What’s in a name?

I don’t normally watch TV during the day simply because there usually isn’t anything on and it’s proven to be more of a distraction but today I turned it on and with it on I was flipping the channel and heard someone say they named their daughter Shaneekwa.  This of course caught my attention.   Turns out the show on the Tyra Banks show today was about names and how people who give their kids stupid fucking names like Tyneka, Moneeka, Rayshalona or Diededra.


This was interesting that I would happen to see a show about names when this very subject would arrive in my email box today.  The other day I asked why Teagan Presley was no longer using her full name.  It annoyed me but not as much as people like August Night doing it.  Marketing wise, it just doesn’t make sense to do something like that as it’s much easier to market someone with a first and last name.  Teagan Presley however may be the rare exception to that simply because her first name is so extremely unique as it is.  She told me in her email that she a) owns her own name, full Teagan Presley and not anyone else.  She is on very good terms with Digital Playground and that she is the one who chose to rename herself based on how many other stars are now using the same last name.  She was trying to avoid any confusion.


It’s sort of like Beyonce.  Sure you know she has a last name but if you just say her first name you know who people are talking about just the same.  That isn’t really the case with most other first name actresses like Peaches or Princess.


Porn Stars tend to pick similar names for some reason.  For example there is Carly Parker, Charlie Parker and a Casey Parker. There is a Lacey Love of the Love Twins and a Lacey Luv.  Why the fuck would you do this?  This makes bad marketing sense.  If there is already a girl named Casey Parker, why name yourself Carly Parker?  And even worse if there is already a Devon, why the fuck would you name yourself Devon?  Here is a great example of this very issue.  There is Devon who is a former Vivid Girl and Penthouse Pet and star of movies like Club Devon, Commercial World or Devon Sent, who’s a hot little blonde who’s been in the business some 10 years now.   And then there is some new chick.  Well not “new”, as by the looks of her she’s about a full decade older than the real Devon and a brunette.  She’s in the movie Her First Lesbian Sex 13 and also Housewife Bangers 8 which includes a photo of her on the box cover and you can at least see that the Devon in this movie isn’t THE Devon.  However that is not the case in the other movies she is in and those fans of the real Devon looking to buy a new movie with their favorite porn star will get their hands on this and go WTF?  Where the fuck is Devon?  They might be a little pissed and then return it to where they bought it and then the vendor who sold it will be a little pissed that they have used product they can’t resell but had to fucking take it back because the box said one person starred in it but that person wasn’t in it.  In reality it was some nobody, brunette chick and not the famous porn star Devon.  So now they return it to their wholesaler who is really fucking not happy about this shit and it goes on and on. Now people are more and more hesitate to book girls with similar names because the people buying the movies are saying we won’t stock movies with <insert fake namer here> in it because it costs us to much money in restocks.  So now the girls are getting less and less work because of the issue of their name.  Sure some companies may book them but eventually it will become more of a problem.


So again, who’s really benefiting from this name issue?  The girls who may get less work?  Their managers or booking agents who now get less money because they can’t book them on as many jobs?  How to fix this? USE FUCKING LAST NAMES ALREADY.  JESUS FUCKING CHRIST HOW COMPLICATED IS THIS?


So back to Teagan.  You may remember from earlier she said she stopped using the name Teagan on her own because to many other pornstars were using it.   So how many porn stars really use the name Presley?  Well as it turns out, quite a few.  There is Dragana Presley, Francine Presley, Heather Presley, Jenna Presley (who besides Teagan seems to be most active), Mia Presley, Presley Maddox, Susan Presley, Teagan Presley, Texas Presley, Bob presley, Daisy Presley, Dale Presley, Franklin Presley, Presley Snait and Seth Presley,  That’s just insane.


I think it’s just crazy how many girls don’t stop and think when it comes to picking a name and even more insane that porno companies, booking agents, managers or PR reps don’t take the time out to teach these new girls what it takes to be a porn star and by that I mean the business side of things.  They should teach them about how to pick a good name, why it’s important to have a unique name, how to secure your name as a domain name before others do.

The Making of a Porn Star

Our good friends over at LIB have been discussing what is a porn STAR and the making of one.  Curiously enough I touched on this very subject last June with my porn star vs porn starlet post.  Anyway, the story over at LIB starts off by displaying a photo of the newest Vivid girl named Meggan Mallone with the headline listed below which sort of leads one to believe that the author of the post might not feel this new girl really all that hot.  This keep in mind however was one of the first ever “official” photos given out of the lovely new starlet.


THIS is Vivid’s new star Meggan Mallone?
or so says LIB


But quickly someone pointed out that not all girls were born stars, that some of them have to be made into something bigger than they are or may have been on their own. Case in point (or so the first case made in the LIB story) is Devon.  Devon first came onto the scene in 1998.  Since then she’s been under exclusive for Vivid, Digital Playground, Jill Kelly Productions and even Shane’s World.  Devon has probably held more contracts than any other starlet and every one seems to end badly.


Devon’s first movie was Country Comfort.  This was back when she was with Vivid.  She went on to star in major hits like Island Fever 2 with Tera Patrick and Stormy Daniels as well as Pirates with mega stars like Janine and Jesse Jane.  Long and short of it is, Devon became a porn star and 10 years later her name and face on a box cover still moves product.  That is after all what really defines a “star”, at least in this business.  But this spunky little blonde wasn’t always a star.  Before she was Devon the Porn Star she was a nobody from New Jersey.  Below is a picture of Devon I got from DearDevon.com, before she became a porn star.


Devon


Devon’s still cute, not so bad but a far cry from the mega STAR she would become.  The photo below is what Devon looked like after become a porn star.    You can see by the two images that become a STAR isn’t just about throwing some hot girl in a few movies but it’s about giving her a total and complete makeover and throwing a whole hell of a lot of press her way.


Devon


In the end the newest flock of Vivid girls, Meggan Mallone, Hanna Hilton and Nikki Jayne will be no different than Devon was 10 years prior.  They take a hot girl and make her a star. That’s their job and by the looks of the photos above, some companies do a pretty damn good job at it.


Devon is not the only example of this porn star makeover.  Jenna Jameson is arguably the world’s most famous porn star and well she too had her humble beginnings.  Years ago there was a young, aspiring starlet who wanted to make it big.  She couldn’t wait to be a star and that little blonde was none other than Jenna Jameson.  Sure we all know what she looks like now but how about 10 years ago?


First we had Jenna Jameson Before She Was a Star

Jenna Jameson before she was a famous porn star

Then we had Jenna Jameson The Porn Star

Porn Star Jenna Jameson


And now today we have Jenna Jameson The Hollywood Celebrity

Porn Star Jenna Jameson


Porn Star vs Porn Starlet, yes there is a difference

I was talking to a friend of mine the other day how we often don’t appreciate the fine art of being a star, a porn star. We sort of lump everyone that performs in adult movies as a porn STAR but in reality there are vast differences between a porn star and all the rest. We got into this conversation while talking about the whole Michael Ninn situation and how little respect the owner of Ninn Worx_SR, John L. Gray has for porn stars and basically treats them like dime a dozen strippers.


So really what does define a porn star over a common stripper or aspiring porn starlet?  The first thing I would say would be industry recognition so that would be judged best by award nominations.  But that alone is not enough.  A true porn STAR would be someone who’s name can carry an entire movie and by that I mean sell well.


Say what you will but in the end this business, like others is about MONEY and without it there is no porn industry so we would need no porn stars.  So a true porn star would need to be someone who can make that movie they were just in sell.  Let’s look at some examples ….


First we have the look of a common stripper.  Sure she’s cute and has the potential to be a porn star but in this picture we see her as a stripper. This really is a picture of a Devon before she was famous. It was when she was a stripper, hoping to one day be a porn star and boy what a difference the two photos show.


Devon


Now here is the photo of that same girl once she has become a porn star!  She became a porn STAR not just based on the fact that she starred in adult films or got some award nominations but because she got name recognition and a decently large fan base.  If you made a movie with Devon in it (back when this photo was taken) this shit would sell.


Devon



Next we have Sasha Hollander.  She in fact has been in several pornos including Afro Invasion 6 from Candy Shop.   But she isn’t a porn star.  We will classify her as an aspiring porn star or porn starlet.  Although she has about a year of experience in the industry her name has yet to really draw in the fans.


sasha_hollander

Next we have someone who has been in the industry quite a few years.  She has a large number of titles under her belt, and some award nominations including a few Urban Spice Award nominations.  She is a feature performer on the dance circuit but in reality she’s never really passed the fame threshold.  In fact, she didn’t even get a nod on the hot 100 who featured porn stars that I personally considered so non existent it wasn’t even funny but that sort of brings me back to my point.  Not everyone can be a STAR and in this case we have an industry veteran, who although hot still is not a porn star.


august-night


So next I give you every definition of what a star is.  Some of you may be annoyed by her and others may not find her all that attractive but say what you will, this bitch sells fucking movies that she appears in.  Her name alone makes many fans look twice at the movie simply because she is in the movie.  She is famous both in the industry and in the real world.

Oh wait, you thought I was talking about Tera Patrick didn’t you?  Well no.  Although all that I said may be true about Tera Patrick, I am actually referring to Sunny Leone.  Who besides her large fan base in the porn world also has done quite a bit of mainstream work as well including appearing in the upcoming My Bare Lady 2, a Fox reality show.


porn-star-sunny-leone


Now that I’ve said all of this I want to point out that it’s not a direct insult saying you aren’t a porn star.  It’s just that well the term means more than just some chick who appears in an adult film.  The term porn star means someone who has reached success in the adult film industry and the judge of that includes award nominations and large sales of their DVDs.  You can be the sweetest, most attractive person in the world but it doesn’t make you a STAR … a porn star.  Only the big bucks associated with the sale of your DVDs can do that.

Dyanna Lauren Lives!

Long ago, in a land not so far away there was a hot young beauty named Dyanna Lauren. When I first started in the business in 1996 she was hot shit. Then she took her hot little ass and started directing movies and helping the new young girls like Devon. Then one day she was gone. You never really heard much about her. That is until now. It seems the lovely miss Dyanna Lauren will be making an appearance at the upcoming Penthouse Party being hosted at BOULEVARD3 in Hollywood this Saturday. She’ll be joined by Penthouse pet of the year Erica Ellyson, Daisy Marie, Alexis Love and others.


PENTHOUSE and V2 ENERGY VODKA are doing it again this Saturday June 7th at BOULEVARD3 in Hollywood (6523 Sunset Blvd.90028). Come celebrate Penthouse, the world’s number-one adult brand as they release of two of their latest titles, ‘Liar’s Club’ and ‘Lucky Stiff’ with the hottest wrap party in Hollywood hosting this event is Penthouse Pet of the Year 2008 Erica Ellyson, Penthouse Pet of the Month Daisy Marie and Penthouse Pet Alexis Love. Joining them will be the 1995 Penthouse Pet Dyana Lauren with Pets for Pets and in conjunction with Mia Presley’s fashion show. Also attending will be Angie Savage, Lexi Tyler, Lisa Daniels, Niki Benz, Sunny Lane, Marley Moore, Kayle Paige, Devon Lee. Rebecca Linares. Hunter Bryce, Cassie Young, Darryl Hannah, Marcus London and Niko to mention but a few. After the success of Penthouse last smoking hot party, this is one not to be missed. Join these stars for a night to be remembered. All Industry will have access to the top floor V.I.P and will receive Free Entry until midnight. Doors open at 9:30. Red Carpet will begin at 10 p.m. Fashion Show at 11:15 p.m.

WHAT ABOUT TAWNY?

Fayner Posts: I see on Luke’s site a story about former Vivid and Digital Playground star Devon signing a contract with some new company called Black Kat.

“What I like about her is that she’s very real and she’s extremely open to ideas and suggestions,” said C.J. Foothill, Black Kat owner.

One must ask if the company made a mistake and instead signed Devan of http://www.dv8cultx.com/ who is both real and is smart enough to be open to ideas and suggestions. Devon the porno chick is covered in plastic surgery and wouldn’t know a good idea if it was surgically planted into her brain.

This move makes one wonder of Devon’s new partnership with Tawny Roberts? Tawny most have been really fucked up if it scared away Devon.

DIGITAL PLAYGROUND TEAMS WITH TLA

PHILADELPHIADigital Playground has recently found an Internet ally in TLA Raw.com. DP has chosen TLA to carry more than 120 of its titles on the site’s video streaming service, TLA On-Demand. Eighty will be available today, and the remaining 40 will be added throughout the month.

Customers will be able to see starlets like Jesse Jane, Devon, Teagan, and Tera Patrick in the privacy of their own computer screen in a pay-per-minute, streaming rental format or full film downloads.

In return, TLA On-Demand will give its customers more options for Digital Playground titles.  Normally, TLA On-Demand offers streaming rental for seven-day periods.  Digital Playground streaming, on the other hand, will be offered for two-day, seven-day and 30-day rentals.    

 “I’m happy to partner with TLA, and I look forward to a prosperous relationship,” said Digital Playground founder and director, Joone.

“We are thrilled that Digital Playground chose TLA On-Demand to stream its titles on the Internet,” said site manager Vanessa Keegan.  “We both share a commitment to quality at the highest level, and we are delighted that we can bring Digital Playground’s films and stars to our customers.”

For more information, visit www.tlaondemand.com.