Busy week with busty beauties!!!!
Man, the last week has been rather busy professionally as well as personally.
First off I worked with the “Starlet of the Year” Bobbi Star last week on Hogtied. WOW. One of the most beautiful, sexy intelligent woman around. You DO NOT want to miss my update with her when I post it. This was the first time she was on Hogtied in over a year & she looks better than ever….
Then my GF came in from NY to spend the weekend with J & I. I love when she surprises me like that. It’s been a few months since since I have seen her and would have been a few more till I got over to NY. I have to tell you, giving a tour of my “office” really gets the juices flowing with beautiful woman….. ;-)
Then I thought I was going to have a slow week without any shoots & I get a call late Sunday asking if I could shoot with Darling for Hogtied. Now Darling is one of those woman “without an off switch” as she puts it. Once she starts to orgasm, it never ends till the vibrator dies or your arm gets tired holding it. That’s why I use a mike stand. Well since she needed to get her fix of hogtied orgasms, it has been over a year since her last visit, we made up for it by me making her cum for over 20 mins in just about every scene. This woman can come! She get to a point where everything out of her mouth is babbling and sputter…. :-)
Then, if the past few days wasn’t good enough, I get a message on my way in yesterday asking if I could do a pic up shoot for Device Bondage with Satine Phoenix. There is NO WAY I would say no to this offer/request. I have to admit, I would never leave Hogtied but…. Cyd is in bondage heaven with his setup for Device Bondage. This room has EVERY metal bondage device ever made & then some and if it isn’t there, it can be made on the spot! I put this raven hair beauty into a ladder from hell, a human shaped cage in which I suspend her, & then a full body mummification which I bolted to the floor with chains! Watching a woman orgasm uncontrollably and not being able to move AT ALL is a real rush…. You will want to turn the volume up on all three of these updates…..
Well, gotta get ready for work today!
Public tour of my workspace….
Peter gave a tour to the public last week of the Armory, a 90 year old building which happens to be where I direct hogtied.com.
My work in Germany….
Hey all,
Well some of my photography is in Germany with the Erotic Signature world tour. Below is a shot of some of the viewers and on the walls you can see 4 of my images including “Beach Bound” and “Curves”.
I’m taking the liberty of posting this, knowing Lochai would if he had time
Today I (Catalina) posted a call to action for our CommUNITY. One of the sex bloggers that both Lochai and I work with on BestSexBloggers.com is in that special gap that most Americans find themselves in - overemployed and underinsured - and is fighting Stage IV Cervical Cancer. However, she’s at the point where she’s being denied treatment and medicine because of bills. Yes, I know… we could have an entire discussion about how messed up that is, but it’s true and that’s the point. It’s true and because it’s true, her chances of watching her children grow up and growing old with her husband just fell exponentially.
My Friend, Madison Young, Will Be In Minneapolis This Weekend
Madison Young by Lydia Daniller
San Francisco, CA - Madison Young, the kinky girl next door, will be in Minneapolis this weekend at the Smitten Kitten on Saturday and Sunday at 7:00pm. Bear witness to this revolutionary porn star sharing her secrets on how to create queer feminist bdsm porn on Saturday, and a reading from her forthcoming memoirs, The Tail of a Bondage Model on Sunday.
Have you ever wanted to dabble in creating your own porn for you and your lover, for commercial distribution, for your own kinky pleasures? Learn how from the perspective of porn producer, director and performer and activist extraordinaire Madison Young. Those in attendance will be able to ask burning questions about the LA porn scene as well as the San Francisco queer art and porn world. Madison will be also showing clips from her upcoming movie releases.
Madison Young will be available for autographs and questions at both events and will be bringing with her limited addition Madison Young’s Erotic Breast Self Exam Posters.
Both events will be well attended. Please RSVP by calling 612-721-6088.
The Smitten Kitten is located at 3010 Lyndale Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55408
http://www.smittenkittenonline.com.
For more information, please contact Brian Gross, BSG PR, (818) 340-4422. Email: brian@Bsgpr.com.
About Madison Young:
Madison Young is an international award-winning bondage model and pornstar. Ms. Young has been awarded “Best SM Suspension Model” by Bishop Awards and was the submissive star of last year’s AVN Award-winning BDSM video. She has been directing BDSM and erotic films since 2005 and has won great acclaim for her video line, Madison Bound Productions. Madison Bound Productions has been awarded the 2008 Feminist Porn Awards and has been gaining attention from the erotic film festival circuit.
According to Young, “Our high quality productions, girl-next-door appeal, and hardcore queer sex in a bright, sex-positive atmosphere is what our fans are drawn to. It’s porn that couples watch together, appealing to both a straight/queer and kinky/vanilla audience.” Ms Young intends on revolutionizing the porn industry one wanker at a time with hot, aggressive queer and kinky rough sex. When Madison isn’t performing and directing, she is running her own non-profit feminist arts organization, Femina Potens Art Gallery (www.feminapotens.org) , which has produced over 200 LGBT art events in the last four years.
Tuesdays….
Hmmmmmmm Pretty good days I might add. This one was eventful, I did an on-line radio interview with the very hot Laura B., The G*Spot Host of Hotmix106.com The interview will go live @ 7:oo @ http://hotmix106.com and I will have an MP3 of it here for all to listen to. We talk about working for Kink.com and about how to be a model for all of our sites, especially mine, Hogtied.com
So, listen in!
I like Mondays….
Well some Mondays. Mondays that I have a shoot with a beautiful new model named Bella Rossi for a Casting Couch shoot with Peter as co-top and Mondays that I get my new rope from Twisted Monk. Yep! I am officially here! This is the letter I just sent to Monk which sums it all up…
Monk,
I just want to say thank you. About an hour after I get to my desk here at the Armory yesterday morning I get an email from our order dept. that my ropes have arrived. Now I have known & used your ropes for years but to see my EPA Monica with a hugh shit eating grin on her face as she carries the box of 4 strand Bavarian Blonde over to me is better than a Jew on Christmas morning with gifts under their friends tree! BONUS! I remember introducing Matt to your 4 strand rope a few years back at an event & to my delight when I get here to start my new job, I find Kink has been using it ever since. Now I feel official, it was great being here, saying I am director/webmaster, doing interviews & the stuff new people to an established company do but now, NOW I am really here! I have my very own, official set of Hogtied.com 4 strand rope, direct from the Abby to the Armory. Now to REALLY get to work!
The personal card was also a wonderful touch…..
L-
Now I have to open my ropes and take in the feel & smell of them getting ready for the shoot I have with Carrie the sexy Yoga Instructor on Wednesday…. I think I will start to like Wednesdays too……
L-
Folsom coverage on Behindkink.com
Hey all,
Well if you were not able to make it to Folsom this year, Behindkink.com was there for you! Check out the festivities in the latest Behindkink clip…
Yes, that is Rebecca Wilcox, author of The Human Pony by Greenery press and her Pony, Beauty (aka Submissann).
I think there is also some footage of me rigging Calico…
Lochai
Shibaricon registration now open!
Hello Rope Lovers,
The team has been working very hard & registration for ShibariCon 2009 is officially open!
The BEST rope CommUNITY in the world!
ShibariCon 2009
May 22-25, 2009
Chicago, IL USA
4 DAYS OF CLASSES
Whether you are a novice or advanced rigger ShibariCon has something
for you! We will offer over 80 classes by the best instructors
around including Mark Yu, Mike West, Jimi Tatu, Lee Harrington,
DogTrainer1974, Lochai, Mark of DV8 House, Sir
C, Dov and too many more to list. Check http://www.shibaricon.com
for updates in the coming months.
3 NIGHTS OF PLAY
Practice your newly learned rope skills in our fully-equipped play
space until 3:00am for 3 consecutive nights!
SHOP!
ShibariCon will have a great selection of vendors selling all sorts
of kinky goodies including rope, toys, corsets, shoes and much, much more!
15% DISCOUNT IF YOU REGISTER NOW!
ShibariCon is offering a 15% discount off of our early registration
price of $155 through the end of October! That means you can
register now for only $132.00! Registration will be limited so this
is a great time to reserve your place. Register here:
http://www.shibaricon.com/registration/register.php The link should
be up on the site within the week.
Please join us for what will be a wonderful weekend of education, fun
& friendship.
Shots from Folsom…
Hey all…
Well here are some shots from the Kink.com booth at Folsom that some people shot & posted on the forums page of Hogtied.com of my rigging…. Enjoy!
The event was a blast but man was it packed! Ended up using the Kink booth as a safe getaway from the crowds…
Sarah Jane Ceylon And Princess Donna In Public Disgrace’s Premiere Shoot
Kink.com’s new site, Public Disgrace (publicdisgrace.com), run by the truly beautiful Princess Donna is on the edge of edge play. In their first shoot, they enact a rape fantasy. Note the bold type, so lighten up, it’s a prenegotiated fantasy scene.
Sarah Jane Ceylon is abducted by a group of hooded men, and she’s instantly objectified, made to suck cock, take clothespin zippers all over her body, and just dehumanized and made into a fuck toy. Here’s the fun part, once she’s freed of all necessity or expectation of resistance, her inner slut escapes as she’s gangbanged, roughly, until she get a facefull of delicious cum. Princess Donna (one of my favorite switches, btw) runs the show, fingering Sarah Jane Ceylon roughly until she can’t help but cum.
Take a good look at the last picture of the quad set below — see the smiles? It was all just fun and play, so enjoy the fantasy.
I like Public Disgrace, a lot. It’s something new. It’s looking good for the truly kinky masses! Enjoy.
~ Catalina
Check Out Kink.com’s New Site: Public Disgrace
SAN FRANCISCO (October 1, 2008) – Streetcorner bondage, back-alley sex and blatant exhibitionism are the order of the day at PublicDisgrace.com, a new site launched today by San Francisco fetish erotica studio Kink.com. Helmed by WiredPussy.com director and prolific star Princess Donna, the site features gorgeous women being tied up, humiliated and fucked in public, particularly on city streets throughout Europe.
“I am so happy to be launching PublicDisgrace.com,” said Princess Donna. “Public sex has always been a fetish of mine, and it is so exciting to finally share it with the world! I strongly believe that I have created some of the best public sex and bondage that the internet has ever seen, and I am confident that the site will get even better with time.”
PublicDisgrace.com has been launched with eight updates live, including a scorching initial offering with French star Cecilia Vega and Steve Holmes that was previewed at the site. Another shoot live on launch has Russian newcomer Olga Cabaeva servicing a parking attendant and then engaging in anal sex on a city street with a large crowd of approving spectators. A third episode features gorgeous Romanian newcomer Jennifer Love gagged, leashed and paraded through the streets on her hands and knees to be gangbanged by three men.
While the site focuses on streetcorner sex, it also explores more intimate surroundings, with gangbang episodes set in nightclubs and semi-private parties where female submissives find themselves sexually used and humiliated by a group of men before invited audiences. Such episodes at PublicDisgrace.com include group sex scenes with Bobbi Starr, Sarah Jane Ceylon, Devaun, and Lorelei Lee.
“The site explores the shame and humiliation a girl feels when she is tied up, exposed and fucked in a public setting,” said Donna last month when the site was announced. “It’ll appeal to both the voyeur and the exhibitionist. It’s totally hot, totally real, and unbelievably fun to shoot.”
For more information about PublicDisgrace.com, email the Public Relations Manager at thomas@kink.com. Webmasters interested in promoting Kink.com content, including PublicDisgrace.com, can visit www.KinkyDollars.com or email the Kink.com affiliate manager at terry@kink.com.
ABOUT KINK.COM: San Francisco erotica studio Kink.com provides authentic fetish entertainment that seeks to demystify alternative sexualities and inspire sexual adventurers. Since the launch of its first site, Hogtied.com, in 1997, Kink.com has developed a network of premium adult sites that now operate from studios in the San Francisco Armory, a decommissioned National Guard facility with a wide variety of sets. Kink.com also operates a free documentary site at BehindKink.com and the leading fetish affiliate network, KinkyDollars.com.
Madison Young, Rope & Dave Navarro
Last night was rather interesting. I did a live rope performance for/with my good friend Madison Young at her gallery Femina Potens. Dave Navarro, for his IFC TV show, came to the the gallery & made it a sound stage for the night as 3 blood related performances were put on for him and filmed for the show. I won’t go into detail because that would spoil the show once it airs next June but let just say that it involved a very sexy readhead, water, earth, rope, suspension, knives and blood, a lot of blood.
So… as soon as I get details of when the show will air, I will pass them along!
First Official Shoot!
Here I sit at my desk after doing my first official shoot as Director/Webmaster of Hogtied.com. Wonderful start! My PA & videographer are to kill for, Monica & Simone and my model, the ever beautiful Christina Carter was a pure pleasure to work with..
Well I have some editing to get to so I will leave you with one thought.
I LOVE THIS JOB
Lochai
First day at the best job a rigger can wish for….
Let me just say WOW… great people & great work. I will have to fill you all in later but I am already loving this work. Today is all getting used to my programs, computer & learning the back end aspects of running Hogtied.com. The easy part is the rigging. Wed. I work with Christina Carter… :-)
Yesterday I was at Folsom on the Kink.com stage & it was one of the best ways to see all the antic of the faire. What a way to to be introduced to San Francisco! The crowds were 30 people thick watching me rig Calico & Lorelei Lee. I also did a wonderful scene on the sidewalk with Kari which ended up being my favorite.
Well, gotta nuther meeting to go to!
Catalina Interviews Kink.com CEO Peter Acworth on CatalinaLoves.com
Kink.com CEO Peter Acworth
Recently I [Catalina] interviewed Kink.com CEO Peter Acworth. I think the man is an absolutely kinky genius and I have a huge crush on him. I watched the documentary on BehindKink.com and I read an extensive article written about my favorite CEO in the New York Times and then I came up with a few questions of my own:
You’ve mentioned that acquiring the Armory was like your idea of a bondage fantasy neverneverland, where the rules of normal society are overridden by the rules of the BDSM society. After getting all unpacked and moved in, does it still feel like a fantasy neverneverland? Have you found it restraining or confining that it is a historical site?
The Armory feels like a dream come true. Bondage literature such as “The Story of O”, “Exit to Eden”, and the “Sleeping Beauty” series by Anne Rice always seem to revolve around a central place where the BDSM rules of dominance and submission preside. This space is usually depicted as a castle, and so when we were looking to relocate Kink.com’s central offices, the fact that there was an affordable castle that had been vacant for 30 years in the middle of fetish capital San Francisco felt like nothing less than divine intervention.
I think people are somewhat surprised by how ‘normal’ things seem. We have sexual harassment training, executive strategic retreats, benefits like 401K, annual reviews and all-hands presentations just like any company our size. So if you were to come to see us work at the Armory, you might be disappointed by a somewhat corporate feel to the place. However, as we build our various sets, the space is fast becoming an adult playground. This is especially true in the basement which is becoming a myriad of various dungeons and fantasy rooms.
I am very excited by our 4th floor development. This will be a space that we are calling “Roissy” (from the Story of O), and it will be a 24×7 live reality show set in the Edwardian era, which was a period of decadence following the oppressive reign of Queen Victoria. The idea is to reproduce the ‘Great House’ structure depicted in films like “Remains of the Day” where masters, mistresses and servants live in a tightly regimented regime. We will invite BDSM lifestyle players to interact in this world, and interact with our customers in this perpetual interactive live show.
The Armory dates from exactly this Edwardian era, so the historical nature of the Armory does nothing but add to the mystique surrounding this idea. The Armory is not only Kink.com’s home – it also serves as a wonderful branding tool.
In the documentary on BehindKink.com, a lot of the people who work at Kink.com mention that they are inspired to be as creative as they can be and most mention having learned more on the job than they could have ever imagined. Do you see Kink.com as a revolutionary company where people actually like to go to work? Was this part of your plan from the beginning, to create an environment where people were encouraged to grow, think, and use their educations?
I think that we provide a work environment which stands by our mission statement and is very all inclusive. For instance, its absolutely fine to be gay, transgendered, or to paint your hair red or have lots of tattoos, and to really be who you are. I can’t imagine life any differently, and I sometimes get a rude awakening when friends remind about life inside investment banks, where, heaven forbid, I once considered working.
We also feel passionately that a product line should come from an individual’s actual fantasies. Since we have an open policy about new product proposals, this encourages employees to be creative and, necessarily, to be open about their sexualities. This atmosphere sometimes creates some challenges for our HR team, but I think it is very healthy and motivating.
You’ve said that you essentially saw a good idea and ripped it off - the idea to sell porn on the internet from a firefighter and the name Hogtied from the magazine Hogtie. It seems to me that a lot of other companies are doing the same to Kink.com, at least trying to rip off the Kink.com model. How do you feel about that?
I find it flattering and it doesn’t bother me (indeed, how could it? That would certainly be hypocritical of me). Companies have and will copy our basic business model and I hope they continue to do so. The fact is that all people who produce quality BDSM material generally share a common interest in the subject matter. I can’t speak for everyone in the industry, but I feel an affinity to others in the business. Additionally, a prevalence of good BDSM material indicates a general recognition and acceptance that the BDSM fantasies are healthy, common, and absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. I.e. I feel that more successful companies like kink.com serve to further demystify alternative sexualities which, in turn, serves all of us.
On a business level, I think we are sufficiently ahead of the competition to be the ‘place to watch’ for innovation for the next decade. While companies may copy our basic style of producing content, I think we are ahead of the game with our fresh content lines and our ideas for community and interactive live shows, such as Roissy.
Obviously Hogtied.com is your “baby” and though you’ve had several guest directors, really it’s been you and then Matt as the visionaries. How do you see Lochai fitting into your vision for Hogtied.com? Did you choose him in part because you appreciate the aesthetic of his rope bondage? It seems to me that you are incorporating the artistic side of bondage with the hardcore domination reputation of Hogtied.com. How did you come to your decision?
I interviewed Lochai for a different project named “Bondage Trials” about 4 years ago. At that time I was very impressed with his ropework and sense of detail and aesthetic. I am extremely pleased that he has chosen to join us to take on Hogtied.com! The beauty of BDSM is that everyone has a different style. Lochai is a fabulously talented rigger with a unique style, and I think he will be another great addition to the team.
How has Kink weathered the 2257 maelstrom, and do you think a change in administration will loosen things up?
Like many companies, we were caught up in the frenzy of panic that engulfed the industry during the Bush Administration. There was a period when the 2257 law was changing so frequently that it was difficult to keep up, and we had several staff members doing nothing but working on compliance.
Luckily, we had always been diligent and kept our records clean, and we are large enough to have a properly indexed database which could keep up with the changes in the law. It was very sad to see some BDSM websites close down because the burden of record keeping was too onerous. Recently though, the 2257 law has been deemed unconstitutional by the 6th circuit. My hope is that the law will get rewritten in a format which is sensible, and that there will be reasonable regulation to ensure minors are not depicted without having a chilling effect on free speech.
Thank you, Peter, for making some time for me! Best of luck to Lochai, who begins his new job today at Hogtied.com.
The San Francisco Bay Guardian Interviews Peter Acworth
Kink dreams
Peter Acworth’s fetish porn empire takes over the San Francisco Armory to create a new kind of dot-com
Peter Acworth and Princess Donna
Photo by Pat Mazzera
[Rigging by Lochai & Princess Donna]
When it comes to BDSM porn peddlers Kink.com, apparently size does matter. At least, that’s how it seems now that the steamy studio has purchased the 200,000-square-foot San Francisco Armory. Suddenly, everyone wants to know: What’s the carnal concern going to do with all that space?
The answers are more diverse and ambitious than one might expect — ranging from creating a racy reality show to starting a perfectly PG-13 public community center. And thanks to the lascivious and lucrative imagination of Kink.com founder Peter Acworth, it might all be possible.
CONCEPTION AND CONTROVERSY
Though Kink.com has been producing independent niche fetish sites like Hogtied.com, WiredPussy.com, and FuckingMachines.com for the Folsom Street Fair crowd for more than 10 years — first from Acworth’s rented Marina District apartment and then from the Porn Palace on Fifth and Mission streets — it wasn’t until Acworth purchased the historical landmark in the Mission District, and was met with opposition, that the provocative porn empire really made it onto the public’s radar screen.
The armory, which was a training ground for the National Guard prior to its decommissioning 30 years ago, has been the center of controversy before. But that was mostly in-fighting between potential developers. Stringent zoning requirements and necessary but cost-prohibitive renovations discouraged buyers, leaving the Moorish behemoth on 14th and Mission streets vacant and outside public scrutiny.
But everything changed when Acworth got involved. His intended commercial use, for shooting scenes for all of Kink’s Web sites, complied with planning codes. And he didn’t need to do expensive renovations before he could start using, and profiting from, the building: what could be more perfect for bondage shoots or movies about women fucking machines than dungeons in disrepair? The only thing more ideal than the structure itself, according to Acworth, was its location in the heart of America’s most fetish-friendly city. “You couldn’t have dreamt up a more perfect place than a castle in the middle of San Francisco,” says Acworth, who purchased the armory for $14.5 million in 2007 and started operations in January of this year. “It’s like divine intervention.”
Acworth had to contend with a different kind of intervention — from a neighborhood group called the Mission Armory Community Collective, which opposed Kink.com as a potential neighbor. Though careful not to condemn porn per se, the group said it feared that the company’s presence in an already troubled neighborhood would introduce more problems. Even the Mayor’s Office, potentially bending to pressure, issued the following statement: “While not wanting to be prudish, the fact that kink.com will be located in the proximity to a number of schools give [sic] us pause.”
But the sale quietly went through, and even as protesters stood outside, Kink was already filming new scenes for its subscription sites. Since then, the protests have largely died down. As the company removed graffiti from the brick facade of the armory, fixed windows, and generally improved the appearance of its stretch of Mission Street, neighbors began stopping by to congratulate Acworth — or to ask for a tour. (Incidentally, the public is invited to tour the armory on second Fridays. E-mail info@kink.com for an appointment.)
On a September afternoon, the building — mostly nondescript from the sidewalk except for the castlelike rooftop — seems quiet and innocuous. Three boys skateboard on the steps outside, stopping to talk to a woman walking her dog. The only people entering the doors, which are always locked and manned by a security guard, look as though they could’ve been going to the grocery store or the gym, wearing shorts, T-shirts, and sandals. In fact, on first glance inside, the place is almost disappointingly tame.
Acworth himself hardly looks like a porn kingpin. He’s sweetly attractive in an unmenacing, mainstream way, with an easy smile and casual style. His office, a room near the entrance to the armory, is large and comfortable, but bears no hint of his livelihood save for one tasteful bondage statue. Next to his desk are water and food bowls for the armory’s two live-in cats: Rudy and Lala. His assistant, a young girl in a minidress, leggings, and hoop earrings, looks like she could be working at American Apparel. Even the desktop pattern on Acworth’s Dell computer screen is vanilla: rolling green hills beneath a blue, blue sky. This sense of normalcy seems to be Kink’s main point.
Van Darkholme, Peter Acworth, and Princess Donna in the Armory boiler room.
Photo by Pat Mazzera
[Rigging by Lochai]
Acworth remembers getting turned on as a child in England by scenes in movies where women were tied up — and wondering if this signaled violent tendencies within himself. It wasn’t until adolescence that he discovered the relief (and release) of bondage porn. At the same time, he was already a burgeoning entrepreneur, a child who grew vegetables behind his house and tried to sell them to his parents. By the time he read a magazine article about a man making millions from Internet porn, as a Wall Street–bound doctoral student in a Columbia University finance program, it seemed almost inevitable that Acworth would find a way to marry his two lifelong interests: bondage and business. When he founded Kink.com in 1997, the idea was not only to jump on the dot-com money train, but also to demystify and promote fetish porn as an acceptable form of sexual stimulation.
Now, each of Kink.com’s Web sites is geared toward a particular fetish, run by a Webmaster who’s not only an expert on that particular kink but also has an interest in it, just as Acworth started Hogtied.com, which features women tied up, and Fuckingmachines.com, which showcases women having sex with machinery, because that’s what turned him on. These Webmasters act as director, producer, human resources manager, and often participant as well as Web developer.
“It’s hard to guess what people want,” he explains, pointing out that it’s easier to make what you know.
Which means models aren’t actors. Just as directors are expected to be interested in the fetish they’re promoting, so are participants expected to enjoy the scenes they’re in. This isn’t about fake-breasted women pretending to like a face full of come. In fact, Acworth has had trouble in the past working with models from Los Angeles, trying to get them not to act. Kink’s sites feature actual people enjoying a private play party that just happens to be taped. Videos are intimate, personal, and disarmingly real — models talk to each other before, during, and after their sessions, just the way they would in their own bedrooms. They’re encouraged to smile on camera. Whether it’s shocking a woman with electric instruments or forcing a man to eat from a dog bowl, you get the sense that these people would be playing out these scenarios anyway — Kink just provides a salary, benefits, and a really nice location.
THE KINK CASTLE
As for the building itself, Kink has just begun to scratch the surface of its possibilities. The first floor, perhaps the most institutional-looking of the four, houses offices for Acworth, the marketing team, the production team, and the break room, which features a pool table, a disco ball, an espresso machine, a drum set, and a DJ booth (all for parties as well as employee use). Directly opposite the front doors is the Drill Court, a monstrous space that looks something like an airplane hangar crossed with a European train station. This is the space Acworth hopes will become the Mission Armory Community Center (which would unintentionally bear the same acronym as one of the groups that protested Kink.com’s purchase of the armory), a public venue available for sporting events, educational seminars, film festivals, and someday maybe a Folsom Street Fair party. According to MACC coordinator David Klein, a developer who has no affiliation with Kink.com, that dream is a long way off — with plenty of renovations, public meetings, and applications standing between here and there. In the meantime, the Drill Court serves as an occasional event site (such as for the Mission Bazaar craft fair earlier this year) and an employee parking lot. Currently, the most public location is the Ultimate Surrender room, where small numbers of members are invited to sit in bleachers and watch women wrestle each other to the ground on large mats — the winner, of course, gets to fuck the loser.
The armory’s basement is by far the most interesting area. “It’s a wonderland of sets,” says Acworth, and it’s hard to argue with him. Some rooms seem perfect as is, such as a former gymnasium whose floor has long since been removed to reveal gothic-looking structural planks punctuated by intimidating bolts. All it took was adding a platform in the center of the expansive room and a pulley above it to make it a perfect bondage set. Next door is an army-style communal bathroom, another favorite as-is set. Other rooms on this floor are a completely furnished 1970s New York loft; a padded cell with an observation room connected by a one-way mirror; a former hermetically sealed gunpowder room that’s been outfitted with all sorts of rings, hooks, and rope pulleys; an office connected by a cage to the “Gimp Room,” where ceiling chains hang like some kind of Donkey Kong homage; a hallway storage room chock-full of expected (whips, chains, clamps) and unexpected (mops, long-handled brushes with hard bristles, small boxes with smaller holes in them) toys; the large prop room, where human-shaped cages, monstrous doghouses, and machines like the back breaker and water-torture wheel are kept; the laundry room, where shelves are lined with douches, enemas, latex gloves, and sanitized sex toys; and the former shooting range, which has a Pirates of the Caribbean feel, complete with a river running through it.
And that’s just the start of it. Just when you think every nook and cranny has been used — including an oddly shaped corner off the production gallery that looks like a 19th-century psychiatric ward — you’ll discover a hallway that’s virtually untouched. Hardly any construction has been done on the third or fourth floors, including the officers’ quarters, which occupy one turret. Even the roof, with its castle-y details and flags, seems like a perfect potential shooting location.
Kink’s porn palace, the San Francisco Armory. Photo by Pat Mazzera
Kink already has plans for several new sets: the military clean room, a stark ’50s-era space, slated for FuckingMachines; an abandoned electrical equipment room for WiredPussy, where dead vintage electrical equipment will line the walls; an Alcatraz-esque prison gallery for BoundGods.com; and an expanded DeviceBondage.com room, which will be clad with cultured stone to look like the basement of an old castle.
Reps won’t say just how much it costs to maintain the armory or to shoot a scene, but Acworth told 7×7 magazine last year that profits were upward of $16 million. And spokesperson Thomas Roche says that the cost of a shoot, including sets, makeup, wardrobe, video and still photo staff, and editing, would be prohibitive if Kink weren’t doing lots of them. Luckily, the armory allows for a volume of shoots that makes it feasible — sometimes four or five in a single day. And it’s good variety for viewers too, who get used to seeing the same sets over and over in various porn films — even ones by different companies.
FLIRTING WITH THE FUTURE
Perhaps the most advantageous thing about moving into the armory, though, has been the increased possibilities for Kink’s growth. With so much space, an almost infinite number of sets can be created without tearing any old ones down. Since multiple shoots can go on at once, multiple sites can be developed and maintained. And buying the building has started attracting directors, models, and Web developers on a scale Acworth hasn’t seen before.
“It was initially difficult to find people,” says Acworth, who conjectures that it’s not just the publicity from the building but also the exciting prospect of working there that’s turned the tide. “Now they’ve started to approach us.”
One of those who approached Acworth was Van Darkholme, a Shibari rope bondage expert, a porn performer, and the proprietor of fetish film studio Muscle Bound Productions, who was living in LA. Darkholme saw an article about Acworth and the armory in a magazine and contacted him immediately, hoping to get involved. The Vietnam-born Darkholme, who seems almost starstruck by Acworth’s genius, was shocked not only to hear back from Acworth himself, but to be offered a job at the helm of Kink’s new gay bondage site: BoundGods.com.
“What Peter does is so avant-garde and so fresh, I just wanted to come in and mop the floor,” says Darkholme, who moved to San Francisco in April and launched his new site Aug. 1.
Darkholme’s BoundGods takes Kink’s principles of intimate, conversational, playful, and mutually enjoyable interactions and applies them to his particular brand of gay sexuality: lean, muscled studs. In one video, a man is tied up in the army-style bathroom at the armory while another fucks him with a large black dildo. In a similar scene, anal beads are gradually pulled from the bound, naked man — much to both participants’ obvious pleasure (though interestingly, neither are hard). Darkholme makes appearances in many of the videos, often as the dominant character — a striking contrast to the camo-shorts-and-T-shirt-wearing, somewhat shy individual I interview at the armory.
He’s clearly proud of the product, not only because it’s well produced but also because there’s almost no competition in the gay market.
“I hate to generalize, but most of what I see out there falls into this trap of gay men putting on leather and grunting and groaning,” says Darkholme. “It’s visual, but doesn’t have as much dialogue. What we do is very real and very intimate, with a realness in what they’re saying.”
The site marks Kink’s first serious foray into the gay market — a step the company couldn’t quite take while limited by space and resources at the Porn Palace. But set builders are already hard at work constructing an Alcatraz-esque prison gallery for new Boundgods shoots. And the creation of a sub-brand, KinkMen.com, promises more gay-focused fetish sites to come. (Incidentally, Kink tried a gay site several years ago with Butt Machine Boys, which is still online at www.buttmachineboys.com but not listed on the main Web site. Acworth said the site never took off, partly because of lack of budget and partly because, unlike Darkholme, the director wasn’t speaking to his personal interests.)
For now, though, Darkholme has his hands full with BoundGods. His immediate goal is to find and train 12 new dommes for the Web site — a tougher feat than might be expected. “Femme dommes can dish it out and can really take it,” he says. “There’s a small percentage of men that can do that.” In fact, during some of his first shoots, filmed in Budapest, his bevy of gay models and porn stars were shocked when Darkholme finally opened up his bag of toys.
“They looked at me like the circus had come to town, or like I was going to make one of the Saw movies. Their hands were shaking,” he says.
So when Kink sets up its demonstration booth at Folsom Street Fair (Sept. 28, www.folsomstreetfair.com), Darkholme will have two purposes: recruiting talent (both people he can train and experts who have something to teach him) and publicizing his new brand.
“I want to say, ‘We’re here, we’re queer, we want to be part of your community!’” he laughs.
But Darkholme won’t be alone at his booth. Among other popular Kink stars like Isis Love, new director Lochai, expert rigger Lew Rubens, and porn stars LaCherry Spice and Natassia Dream will be WiredPussy.com creator Princess Donna, who’s launching her new pet product, PublicDisgrace.com, next month. The site will feature blatant public bondage, punishment, erotic humiliation, and explicit sex between models and, potentially, passersby.
The veteran domme is filming most scenes in Europe, where attitudes (and therefore laws) about sex are more lax. In fact, while shooting a scene on a public street in Berlin, the crew was stopped by a couple of motorcycle cops who said only, “If you cause an accident, you’ll be liable,” before going on their way. In the shoot, a half-naked girl is tied to a park bench, made to carry a dog bowl while on a leash, fondled by her female master, and fucked by a man.
“It’s the adrenaline rush of potentially getting caught,” says Acworth, explaining the site’s appeal and recipe for success. The site will also feature a slew of new faces. Plus, it’s the perfect time of year to launch a new fetish site. “Sales pick up when the kids go back to school,” Acworth says.
There also plenty of developments in the works that don’t follow the start-a-new-fetish-site model. For starters, Kink is moving to a Flash format, where the delay is only 2 seconds instead of 20. The new technology means that users can actively participate in scenes via chat rooms, where they can give instructions to dommes and watch their demands be carried out. Members of Kink.com can already do this on DeviceBondage.com, but Acworth hopes to switch to a per-minute billing system so even more viewers can participate. At the moment, the site is structured so you must be a member of a particular site in order to watch videos; Acworth would like to move to a single-sign-on system where you can join Kink.com and have access to any of its member sites.
Perhaps the most ambitious technological plan for Kink’s future, though, is the development of an online Web community that will be called Kinky.com. Following the Web 2.0 trend of user-based content, Kinky.com will allow members and models to maintain user profiles, interact with one another on message boards, blog, and even date. Yes, it’s a way to stay up-to-date with Internet trends and to provide an experience that pirated video sites can’t, but Acworth says it’s also a natural outgrowth of the kind of porn he creates.
“In contrast with straight porn, which people want to consume in private, this is a community people want to be a part of,” he says.
Which leads us to the project closest to Acworth’s heart: the reality show.
THE REAL WORLD: KINK.COM
In the spirit of community and BDSM as a lifestyle, Acworth wants to transform the armory’s top floor into a series of Victorian/Georgian-inspired rooms where couples will live and fuck on camera 24-7. Participants will be given hierarchical positions — from maid to master of the house — and live according to the rules of domination and submission. Acworth’s already started designing the grand dining room, inspired by the sets in Remains of the Day, including candelabras, elaborate draperies, and, of course, a long, long table. “I consider it the pinnacle of where everything comes together,” he says.
The dream is still at least a year off: he’ll have to figure out payment and subscription details, renovate the nearly untouched top floor, and recruit couples who want to live their kinks on camera. But he’s hoping he’ll soon have more time to devote to the project. With more than 100 employees and a huge building to maintain, Acworth’s role has shifted from almost entirely creative to almost entirely administrative. He misses the early days, when he found models on Craigslist, tied them up in his rented Marina apartment, interacted with them himself, and then posted the shoots. (You can still see these early shoots online.) Soon he’ll promote an employee to chief operating officer, which will allow him to back off the business side and devote himself to the reality show.
So did he ever imagine his little project would get so big? Absolutely not, Acworth says. If he’d had any inkling, he adds, “I would’ve been terrified.” But it only seems natural that the little English boy who used to try to sell his parents’ own vegetables back to them would eventually have an eye for business — and that his interest in fetish porn would lead his business instincts here.
As for how his parents feel about his chosen profession, Acworth says they’re not exactly vocally supportive, but they don’t condemn him either. His mom, a sculptor, has started creating pieces that feature couples in coital or bondage positions, and may start to sell them on the site. His dad, a former Jesuit preacher, says only, “As long as no one’s getting hurt and there are no animals, I guess it’s all right.”
[Written for and posted on The San Francisco Bay Guardian
Spend This Sunday at San Francisco’s Folsom Street Fair with Kink.com
If you’re attending San Francisco’s Folsom Street Fair this coming Sunday, September 28, be sure to come by and see the Kink.com-KinkMen.com booth! Folsom Street is the legendary leather event with 400,000 attendees every year, and not to be missed if you’re a fan of kinky fun and/or hot kinksters of all genders, orientations, and proclivities, including plenty that probably haven’t yet occurred to you.
At the Kink.com booth, you’ll see demos, celeb appearances from some of our stars and directors, and best of all you can put in an application to be one of our models. That’s right, if you’ve been wanting to apply but haven’t had the time/nerve/opportunity, why not drop by and get your picture taken this Sunday?
You can check out the ongoing demos or get a chance to meet your favorite directors and stars. Kink.com directors attending are Van Darkholme, Isis Love, Princess Donna, Lochai, Lew Rubens and James Mogul. Models appearing are LaCherry Spice, Natassia Dream, Wolf Hudson, Nick Moretti, Lorelei Lee, and Madison Young. But that’s not all — throughout the day and you’ll see cameos from Annie Cruz, Mark Davis, Ginger Lynn, and January Seraph. No promises as to just how pervy our demos will get, but… er… it’s Folsom.
The fair is *adults only*, and runs 11am-6pm on Folsom Street between 7th Street and 12th Street in San Francisco. The Kink.com booth is on Folsom Street between 8th and 9th, closer to 9th Street.
Below is the schedule for Sunday’s appearances. Recruiting for TSSeduction.com and BoundGods.com / KinkMen.com will be happening all day.
Directors:
Van Darkholme: Noon-6pm
Isis Love: Noon-4pm
Princess Donna: 1-3pm
Lochai: 1-3pm
Lew Rubens: 2-3pm
James Mogul: 4-5pm
Models:
LaCherry Spice: Noon-4pm
Natassia Dream: Noon-4pm
Wolf Hudson: Noon-4pm
Nick Moretti: Noon-4pm
Lorelei Lee: 1-3pm
Madison Young: 4-5pm
Sexies Awards Party and Polyamorous Pride Weekend Oct 3-5
Join us in New York City to celebrate the awarding of the first Sex-Positive Journalism Awards.
The party will be Sat. Oct. 4, 6:30-9:30pm,
in the downstairs lounge of Splash, 50 W. 17th Street, New York.
(www.splashbar.com)
$5 cover
Mingle with your favorite sex-positive writers and advocates, and support the mission of Sexies awards so they can continue into 2009! The first 100 attendees will get a gift bag of goodies from the Sexies sponsors.
Meet first-place winners Amanda Robb (”Abstinence 1, S-CHIP O,” New York Times), Debbie Nathan (”Hysteria, Exploitation, and Witch Hunting in the Age of Internet Sex,” Counterpunch), Jill Bauer (”Never Too Old for Sex,” Miami Herald), Daniel Engber (”Naughty Nursing Homes,” Slate), and Alysha Rooks (”Between the Briefs,” Res Gestae, University of Michigan Law School), as well as many of our other fabulous winners.
Meet the stellar Sexies judges! Attending the award ceremony will be: Carol Queen, PhD, writer, speaker, educator, and activist with a doctorate in sexology; Liza Featherstone, journalist and author of “Sex, Lies, and Womenís Magazines” (Columbia Journalism Review); Judith Levine, journalist and author of the award-winning Harmful to Minors: The Perils of Protecting Children From Sex; and Doug Henwood, contributing editor to The Nation. Judith Levine will talk about her experiences with the media when Harmful to Minors was released.
There will also be a silent auction and raffle to support the awards. The fabulous prizes include:
- original art by Julio Aguilera and Sophy Naess;
- signed copies of books by winners, judges, and supporters;
- sex toys;
- gift certificates for sexy pleasures; and more!
Don’t miss out on this chance to support the sex-positive journalism and take home something you’ve always wanted. Prize donations are still being accepted. Contact Miriam at info@sexies.org if you have a donation.
Also, make a weekend of it! For those who are interested, Oct. 3-5 is also Polyamorous Pride weekend in New York City, and PolyNYC has planned a packed schedule (none of which overlaps with the Sexies party!). There is a cuddle party Friday night, a rally and picnic Saturday afternoon featuring Sexies winner Tristan Taormino as keynote, an afterparty, and a reading and book signing on Sunday. More information here: http://www.poly-nyc.com/pride/.
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The Sexies are the brainchild of journalist Miriam Axel-Lute, and were brought about in collaboration with writers, readers, and activists from The Center for Sex & Culture and the National Coalition for Sexual Freedom. Corporate sponsors include Babeland, The Playboy Foundation, Xbiz, UltraVirgo Creative, and Splash. More details are available at: www.sexies.org.
Remember to send in your entries for next year’s awards whenever you read something sex-positive: www.sexies.org/submit.php.
Be It Ever So Humble, There’s No Place Like Home
Lochai and J have made it to San Francisco! I got a text late last night that said, “We’re home!”
I imagine they are without internet service for a while, but I expect Lochai will manage to find a computer at some point and post something more substantial. Until then - know that the whole happy family arrived safely!