Erotica goes mainstream
On a hazy Saturday afternoon in Venice, an impossibly pneumatic blond in a G-string is slathering oil all over her husband, a pumped-up hunk called Voodoo in form-fitting shorts.
She’s getting him ready for their big moment at the semifinals of “L.A.’s Sexiest Competition,” where about 40 people of varying degrees of sexiness are vying for a $5,000 prize and the dubious honor of being dubbed L.A.’s sexiest man, woman or couple. Picture the unscripted TV show “Am I Hot?” but live, on a much smaller scale and with all the eccentricity that comes with the Venice boardwalk.
A few feet away from Voodoo and his wife Nicole, legendary Venice beach couple Elton and Betty White hold hands, waiting for their chance to strut across the stage. Betty is at least a decade beyond retirement age and looks so frail she might snap, but kitschy glamorous in a sequined leotard and polka-dot tights. She seems undaunted by her more youthful competitors as her husband, wearing little more than a silver lame loincloth, gently helps her climb the stairs to the stage.
Just before they go on, another competing couple is writhing across the stage, an oiled-up Adonis called Rocco, who’s grinding his hips and spanking his slender girlfriend. One of the judges, the ubiquitous Heidi Fleiss, actually tells them to tone it down.
“I think I’ve seen them in a movie before,” says a young guy in a baseball cap, and he doesn’t mean “Titanic.” In fact, none of these entrants would look out of place on the Playboy Channel. Except, of course, the Whites.
They’re the one couple at the competition that have none of the stereotypical attributes that you’d imagine L.A. would consider “hot.” They don’t have youth, obvious beauty or honed physiques on their sides, but they radiate sweetness and the kind of devotion that come from 30 years of marriage. The judges clearly think that “in love” is the new sexy, and the unlikely couple walk away with the top scores of the day, sending them and four other couples onto the finals this weekend at Erotica LA Convention at the Los Angeles Convention Center.
Actually, Betty and Elton White as “L.A.’s sexiest couple” is a kind of metaphor for the newly revamped convention itself, now in its seventh year. In the past, the sprawling sex and adult entertainment show has attracted about 30,000 visitors each year, mostly men eager for the chance to gape at their favorite adult stars.
This year, that’s all going to change. Erotica LA has shifted its focus to try to attract a new market: women and couples. It’s not much of a leap to make in a city where it’s as acceptable to shop at the Hustler Store on Sunset Boulevard as it is to shop at Ralphs -- well, almost as acceptable.
“Sex is so much more mainstream now, and we needed to catch up with that,” says Erotica LA organizer Chad Beecher. “This year, the convention won’t be as intimidating for women. In the past, either men wouldn’t bring their wives or girlfriends or, if they did, there wouldn’t be anything for them to do.”
This year’s lineup of events reads more like an episode of “Sex and the City” than a porn star parade. Activities include a Botox party Friday night, with live demonstrations, as well as seminars throughout the weekend on everything from tantric sex, sensual massage and safe sex to a couples-focused seminar with leading sexologist Ava Cadell called “The Ultimate Orgasm for Him and Her.”
Meanwhile, on the convention floor, about 150 vendors will be selling everything from sensual oils to sex toys. There’s a Chippendale’s style all-male review called Hollywood Men, a lingerie fashion show and burlesque, salsa dancing and belly dance performances, all designed to reflect the changing demographic of the sex consumer.
For a more esoteric take on sexuality, the convention will feature a 3,500-square-foot Museum of Erotica, complete with sexual paraphernalia and artifacts, some dating to the turn of the 20th century. The museum includes first edition adult film posters, vintage lingerie and erotic art. Attendees can bid on some of these items at live and silent auctions, and all proceeds from the sales benefit AIM Healthcare, a group that promotes safe sex and testing for HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases for people who work in the adult entertainment industry.
All of the estrogen-fueled additions to the convention don’t mean Erotica LA is walking away from its traditional male convention-goers -- which are still expected to comprise most of those attending.
“We’ll still have booths with girls from Spearmint Rhino and Vivid Entertainment on hand to sign autographs, and a Harley-Davidson fashion show and motorcycle give-away, but the male-focused events will be complemented by more female- and couple-friendly activities, like a couples quiz to test how well you know your partner,” says Beecher. The winners of this “Newlywed Game”-style quiz will win one of several all-inclusive trips to the Caribbean.
Still, the highlight of the convention will likely be Saturday night, when Elton and Betty White walk hand in hand across the stage one more time, proving to everyone that sexy, even in L.A., can transcend age and stereotype.