0 w0 _* n2 M* j3 f5 [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。 5 [9 |! S N$ C3 C. C ; J" ?3 G! W) }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。/ b; M: { x" U) S
不戴安全套的权利" g' @1 r4 C9 B+ d" Y" D
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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。 & t4 I, L1 s' g( w' O2 x/ U& F8 n. o6 a0 D
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”?0 s2 E K' r7 `
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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。 ; _" d% G/ r, E4 k4 o" b ( i! d4 c5 h" g+ `. Z* V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 N; H1 z- ]0 t3 i" h1 I$ u - u/ E; X* ]$ a& N, Q/ n* Q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。 N5 p( x) M8 d# `/ l$ L, [" b+ H
. a4 K& e, i9 K1 D, [: x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。 ' R- C$ T6 W* ^1 x3 N @' p ) w5 D: x2 k" P( n! d b6 B一些演员私下告诉我,他们盼着立法赶快生效。, X; u- R0 e4 m. X) L5 [
+ l- [# m# O+ [5 f! o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。3 z/ X6 ~0 n. f! f
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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。 L4 e/ k8 |! I2 k0 e c- R% }8 A$ Z% m( x* B4 z# b
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…….' z6 h1 v1 j" }! E
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+ V. P1 i7 L6 n2 |- j9 WCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles - W/ M w- C0 C' c: T/ A9 C8 D
& }6 o ]: c/ pCalifornia'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.; ?& |: |. x! ~+ V' c6 B
y4 i3 I3 L6 v3 j0 z$ _+ qLight drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. 2 v5 k& X; y8 H8 q% y1 r/ J, Z: ?9 Y6 g8 H+ w& A$ ?
I had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things. 4 S' o3 D& a4 f5 l8 h7 K5 X6 F6 s' g4 _1 R& b3 r
What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect.: G# B8 Z* J- W: }+ L
5 ~! K1 n' F* K$ h2 N2 c& p/ GThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga.7 O# P& K3 X) p4 T/ P3 f
; h$ t9 q3 \* C4 h9 BPerformers 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.& R! I6 o4 p$ J3 E+ Y; P
F a# t+ i* C a% D* d1 rThis 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., c! g4 L, v: k; I
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Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed.5 D& Z& S) p- T0 ?
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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. 4 N" @' m; p% `# U0 o3 r - j3 b' [' p4 R$ e. w) W/ s1 EThe problem, increasingly, is revenue. 8 o' v0 q8 ~! g+ a0 Z , |, j2 _3 n# b% {6 e) ]' ILike the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. % h4 |' \) z. i' {1 N$ z0 V* W5 J0 a& P
DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.. @8 ]! e9 r9 m \# m& ]: A) D
+ F- f' o4 B) G+ nAnd the economic downturn does not help. 4 D. U: y7 e! m2 l! {* o9 d% v. d; s/ `, o
"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully. * Q- n! F, i: P9 h* b. X2 j$ _ / }5 K( i: f% b, q& W3 eThe economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations.0 w1 E& q5 z( M. n% P' x
0 `3 h" o2 b d1 w( T# W0 GFor years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. + g+ S: J! `7 K( J8 f% Z- ^: ]) n% D9 A; P5 t! }
Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. % X1 w: a. ?9 l* g) ]7 P9 i% h' A3 G/ x4 A0 t$ d; J- L4 o, i4 `7 R
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. 3 l3 }. H5 n2 Y ; s- G# T8 r- b& f- yGonorrhoea1 j3 p: B) j0 W. e# W' X6 P# j
( d- S3 l5 V7 v8 D$ E g0 ^Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.; V0 ^+ H, t7 y" R
, h+ h$ C" o! |' cA college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years.4 \0 Y9 ]0 ?) m6 X6 F3 V5 Y
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She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure. . [$ g8 C5 s% U0 }' k, a' q! w# M' b0 x0 F; z `+ E) J
"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?" 9 v" W1 f# p- y6 C6 B ! T: V; u" f8 f% `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. 7 [2 W% a2 x1 K5 ?) s9 i! U* U' `: k1 z0 O1 ]
Each day would be 15 hours long.8 o# z! |: R; V9 @: `
Y$ A6 o% x$ W; g# |3 r"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. K; ~( C9 w* J/ ]+ `0 a8 F
2 j+ t( v! d& n Y" O3 d* g"You get used to it," she smiled.( @- y) L2 Z* v3 C K8 L7 q, r {9 C
2 N2 k% ^8 u/ g( ?! P7 ?"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"8 C1 f0 o q' ^2 G' [: k: g
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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." ( m' U2 B v5 K. r2 I1 N Q+ G, A$ {7 I2 v. n' T% d, Q
There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. + U5 u$ i' i7 L2 ~6 D& E- ^* X- ^: b7 ~) o
Expensive lawsuits - o6 S* W/ {6 l7 O' E* [) A# ]( z* v
In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business.# W" w% N! D2 C" g& t$ ^8 Q5 Q
a0 l( y& Z" |) `: `; xA combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. 8 e% G7 F4 d l Y" w* B , k1 F2 {; _& j6 P: U9 cIt 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. , r1 Q( L& w3 ?' |! {4 C 2 {" Y- c4 j9 G# v$ @, R: C: lNow, 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. 7 F- L7 M/ ?5 q/ s9 Q4 t 5 k% e9 a- f6 H"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" - O# C/ Y. G& F # X! @# P1 ]* X+ L+ jI struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment.$ ]( D7 r' V1 S( i: G$ q; _* |
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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? 5 o5 s7 z1 Q) N( x) y. T$ E / t6 q% A" I* e1 v% sThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. ( h' z1 g" K# l2 Y , d2 i' x( {$ A! |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.+ z3 g) w. c& z
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A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them.- B" m3 T3 t6 |
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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. 3 ~) }) J' \) B0 ~4 z+ P4 c9 f) R
That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene., Q0 h! Y N* I: _3 K* T/ d
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I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.# a( `% A3 A0 o) ^/ K. y
( W+ ~! ?1 t& k $ b; @4 D$ W2 n$ Q6 r! [2 N8 Y1 r8 y$ y& A* v' I. r7 h 0 f+ ]: b+ J4 e8 [, rCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004