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Superstar Studs 2000 All Male Quirky Quotes, Intimate Interviews, and Tantalizing Trivia from the Most Desired Men on Earth, by Ed Karvoski, Jr.; Kensington Books; 118 pages; $12.00. The Best of the Superstars 2000: The Year in Sex, by John Patrick; STARbooks; 576 pages; $11.95. Men Special Anniversary Edition: 1984-1999; 160 pages; $12.95. 
Gay erotic videos - and the men who make them - are everywhere.
What was once despised as the disreputable branch of a disreputable art form
is now the subject of both gay and mainstream movies, plays, books and
newspaper columns. Gay porn stars now demand the attention and respect once
given to Hollywood stars, with columns and a magazine (Unzipped) detailing
their cumings and goings.
As Ed Karvoski, Jr. put it, "a significant number of gay men hold a special place in their hearts - and a special shelf in their video libraries --for their favorite erotic actors! As I've interviewed more and more porn stars over the years, I've witnessed an ever-growing fascination with our community's very own sex symbols." While most straight people wouldn't know one erotic starlet from another, the average gay man could tell you right away which Rockland brother or Kristen Bjorn video he prefers (I vote for Hal and Paradise Plantation, respectively) or where he was when he first heard Jeff Stryker utter those immortal words: "You want it, don't ya!" Why are gay men so fascinated with erotic video stars? "Unlike in the straight world, where porn stars are at the bottom of the celebrity food chain, in the gay world porn stars occupy mythic status," wrote Michelangelo Signorile in his classic rant, Life Outside. "Porn stars are treated like royalty at A-list gay parties, given an even higher status than Hollywood power brokers, and revered by men far and wide. They are perhaps the homosexual equivalent of the Hollywood female movie starlets in the heterosexual world and are deified and held up as the physical ideal." Since we have so few openly gay stars, we look to porn performers who are so demonstrably gay to be our role models and our sex symbols. Never mind that these porn personas are mostly illusions created by their studios to sell videos (and porn stars).
In any case, we are always interested in what makes porn stars tick, primarily the drive that leads them to have sex in front of a camera for the masses' masturbatory delight. Ed Karvoski, Jr., who has interviewed video stars for the gay press since 1993, discovered that male erotic stars are people like you and me. (But to quote Fred Mertz, "they might be people, but not like you or me!") "I can tell you for a fact that the guys who work in the biz are as diverse as the gay community at large. Heck, being liberal types, we even accept straight-identified studs in gay skinflicks!" The jury is still out as to how "straight" a man is who has gay sex for a living. However, since there are things I do at work that I wouldn't do otherwise, I'd have to give the "gay for pay" performers the benefit of a doubt.
Since 1990, STARbooks' John Patrick has chronicled "the World's Sexiest Young Guys", in porn or not, in his "The Best of the Superstars" series. The Best of the Superstars 2000: The Year in Sex is the best of the bunch, IMHO. Not only are porn stars more evident than ever, but there are enough full frontals to delight even the most jaded consumer. (Tony Donovan's "fully erect" shot on page 9 opens the book with a bang.) Some entertainers who wouldn't be caught naked in public "appear" naked in this edition, if only through the magic of computer-manufactured, composite photos. The Best of the Superstars 2000, notes John Patrick, "is an overview of the personalities and entertainments that have helped mold our gay consciousness." Those whose gay consciousness was molded by award-winning authors or opera divas will have to look elsewhere. On the other hand, those of us who appreciate young male beauty will find a lot to enjoy. In addition to porn stars galore, this book features the lives and looks of Ben and Matt, Ryan Phillippe, Keanu Reeves, Marky Mark, Ricky Martin, Enrique Iglesias, Usher, 98 Degrees and the Backstreet Boys - but, inexplicably, not 'N Sync.
 Ryan Phillippe in 54 In spite of this faux pas, Superstars 2000 is mostly on target as to which stars are big and which stars will get bigger-- in all senses of the word. Computer geeks should note that The Best of the Superstarsfeatures a "Best in Cybersex" list of studio, porn star and "personal services" sites, just in case you want more than what the book offers. I can't believe that it's been fifteen years since Men first appeared. What began as Advocate Men in 1984 has since taken on a life of its own, launching the careers of a generation of erotic stars and turning "talented" amateurs into stars in their own right. The Men Special Anniversary Edition, which celebrates the fifteenth anniversary of the most famous male magazine since Physique Pictorial, is a must for anyone who admires the male art form. It features a detailed history of Men, hundreds of published and unpublished photos (including every single cover), and even a CD-ROM. Those of us who were stupid enough to throw away our old issues of Men will appreciate this collector's edition, while those who are new to the game will also appreciate this historic/erotic document. |
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