Monday, June 22, 2009

They Shoot Porn Stars, Don't They?


From something I wrote:
In the late 19th century, California state senator Charles Maclay stood atop the Cahuenga Pass that runs between Hollywood and the San Fernando Valley and of the pastoral valley sprawling before him proclaimed: “This is the Garden of Eden!” Nowadays, conquistadores Californianos, grazing cattle, and sheltering Oaks have been replaced by depressed suburban sprawl: “FOR SALE” ranch-style houses and bloated McMansions, “FOR RENT” strip malls stores and closed gas stations, “FOR LEASE” abandoned warehouses and gravel lots. Between these lines, porn conducts its business in condominiums that homeowners rent out by the day to forestall foreclosures, on soundstages where independent contractors have sex to pay the bills, near kidney-shaped backyard pools that serve as backdrops for movies in which everyboy gets laid but no one swims. From this 345-square-mile valley, bound by a series of dramatic mountain ranges, a never-ending deluge of pornography is sent out across the country and around the globe. Welcome to Porn Valley, USA.
That is all.