Before I got into the adult industry, over six years ago, what is now the AVN Adult Entertainment Expo was a part of the larger convention that dominates Vegas this time of year, the Consumer Electronics Show.
You'd have to be a real old-timer to remember those days. We're talking the time when the big-haired bleach blonde look was in— think Ginger Lynn, Seka and the legendary Savannah (not Samson). If the AVN show and CES were separate animals, biologists would say that sometime in the '90s was when evolution forked the conventions onto different paths.
But like a vestigial tail, some of the customs of the mostly-hardware CES can still be found at the mostly-software AEE. For example, the day before the official start of CES has always been a press day, where the media's given a sneak peak at the upcoming Next Big Thing. In the case of the AVN show, the first day is a trade day with no fans allowed. Like CES’ media day, the adult industry's trade and fan media show up for an opportune moment to catch the producers, directors and performers that make up the players of the San Fernando Valley's biggest export and to blog/report/carrier pigeon their thoughts on what’s going to be the talk of the show.
My publicist, a former AVN editor, tells me he would try to get as much work done on the trade day when he was with the magazine. Once they let the fans in the next day, getting enough time to say hi to anyone was impossible, let alone an interview. It's that bad.
My dance card—or media card, if you will—is well spoken for. Two interviews with fan sites ( raincoatreviews.com, run by "Snowman" and Michael Saint at pornstarportraits.com), Lux at general-interest porn site fleshbot.com and Skronker from AdultDVDTalk.com's Porn Star Podcasts asking me for a rundown of the year's best mainstream films ("Black Swan," True Grit," "Tron" and "Jackass 3D.").
The mainstream media's caught on to the action as well … or maybe they're just tired of reporting on the next great tablet to knock off the pad-that-shall-not-be-mentioned. In my case, it was a documentary crew working on answering the age-old question about size and its effect on the female kind. For the record, not much.
As for the distributors and storeowners, yes, they're there to talk business, but that doesn't mean they can't also be fans. In fact, much of the press is made up of fans, too. While the civilians storm the gates on the Day 2, Day 1 is when I start to gauge where I am on the grand pecking order of porn performers.
Hollywood has the IMDB's STARmeter. We have the lines at the AVN show. Jenna Jameson, before she gave her infamous "I'll never spread my legs in this business again" speech a few years ago, had lines going around the show. Things are tough now, even in our industry, and just to have a company pick you out to sign for them is a huge compliment and honor in this economy.
I've been lucky to sign for Evil Angel at the AVN shows I've attended and just as lucky to have my lines steadily grow each January. This year, I launched my site ( BobbiStarr.com, NSFW), which will feature all original content starring, directed by and produced by yours truly. A porn star having a website is as unremarkable as getting a Brazilian wax, but I wanted to make sure everything was right when I launched mine. It goes without saying that my choice of pubic grooming was not as involved as this.
When my site launches has been a topic of discussion of my fans and I finally have an answer for them this year. I’ve been passing out cards with my new URL while I sign 8x10s, DVD covers and bodily appendages. It’s a pleasant surprise for my fans and I'm looking forward to giving them a glimpse at my creativity. But my day's not over yet. There's bowling with the Zero Tolerance and New Sensations crews at the Red Rock Lanes and an invite to tonight's big party, the Adam & Eve/Madness Pictures shindig at the Wynn's Tryst.
It'll be a great time, but I'll need to recharge my batteries before things get crazy with the fans.
Check this space in 24 hours—besides, aren't you sick of news about electronics by now?
Keep up with my crazy antics at Bobbistarr.com and follow me on twitter, twitter.com/bobbistarr.
Previous Discussion: