' s/ n# H: P& y# C4 j( b$ V3 H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 y3 p/ C: ~: z. c0 y, c
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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。 4 z! N4 V( W/ s& l3 p9 i6 g ) h5 j' W5 B$ G' A/ S8 f0 s1 J5 w: Y我说,“你一定很累吧”?她微笑着回答说,“习惯了”。. C5 j6 U) h6 j ]- [
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我接着问,“那么,健康风险呢?你经常被感染吗”?3 E! o0 }2 G; t% O x! T5 U9 d
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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。” ! Q$ a" g# g$ @* I# o1 @ " B, e( z, }; \! G) E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。 % W! [ n( s. D4 r2 s0 `* f+ ` [7 L* O* X$ I' C/ Y" D: s
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。 Y3 c# k; j% N% p
不戴安全套的权利 ! t; E( U/ l! p. A: Q: N: D3 r( s! L
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。 3 O% A7 _! m( i P% o- ~" v9 P & z9 K, T# c& u, 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”?! E( A1 S! P8 M7 H( q+ h1 R2 x
" {# I* n# h/ C& F, h0 _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。4 P# d" r4 O9 }4 s' b8 E
- R% t0 Y* |' L6 H' i: ]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? 9 K& k G) B, u5 p* j. i, m- R0 B0 {* M# r7 E; 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。 & U$ j1 o' [6 G! s8 z8 v5 s8 \* [ 0 W) J4 f& B( e: I2 d* H2 d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。+ X# l/ ?; k v" M! n: f" x. J& t
2 g' I$ ?4 D9 m% J7 E# u一些演员私下告诉我,他们盼着立法赶快生效。 $ Y$ ~2 B/ o+ W, P8 l0 w2 I( M3 X. i3 g' z& z
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。 ; B3 i7 V+ R- V" |9 e) [' ~) w8 v/ v- V% o3 @+ `( U
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。5 x1 b) J4 D X! G
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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…….9 C& y. H% f9 l' g
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Californian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles 0 `3 ~7 t, V. R' h/ G; @" S/ I6 Q
, M6 f. e! h! ~ {7 o# \% e" qCalifornia'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. 4 |% Z& L$ p/ p4 A0 z* q2 b% |5 o2 a' `- n- v) |, c u
Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. , c/ u* H! \$ i+ I6 I3 ` 2 D0 k! y7 F: A: a" }& f" OI had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things.$ k' G/ [: ] k& a" G* \3 Z
& a9 |; A7 m( YWhat I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. ! U9 u1 |! o& t! {+ c( @1 A. t5 f3 {. v
The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga.6 S" N* I9 Q5 v6 Y
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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. 8 t+ Q5 E' z1 \9 o3 w, s% j J- N6 c7 M' K! j- x! d
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.. E. n2 V: D; D" A$ b
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Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed.6 v1 ]. z$ o1 ]; o; C/ z8 r5 U% ?2 x* N
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Fantasy 5 d" C$ \3 T/ \8 D. Z* M9 p: _; s d* Q' ^" T
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.$ X# O% L( }0 h i2 ]8 }
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The problem, increasingly, is revenue.4 k( }5 R7 r i0 j+ v, [( ~
" E8 _7 v5 X* _; H1 ALike the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. + U6 T& S. x0 H: {9 U ; J1 }9 Z* ^5 M, V$ ?# O# T7 @DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free. ' ^# m% n: Z" ^' F* C h , w- W- p3 M0 L5 d. y! t; IAnd the economic downturn does not help. . \" k: l8 C6 T- p9 q6 C" _8 ]* b9 B( n% z. w) c$ T) _
"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.7 b& ]0 T& {7 U! }5 L! ~7 k
9 q* c& \4 T1 y1 K' A( \" G8 Z. ?The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations. ( y4 Z8 x8 t! Y + W# e: r$ O7 H& a5 X; a7 l8 v- OFor years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms.) F. ~; R- t/ X7 H1 g$ v
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Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. * l. V7 |' K# g" P- }. P$ m# W$ [% o8 \' j! H* X x$ N
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. # K) {! \# V8 a X3 z: D5 Y/ R0 q3 s% I
Gonorrhoea ' x. L5 k8 H4 ?, D( u' b! e! q" r9 w8 }7 M2 ?
Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.' Q4 K6 h) N/ D( L2 q9 e
" ?" T. c9 P; j; K& n lA college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years.( P6 @3 {5 h% e6 Z8 x# q
% M+ i1 F4 Z) y$ EShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.0 \7 y! v# k' o
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"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?" / d7 `) T3 K8 J & ]! X4 _% ~' u/ ^/ C$ V% {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 d, D( ? t; j3 I( l, z0 x( _& X . j' ~1 c: q- O# t; Z. O& q# oEach day would be 15 hours long. 4 W! O. ?" e n2 B8 ~2 I2 f" u8 H
"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. . t% C1 B9 }! E' w% ^" g, Z0 l) J2 _' C0 G5 o) _! r: _
"You get used to it," she smiled., _4 b# Y4 p; q0 g2 w
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"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" G. J; W* R! E, \. Z9 T3 F" X& w
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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."' q7 j+ C$ [2 l7 b4 P% p5 o% s
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There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. ) O9 d, f8 ~+ u- Z6 M( ?' ?$ w- x9 u# H& x9 z8 M
Expensive lawsuits$ p: d% }1 S8 Y( p
/ Z9 c7 X f! v+ _+ B' CIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business.( y4 o* b/ y3 Y6 S
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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.! U% y; }+ T3 {1 n; h
: o* P1 w! d' `0 m3 u3 a: EIt 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. q( o# ]" z m 5 ~1 ~: p; y' u2 cNow, 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. - l: u+ C! H. @4 i9 Z - N9 u! K6 F. G"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" $ J8 A/ U( i2 A1 E9 F6 C " l' X1 l8 l9 ~0 g0 O3 w/ bI struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. , A2 F4 H( Q7 K( E& x$ B- C: B ' @0 ]* {* ~+ o# E2 U( e- rBut 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?8 b! _# n1 @) z, Z9 H
. B! U+ V' f2 K. X, zThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. " M. [% w( q# g1 M5 k2 p! e9 X- x9 E: T7 U4 _
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. # z L- p8 E( \. x2 ~! e# ]* O( |9 Y }
A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. ) o0 E% z% G( F+ |/ S+ p( }4 M6 b' W5 S: E2 N
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" @7 F( y) B, Z" i+ P . j$ ^% x; Z- r, gThat view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene.8 ]0 K( Z6 I/ Z+ j; [7 A/ h
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I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. , P4 J9 I% U' v1 ` " Q5 g L, U! y R. T1 b- h! C0 Q , S/ M* y! z2 {6 E$ \# l0 S% C* I0 q* B4 a, n % o/ M' t; _$ }7 {/ ^- A/ }$ YCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004