21 Definition of Terms: Porno v. Just Plain Naked
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This article is from the Sex Movies FAQ, by director@gti.net (The Director) with numerous contributions by others.
21 Definition of Terms: Porno v. Just Plain Naked
It is important at this point to discuss the difference porno
films and nudity.
Many actors and actresses have appeared nude in films. So
many so, that there is a whole book devoted to chronicling
their appearances. The book is called The Bare Facts, and
there is more information on it elsewhere in the FAQ.
Porno movies, on the other hand, have brought forth no major
stars. Only Traci Lords and Ginger Lynn Allen have
successfully broken out of the porno world and into the
mainstream, even if the mainstream is a series of straight-to-
video movies and the occasional fringe TV appearance.
Peter van Aarle adds:
True, in fact hardcore actress status is usually a bad
thing for any later mainstream career. Case in point:
Annette Haven was originally cast to play the female lead
in Brian depalma's Body Double. But then Columbia found
out how x-rated she was (and they were a subsidiary of
Coca-Cola who felt it wasn't right for their image) and
that was that. In fact Annette now states she is happy
she didn't do it since originally the script called for
a 'simple' stabbing murder. Annette signed the contract
and then DePalma changed it to that power drill stuff,
and as Annette says "I was actually very relieved when
Columbia put the nix on me. I didn't really want to be
in a film with gory violence".
Other adult stars have appeared in mainstream work (Ron Jeremy
seems to be popping up in cameo roles lately, notably The
Chase and Kiling Zoe, and Ashlyn Gere was on The X-Files this
season) though their involvement in the X-rated world
generally prevents them from becoming huge stars anyway.
Other examples of non-crossover is Teri Weigel. She appears
in a few episodes of Married with Children, then goes
hardcore. According to an interview she gave to the tabloid
TV show "Hard Copy," Married with Children doesn't even know
her anymore. Why? Because she's on film sucking dick.
Some say it's the tease and the whore syndrome. Prance around
suggestively, and you're cast. Actually follow through, and
don't call us, we'll call you...
Besides, they are stars in their own right in the porn world,
and in Hollywood, they're just day players.
Tim Evanson says:
Gay porn stars seem to have a harder time in obtaining
mainstream work than heterosexual porn stars do. Although
many gay male porn stars began their modelling career in
muscle magazines or for PLAYGIRL, returning to the
modelling or acting world has proven difficult.
Exceptions are relatively few: Brian Buzzini is a
bisexual male who modelled for PLAYGIRL but later became
a model for Calvin Klein and for Cool Water cologne.
The late Joey Stefano appeared in Madonna's book SEX, and
gay porn actor Randy Mixer has appeared on several
billboards advertising upscale department stores on LA's
Rodeo Drive. Occasionally, gay porn stars will appear in
untitled photos in muscle magazines such as EXERCISE--FOR
MEN ONLY and MUSCLE AND FITNESS and MEN'S WORKOUT. But
for the most part, true acting jobs and long-term
modelling contracts are rare indeed.
Quickly, let me just talk about a notable exception: Caligula.
Caligula was made in the late 70s/early 80s by Bob Guccione,
publisher of Penthouse. He got quite a few famous people
(Malcolm McDowell, Sir John Gielgud, Peter O'Toole) to act in
his movie about the depraved Roman emperor. Later, after
principal shooting was done, he added hardcore scenes which
the "famed" talent had nothing to do with. In fact, after he
released the hardcore version, the famed people all rather
horrified and tried to distance themselves from the project.
So, while they were in a movie which contained hardcore
footage, I do not consider them to have been in a porn movie,
as they (a) did not participate in the action; and (b)
probably were not aware that it was going to be hardcore.
So, to recap, no major stars have done porno. Many have
appeared nude, but none have been caught fucking on an
intentionally produced for mass distribution tape. (I use that
phrase because, as you will see, a few stars' private home
moves have gone public.)
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