8 t4 E8 ~- m9 }2 u U* 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。 6 a2 G; B$ i+ S* s% M f% {6 c" D) C2 M" e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。 / v/ k9 i1 [, z) n6 A5 y4 } 8 b. d+ J+ p- K Y/ ~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。 , x7 n$ B+ l. V# T“没什么大不了的”) n* y3 ^% \, V
8 h9 N8 C' }' {% q4 z5 |/ [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。: w3 E/ {* A+ i+ ~' \
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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”? : z" l" J, b" _8 t/ b) `. X! v. W9 Y
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。 , x( w! h- f _9 v" W! ^ ) t) a( i* r. g2 y7 y1 J我说,“你一定很累吧”?她微笑着回答说,“习惯了”。 9 e- B. z. d' X5 D4 g: X, Y. d6 R# |6 Q% z
我接着问,“那么,健康风险呢?你经常被感染吗”?% E0 O# I" F+ H1 \: }
, b7 `, h1 W, l) F, l) c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。”% l: L @9 [. a6 Y" S2 a/ L! h
: u# [$ y4 ]4 q, i: q9 g% ?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。 4 h5 }# W/ o9 ^1 |* P0 u, a' r$ B2 o5 Y! {, G( N2 X& n
1980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。 ) h, \) v+ ?3 ]9 |5 D z- R6 n5 m不戴安全套的权利 1 c& E! v9 o7 ` g) W6 r9 t+ ?& v , \0 f# p) d) [6 ?6 ?# Y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 S7 k) } Q2 x# W E- W+ d0 ?, z" U. j' q+ P. N7 B
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”?& e+ ^. z# B9 Y' {
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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。 & F5 l) ]- Q& j* s1 o s9 i$ l# ?' X( w# o
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?+ b% E6 F( R% [+ ]; D
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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。 0 E6 q2 K5 c k0 Y/ W0 J2 U& C6 n; P: X! K! {! ^& r/ d2 a
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。& r4 c3 U: K+ ?+ }! b
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一些演员私下告诉我,他们盼着立法赶快生效。( S1 M# x+ ?' E* @$ k
! z3 ~* X. _4 n. L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。 * S! b+ I, \8 w# f / u0 m; z# D e; D" T* M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。 , }$ t, w3 w. w: ~: ? , _' Y$ @4 D* a0 j0 ^# ^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……. ; F! I; U2 S% @% w7 B' g y; Q4 b( o: Y5 o, ~5 j ! f3 D$ R1 j, X0 k6 X6 qCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles - X% E8 V5 @" p! o, E% S: O$ h N5 r+ y( r' y- I9 iCalifornia'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. ; l9 y, r) }4 y) i. u2 `' F8 n. M( q % F* ^, c$ x5 e" |Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. 7 w W/ j9 m" A+ p- o 6 H+ }, ], J& V4 v2 ?I had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things.4 ?2 S2 {5 o! V8 ~
8 }6 a. O; S! P. r8 c: n6 RWhat I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. & s& O# M: o. m9 x % C& _/ b4 M" [& I1 _0 r4 s; q9 JThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga.2 {' L; t z8 \
& K- s5 Q( h$ b* ]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., S: z9 ]9 D& m; U. F2 j3 f- S3 L
2 G$ K- F+ `8 f! q& `& A/ w8 YThis 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.5 E8 I2 f. P/ J) J
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Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. " D/ B" i/ `# u" F. H. c* D1 m; `# p; d3 n+ |
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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. 9 O; A' l7 h+ V8 q0 n& @& R @5 ~" E3 `
The problem, increasingly, is revenue.# o4 H$ G4 i1 }; s7 \
' X; c" G W4 zLike the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch.& `+ k: G' x: Q/ p( D3 v
+ z! ]6 `1 u7 I; J0 Y e" {% XDVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.# B/ l6 Y5 e4 l- r
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And the economic downturn does not help. 0 c/ b+ }" D3 y5 \ [3 D 2 m, N: c4 J+ h, Y"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.; P' Y9 Q8 q. J
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The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations.$ j7 R8 a! y0 L/ j9 L" d
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For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. 9 F& S: \* e5 [: @; \/ o. ~3 r' u& R5 M$ M9 n( [
Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. + N! {6 l! |* h8 H( Y2 R ! q9 [4 P7 g0 F, u3 fBut the industry says wearing condoms on-screen is a turn-off. The public do not want it, it will kill the fantasy, they say. 6 x7 K! U" @) I! q& T G O1 u' f6 r* h' N" ~
Gonorrhoea $ [6 A" ~. _% M$ A8 f9 J: V5 l7 `; O& d
Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.3 `( z$ K p6 ]
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A college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years.$ p4 O* R4 c, c* u' c
; f9 D) w @* W+ @She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure., ]7 B: O% ~ D' ?+ F6 _0 q
4 f# ]+ y2 s' v4 |. T"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"% d8 \: `/ ]$ B' m/ t% p% ?
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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. ' p) _4 E7 \# |2 g. u: v; K! U( k3 S& d 2 b# r6 g4 k& [# {) s1 @0 [8 mEach day would be 15 hours long. ; O! i3 O( X5 H% O y5 V) U6 I6 x6 E
"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested., g- q) n' L! f) v1 E6 s! ?
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"You get used to it," she smiled. 7 B' [7 Z3 j1 Z( i3 C* q" j' T# U6 _/ {
"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" ! R' U6 s+ {8 q% O/ y4 S; A! j; G1 P( S& ~( y
"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."8 k& V, y% l6 z8 b
, ~. V; [% ^0 W2 g4 O, k2 JThere was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. 7 N4 t; U L! m; J4 P/ M: ?: h4 H# \+ }) [, Z
Expensive lawsuits " @) d3 |) t: H- j a8 W, B4 C( J0 ^
In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business.4 v% p* [; O7 J
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A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. 0 l/ k# Z+ u k. _ : g" y0 ~8 E9 a7 c8 Q6 I8 NIt 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. % }8 A9 ^/ d4 C/ s5 H1 L. u+ J% D+ h& R% l& ?1 }0 O
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. . x" q# D. E7 w7 P; P) F 7 n. u) A' z: M) y"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?"1 o- k: c/ c# u. E6 m$ d R$ }1 W
, M( j% Z& y: A% O: X' p7 H- uI struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment.$ l# o9 j* d- i& G# h) s
# L' I" L/ M0 R B1 \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?' A7 R% w+ m: t1 G+ T4 o
! v3 s5 p' |6 L0 C- GThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. ! b J. R7 Q9 r) {; I2 X: ]$ y ) Q" Q% s' x6 x' [8 k) XIt 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.7 ?8 P6 m2 Z9 k3 V- F* Q5 {
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A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them.! r9 G! K/ X% q' h7 l6 |, E' G
5 Q+ m, U4 ?: Z9 t- z- ^, {( wThe producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants.6 n3 G2 ?2 P: Q6 \* v- a5 d9 X! N
P8 ?) N! ? k" _That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene.% h2 G) J8 G7 ?. j" { a% K
3 t- T8 Q+ Q' pI decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.8 k& x& U& C8 _6 f' c3 h M
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Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004