill of live action for an audience. The movies are also more than 20 years old, and I can tell ya that if anything, we've got even more deliciously titillating performances going on in our bars and clubs now.
The whole "Girls Gone Wild" franchise has always seemed pretty dang stupid to me- it's mostly softcore (which basically means it has to be really good to make up for lack of explicitness!), it's got not-so-great principles ("We'll give you a shirt if you show us your boobs!"), and I'm just not that fond of drunken fakey chicks camera-whoring it up. And the "lesbian action"? Please.
But despite all of this, I think the general concept is solid. It takes a few of our favorite things: cute, sexy girls, reality, or at least reality-style, TV, a harkening back to our youthful days and getting to vicariously get in the pants of those girls you didn't get to sleep with back in high school and college. It's . . . fun.
I've got this great concept in my head, you see. A queer crew sets with their van and their equipment for a cross-country road trip to some of the best dyke clubs, bars, beach parties, raves, play parties, public sex spaces, and sex clubs- both the famous and the relatively unknown. We're looking for sexiness here- flashing, kissing, bump-n-grind dancing, erotic performances, maybe even the odd sex scene thrown in here and there for the gals who are feeling particularly liberated and exhibitionist. Heck, I still have Gorgeous and Gideon's lovely semi-public sex scene at Jakes On 4th in Olympia, Wa. (from No Fauxxx.com). Now imagine that in a full-fledged feature brimming with sexy bits from pride parades, Folsom Fair, IDKE . . . the list continues. Packed full of more butch, femme, boi, futch, trans, and queer eyecandy than you can get anywhere else, with a natural sort of fun, carefree joy and celebration and a strong sense of [admittedly sexy] community that you just don't necessarily get from an isolated porn.
Am I the only one feeling this? It's like porn . . . and anthropology, combined! Documenting the queer movement while bringing sexy waaaay back. Straight guys have GGW, why shouldn't dykes have their own lesbian-produced version? I'd watch it.
The whole "Girls Gone Wild" franchise has always seemed pretty dang stupid to me- it's mostly softcore (which basically means it has to be really good to make up for lack of explicitness!), it's got not-so-great principles ("We'll give you a shirt if you show us your boobs!"), and I'm just not that fond of drunken fakey chicks camera-whoring it up. And the "lesbian action"? Please.
But despite all of this, I think the general concept is solid. It takes a few of our favorite things: cute, sexy girls, reality, or at least reality-style, TV, a harkening back to our youthful days and getting to vicariously get in the pants of those girls you didn't get to sleep with back in high school and college. It's . . . fun.
I've got this great concept in my head, you see. A queer crew sets with their van and their equipment for a cross-country road trip to some of the best dyke clubs, bars, beach parties, raves, play parties, public sex spaces, and sex clubs- both the famous and the relatively unknown. We're looking for sexiness here- flashing, kissing, bump-n-grind dancing, erotic performances, maybe even the odd sex scene thrown in here and there for the gals who are feeling particularly liberated and exhibitionist. Heck, I still have Gorgeous and Gideon's lovely semi-public sex scene at Jakes On 4th in Olympia, Wa. (from No Fauxxx.com). Now imagine that in a full-fledged feature brimming with sexy bits from pride parades, Folsom Fair, IDKE . . . the list continues. Packed full of more butch, femme, boi, futch, trans, and queer eyecandy than you can get anywhere else, with a natural sort of fun, carefree joy and celebration and a strong sense of [admittedly sexy] community that you just don't necessarily get from an isolated porn.
Am I the only one feeling this? It's like porn . . . and anthropology, combined! Documenting the queer movement while bringing sexy waaaay back. Straight guys have GGW, why shouldn't dykes have their own lesbian-produced version? I'd watch it.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
My Kind Of Sex Toy Testing . . . Already Exists!
This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Monday, October 6, 2008
Porn Addiction? According To Who?
This post is largely a jump-off from this article about how the porn addiction portrayed in Kurt Cameron's new movie "Fireproof" is raising a lot of 'awareness' of such addiction.
First off, I still remember the good old days when I was in love with "Growing Pains". Mike Seaver had a best friend named 'Boner', something that amused my teenage self to no end. Or how about the episode where little Ben repeatedly called a phone sex hotline? For a girl who stumbled bewilderingly onto porn in her youth and had a lot of conflictions and guilt, that was a pretty precious episode to me, too. But now, of course, Kurt Cameron is uber-Christian . . . enough so that he refused to even kiss his onscreen costar in his new 'with God and some work, I saved my marriage' film "Fireproof". They had to bring in his real-life wife and some shadowy filming to get the scene. I try not to laugh at this fact. I try to tell myself that it's pretty amazing that he sticks to his principles that way and that he wants to remove himself from all temptation that kissing a strange woman might promote. Like I said, I try. I never said I succeeeded.
Even though it looks to be like a so-so acted, and very heavy-handed film with a big ol' "Christian" stamp all over it, it actually doesn't look half-bad, if you're really dead-set on watching a movie about relationships. My reaction is "Ugh", but then again, I've never cared for most love stories unless they seriously engage another genre and do it well. Maybe once I'm married or involved long-term, I'll suddenly garner an interest for these types of tales.
But I'm getting off-topic. What about the porn?
Ah, yes, porn. Bane of the Christians. And with a lot of good defenses of porn/erotica popping up (like 'How about the beautiful celebration of love and sex in "Song of Solomon"?' or 'What about educational movies?', etc.), about the only thing they can really latch onto is the whole "porn addiction" thing. Which, as I've stated before, is a real problem that affects a whole bunch of people and a lot of marriages. But then again, Christian perspectives are working from a viewpoint that condemns porn. Talking about the men and women who casually consume porn without becoming addicted or being adversely affected isn't part of the agenda.
It's interesting, actually . . . a little researching tells me that porn isn't the only thing breaking down the marriage in this movie, which makes me happy, at least. None of the sensationalism of, say, Lifetime's "Cyber Seduction: His Secret Life". But at the same time, Kurt Cameron's character isn't portrayed as being obsessed with porn. He watches it. He cleans out his browser's cache after watching it (although, when your wife screams and gives you a hard time about it, who wouldn't?). But I'm sorry. Addiction this isn't. And it's pretty scary that people are watching this film are coming out shaking their heads about the 'horrible addiction'.
The scariest thing, though, is the fact that, coinciding with the movie, Internetsafety.com is giving out a 30% discount on their porn-blocking software. Now, I'm totally a fan of discounts. I'm totally a fan of people realizing they have a problem and attacking it head-on. And at the same time, I'm upset that nobody is questioning the fact that porn-blocking software companies ARE companies, and they do have a vested interest in promoting the idea of porn addiction. Nobody seems to be taking a critical eye towards this fact. If hysteria and scare tactics are brought to light as tactics of the media to stay self-sustaining, then why can't we ask whether or not such filter companies might have something at stake in convincing people that porn addiction is hugely prevalent, that even occasional looking is addiction, and that it is such a strong force that nothing short of complete and total removal will help you?
Millions of Christians- men and women- watch porn or otherwise consume erotica, and feel it is consistent with their faith. Churches (dependent on tithings) and other religious anti-porn contingents (hired therapists, filtering companies, 'overcoming porn addiction with Christ' books, etc., etc.) can't exactly take that line. Where would they be, then? I'm not trying to say that Christians are motivated by money. I know a lot who aren't, at all, and who really want the best for their friends, family, and parishioners. But I think a we need to ask some serious questions here, and even more when we aren't Christian, but still are told we might suffer from porn addiction.
Who is benefiting from pathologizing you today? Who is requesting money to cure you of your diagnosed addiction, instead of telling you to practice some self-control instead of putting on blinders (which certainly don't work very well when commercials have half-naked chicks soaping up cars sexily)? Whose might like to guilt you straight to the "Porn Addiction" bookshelf at your local bookstore? Ask yourself these questions, and get back to me.
It's cool with me if you don't like porn. It's cool with me if you like porn but feel it's not so good for you and so you abstain. It's pretty dang cool with me if you like porn. But it ain't cool to let others make these decisions for you, especially when the person they're looking out for may not really be you.
Am I totally off-base here? I dunno . . . I'm tired and, for some reason, it's my third blog of the day (can we say 'no social life'?). Comments would be welcome!
First off, I still remember the good old days when I was in love with "Growing Pains". Mike Seaver had a best friend named 'Boner', something that amused my teenage self to no end. Or how about the episode where little Ben repeatedly called a phone sex hotline? For a girl who stumbled bewilderingly onto porn in her youth and had a lot of conflictions and guilt, that was a pretty precious episode to me, too. But now, of course, Kurt Cameron is uber-Christian . . . enough so that he refused to even kiss his onscreen costar in his new 'with God and some work, I saved my marriage' film "Fireproof". They had to bring in his real-life wife and some shadowy filming to get the scene. I try not to laugh at this fact. I try to tell myself that it's pretty amazing that he sticks to his principles that way and that he wants to remove himself from all temptation that kissing a strange woman might promote. Like I said, I try. I never said I succeeeded.
Even though it looks to be like a so-so acted, and very heavy-handed film with a big ol' "Christian" stamp all over it, it actually doesn't look half-bad, if you're really dead-set on watching a movie about relationships. My reaction is "Ugh", but then again, I've never cared for most love stories unless they seriously engage another genre and do it well. Maybe once I'm married or involved long-term, I'll suddenly garner an interest for these types of tales.
But I'm getting off-topic. What about the porn?
Ah, yes, porn. Bane of the Christians. And with a lot of good defenses of porn/erotica popping up (like 'How about the beautiful celebration of love and sex in "Song of Solomon"?' or 'What about educational movies?', etc.), about the only thing they can really latch onto is the whole "porn addiction" thing. Which, as I've stated before, is a real problem that affects a whole bunch of people and a lot of marriages. But then again, Christian perspectives are working from a viewpoint that condemns porn. Talking about the men and women who casually consume porn without becoming addicted or being adversely affected isn't part of the agenda.
It's interesting, actually . . . a little researching tells me that porn isn't the only thing breaking down the marriage in this movie, which makes me happy, at least. None of the sensationalism of, say, Lifetime's "Cyber Seduction: His Secret Life". But at the same time, Kurt Cameron's character isn't portrayed as being obsessed with porn. He watches it. He cleans out his browser's cache after watching it (although, when your wife screams and gives you a hard time about it, who wouldn't?). But I'm sorry. Addiction this isn't. And it's pretty scary that people are watching this film are coming out shaking their heads about the 'horrible addiction'.
The scariest thing, though, is the fact that, coinciding with the movie, Internetsafety.com is giving out a 30% discount on their porn-blocking software. Now, I'm totally a fan of discounts. I'm totally a fan of people realizing they have a problem and attacking it head-on. And at the same time, I'm upset that nobody is questioning the fact that porn-blocking software companies ARE companies, and they do have a vested interest in promoting the idea of porn addiction. Nobody seems to be taking a critical eye towards this fact. If hysteria and scare tactics are brought to light as tactics of the media to stay self-sustaining, then why can't we ask whether or not such filter companies might have something at stake in convincing people that porn addiction is hugely prevalent, that even occasional looking is addiction, and that it is such a strong force that nothing short of complete and total removal will help you?
Millions of Christians- men and women- watch porn or otherwise consume erotica, and feel it is consistent with their faith. Churches (dependent on tithings) and other religious anti-porn contingents (hired therapists, filtering companies, 'overcoming porn addiction with Christ' books, etc., etc.) can't exactly take that line. Where would they be, then? I'm not trying to say that Christians are motivated by money. I know a lot who aren't, at all, and who really want the best for their friends, family, and parishioners. But I think a we need to ask some serious questions here, and even more when we aren't Christian, but still are told we might suffer from porn addiction.
Who is benefiting from pathologizing you today? Who is requesting money to cure you of your diagnosed addiction, instead of telling you to practice some self-control instead of putting on blinders (which certainly don't work very well when commercials have half-naked chicks soaping up cars sexily)? Whose might like to guilt you straight to the "Porn Addiction" bookshelf at your local bookstore? Ask yourself these questions, and get back to me.
It's cool with me if you don't like porn. It's cool with me if you like porn but feel it's not so good for you and so you abstain. It's pretty dang cool with me if you like porn. But it ain't cool to let others make these decisions for you, especially when the person they're looking out for may not really be you.
Am I totally off-base here? I dunno . . . I'm tired and, for some reason, it's my third blog of the day (can we say 'no social life'?). Comments would be welcome!
Porno Singalong
Just a fluffy post because I'm feeling musical. And because, quite frankly, if you can't joyfully sing about porn in our world today, I'm not sure I want to live in it. Not all these songs are exactly sex-positive, and most have at least some little barb either about porn's stars, it's fans/viewers, or the industry, but I've tried to choose the top then that celebrate it nonetheless.
1) Avenue Q's "The Internet Is For Porn". Yes, Trekkie Monster, it truly is. Who knew puppets watched porn?
2) "Thank You For The Porn" by Sean Cullen. I want this to be sang at the AVN Awards!
3) French Stewart (on Penn and Teller), singing "Hooray Pornography". With blow-up doll dancers!
4) Trucks "It's Just Porn, Mom!". A very catchy protest to parents everywhere.
5) Paul and Storm's "Internet Porn". Another very catchy little tune that you'll get stuck in your head, singing under your breath in the supermarket . . .
6) David Keystone's "The Porno Song". I'd say he's asking a pretty valid question!
7) "Ode To You Porn". Touching, really.
8) Foxycock's "Internet Porn". A loving and groovy tribute to the stuff.
9) "Poor Man's Porn" by The Worst. Anybody know what SBS means?
10) Does Gwen Diamond's special rendition of "Don't Speak" count? Either way, I'm still humming "Fuck me" . . . oh, and if she counts, then so do all these gay porn star singers, even if they aren't exactly singing about pornish topics.
1) Avenue Q's "The Internet Is For Porn". Yes, Trekkie Monster, it truly is. Who knew puppets watched porn?
2) "Thank You For The Porn" by Sean Cullen. I want this to be sang at the AVN Awards!
3) French Stewart (on Penn and Teller), singing "Hooray Pornography". With blow-up doll dancers!
4) Trucks "It's Just Porn, Mom!". A very catchy protest to parents everywhere.
5) Paul and Storm's "Internet Porn". Another very catchy little tune that you'll get stuck in your head, singing under your breath in the supermarket . . .
6) David Keystone's "The Porno Song". I'd say he's asking a pretty valid question!
7) "Ode To You Porn". Touching, really.
8) Foxycock's "Internet Porn". A loving and groovy tribute to the stuff.
9) "Poor Man's Porn" by The Worst. Anybody know what SBS means?
10) Does Gwen Diamond's special rendition of "Don't Speak" count? Either way, I'm still humming "Fuck me" . . . oh, and if she counts, then so do all these gay porn star singers, even if they aren't exactly singing about pornish topics.
And let's not forget that fun little Porn: The Musical, either. "We're going for the money shot!"
Sunday, October 5, 2008
One Step Closer To Solving The Mystery
Well, I woke up this morning determined to dig a little deeper into last night's mystery, and sure enough, I started getting a lot more information. That's forgiveable, right? Well, in my defense, when I wrote that post last night, it was 4:00 in the morning and I was still slightly buzzed off of 2/3 of a six pack of Smirnoffs.
Turns out there was a little bit of name disambiguation here . . . it would appear the director of said film is not "Angie Downing", but rather "Angie Dowling". Which still boggles my mind, even as a linguist, because while I've studied the phonological cause for nasalization of various sounds, I still have no idea how someone would mix up "l" and "n". But, whatever. So, now we're getting closer. Turns out she's not British, but rather, Australian, although living (or was living at the time) in London. She was apparently the UK's first lesbian pornographer (though I can find no other mention, nor any of her work), and previously worked as a producer/panelist on several lesbian-themed documentaries commissioned by Britain's Channel 4 (such as "The Money Shot"). She was inspired by the work of her idol Pedro Almodavar, who began his directorial career in porn. She may or may not have organized the 2007 BOLD in Pensacola, Florida and been part of writing the same titled play, starring as Natalie in its run, and being a big part of its parent organization BOLD (which stands for "Birth On Labor Day" and is pretty much like "The Vagina Monologues" for labor and childbirth).
The names of her other three films have finally surfaced, too: "Knock Knock", "The Girlie Urge", and "Tick Tock". "The Girlie Urge" was marketed as "the first lesbian masturbation movie in the world", featuring seven separate solo scenes of girls getting off. "Tick Tock" takes place in a belltower where a closeknit group of seven gay girls live and spend their time exploring the realm of intense feelings. Supposedly very brightly colored and shot in "funky cartoon style" . . . whatever that means. "Knock Knock" takes a slightly more "boys, you can't have it" stance with its marketing: "These lesbians are 100% real, men have no chance at all. The ladies indulge in erotic pleasures at London appartments, vaginal juices flow like Indian mountain streams and clitorises swell to the size of golfballs. No bi-sexual women here, only true, hot-blooded lesbians in a colourful lesbian sex show." Quite frankly, I'd be a little scared of golfball-sized clitorises, and I have no idea how freely Indian mountain streams flow, but you've got to give them credit for creativity.
Turns out there was a little bit of name disambiguation here . . . it would appear the director of said film is not "Angie Downing", but rather "Angie Dowling". Which still boggles my mind, even as a linguist, because while I've studied the phonological cause for nasalization of various sounds, I still have no idea how someone would mix up "l" and "n". But, whatever. So, now we're getting closer. Turns out she's not British, but rather, Australian, although living (or was living at the time) in London. She was apparently the UK's first lesbian pornographer (though I can find no other mention, nor any of her work), and previously worked as a producer/panelist on several lesbian-themed documentaries commissioned by Britain's Channel 4 (such as "The Money Shot"). She was inspired by the work of her idol Pedro Almodavar, who began his directorial career in porn. She may or may not have organized the 2007 BOLD in Pensacola, Florida and been part of writing the same titled play, starring as Natalie in its run, and being a big part of its parent organization BOLD (which stands for "Birth On Labor Day" and is pretty much like "The Vagina Monologues" for labor and childbirth).The names of her other three films have finally surfaced, too: "Knock Knock", "The Girlie Urge", and "Tick Tock". "The Girlie Urge" was marketed as "the first lesbian masturbation movie in the world", featuring seven separate solo scenes of girls getting off. "Tick Tock" takes place in a belltower where a closeknit group of seven gay girls live and spend their time exploring the realm of intense feelings. Supposedly very brightly colored and shot in "funky cartoon style" . . . whatever that means. "Knock Knock" takes a slightly more "boys, you can't have it" stance with its marketing: "These lesbians are 100% real, men have no chance at all. The ladies indulge in erotic pleasures at London appartments, vaginal juices flow like Indian mountain streams and clitorises swell to the size of golfballs. No bi-sexual women here, only true, hot-blooded lesbians in a colourful lesbian sex show." Quite frankly, I'd be a little scared of golfball-sized clitorises, and I have no idea how freely Indian mountain streams flow, but you've got to give them credit for creativity.
"Madam and Eve" also has more secrets to reveal: some of the cast members are also part of Britain's all-girl shock-rock band Rockbitch. Some say it was shot in a abandoned hospital; others say it was shot in a disused Benedictine monastery in France. It's rumored that the film stars the members of a real-life sex commune. Everyone apparently got to wear costumes from latex fetish fashion label and production/performance agency Torture Garden.
I guess I should be pretty happy- I've got a correct name, a lot of personal history that seems to track a very vibrant globe-trotting activist woman, and I've got a number of websites selling all four of her real dyke films. But I'm still curious- I want to talk to this woman who has, it seems, never been interviewed (at least, and then had it published online). First dyke pornographer in Britain is a big title. Does she ever want to return from advocacy for pregnant ladies to producing more dyke smut? I visited Rusty Films but, as often happens, the domain name has expired and now whatever information it once held has been lost.
On the upside, all this searching through British female pornographers has unearthed some seriously cool ladies, including Hungry Films' Anna Brownfield and Anna Span (even if their stuff is mostly het). Although, let's not forget the amazing Brit Petra Joy, either, whose exploits are well-documented on the Web.
Anyways, that's Angie Dowling, Australian-British dyke pornographer maverick, still somewhat of a mystery. You can find her films scattered about UK retailers, but the best site I found, in terms of reviews, screenshots, and 0 (or region-free) coded DVD's, is Orgazmik Europe. Go ahead, buy them. I mean, seriously, you can borrow "Champion" from any of your trendy friends when it comes out. Who else is going ot have these films, though?
Who Is Angie Downing? Or: Dyke Porno Mystery
Yeah, I know, I know, it was only a short while ago that I was complaining about not being able to even keep up with all the new dyke porn out there. So you'll probably only have bad things to say about me when I bring up some old-school porn (old-school, in this case, being at least 5 years old). I can't help it, okay? I have an all-encompassing drive to have *the* most complete real dyke porn collection ever, or at the very least, the most comprehensive knowledge of the genre, no matter how obscure.And this one really does appeal to the dyke detective in me, because, quite frankly, I can find out almost nothing about it.
"Madam and Eve" is a UK flick, which might help explain some of its obscurity for a Yank like myself (along with its age and the relative presumed obscurity of being a real dyke porno). But nonetheless, the information I can scrounge up tells me that the film was nominated for Best Erotic Film of the Year 2003- certainly that means it got some acclaim and fame, right?
But Google is not being very forthcoming with information. All I know is that Angie Downing is the director of the video, and that her name is sometimes spelled "Angia" and that she also sometimes goes by 'Rusty Cave', which really makes me curious. And I know that the cover is plastered with the phrases "100% Lesbian Made" and "Real Lesbians Enjoying Real Sex". And that it has a delightfully wacky plot, involving a lesbian hospital where women are rushed in with their sexual emergencies. The tagline given to every site that sells it: Laugh as Madam gazes through her crystal ball predicting what sexual awakenings will happen in Eden today. Experience the loudest, longest multiple orgasm from Pinkie Vindaloo, witness Madam receive the most divine oral sex from Sista Kitty, and let Eve amaze you with her strap-on techniques.
Certainly, I've had my share of mysterious porn- I still haven't solved, for example, the question of who was really behind Mojo Video's "Real Butch Dyke Lesbians". But I do have Ms. Downing's name and the allusion on the interwebs that "Madam and Eve" is actually the third- yes, third!- lesbian film she's produced/directed.
The companies listed as part of the production are Red Hot Diva and Rusty Films (perhaps shedding light on the nickname), but I can find little about the former (except for the fact that they are heavily into publishing lesbian erotica), and absolutely none on the latter. Dead end there (for me, at least . . . maybe you're better).
Really, what I'm hoping as I post this is that some fantastic reader of mine will be a super-searcher or Internet troller who can promptly report back to me and solve this little mystery. At the risk of cheesily ripping off Ayn Rand, who is Angie Downing? Where have you gone, Rusty Cave? Are you still making lesbian porn for lesbians? What were the other two films you made? And most importantly, if I paid you in British pounds and exorbitant shipping fees, could I get "Madam and Eve" to play on my region 1 DVD player?
I truly am curious to get to the bottom of all of this, Scooby Doo-style. But even more than that, I want to explore this new aspect of queer porn history. I'm well-acquainted with the tale of American queer smut, way back from humble beginnings with OOB (that's "On Our Backs" for you layfolks) and Ssspread.com, all the way to cutting-edge companies like Pink & White Productions. And I got a taste of modern French queer smut with Emilie Jouvet and her film "Pour Une Nuit"/"One Night Stand". But British dykes . . . I know nothing except that Sarah Waters can write one hot lesbian period piece, for sure. I don't even have a language barrier, so it's sad that I- and, presumably, the rest of the the American queer porn fanclub- don't know about our friends across the Atlantic and what they were doing 5 years ago . . . or for that matter, what they might be doing right now. This is now my new goal: investigate Britain's queer porn scene. I shall report back.
In the meantime, if you're out there, Angie, let me know!
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