I really have to wonder: are sex and entertainment inexplicably intertwined? Okay, sure, there are some presentations of entertainment that don't involve sex. And some sex is far from entertaining... Yet, the entertainment industry relies on sex A LOT. This week's Sex Stories We Love explores the ways different types of entertainment handle sex.
In this week's Sex Stories We Love, we look at some ways different types of entertainment handle sex.
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Parades are supposed to be happy, joyous events. Big colourful floats. Adoring, waving crowds. They usually celebrate an occasion or holiday, and they really bring people together! One of the biggest parades in the whole world is the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade in New York. It always causes a big crowd in public in addition to the huge amount of people who tune in. And, boy oh boy, did they get an eyeful this year! As part of the festivities, the cast of the Broadway musical The Prom performed their big final number, which happens to include two women kissing. Of course, lots of folks thought it was cool. Some didn't really care. And others? They thought it was some kind of abomination. Yup, 2018 and people still get upset about a queer kiss. Talking about raining on a parade. This was some hope though: Captain Kirk took those haters to task on Twitter. Movies, particularly horror films, have long present problematic and challenging depictions of sex work and sex workers. More often than not, sex workers are usually quick and convenient victims, rarely and barely considered human. Just fodder to advance the plot. So it is interesting to hear that the new film, Cam Girl, depicts a performer as a complex protagonist in a compelling story. A big reason this film is possible is because of writer Isa Mazzei's own experience as a cam performer. Allowing and embracing sex workers are creative individuals who can inform and propel stories to mainstream audiences is the key to changing perceptions. Let's hope for more stereotype and genre-changing films to come. The entertainment industry has been rocked by the countless stories that came out in the wake of the #MeToo movement. The many instances of abuse have finally opened some eyes to very vulnerable nature of performance, particularly those who work in films, music, and television. Some stories do require nudity and simulated sexuality to be properly told. Some performers take that requirement on as a responsibility of their work and accept the role. However, being in such a position does leave people open to even more abuse, from other performers and crew. Fortunately, steps are now being taken to ensure safety of all individuals on set and behind the scenes. This is a positive development that will help heal a troubled industry.
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Chances are, there weren't many safeguards set up as Hugh Hefner filmed his many sexual partners over the years. Or as films and photographs were taken of the guests at his parties and orgies. Sure, Hefner did a bunch of positive things for sexuality. However, his legacy is somewhat tarnished as well. At least, though somewhat out of self-preservation, he did send his collection of sexual memories to a watery grave back in the 90s. People do love a good scandal and surely his stash would have created a significant stir for many and probably would have ruined a lot of lives. RIP. Stand-up comedy is another entertainment genre that's always challenged our ideas and perceptions of sex. Or, well, sex has often been presented in a certain way that is very challenging. We can definitely throw dudes under the bus for that because male comics have long used sex as a crutch to demean and defile everyone, particularly women. Yet, female comedians are taking the world by storm and bringing a new reality of sex-and-political-based comedy to the masses. It will be an uphill battle to overcome the damage done...but let's hope we laugh all along the way. Finally, yup, Lego porn is a thing. Now, that's entertainment!
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Jon Pressick
Jon Pressick is a sex-related media gadabout. For more than 20 years, Jon has been putting sex into our daily conversations at his long-running site SexInWords—as a writer, editor, publisher, sex toy reviewer, radio host, workshop facilitator, event producer and more. These days, he focuses on writing for Kinkly, GetMeGiddy, The Buzz and PinkPlayMags and editing Jason Armstrong's series of Solosexual books. In 2015, Jon edited Cleis Press' Best Sex Writing of the Year, V1 to rave reviews. He's also the winner of the 2010 TNT Favourite Adult Journalist Award and one of Broken Pencil's 50 People and Places We Love past co-host and producer of Sex City. Jon co-produced the queer literary festival Writing Outside the Margins with Xtra Magazine for two years. You can find him on Twitter at @Sexinwords.
