The US' multibillion-dollar pornographic film industry virtually shut itself down this week after producers learned that at least two actors had been infected with the virus that causes AIDS.
Most of the major companies in the adult-movie industry, which turns out about 4,000 videos a year, agreed to halt filming for 60 days so that any of the performers who worked with the infected actors could be tested and re-tested for exposure to the virus, HIV.
Darren James, the first of two performers known to have been infected, may have contracted the virus while shooting a film in Brazil, friends and associates said, and passed it on to at least one of the 12 actresses he worked with in Los Angeles after his return.
"That was kind of a downer," said Jill Kelly, a producer whose production house normally turns out eight films a month. "People think this is something that happens all the time in this industry, but it really doesn't."
James appears to have infected a Canadian actress who is new to the business and goes by the stage name Lara Roxx, industry leaders said. About 65 performers have been identified as having had sex with one of the two actors or with someone else who did. All are being tested.
On Friday, another actress who worked with James was discovered to have such low antibody counts that it was feared that she too might have contracted HIV, Kelly said.
The last recorded HIV infections in the pornography business here were in 1999.
"It hurts everyone's pocket, but we're talking about people's lives," Kelly said of the shutdown, which was initiated by the industry.
Leaders of the industry said the moratorium indicated the seriousness with which they handled health issues.
About 1,200 performers in the adult film industry are monitored once a month for HIV, chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis. Most tests are done at the Adult Industry Medical Health Care Foundation's offices in the San Fernando Valley, where the adult-movie industry is centered, and performers must present evidence of test results to producers before filming.
"They realize this is an occupational hazard," said Sharon Mitchell, a former actress who earned a master's degree in public health and a PhD in human sexuality before co-founding the medical foundation here. Although some production companies require actors to use condoms, she said, most do not.
"Films are picked up for distribution faster if the actors are not wearing condoms, and the talent earn more money for not wearing condoms," Mitchell said. The speed with which the infections were found illustrates "the system did exactly what it's supposed to do," she said.
Although the San Fernando Valley pornography industry is believed to generate up to US$9 billion a year, most of its productions are turned out by just a few dozen companies and producers. In that relatively insular environment, there are not many degrees of separation between most actors.
Jessica Drake, an actress in her mid-20s, said that in her four years in the business she had never worked with a male partner who was not wearing a condom. She said she was tested for sexually transmitted diseases every month.
"We have a horrible situation on our hands right now," Drake said on Friday. "Because of the testing we have right now, I feel it's as close to being contained as possible, but on the off-chance that it isn't, we don't want to put anyone else at risk."
Drake, who began her career as a stripper while attending college, said the pornography business suffered from misconceptions.
"Contrary to what people outside the industry might think," she said, "we really do watch out for one another."
A friend of James who went to his home on Thursday found the actor's wallet, mobile phone and car but no sign of him, said Jim South, an agent who has guided the careers of actors and models in the business for 31 years.
"No one's seen him since Monday. We can't find him. We are all very, very concerned about this," he said.
Skeeter Kerkove, a producer of porn films who has worked with James, said the actor's infection was "just catastrophic" and called him "a total gentleman."
In Chatsworth, in the western San Fernando Valley, Tim Connelly, publisher of the industry trade publication Adult Video News, said 100 to 200 film and video producers would meet next week to discuss the the actors' quarantine.
SPEAKING OUT: After Siranudh Scott’s allegations surfaced, celebrities and public figures took to social media to share their own experiences of sexual misconduct and abuse A high-profile alleged sexual abuse case within a wealthy Thai beer brewing family has prompted a wave of painful accounts from survivors of unconnected abuse in the conservative nation. Siranudh Scott, a member of the billionaire Thai family that founded the ubiquitous Singha beer brand, posted an emotional video this month accusing his elder brother Sunit of repeatedly abusing him when he was a teenager. Sunit, who is in his 30s, later denied the allegations in a video posted online, but Singha parent Boonrawd dismissed him from his executive role with the company on Tuesday last week. “I felt I needed to speak
SEEKING ORDER: Rodrigo Paz said that ‘anyone who wants to destroy the nation will have to deal with this president and the full force of the constitution’ Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz on Wednesday said that the nation was at a “breaking point” after nearly a month of protests that have caused shortages of food, fuel and medicine. Paz, who took office six months ago amid the worst economic crisis there in four decades, is battling a groundswell of fury over his policies. The political capital, La Paz, has been besieged by low-income workers and members of the indigenous majority calling for his resignation. “The country needs order and is reaching breaking point,” the 58-year-old said at a public event in La Paz, renewing his appeal for dialogue. On Tuesday, the Bolivian
‘CROSSING THE LINE’: China’s embassy in Seoul criticized US Forces Korea Commander General Xavier Brunson, asking if his ‘hostile’ remarks were authorized by Washington South Korea and the US are in talks over recent public remarks by the commander of US Forces Korea, Seoul’s presidential office said yesterday, after the comments drew sharp criticism from China. In a recent podcast interview, US Forces Korea Commander General Xavier Brunson described South Korea as “the dagger in the heart of Asia” from China’s east coast, prompting the Chinese embassy in Seoul to say that he had “truly crossed the line.” The interview came amid growing speculation that Washington might seek to expand the role of US Forces Korea in countering the growing regional influence of China, a key
Forecasters in Europe yesterday warned of exceptional heat as record temperatures driven by a “heat dome” push temperatures well above seasonal norms across the continent. The surge follows a record-breaking Monday, with France logging its hottest day in the month of May on record, its weather agency said, and the UK also posting unprecedented highs. A so-called “heat dome” of warm air from northern Africa trapped under a high-pressure system over western Europe is behind the high temperatures not usually seen until high summer. Restrictions on outdoor work were imposed in parts of Italy, beaches in southwest France filled earlier than usual and
RSS