# ^) k2 E$ m V) G过去许多年，当局一直要求色情影片中的演员在拍摄过程中必须使用安全套。 * X; x- j( T5 R3 ^: J, p; B W5 v' M1 P5 P5 J; o
演员健康受损害的案例中最著名的一起是在2004年，三名演员感染上艾滋病毒。这凸现出演员中交叉感染十分严重。 \* a) W! L7 @0 s6 t0 ?* b* Y {1 M% W- f% Q: L* j- f但是，电影业坚持说，演员带安全套会扫观众的兴。他们说，观众不愿意看，安全套等于扼杀观众的幻想。 1 J7 J+ o& _' K& Q8 a z# a3 R4 @“没什么大不了的” 5 T9 r) `. W% s 0 [7 }2 X; Y$ @$ l* |2 T重返《星际迷航》的拍摄现场，我和主要演员之一宝碧·斯塔尔聊了起来。宝碧是大学毕业生，以前是国家级游泳运动员，专业的双簧管手。短短的27年，她的一生真可是阅历丰富。 + r3 h% M( f! E, r $ D4 `* w) q$ T0 g0 A宝碧说，改行做色情电影演员，主要是为了追求性探险。她说，“这是找乐趣。身边的人都高高兴兴，你有什么可烦的呢”？ x' g P9 L6 I8 W/ [, l
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当天，她的日程安排得很紧凑，两句台词，四小时的性爱。星期二试装，然后就去接受每月一次的体检。宝碧每一天都要工作15个小时。 6 n2 L; p( L { ! `: ^+ ] l, e, u0 Z! @: P我说，“你一定很累吧”？她微笑着回答说，“习惯了”。' n7 o) j6 E/ x6 i6 v. I' g s8 w
n" g8 o- W, b& O9 z6 J# r& c7 v9 M我接着问，“那么，健康风险呢？你经常被感染吗”？ |: m, ^3 I# ?5 d2 k
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她说，“也就是染上过一两次衣原体，还有淋病，除此之外，没什么大不了的。我们每个月都体检，得了病，赶紧吃药，然后就又能回去上班了。没问题。”/ O9 Y$ {+ `, ]- c
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我看，宝碧人很“加州”。进一步说，整个色情电影业都有点“很加州”的意思。有执著的热情、反叛的心态，还有一点点自由主义者反抗压力的顽强。 7 B$ h7 F1 r' F - T) V) l7 p4 R+ {% p( h1980年代，官司一直打到高等法院，色情电影在加州才得到了合法化的地位，正式与普通意义上的嫖娼卖淫划清了界限。! V+ b* C) K$ B# Y1 n$ v5 j: R
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现在，我遇到的许多人都说，不戴安全套的权利是宪法赋予的言论自由权利的一个关键部分，正如美国的立国之父指出的那样。0 `( A/ e! U, [( x% l4 g
$ b" L' u' n0 m% z; E2 @) s一名制片人告诉我，“如果你把我的演员都装在橡胶里面，作为艺术家，我还能怎样表述自我呢”？% @. }. i$ F5 r+ \
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我很难想象，法兰克林和杰弗逊起草《第一修正案》的时候，想到过戴不戴安全套的权利。 6 T7 I' p" |. I, y' U: ~, B! e # S4 P& V" |' ?4 @8 Y k但是，我也很难想象，《星际迷航》的粉丝们排着长队去看皮克船长和“进取号”的船员们真刀真枪地“肉搏”。所以，我算老几呢？ 7 U% Y) [* {/ N( p d+ a' r2 n 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。: `# f# O4 O" A2 `$ U
) l! \' |2 Z2 q3 G, k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。 9 I/ H! j% ^& L6 m. C& ] 1 |3 s' c1 U% S/ b9 h一些演员私下告诉我，他们盼着立法赶快生效。 / t- B5 a* }+ l% L2 D* h % Q( D. Z. }# C% U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。 - K* x& d6 I3 @* A. P1 ` 6 F' q B/ s( [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。! j5 s! I9 W8 u t1 K6 A6 N' ]
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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……. . O0 v" C: \* \4 C) ` 0 J/ w% ~* H4 L# e 9 f# U& `. z8 f- r" q% JCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles + J" z K) C1 W) H- h+ r
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California'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. j, ~7 f4 F' \9 a& e$ ^8 `
& f& h2 ^1 ?* eLight drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.0 F% }, ]$ y/ J3 [3 m
7 f, [2 m2 x# Z9 p5 eI had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things. : H! d6 s# c" p # s t4 [# ^) f: lWhat I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. * f2 C8 t( v8 K/ G! p6 B. H2 p t/ Y4 i. P1 x4 r
The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga. 4 G9 G$ G+ u Y6 X9 ~! T, }. A, r3 K6 z' |
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.( \7 O* M+ T& p0 T4 V9 N( h
/ X1 C3 p& r8 _4 s. h B/ e6 zThis 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. 8 M+ H) F. @7 E' P/ e0 L. _& W' X 9 l/ Y3 Z' L8 w: v& n' tOnly 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed.. u1 A" u; t' _6 ^" j* }
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The 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. ) Q% _, K9 [" f; L# ]0 c" h1 S% t6 D2 V) T: s1 B- v
The problem, increasingly, is revenue. " j+ W, ?( b+ T% L3 P1 y2 T1 L1 s: m* f% C* j& Q
Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. ) i4 k+ \2 V ?. Y6 E( G, g0 m! _1 T; t1 b( m
DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.- Z. s( z) A/ d$ H: o7 S9 Y
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And the economic downturn does not help.- U/ I- x+ T% G0 i" O0 y5 p
! ?& a. e8 L, h"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully. ; C: q- [# {8 k4 V p6 k) _( O! Y* j
The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations." X* r9 i5 E0 c3 _7 E
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For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. % A# Z& U9 D5 u* r$ K, l* T 1 y9 Y4 n! C/ V' r! aHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. 7 t7 ^. y: ~0 L$ h# l# d& W" | ' S% n, q1 ~5 C% t# e GBut the industry says wearing condoms on-screen is a turn-off. The public do not want it, it will kill the fantasy, they say.5 c8 f3 I1 e. ~, h0 k0 M6 ~8 v c
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Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers. ) J; t& ^# p; j3 C! Y+ }: `# Z% L' [' m+ v5 U
A college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years.3 z2 X5 l$ i9 n+ S/ m* p# y
d% P Q- ?$ `; ^ jShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure. ' ?4 Z( s8 y1 z1 A, O" `) I! X; Y& o+ {$ R3 U5 x( d
"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"& l" e3 X" [: Z7 G
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Her 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.* \* F. K* X$ F+ E3 F
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Each day would be 15 hours long.3 G" O l6 Z. J$ e+ b; Z
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"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.3 a4 d6 I% w- A
& @& q( H# l( r$ ~" _0 Y5 n"You get used to it," she smiled. ; f; D$ E9 o) U \! j R - N2 r: ^, C* ]0 A i( }# [6 v E"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" # o$ F2 z$ [. L, U3 G! m1 N- u8 C/ y# c+ q, m0 L5 U
"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."; t. r0 u' Y' _8 ]* m; {& y9 r
$ i M$ m* |4 O oThere was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. , t( S5 Y. B( u2 C & u: ?1 L( I- |/ E M! [Expensive lawsuits : |7 g+ e( t2 l5 v* o/ Y 4 s o* t9 g4 a) c5 h9 FIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. ; k H# j K0 t0 L) f; m / i! H0 z: p4 H3 `A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. , q" h0 L4 Q" G6 N+ | ! k& m* ~* c( W8 N; x1 n7 [It 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. ; a/ p5 F, a: l0 e4 j' V S5 Z0 D; P" L! \3 V$ `- nNow, 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.6 m1 s$ h" H) V+ W
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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?"4 w s% f( f6 L" z7 ]+ Z: o6 t
4 x: I7 J+ {) I; b) V# Q+ m; ^I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment.1 `" |2 w9 n7 O% m( C, a9 B' M
+ R# [ i1 o' G0 D0 G' XBut 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? ' A/ Q$ g5 f7 Q# e , D% f- V+ H/ B% `& }, gThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection.& F4 N6 \6 D. g& `5 Q* E" `/ a
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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. ; m5 p1 H7 [* N" x& y( g2 j " a2 y4 r, J( B/ b! X& YA number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. , q% a! L$ r/ g) { " W# s) y, [; u( p8 I. [6 }The producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. * u/ j7 I7 G9 Y" T. ^ 9 _1 m$ ^' k, n W" v3 c$ ~8 C* ~) _8 cThat view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene. $ M2 ]. W: a2 K) f0 t+ Y- Z) Y' z ! ?; y% G8 K: n/ II decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. 7 K. v# i8 e0 [6 f6 U4 g! R. {0 h/ o# p: n* @9 H/ S 4 y Z9 P& o! U% S/ Q% m# c, y# ~% ]' Q 0 f! C6 T4 ~( T1 w5 n+ r% L
Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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