|
From DallasVoice.com Books Aiden Shaw autobio unearths the dull side of sex trade
Books about gay porn tend to fall into four categories: breezy and full of smutty anecdotes (like Chi Chi LaRue's "Making It Big"); dark, cautionary tales (the Jon Vincent memoir "A Thousand and One Night Stands"); blow-by-blow sex confessions (Geoffrey Karen Dior's "Sleeping Under the Stars"); or posthumous tell-alls ("Wonder Bread and Ecstasy," "Clone" and "Boy in the Sand"). Aiden Shaw's "My Undoing," contains elements of all of these niches, yet falls into its own category. However, determining the precise nature of that category is a frustrating exercise. One of the first British men to break into 1990s United States-made gay porn, Aiden Shaw is not your typical erotic hero. The blood pumping through his body not only engorges an imposing penis, but also powers a bright, creative mind. Shaw has penned three novels ("Brutal," "Boundaries" and "Wasted"), numerous magazine articles, a book of poetry and songs for his band, Whatever. Why, then, is "My Undoing" such a disappointment? For one thing, it never entirely finds a satisfactory angle. Purportedly, "My Undoing" is about Aiden Shaw's efforts to find love and a lasting relationship despite his infamous status as a gay porn star. In fact, it's much more of a chronicle of how empty, shallow and repetitive his life was until a stupid accident nearly left him partially paralyzed. Anyone waiting for an inner revelation on Shaw's part will be sorely disappointed. From the outset, Shaw makes it clear that "I am not a reformed character," and that "I'll probably make the same mistakes again, if not worse." His candor is initially refreshing, but it seems that Shaw learns nothing from his travails. Likewise, anyone hoping for a juicy tell-all about Shaw's co-stars in porndom will be similarly disappointed. He keeps such talk to a minimum, but does describe an offset dalliance with Cliff Parker, and he admits to injecting the erection drug Caverject. Shaw's feelings about the biz are summed up thusly: "No matter how much I liked the model, it was rarely enough to compensate for having to perform for hours under the heat of studio lights in front of an unnecessary amount of inefficient crew, twisting my body so the sex would be visible to the camera." One interesting moment happens when a guy tells Shaw, "I know who you are," to which Aiden retorts, "That's not to be confused with knowing me." For a while, it seems like this will be one of the book's major conceits and it's a compelling notion. Unfortunately, Shaw doesn't dig too deep. Instead, he regales readers with crystal-meth binges, the odd results of some of his appointments with "punters" (London slang for "johns"), more drug taking and minutiae with his circle of friends. It gets old really, really fast. The most interesting part of "My Undoing" concerns the accident in Belgium which left Shaw partially paralyzed. He got run over by a car, and his bandmate Nina was also hit but wasn't as severely injured. This is easily the core of the book, but Shaw has no memories of the accident. Instead, Nina and fellow bandmate Marc fill in the blanks, and Shaw rejoins the narrative when he wakes up in hospital and slowly rebuilds his life as he recovers. "Everything was new and different, but not in a way that made it interesting or exciting," he writes. There are other engaging moments in "My Undoing": Shaw's dealings with an obsessed ex-roommate-turned-stalker, battles with depression and the effects of antidepressant medications. But the book is sadly lacking. By the time one finishes "My Undoing," readers will know Aiden Shaw slightly better, but that doesn't mean they'll admire him. Whoever once famously said, "There's nothing duller than dull pornography," obviously never read "My Undoing." SPEAKING OF GAY PORN ...
Dalton (real name Jeremy James Son) had said not being able to work out was the one of worst parts of his incarceration. Looks like he bounced back pretty quickly. In his photo pictorial, Dalton looks buff and shredded. Another North Texan has entered the queer skin trade sort of. Dallas bodybuilder Toni Da Vinci, a frequent burlesque entertainer at Crews Inn and Zippers, recently hired Los Angeles-based super-agent David Forest for representation. And earlier this week, gay porn impresario Blue Blake announced he was going back into production after a two-year hiatus with a new project titled "Muscle Men Moving Co," with Da Vinci as its star. Blake told Gay Video News magazine, "All of a sudden, I was meeting so many astonishing-looking men that I would have kicked myself if I hadn't once again started producing, writing, and directing."
Blake also said that Ty Fox (a former middle school gym teacher, who made headlines in 1996 when his wife discovered he was doing gay porn) will bottom for the video. Just days after announcing his return to porn, Blake said that Da Vinci pulled out of the production at the last minute. Blake told Gay Video News magazine that Da Vinci was "apparently appalled at the possibility of being thought gay by appearing in a gay porn even though he was only scheduled for a solo scene." This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition, June 30, 2006. © Copyright by DallasVoice.com |
