| Part of thesexual revolution | |
 The filmBlue Movie helped inaugurate the Golden Age of Porn. | |
| Date | 1969–1984 |
|---|---|
| Location | United States |
| Participants | Porn producers, critics, porn fans, and celebrities |
| Outcome |
|
The term "Golden Age of Porn", or "porno chic", refers to a 15-year period (1969–1984) incommercial American pornography, in which sexually explicit films experienced positive attention from mainstream cinemas, movie critics, and the general public.[1][2] This American period, which subsequently spread internationally,[3] started on June 12, 1969,[4] with the theatricalrelease of the filmBlue Movie directed byAndy Warhol,[5][6][7] and, somewhat later, with the release of the 1970 filmMona the Virgin Nymph produced byBill Osco.[8][9] These films were the firstadult erotic films depicting explicitsex to receive wide theatrical release in theUnited States.[5][6][7][8] Both influenced the making of films such as 1972'sDeep Throat starringLinda Lovelace and directed byGerard Damiano,[10]Behind the Green Door starringMarilyn Chambers and directed by theMitchell brothers,[11] 1973'sThe Devil in Miss Jones also by Damiano, and 1976'sThe Opening of Misty Beethoven byRadley Metzger, the "crown jewel" of the Golden Age, according to award-winning authorToni Bentley.[12][13] According to Andy Warhol, hisBlue Movie film was a major influence in the making ofLast Tango in Paris, an internationally controversial erotic drama film, starringMarlon Brando, and released in 1972, three years afterBlue Movie was shown in theaters.[7]
Following mentions byJohnny Carson on his popularTonight Show andBob Hope on TV as well,[9]Deep Throat achieved major box-office success, despite being rudimentary by mainstream standards. In 1973, the more accomplished, but still low-budget, filmThe Devil in Miss Jones was the seventh most successful film of the year, and was well received by major media, including a favorable review by film criticRoger Ebert.[14] The phenomenon of porn being publicly discussed by celebrities and taken seriously by critics – a development referred to, by Ralph Blumenthal ofThe New York Times, as "porno chic" – began for the first time in modern American culture.[9][15] It became obvious that box-office returns of very low-budget adult erotic films could fund further advances in the technical and production values of porn, allowing it to compete with Hollywood films. There was concern that, left unchecked, the vast profitability of such films would lead to Hollywood being influenced by pornography.[16][17]
Prior to this, thousands of U.S. state and municipal anti-obscenity laws and ordinances held that participating in the creation, distribution, or consumption of obscene films constituted criminal action. Multi-jurisdictional interpretations of obscenity made such films susceptible to prosecution and criminal liability for obscenity, thereby restricting their distribution and profit potential. Freedom in creative license, higher movie budgets and payouts, and a "Hollywood mindset" all contributed to this period.
With the increasing availability ofvideocassette recorders for private viewing in the 1980s, video supplanted film as the preferred distribution medium for pornography, which quickly reverted to being low-budget and openly gratuitous, ending the Golden Age.[18]
Pornographic films were produced in the early 20th century as"stag" movies, intended to be viewed at male gatherings or in brothels. In the United States, social disapproval was so great that men in them sometimes attempted to conceal their face by subterfuge, such as a false mustache (used inA Free Ride) or even being masked.[19] Very few people were ever identified as appearing in such films; and performers were often presumed to have been prostitutes or criminals.Vincent Drucci is said to have performed in a pornographic film made in 1924.[20]Candy Barr, who appeared in the 1950sSmart Alec, was virtually unique among those appearing in stag films, having attained a degree of celebrity through her participation.[21]
In the US, during the late 1960s, there was regular semi-underground production of pornographic films on a modest scale. After answering New York City newspaper advertisements for nude models,Eric Edwards andJamie Gillis, among others, appeared in these films, which were silent black and white 'loops' of low quality, often intended for peep booth viewing in the proliferation ofadult video arcades aroundTimes Square.[22][23][24] The product of the New York City porn industry was distributed nationwide by underworld figureRobert DiBernardo, who commissioned the production of much of the so-called 'Golden Age' era films made in New York City.[25][26] Although not the first adult film to obtain a wide theatrical release in the US, none had achieved a mass audience, and changed public attitude toward pornography, asDeep Throat did.
Blue Movie byAndy Warhol,released in June 1969,[5][6][7] and, more freely,Mona, byBill Osco, released afterwards in August 1970,[8] were the first films depictingexplicit sex to receive wide theatrical distribution in the United States.[5][6][8]Blue Movie was reviewed inVariety.[27] AlthoughBlue Movie involvedsexual intercourse, the film, starringViva andLouis Waldon, included substantial dialogue about theVietnam War and various mundane tasks.[5][6] In comparison, the filmMona differed fromBlue Movie by presenting more of astory plot: Mona (played by Fifi Watson) had promised her mother that she would remain a virgin until her impending marriage.[28] Nonetheless,Blue Movie, besides being a seminal film in the 'Golden Age of Porn', was a major influence, according to Warhol, in the making ofLast Tango in Paris (1972), an internationally controversial erotic drama film, starringMarlon Brando, and released a few years afterBlue Movie was made.[7][29]
Also around this time, in June 1970, the55th Street Playhouse began showingCensorship in Denmark: A New Approach, a film documentary study of pornography, directed byAlex de Renzy.[30] According toVincent Canby, aNew York Times film reviewer, the narrator of the documentary noted that "pornography is more stimulating and cheaper than hormone injections" and "stresses the fact that since the legalization ofpornography in Denmark,sex crimes have decreased."[30] Nonetheless, on September 30, 1970, Assistant District Attorney,Richard Beckler, had the theater manager, Chung Louis, arrested on anobscenity charge, and the film seized as appealing to aprurient interest in sex. The presiding judge, Jack Rosenberg, stated, “[The film] is patently offensive to most Americans because it affronts contemporarycommunity standards relating to the description or representation of sexual matters.”[31]
Nevertheless, afterwards, in October 1970, theHistory of the Blue Movie, anotherfilm documentary study ofpornography directed byAlex de Renzy, was released and featured a compilation of earlyblue movie shorts dating from 1915 to 1970. Film criticRoger Ebert reviewed the film, rated it two-stars (of four), and noted that the narrator tells us "solemnly about the comic artistry of early stag movies".[32]
In December 1971,Boys in the Sand wasreleased and opened in theaters across the United States and around the world,[33] and reviewed byVariety magazine.[34][35] Featuring explicit all-male sex scenes, the film's title is aparodic reference to the gay-themed1968 play byMart Crowley, and the1970 film adaptationThe Boys in the Band.[36] It led to the formation of several gay porn production houses, among the most notable,Falcon Studios andHand In Hand Films.
The 'Golden Age of Porn' continued in 1972 withDeep Throat. It officially premiered at the World Theater[37] in New York City on June 12, 1972, and was advertised inThe New York Times under thebowdlerized titleThroat. AfterJohnny Carson talked about the film on his nationally top-rated TV show[15][38][39][40][41] andBob Hope, as well, mentioned it on TV,[9]Deep Throat became very profitable and a box-office success, according to one of the figures behind the film. In its second year of release,Deep Throat just missedVariety's top 10. However, by then, it was often being shown in a double bill with the most successful of the top three adult erotic films released in the 1972–1973 era,The Devil in Miss Jones, which easily outperformedDeep Throat, while leavingBehind the Green Door trailing in third place.[42]
The 1973 filmThe Devil in Miss Jones was ranked number seven in theVariety list of the top ten highest-grossing pictures of 1973, despite lacking the wide release and professional marketing of Hollywood and having been virtually banned across the country for half the year (see Miller v. California, below).[42] Some critics have described the film as, along withDeep Throat, one of the "two best erotic motion pictures ever made".[43]William Friedkin calledThe Devil in Miss Jones a "great film", partly because it was one of the few adult erotic films with a proper storyline.[44]Roger Ebert referred toThe Devil in Miss Jones as the "best" of the genre he had seen and gave it three-stars (of four).[14] Ebert also suggested the film's box office receipts were inflated as a way oflaundering the profits from illegal activities, although such a method would have required organized crime to be paying taxes on their illegally obtained income.[45][46]
The Devil in Miss Jones was one of the first films to be inducted into theXRCO Hall of Fame.[47] The sound-recording, cinematography, and story-line ofThe Devil in Miss Jones were of a considerably higher quality than any previous porn film. The lead,Georgina Spelvin, who had been in the original Broadway run ofThe Pajama Game, combined vigorous sex with an acting performance some thought as convincing as anything to be seen in a good mainstream production. She had been hired as a caterer, butGerard Damiano, the film director, was impressed with her reading of Miss Jones's dialogue, while auditioning an actor for the non-sex role of 'Abaca'. According toVariety's review, "WithThe Devil in Miss Jones, the hard-core porno feature approaches an art form, one that critics may have a tough time ignoring in the future". The review also described the plot as comparable toJean-Paul Sartre's playNo Exit,[48] and went on to describe the opening scene as, "a sequence so effective it would stand out in any legit theatrical feature."[48] It finished by stating, "Booking a film of this technical quality into a standard sex house is tantamount to throwing it on the trash heap of most current hard-core fare."[38][48][49][50][51][52][53][54]
An influential five-page article inThe New York Times Magazine in 1973 described the phenomenon of porn being publicly discussed by celebrities, and taken seriously by critics, a development referred to, by Ralph Blumenthal ofThe New York Times, as "porno chic".[9][15][55] Some expressed the opinion that pornographic films would continue to extend their access to US theaters, and the mainstream film industry would gravitate toward the influence of porn.[16][17] Several Golden Age films referred to mainstream film titles, including"Alice in Wonderland" (1976),"Flesh Gordon" (1974),"The Opening of Misty Beethoven" (1976) and"Through the Looking Glass" (1976).
Supreme Court's 1973Miller v. California decision redefined obscenity from "utterly without socially redeeming value" to lacks "serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value". Crucially, it made 'contemporarycommunity standards' the criterion, holding that obscenity was not protected by theFirst Amendment; the ruling gave leeway to local judges to seize and destroy prints of films adjudged to violate local community standards. The Miller decision obstructed porn distribution.[38]The Devil in Miss Jones, as well asDeep Throat andBehind the Green Door, were prosecuted successfully during the latter half of 1973; the Supreme Court's Miller decision closed much of America to the exhibition of adult erotic films, and often led to it being banned outright. Porn films would not feature as prominently in the mainstream movie business as they did in the Golden Age,[56] until the emergence of the internet in the 1990s.[57]
In the aftermath ofMiller v. California (1973), with the consequence of fragmenting distribution in the American film market and putting mass box office returns beyond the reach of pornographic films, the brief commercial foray into the production of pornographic films with higher artistic and cinematic production values that occurred between 1972 and 1973 was not sustained. With their relatively modest financial means, a predicted move of organized crime into Hollywood failed to materialize.[17] Pornographic films continued to be a highly profitable business, and thrived throughout the rest of the 1970s, leading to the concept of porn "stars" gaining currency. Ostracism of porn performers meant they almost invariably used pseudonyms. Being outed as having appeared in porn usually put an end to an actor's hope of a mainstream career.[58] An indication of the returns still possible was that a 1976 release,Alice in Wonderland: An X-Rated Musical Comedy, favorably reviewed by film criticRoger Ebert in 1976,[59] reportedly grossed over $90 million globally.[38][60] Some historians assessThe Opening of Misty Beethoven, based on the playPygmalion byGeorge Bernard Shaw (and its derivative,My Fair Lady), and directed byRadley Metzger, as attaining amainstream level in storyline and sets.[61] AuthorToni Bentley called the film the "crown jewel" of the Golden Age.[12][13]
In general, after 1973, adult erotic films emulated mainstream filmmaking storylines and conventions, merely to frame the depictions of sexual activity to prepare an 'artistic merit' defense against possible obscenity charges. The adult film industry remained stuck at the level of 'one day wonders', finished by participants hired for only a single day. The ponderous technology of the time meant filming a simple scene would often take hours due to the need for the camera to be laboriously set up for each shot.[62] Repeated sustained performances might be required on cue at any time over the course of a day, which was an issue for men without the recourse to modernViagra-type drugs.[58][62] Production was concentrated in New York City where organized crime was widely believed to have control over all aspects of the business, and to prevent entry of competitors. Although their budgets were usually very low, a subcultural level of appreciation exists for films of this era, which were produced by a core group of around thirty performers, some of whom had other jobs. Several were actors who could handle dialogue when required. However, some participants scoffed at the idea that what they did qualified as "acting".[9][38][58] By the early 1980s, the rise of home video had led to the end of the era when people went to movie theaters to see sex shot on 35mm film with production values, ultimately culminating with the rise of the internet in the 1990s and beyond.[58]
The 'Golden Age' was a period of interactions between pornography and the contemporaneoussecond wave of feminism.Radical andcultural feminists, along with religious andconservative groups, attacked pornography,[63][64] while other feminists were pro-pornography, such asCamille Paglia, who defined what came to be known assex-positive feminism in her workSexual Personae. Paglia and other sex-positive or pro-pornography feminists accepted porn as part of thesexual revolution with itslibertarian sexual themes, such as exploringbisexuality andswinging, free from government interference. The endorsement of female critics was essential for the credibility of the brief era of "porno chic".[65][66][67][68]
The Golden Age of Porn, between 1969 to 1984, was split intotwo waves: the first wave (the "porno chic" era), between the late 1960s to early 70s; and, the second wave reportedly "between the late 70s and early 80s".[69][70]
Majorpornographic film actors of the first part of the 'Golden Age', the "porno chic" era, included:
At the time of the maturation of the second wave, movies increasingly were being shot on video for home release.
As their popularity rose, so did their control of their careers. John Holmes became the first recurring porn character in the "Johnny Wadd" film series directed byBob Chinn. Lisa De Leeuw was one of the first to sign an exclusive contract with a major adult production company,Vivid Video, and Marilyn Chambers worked in mainstream movies, being one of the first of a small number of crossover porn actors.
Major producers during the first wave of the 'Golden Age', the "Porno Chic" era, include:
With the rise of video, the dominant pornographicfilm studios of the Second Wave period wereVCA Pictures[71] andCaballero Home Video.[72]
Some of the best-knownadult erotic films of the period include:
{{cite book}}:|work= ignored (help)The first explicitly pornographic film with a plot that received a general theatrical release in the U.S. is generally considered to be Mona (Mona the Virgin Nymph)...
The storyline in the filmMona was later borrowed, to some degree, by Gerard Damiano in his filmDeep Throat in 1972.
If the trend continues, these people are going to become a major force in the movie industry within a few years," said Capt. Lawrence Hepburn of the New York Police Department's organized crime division. "The movie business is going to be like the garment business, riddled with Mafia influence.
{{cite book}}:|work= ignored (help)| Pornography |
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