$ W: ]" T+ k; w r) Z8 J+ S7 R0 K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”？ 6 o1 G8 o/ q4 ~3 i * f1 u+ i& I$ \# ]3 Q$ n7 X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。 ; u/ \+ z4 x6 ]; n \( |, A* n' q" n% X. A: M
我说，“你一定很累吧”？她微笑着回答说，“习惯了”。/ A- D5 z, c* e6 p! U
2 a t d0 L+ C( s我接着问，“那么，健康风险呢？你经常被感染吗”？ 1 H9 @( D0 ~% R, _; T. S* V* k( t+ B! ^6 {2 L+ M3 I
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。” Z {" j2 I' m' e* A u5 p0 L; a7 P* ^
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。& Y- T4 ~' W& y- d ]& K
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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。: Z& Q! t7 e+ w3 L5 C& c
不戴安全套的权利 ; n. _ Z$ P1 n& k: R: F7 p 1 b5 v' S6 T; K6 b8 l, B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。 " A. y/ c& @3 \3 l 3 n/ g. k' n1 D6 L/ J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”？% Z4 e4 `8 m% I5 S' c& ?
( t3 z# H7 y+ g- c. P6 [# }- X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。 - l) I) _; H# l" z! N% ^7 n3 u* J: S6 a" f, X$ ?- c
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 ?: N, e, L% Y$ I) d7 s0 E7 E
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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。 - |" t" x: ^" G7 k* e * {6 y& T3 g" ^: r$ `6 M/ S2 z5 q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。 ; u6 u* s1 A7 R0 x8 N, @) t4 n g. h0 |. O; C$ }. X
一些演员私下告诉我，他们盼着立法赶快生效。 ) f+ B* A) v1 J y" H* |2 \# f$ T2 i
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。 * V8 J( P. x) P! j, I % M; U7 t' g0 b3 A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。 ! L( q' f- R3 j! v' q+ I1 h% t3 K% y3 N3 m. U7 R% Z/ Z9 I
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……. $ h" E: T( f8 F. L$ S) ^* w" b1 V% l4 `+ G# [
& X% g! m( H: b! @% T5 l, nCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles ! E+ G! G* l e+ j1 z6 k: C3 \6 T7 Y5 u$ S" F2 D3 \
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.# ^. P/ B0 _, \3 h! A
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Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles., q3 E/ F/ l4 D' ~4 H" G+ h
- i* y, p8 N4 sI had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things. F* v- }' Q' ?" x8 q& t6 z
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What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect.! R1 N0 f4 q5 A% L
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The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga. % ]. O3 x& c- o; X8 O1 K$ q1 o: j# X' V! o
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. * n0 d; z9 I( {- D1 B/ d8 V4 ?8 t3 U: b$ v4 Z* ?4 Z
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.% |; a# K2 J% H. Y) P
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Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. $ F2 O2 p% s, [; D, E ; L, y7 o7 w5 s$ ^- p4 H% Y$ ?Fantasy 5 Q$ W% i( I+ T 8 G: V# q9 C4 H4 @# Z2 q/ ]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. z8 ?* P1 Z4 Z
) \3 ~$ G( p! F2 f6 ?6 ZThe problem, increasingly, is revenue. " r2 z. g* b2 c ) C6 L1 S f0 k% @; {: b/ \Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. " R) Q$ y' _9 }: ^ % {9 E% {# h- e! B6 N |' k6 pDVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free. * S& k0 b+ Z# P4 f4 I/ S" w: y S+ ]; n1 b, E( @& v3 y. e
And the economic downturn does not help. 8 Z! [1 Z2 W6 r6 h; K7 A9 u # y' O3 ~, V9 R( s"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully. ( n- \4 a8 W+ i# |% g5 Z' ] 6 [8 F" e9 P9 t' h9 E! s* e( eThe economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations.' _2 y$ [& C/ s+ N( ~
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For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. " t5 s: {- ~" J) w4 [7 t6 i 2 {' I- y2 d3 LHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set.) _* P6 ?1 E) K4 M" S
6 p4 n, h: U7 Y8 y' }2 IBut the industry says wearing condoms on-screen is a turn-off. The public do not want it, it will kill the fantasy, they say. K. P8 A) [0 }8 X! M+ L+ p4 `' o, D9 o& T7 R
Gonorrhoea 3 [5 Q8 z+ W1 {1 ^7 ~2 V4 t" M9 S. n- E% E
Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.3 ]" s# \2 b- ~0 W
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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.( B. L; V F- ?( t4 K3 S1 Z
+ B4 d" D. j! s" g, wShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure. . l. E& i# l, a! Y ' j) a) J* O5 G. E"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"# X8 R: Z* S* H; ^: B
8 k, ^ }: \0 L( j W( G/ fHer 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. ) z. T6 G* u2 S% T4 X# s" }: J: G* r z
Each day would be 15 hours long.2 k9 h) y( ~6 q
& n9 R5 V# [7 p* E4 u) q"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. ; a0 ^; \( u$ W2 Y8 q2 f# `; A6 b 5 J4 t3 c H1 f( F0 y"You get used to it," she smiled. 4 {+ j T8 b. ^5 h6 D- e0 i" ? 0 w% Z4 M# [5 `"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"8 N) J- l9 L: N0 B) X5 R: h/ z
* d1 M3 f G: o"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.". u" ?7 x9 k: R
4 [& _3 C$ i# H0 {7 G0 i' bThere was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. ' k5 N7 w- {1 G. B9 L& j$ r! [3 a: R, U( P( D/ L3 u2 `
Expensive lawsuits, A' J4 i. M, x" S# Y: a
! [& `; C$ Z3 E7 G, l% O. dIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. ! x$ E% [1 R! c. `- F & @8 w0 ^& g: d& X0 }& @/ I0 \A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it.9 `& v( M( _0 h2 v0 D0 C
) u( T, \4 \, n% k- f' j9 _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.- ]) f" Z6 ?$ G# v" O9 ]: h
2 V$ ]( X: V2 g. I: _% mNow, 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. g/ k2 _1 g, r1 j+ W) d5 W* A1 ]# t4 x9 b! e/ X7 `$ H
"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?"/ L5 s$ `6 b+ |7 J; |8 z
' Y# n* ^( @3 p3 T0 _2 Q% O* fI struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. # ?. l4 k* I% Y% V' E _ 1 u0 [: U: J( A6 s7 w9 YBut 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?$ z9 z5 ~/ ~) [
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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.* m M; B& e" r
" v' ~+ I" y4 GIt 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. # Z. y5 a) j* K \# l! A1 }9 [7 \/ g& p& X y1 E
A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them.3 N( ?. E+ f! j6 h! R5 g' I
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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. 5 E# ~& d/ l4 Y3 p ; O9 z" h; }' p7 G$ J0 Q& _4 EThat view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene. # L) B) ]+ K x' {+ P3 J : k$ V3 @3 E2 g+ _8 A: yI decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. " G/ Z" l$ ~! X- F* m ) ]- C- K; {3 w6 ~0 J) U0 @# r 4 P! o$ b6 [: [: B* E' g9 G$ B" d, R: n$ N1 L$ A' }, o2 \3 d - {. U5 p3 ^. u- `0 i1 ZCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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