6 o n) s0 [) L- i5 Z但是，当局非常坚决。建筑工人必须戴头盔，矿工必须戴口罩，色情演员也必须有适当的保护。 ) V+ S; t6 R- {% P9 W! e% o" O3 ?9 q0 a- @/ A. A+ x; w8 p x C2 O
和加州的立法人对阵，色情电影业最终很有可能打败仗。除了罚款，色情电影业也面临着一些前任演员们提出的代价昂贵的法律诉讼。( m& v) R9 U6 ^; o( q& v. b; {
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一些演员私下告诉我，他们盼着立法赶快生效。 ( e7 N4 l% z4 d 3 B$ x% D6 _* v; G制片人说，这对雇员没有任何好处，只会迫使制片公司搬到海外、或者转移到地下去拍片。观众想看的，就一定能看得到。 & [! b2 h% c) i7 a- A) H( {6 D' b" g- f
宝碧也有同感。事实上，这也正是她开始脱衣服、准备开拍性爱场面之前说的告别词。 2 p4 D1 ]$ U. j- q0 w, Z# O! q+ A
我想，我看的已经够多了。我悄悄地离开拍摄现场，重新回到淅淅沥沥的小雨中…….; }2 B2 _* v3 |5 }7 x
+ {% L0 m. Y: g& c0 }4 _ * V5 ?9 I) P& Z! d' D- ]7 qCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles ( q6 A, @+ h4 p; w
# k% @1 p) A1 E6 @5 BCalifornia's adult movie business is under pressure - internet piracy and the economic downturn have slashed revenues, while state regulators seem set to win their long battle to make actors wear condoms.7 Q$ z. ]2 J: B* {5 c
8 `* z3 W1 {1 J M' y, {Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.9 n& N, t3 E6 K' h: k* [
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I had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things. + {4 J+ J- ]$ H$ Z( ~# q 2 E. H- @7 u5 H& V2 eWhat I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. 6 ]' Y5 C8 b$ |5 L6 D0 u' H 3 L9 k( D% k" v4 J4 H# cThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga.1 p, t I$ K/ s8 a; f# i7 P" M* o* J
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Performers in body-hugging Star Trek outfits, some with prosthetic noses to resemble aliens, wandered around looking slightly bored as a weary crew worried over lighting arrangements. . y, f$ q, C$ n7 g9 o$ U- k2 ]8 E: {. e
This morning was devoted to dialogue, I was told, although - as Sam, the film's artistically minded writer-director, explained to me with clear regret - there was not too much of that to be had.# C0 R O" Q3 k* V, e; [5 r
- @$ W% _+ q% q6 E1 P' uOnly 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed." R/ \9 t) a5 v/ s
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Fantasy 7 |- d) B; ]! O2 s, I0 s 7 v. b% \6 q! eThe demands of porn may not allow Sam to be the groundbreaking film-maker he clearly aspires to be, but at least there are films to be made. * c' }: ^# r' B5 x1 I 7 @ e7 g. S4 v, H3 `& iThe problem, increasingly, is revenue. - i6 c; y. d2 q; v' {8 Z8 B9 s2 H$ n; R; x+ v1 E
Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. " h6 B& u' e- m2 X4 S5 y' I) |3 S; T. g6 N
DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free. ' e; |5 R$ X: q) K4 `* ]" O0 ]) C ) o6 A. a* w1 D5 y p+ A$ @4 ]2 V4 |And the economic downturn does not help. 2 C+ n- W, B, I. J* L! Q/ G j* P+ K5 m9 S3 S8 i; E1 l3 @+ ^5 M
"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.! P/ T, @; P, G" a- B
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The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations. & V% m- x/ `: @ Y+ |8 A3 s# x* k9 R! \+ ^) b
For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. ( V1 L% Z* {6 b) O2 H ?) v 5 S$ g z5 T9 X3 T1 Z7 A6 s7 }0 Q2 O9 GHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. * s S0 H `1 [$ a/ @' H6 \" @. t- J2 \, `) r; a: E1 z
But the industry says wearing condoms on-screen is a turn-off. The public do not want it, it will kill the fantasy, they say.: |- ?: F d# T2 @% [- S) u/ r5 V
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Gonorrhoea% }( L& a# _+ t; `
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Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers. ) O( o7 B8 w, g X! }' C7 y 3 o% w/ d$ G) a. Y" BA college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years.$ |# m7 G' l7 g7 ]! t- R8 }
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She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.' @4 c$ |0 E* Z9 g) x9 X- I* V
J6 }4 A: }3 a4 ^4 @"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"7 F, ]% \$ G0 O$ J
+ b) s8 ~+ b4 lHer packed schedule today involved a couple of lines, then a four-hour sex scene. Then a costume fitting on Tuesday and she was off to have her monthly health test after that. : x1 ~2 L5 M0 n. {5 g1 E . B+ _6 z% E; h6 V" {' wEach day would be 15 hours long. # E9 N1 i _) m+ d, J 0 Z% y0 R. }) f. e% `"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.. f* x+ t+ u, T K. z; B) w
1 P7 g& } F! ^ J6 A3 B0 w"You get used to it," she smiled. - [& j8 J* o4 E) u: k* n " m; P6 U o2 d4 p% O, x4 Q"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" 7 W F: s, B7 h6 ?7 d1 R' w9 o; ^, a F+ k7 y, m; n/ S! y' W
"Well, just chlamydia a couple of times, gonorrhoea - nothing much. Anyway, we test each month so, when you're diagnosed, you just take your medication and you're good to go. No problem." 4 K* k2 L5 d! o4 R * h* ] S/ s7 ?/ [, a2 b- mThere was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided.: S- T1 }$ W4 c0 L5 V
$ X! U% `( u/ J: Y9 FExpensive lawsuits ! m" e2 g2 D2 {1 Z _5 S) b! L a' s7 `
In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business.. `6 _) ^* k& I* p$ Y
- ]5 D" `0 I& IA combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it.5 `% g: m/ q/ O9 K* t1 e
) p% {) y: F( J: w+ XIt had taken a Supreme Court battle back in the 1980s to make porn legal in California in the first place, formally distinguishing it from common-or-garden prostitution.: ?0 g0 h* ^- {9 r
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Now, many I met spoke of the right not to wear condoms as a key aspect of their constitutional right to free speech, as set out by the Founding Fathers.# o; q# F% k+ I4 G' [# R- c) E
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"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" $ c. R: q, O9 a1 z" h* }1 E3 p9 K8 K- V. t! L
I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment.& q5 e6 h! I: b. x2 r
7 B9 A8 K- u& Y0 Y, ~But then I also struggled to picture hordes of Star Trek fans queuing up to see Captain Jean-Luc Picard going hard-core with the crew of the Star Trek Enterprise. So what did I know? 0 e' n( {9 a2 W, e' F+ H& Q" [8 O : [" ?' c4 A4 T% kThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. ( e2 V3 \6 f |' D4 Y$ C , n( V5 b1 u% V; x/ ]It seems likely that porn will eventually lose its battle against the California regulators, not least because - as well as state penalties - the industry could be about to face some very expensive lawsuits brought by former performers. ) e _+ ^2 h! L( N6 t2 C. V) u/ J7 t# \ n! E( Q
A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them., `6 j5 D# ?0 |2 a c
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The producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. 6 c" @7 J/ y' L# ~5 T0 }" B 2 ]: A; `+ P. `8 P: d4 Y, T! uThat view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene. 6 S: S5 h% \( u# w: S, P9 s: d9 J- r
I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. 5 w! e9 _" I. X8 q7 _ [ 2 f) _% E8 e# B0 O- \; O 2 u3 B/ ] U0 @* J4 ?5 y , W. |$ c" A& L1 j% R/ C1 n& H' q, H& J
Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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