It’s been 40 long years since the granddaddy of porn movies—the allegedly mafia controlled— DEEP THROAT launched the golden age of big screen porn in the 1970s.
The inexpensively produced DEEP THROAT became the first, bigtime porn film to have both a plot and feature actual character development.
It was promptly declared obscene and rapidly became the most profitable porn flick of all time.
After premiering in the Big Apple in 1972, Gerard Damiano‘s trendsetting hardcore adult film – which asked the question, ‘How far does a girl have to go to untangle her tingle?’ – fanned out to other markets most of which also declared it obscene.
Kansas City was one of those decadent cities that dared to show it.
Judge Joel J. Tyler who first ruled against the notorious film in New York City passed away last November. However his obituary was held until very recently by his daughters. Tyler had called the film "a nadir of decadence…a Sodom and Gomorrah gone wild before the fire."
Meaning it appealed to a prurient interest in sex, was patently offensive and as a whole lacked serious literary, artistic, scientific or political value.
That lack of serious scientific value of course could be disputed when one analyzes DEEP THROAT’s storyline of a woman whose quest for sexual satisfaction is frustrated until she discovers that her clitoris is located in her throat which she then satisfies by continously performing fellatio.
Huge crowds showed up when the film opened here in Kansas City, if memory serves correctly, at the old KIMO theater on Main. From which it was promptly seized by the city’s vice squad.
Here’s where it gets even more hazy.
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I seem to recall that the porn classic also played briefly at the old ASTRO theater inside Union Station which billed itself as the "Home of Heavenly Bodies."
But I can’t swear to it.
Not to stop the public’s great hunger for all those early porn firsts offered by DEEP THROAT, Dickinson Theatres honcho Glen Dickinson promptly moved it across the state line where it continued its play to huge crowds at the KIMO SOUTH in Overland Park of all places (today’s RIO).
Urban legend has it DEEP THROAT to this day remains banned in Kansas City and that one lonely 35 mm print still sits somewhere in the confines of an undisclosed city holding location. Can I prove it? No, but I’ve heard that for years and it makes for a great story.
Fast forward 40 years to 2012 where Hollywood currently has not one but two legit, competing films in production on the subject. Both focusing on DEEP THROAT’s star Linda Lovelace.
The first is INFERNO: A LINDA LOVELACE STORY and was to star Lindsay Lohan. But with all of Ms. Lohan’s distractions of late the producers instead handed the leading role to Swedish meatball Marlin Akerman whose only real exposure so far has been in WATCHMEN. Matt Dillon will co-star as her husband Chuck Traynor.
The second film on the subject is simply called LOVELACE with Amanda Seyfried in the lead and Peter Sarsgaard as her domineering husband.
The bottom line: What goes around—comes around. And to think, it all began with a girl who simply wanted to untangle her tingle.
Thanks for the memory jack!
Old Chelsea Theater / Queens of Burlesque / Deep Throat; ahhh the good ole days when one had a real reason to go downtown.
the music in glazers head goes
bbbbwowm chicka buubububbwowm chicka bububachicka bwowm bwowm chicka chicka wika wika
Miss ya Jack
I was working at a drive in theatre in the Quad Cities when it came out. I was all of 16. The projectionist got me a free pass (didn’t have to show my age) and my 24 year old brother went with me. Damn, that’ll leave an imprint an a young man’s mind. I always offered up that movie as proof that it was possible to do that. With mixed results.
Porn Again
For all of the negative social impact that porn has had, without it, how would anyone have ever learned the latest and greatest techniques for performing oral sex?
New movie out soon. Gloria Squirtirro gets Funky.
oooh look
http://thepiratebay.org/torrent/3616608/Deep_Throat_-_Linda_Lovelace
Jack is not off on this
If God really cared, he/she would allow porn stars to NEVER grow old, please God, do us all a favor.
ps
To this second Marilyn Chambers and Hyapatia Lee are the best of the best of the best.
It a Godly sin to not have allowed them to stay young, sexy and beautiful…F O R E V E R
R.I.P Marilyn…
I still love you Hyapatia…where ever you are..
Hyapathia, you were so fine…..
Ahhhh memories. I had Hyapathia on KY-102’s old ‘Jack Goes to The Movies’ show. And if memory still serves me correctly—which it sometimes doesn’t anymore—she displayed ALL of herself to me during the live broadcast. Despite the distraction I kept my composure.
For newbies ‘Jack Goes To The Movies’ back then was a weekly feature on KY’s ‘Nighttime Magazine’. It was scheduled to run 5 to 7 minutes but often ran waaaay past that and really pissed off the pd’s. Matter of fact I still have a memo from Moffitt giving me hell after one of those extra-long shows.
‘Jack Goes To The Movies’
Yes sir…. yes sirreeeee indeed 🙂
I know it may sound goofy… but I give a man his just due… Cheers Jack
To this day when I see Star Wars …and Vadar goes into to his “Im you Father Speech”… I am reminded of when Jack hinted at that… I didnt know what it meant whwne he said it…but I found out later…. and same thing with “Is Spock really dead?” ….. I am a movie lover… but I never liked sitting in packed theraters… but I wanted to know, keep up on, what was around the bend….. what should I see (sooner or later)… and I used to listen to ‘Jack Goes To The Movies’ quite happily….. ah the good ole days….and also… my love of Hyapatia may go back to Jack talking to her… and how she was performing live (I SAID REALLY???!!!… IM GOING) (AND I DID)…and I went and saw her …two seperate dates in KC…. it was very very nice…. I still have a polaroid…somewhere…. 🙂
ahhhhhh.. the good ole days.
Moffitt??
Jack I mean really who ever paid any attention to what Moffitt said? I know I never did.
Larry just screamed and yelled about who was in charge then went home where his wife corrected him as to who really was in charge.