A cruiser shared with CFS the following story from the LA Times. It says a lot about the rise and decline of public sex in porn theaters, not mention visits to
Studs and
Tiki, the last two remaining porn theaters in LA.
With history, photos, and commentary it's well worth reading. You'll be taken from the height of porn theaters in the 1970s, "Deep Throat" and all, to the present day.
Here's just a couple excerpts. Follow the link and read for yourself.
The last (porn) picture shows: Once dotted with dozens of adult cinemas, L.A. now has only two
Quote:
...In 1979, there were an estimated 800 porn theaters across the United States. But video and streaming have rendered them obsolete. The website Cinema Treasures lists fewer than 35 places now operating as adult theaters in the U.S.
In the 1970s, Los Angeles teemed with dozens of porn theaters. Now only two remain: the Studs and the Tiki. They sit at opposite ends of Santa Monica Boulevard — the former in West Hollywood, the latter in East Hollywood, framing the city in an unseen porno-magnetic field. Both beckon with promises of titillation and, in the case of the Studs, a tag line that reads, “Come explore, relax, and take a load off.” ...
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Among other things, Studs is seen as "A Smithsonian of porn," complete with a pedigree. More generally, there's something here in common between the older generation, my age and before, and at least a few younger folks now:
Quote:
...Moreover, for the LGBTQ community, gay porn houses became a kind of safe space.
“They weren’t just theater spaces,” says Mike Stabile, a spokesperson for the Free Speech Coalition, a trade association for the adult industry, and director of the documentary “Smut Capital of America.” “You could go in and have these experiences and they were anonymous.”
“Being a young gay man, it’s tremendously nerve-racking, but there was something about the theater,” he says, “that is closed off from the rest of the world.”
To some degree, this is a purpose the Studs still serves. But anonymity is no longer a primary reason patrons seek out the theater.
“I say, if you want to drink alcohol, there are liquor stores. You can drink in your house. So why are there bars?” asks Studs owner Max Cassing. “Well, people want an experience that is social.”
Cassing, a personable, soft-spoken man who was once a litigation attorney, inherited the theater as payment after a legal battle in 2006. Over time, he made upgrades and partitioned the building into multiplex. In the lobby while we talk, there are two television monitors playing: One displays a slideshow of well-endowed men on a loop. On the other is the Oprah Winfrey Network.
Cassing says people constantly ask him how he keeps the theater running. But even in the age of digital, he says, business is good.
The theater draws people who may not have access to the Internet or those concerned about online privacy, as well as young gay men just beginning to explore their sexuality. “We get a lift whenever the new semesters start,” Cassing says. “We get UCLA and USC, we get all the schools.” But it attracts other groups too.
“We have a dominatrix who comes in regularly with a man on a leash,” he says. “And she once asked everyone in the theater to spank him. It turned into theater.”...
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There's less about Tiki here, other than a mention of the arrest of comedian Fred Willard here a few years ago and some description of the downscale vibe between a 99¢ store and a Oaxacan restaurant.
Thanks to the cruiser who shared these on the Sex Listings pages for Studs and Tiki.
Bob S. ~ Manager/Editor