0 G, ^* Y p7 X: I/ |7 D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。 9 t' c- {/ j1 s [, [/ o$ h% w8 A/ Z, w' w9 g! ]1 M; D
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 c( x+ U; w: I% @6 A# S
“没什么大不了的” 3 j, y4 K2 d8 U- ~: a9 F8 C4 @6 _6 p1 Q
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。 * t6 H) _: B. m7 l - h. [# Z. m+ t+ x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”? 2 [0 E0 ?% f6 T+ A0 r7 s: o5 Z* O; K* U+ w
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。 5 K7 @3 ]# h0 L5 O3 Y8 f7 m + b+ K! s8 _' P; g" Y3 J我说,“你一定很累吧”?她微笑着回答说,“习惯了”。2 J* T) V( x A" Y( ~" D
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我接着问,“那么,健康风险呢?你经常被感染吗”?; T E- ]3 p5 h% v# E1 F$ S& A
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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。”% _7 s, p' f; ]2 D9 ~
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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。 : w3 @3 h" h( z2 e ! {! L7 |9 f+ v1 u; z3 T1980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。 , E) W$ y$ R5 _: G# a/ v不戴安全套的权利 * |! L2 y9 `" l9 b( ? 3 s( }( E, k' j# |" \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。 4 s4 Z- W/ _& m+ y" ^( J) i2 M; h4 f
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”?( Q! [# [, r" o; J2 T
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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。 @. G1 V' p. `! _& [& M/ B$ P9 p( W
9 p7 T- c2 i# s9 g. 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? 5 u# K8 K X& d, l3 a) ^* t+ Z+ {' S: J. T+ Y
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。 . r9 d* `! D6 _- r0 {5 O, @ ` B) H9 G) n9 n
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。 4 C/ Y: n- v, o8 m, }" s0 m ' y. C' Z( D! ]% \5 b' J: C& g一些演员私下告诉我,他们盼着立法赶快生效。 . W2 `- i1 o' ]$ I9 S& M6 W0 ]% F# w; l" m9 b K, Q$ Y* _0 V( N
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。 : }# z$ ^3 C7 I& Z" V& } : r: [( `6 o, v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。 / |7 M- x% ^+ { 8 G2 H. N; e! R$ O! g, e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…….9 N" j/ ?+ U" r
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Californian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles 8 D6 l( o6 T' H- W8 J/ ?
6 S+ T5 }. X$ ACalifornia'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( `0 {. L/ ~! [& @
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Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.1 U! ~4 Z H6 i1 e1 @. r. A- j
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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.6 O, A& R% @, n5 ?7 s
& t# B6 q7 `( g; z% |$ \What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. 3 ^5 R7 f# d- {, Y- x5 h3 b8 R l9 o% `$ b9 U; M
The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga." i- l, F6 U0 X3 [
. @8 ^3 F# h2 S( D gPerformers 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$ \0 J5 E. R6 t. i8 K( p' R0 v8 X; x' d s
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.. z# [9 V0 Z% W& V# t
' F/ G; d' A8 A3 U3 `8 R; V5 XOnly 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed.8 y5 y5 O6 n S9 g& b/ o
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Fantasy4 o, o/ Z6 n9 D" N% x" {# ~
3 _0 b: J( |2 xThe 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.# W; ~3 T; J* K }: i5 s$ Q
7 `2 d: L3 F4 {5 {* s$ EThe problem, increasingly, is revenue.- K8 E. F& J" U8 ^
2 F' v8 J9 ]4 ^0 ~# c+ ~Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch.* A: Y# q6 M2 N$ w) v' Y1 T
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DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free. * o, a3 l5 _8 s' s: B# N k0 S8 r o2 m8 |) QAnd the economic downturn does not help. 3 l& g& W! H2 m6 \# A9 m7 f4 w. t X0 a* K+ E( d- G' j6 c' q( a' a& T"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully., J0 d+ d7 @6 ^$ x' p2 s
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The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations.: A* J5 ~ _( @" c4 _$ x* |
: n6 w! t2 e0 M) ~. \For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. 8 C! {7 U" j+ ~. G/ F" E - d* d9 }* Y3 r$ NHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. # w X: c! p, g) M' D! f/ G* `" K0 `/ e$ {- W7 [ ?
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.1 l! I' S$ \. h( R' L
1 ~4 F6 _ v, B7 k! RGonorrhoea) v& g% g4 F' W1 t& [5 h3 ^/ k
g) \9 i$ v# T& K/ Y- l5 V( S6 pBack on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers. - I1 R) _" M- ]+ _( Z) P1 k( X4 s# F; _+ Y
A college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years. D! f9 W8 i! y5 w" k+ ~2 L0 F( m2 ]6 Q; `4 H O1 ?0 e5 t
She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure. 6 T/ o7 D0 j; {% q ( A8 P. \! S& u H"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?": {: {: r0 M7 I$ W
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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.6 F( A5 v( ~6 l" V
; ?! } U: {1 c9 FEach day would be 15 hours long.5 y+ I) v* Q' m
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"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.9 V- m8 S9 T! |) y. i/ @
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"You get used to it," she smiled./ S7 K. m; Q# L1 ~; y$ c/ d; {+ j
7 e* e* m1 A6 ^- ?$ }"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?", A$ Q% @4 b: p3 n; y# j% o
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"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." # W) }5 ~+ h% d- x$ M - q; B" |% r% SThere was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided.; s7 N# g0 k" j4 _' }
5 {) b1 I4 n6 N' H2 ~Expensive lawsuits6 q5 h3 ^' G. }6 a/ P e
6 ?6 x' G0 y8 j' I5 p( yIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. - C( {" Y3 \' `5 W ) q+ o4 v, W2 M: H; n. ]A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it.. i, K+ H* E) W+ W
: B4 d) F5 ]) g+ t' K v; _5 i0 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. $ A7 T' X% ]3 I! f : n0 o6 J, `' O4 I1 KNow, 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. * {; W) t i0 r. I, U- L5 C" a& r9 w R4 e; c
"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?") M$ z/ b" X2 L# D
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I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. . T8 j7 t7 o/ X( t j3 F( s) Y! k% U+ b' h3 n
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?' e0 c! c; W! l# ` i3 o; e' v$ s. ]
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The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. & L k- L+ k$ t2 ^6 N : x. [# d6 p6 E/ [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. , C" R1 ^7 H# A$ a0 B; ? ' G6 C$ R+ q+ t: Z+ K2 d) P* d4 dA number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them.% q' Z3 w) x& x% ~* v0 b# W. `% Z
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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.- C8 Y; F1 t D. Q! |5 o* f/ L& i
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That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene. ) U2 L \1 i: u' U0 U/ P9 K5 R$ p3 _! g( [7 I% T
I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.; ?! t! V9 K( p+ t& o
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- d* j) F+ T3 ~1 u % t, x* s: S) v! `+ D) rCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004