Twenty-one year old porn star Jesse Santana sent us an open letter explaining that while he may be a porn star, he’s not whore.
Read all about it, after the jump…
[Editor’s Note: Santana claims not to be a male escort, but he’s obviously a publicity whore – he neglected to tell us that Fleshbot posted this rant last week. Sorry, FB!]
Escort, model, porn star -these are simply job titles, all of which should be respected in their own right, but are not to be confused.
Individual porn stars may also have separate job titles.Some are doctors, some are teachers, some are bartenders, waiters, dancers, professional ice skaters, Olympic swimmers, and some…are escorts. More often than not, most porn stars have to struggle under the consistent assumption that all porn models are prostitutes as well. Why should one title create another? It’s honestly a shame that a porn model can’t be proud of his or her job, without it also being assumed that sex and/or services are up for sale. And why is it that a large percentage of models are told, at one point or another, that in order to be a ‘bigger star’ they need to keep some would-be clients happy? It’s the sad truth, but it’s wrong. Porn stars should be liked for their performances on-screen, not off-screen.
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
First, let me simply say that my standpoint is not at all against escorting or escorts, but against the misled presumption that simply being a porn star in today’s society automatically links you to being an escort as well. Whereas, most of us porn stars would rather be associated with what we truly do as a profession. In saying that, I only mean to offend the certain individuals who think that a room full of porn stars is the equivalent of a buffet with a complete carry-out/to-go menu.
Some may argue that both parties are paid for sex, but consider this: porn stars choose how to express themselves, whereas escorts are at the mercy of their clients desires. Porn stars are selling a finished product, a scene or a DVD. An escort’s product is his/her own body or time. Adult film is completely legal and an honest form of acting, or entertainment rather. The hard truth is that the core of most every escort’s business is prostitution, which is illegal in all but two states in the United States. Porn models are paid by check by legitimate companies, whereas escorts are usually paid in cold hard cash by free-standing individuals. It’s a free country, do what you choose, but many porn stars would rather not be directly categorized with illegal jobs and situations, such as prostitution.
Lately, I’ve been setting the gay porn world on fire. I have a strong relationship with a wonderful huy and this topic means a lot to us, and certainly heavy on the minds of any other non-escorting pornstar. We’re regular guys who enjoy our career as gay adult entertainers, but that where the line stops. It’s depressing, infuriating, heartbreaking, nauseating, and most of all, sadly discouraging, that the general public and the porn industry itself, can’t realize that not all of us sell ourselves in such a way. This specific, misconstrued perception of porn models is an extremely unsettling and disrespecting misconception that needs to be put to light and set straight, for the sake of every self-respecting porn star’s morals and integrity.
Being asked to sell ourselves is not a compliment or flattering to us in any way. Even if a certain porn star were to escort as well, they probably don’t want to be approached for an escorting job while they’re representing themselves as a porn star. I mean, a doctor doesn’t want to go to a party and be asked to give a woman a breast exam.
We’re not just a bunch of pretty faces, bubble butts, and big dicks. We porn stars have our own ideas, views, and voices…all of which need to be heard! If you’re a porn star who escorts, be proud of it. But if you’re really looking for a good hot escort, I’m not it.
victor
how much for a blow job?
kidding…
Dubwise
correct me if I am wrong…he does get paid to have sex….right?!
not that there is anything wrong with that…I’m just saying!
Brian
Porn model? Is he supposed to be modeling condoms?
parisinla
AMEN.
dvlaries
Jesse, it’s been decades and the porn industry has still not produced a spokesperson so eloquent that he or she has convinced middle America that this is something perfectly okay for its children to grow up to do. No newly-minted mom in a maternity ward ever looked down on her newborn and dreamed out loud that one day he or she would grow up to win Best Anal Threesome. And every porn player – male or female- is SOMEone’s son or daughter.
You’ve got an uphill climb if you intend to convince those same people that having sex for money is no longer the definition of prostitution, just because there’s a cameraman there filming you at work. It’s not your fault – it’s the eternal question regarding this stuff, one that Americans collectively refuse to grow up and settle: there either IS something wrong with this stuff or there isn’t. We want it, we buy it to the tune of at least tens in billions per year, and woe to anyone who’d restrict our access to it. Yet at the same time, most of those buyers recoil in near horror at the suggestion of anyone they love working in that industry.
We’ll know the porn business has achieved the mainstream acceptance it perpetually craves when, for instance, icons such as Jenna Jameson, Peter North and Jeff Stryker, under whatever their REAL names are, have streets named after them in the towns they grew up.
REBELComx
You get paid to have sex…get over yourself. The only difference between a porn star and a prostitute is that you get paid more and people all over the world get to watch you do it…oh and the guys you do it with are almost guarateed to be hot. But the simple fact that there is a camera in the room does not automaticly elevate you from whore to “actor”.
Kid A
I’m asking, not out of sarcasm, but really wanting to know:
Is the only difference between a porn star and a prostitute the fact that they get paid for being an “actor” and not a prostitute?
I mean, he addresses this question, but basically lists the differences in situations, not necessarily what makes them fundamentally different when someone walks away fucked and paid…
Edwoody
I take it somebody had a bad experience with a handsy old man at the GAYVNs.
See, I always make sure to respect the porn stars I interview. As much as I’d desperately love to get into their pants, I’m not going to try anything on when I’m there in a professional capacity. That’s just tacky.
Which is not to say I haven’t had sex with quite a few porn stars. Just not during an interview, and I never had to pay them for it either. Not that I’m adverse to that either.
hisurfer
“The only difference between a porn star and a prostitute is that you get paid more ” I think it’s the other way around. I’ve worked on shoots, and had friends involved, and these guys don’t get paid shit. Most do porn as an advertisement for their much more lucrative escort business. “Porn stars” get to charge more.
The other guys were a mixed bag. Some do it to be a celebrity (covers of magazines, skip the queue, VIP treatment at the clubs), some as a lark, and there was one boy-next-door type (who was also, literally, the boy next door) whom I never did figure out.
And I can’t figure this one out either.
Charley
Of course, from ancient Greek theatre to present Hollywood, the actors were there to promote and advertise themselves, from Marilyn Monroe to Rock Hudson, and what lined up at the stage door were horny rich and powerful men wanting a piece of what they saw on the screen. Acting is a good way to be seen to the highest bidder, whether that bidder is a porn studio (big business) or a horny old gay man. We are all whores, in one sense or another.
UndercoverPants
I’m sorry, but if your “ideas, views, and voices” were all that exceptional, you probably wouldn’t be doing porn. I’m just saying.
hells kitchen guy
Wait, this sodden lump of flesh is a “porn star”? Sorry, but the standards have gotten way higher in the past few years for this street trash to put himself in the same league as, say, Dean Flynn.
fanboi
I don’t think his diatribe is about “elevating” himself. I think he’s probably tired of creepy old guys who think that its OK to proposition him like a back alley whore just because he is a sexual dynamo on film. One thing is not the other, and while there is definitely some overlap between the 2, the message is the ones who are available make it known so pick them up there rather than assuming all are for sale.
Paul Raposo
“and these guys don’t get paid shit”
hisurfer, any opinions on how this might apply to the gay-for-pay models who claim they only have sex with men on film for the money? Since they claim they are not escorts and your experience shows that these “stars” aren’t making all that much, why do you think they are doing it? For the money, for the advertising, or for the sex?
Charley
Just saying, if you put honey out there on the TV screen, the flies will come…….That is part of being on DVD in someone’s bedroom. Don’t complain, be flattered. Ten years from now they won’t care about you.
Robert
A little curious:
For the people claiming that he’s a whore and not an actor, are you the same people that think bareback porn is fantasy with no implications?
Charley
This is not a place to bash old gay men who find young sexy guys attractive. Most of us “gay geezers” were young once, and with a face and body that would excite a thousand horny gay men in a steam bath. Been there, done that.
Phoenix
I bet Matt Sanchez feels the same way.
gay as life
What’s wrong with being a hooker?
hisurfer
Paul – I don’t know. I don’t think I’ve ever met any gay-for-pay porn stars. I only know one guy who was A-List, and I never asked how much he got paid.
Of the other guys, the middle of the road ones, they only made a couple hundred per shoot, maybe a grand or two for the bigger names. It’s a nice bonus (or a free week’s worth of crack for the tweakers), but hardly enough to live on – or to justify going gay for pay.
Amber LeMay
As far as I’m concerned, we’re ALL whores… some are just better negotiators than others.
leomoore
Whatever he feels he needs to say is more for his self-image than our perceptions. If anyone wants to have sex whether for art, money, or just fun is fine with me as long as everyone is able to and gives consent.
As for Fanboi’s thoughtless insult to us creepy old guys, I have had tiresome advances from boys young enough to be my son who think I will gratefully shower them with gifts and maintain them in the lifestyle they feel they deserve. By definition, that could easily be mistaken for prostitution. One day “bois” will turn into creepy old guys, too.
patr832
Not a hooker? Only God will believe him. Not long ago, I’ve seen him at the celebrity site millionairecupid…com seeking girls. And he has stayed there for months…
EdWoody
UndercoverPants – that’s an extremely bigoted point of view. There’s nothing about being a porn star, someone who wants to get paid for something he enjoys and is good at, that is mutually exclusive of having an intelligent mind. Maybe he likes doing porn, and that’s why he’s doing it.
Hells Kitchen Guy – yes, Jesse definitely does count as a “star.” He is one of the most dynamic and exciting performers of the last year, and at least he can get a hard-on, which I have seen Dean Flynn not have on more than one occasion. I voted for Jesse above Dean as Best Newcomer.
Paul Raposo – Porn films may pay a few hundred dollars a day, at best. Escorts can charge a few hundred dollars an hour. But even so, gay porn pays men more than straight porn does. That’s why straight guys do it. And a lot of straight guys realise the money to be had from escorting too, and go into that.
Charley – it’s not that we’re complaining about old men, as you say that’s inevitable. It’s a matter of complaining about old men who don’t know what’s appropriate at a given time and place.
leomoore – it’s true that it can be a two-way street. All Jesse is trying to say is – don’t tar us all with the same brush. And that applies both ways too. Not all old men are lechers, not all young guys are gold-diggers.
steve
“setting the gay porn world on fire”
wow
better work on that separate job title
Wolfie
Since when has it become our place to judge the kid and even bring this question to light? Since when has the Gay and lesbian community become SO prudish and just SO judgemental that we sit here and disect people in the porn industry like Red State housewives.
bunnygloves
Firstly: paying for sex or getting paid for sex are not wrong. The circumstances really don’t make any difference either.
How is getting paid to get fucked on camera any different than getting paid to get fucked behind closed doors? This “porn star” makes a few lame attempts at an answer, but fails miserably. Ultimately, there isn’t that much of a difference and more importantly, it shouldn’t matter.
Yes, prostitution is illegal. Does that mean it’s any different than working in porn? No. You’re still being paid for having sex (not, as he claims, for a product. You’re still selling your time and your body).
I suggest this guy get over his ego (“I work in porn, so I’m better than you escorts! I’m a porn MODEL! I’m setting the world on fire! blah blah blah”) and realize that sex is sex and money is money. The circumstances don’t matter so long as we’re dealing with consenting adults.
Oh, and Wolfie – you open yourself up to judgment when you write something as insipid as this article, so he had it coming.
steve
“Oh, and Wolfie – you open yourself up to judgment when you write something as insipid as this article, so he had it coming.”
heh- no kidding
the thing reads like a deleted scene from the *extras* section of the “showgirls” special edition dvd
where’s cristal connors when you need her?
seriously though – this is a good looking young guy that gets paid good money to fuck other good looking young guys
and he’s whining cause older guys are hitting on him
waaahhhh
you know, there’s a 21 year old guy in my town that just had a baby born with cp – he’s working for minimum wage at a grocery store to make ends meet
and my heart’s supposed to be bleeding for the porn actor moonlighting as a doctor/lawyer/dna researcher/archaeologist/olympic gold medal swimmer/ice skater, whatever
that shit doesn’t fly with me
sorry if i’m not shedding a tear for him
Trey Cruz
Jesse is definitely a publicity whore. He’s from Dallas and posted this article orginally on his myspace blog and he noted that “this will definitely be picked up on gay blogs all over the world”…
I decided not to post obviously because
1. I don’t give a damn.
2. Jesse is a total jerk
Wolfie
Oh in the name of Rip taylor give it a rest. this has to be like the BIGGEST piece of “non-story fluff” there is. Let the kid fuck for money and have an attitude. Its really not a big thing and the only thing that can be judged about him at all is if he acted like a jerk. NOT if he’s a “whore”
afrolito
he’s a hot piece of ass…literally.
Tonic
He’s the worst kind of whore: an attention whore.
John
We are all whores, in one sense or another. -Charley
THANK YOU. Finally someone speaks sense and doesn’t pretend to be so fucking high and mighty! Jeez, why is a porn star NOT an actor but Madonna is in Body Of Evidence or Sharon Stone when she crossed and uncrossed her legs with no knickers….I could go on and on and on with the hypocrisy of society!?
Charlie
Hi Chris Ciompi – Hisurfer….I have not seen you on in awhile. Hope you are well.
hisurfer
Hi … maybe you’re confusing me with someone else?
IntenseOnlyJoe
Sorry… I’m on the kid’s side on this one. Sex–and how one chooses to engage in it–is ultimately a personal decision. The finances of it are irrelevant.
To suggest that because he chooses to have sex on screen for cash automatically means he should be willing to have sex anywhere with anyone for cash makes about as much sense as saying that because I’ve had sex with A man, I should be willing to have sex with ANY man…the argument just doesn’t hold water. He’s defined his career choice and his limits, and to be chided or derided for them strikes me as whining or jealousy on the part of his detractors~
EdWoody
Well said, Joe.
J
As a bigger (and older) porn star than this fool, let me say this to him, YOU HAVE SEX FOR MONEY!!! You are a sex worker! It doesn’t mean you have to escort, but everybody knows a porn star doesn’t make money doing videos. The videos are just “advertising” for escorting. And everyone, evvvveryone, has a price who is in porn.
J
“porn stars choose how to express themselves, whereas escorts are at the mercy of their clients desires”
Like Chi Chi LaRue doesn’t direct the scenes based on his desires for a good product. And a escort isn’t a sex slave, it’s a mutual thing that happens.
Matt
Porn models – gay, straight. Either way.
Being a porn model/actor/actress
Is exactly the same thing as being a street whore.
Except for one difference.
Imagine yourself, 300 years back in time from today.
There wouldnt be a camera, but there would still be well paid whores.
Some beautiful people, throughout time have always taken a great deal of money to give away their time and genitals.
Really? Whats the difference?
Instead of taking a client on the streets, telling you what he wants you to do, you get a client handing you a script telling you what to do.
Just because its written and recorded. Doesn’t make it anymore glamourous than a street whore, or a luxury whore.
I wont lie, i watch porn. Sure.
But if i had a daughter, saying that she’d go into porn. I wouldnt exactly support her in the idea.
In conclusion,
being a porn model. Is a new-age way, to make money of your body, and if you think closely about it. Its the easiest, and most humilating way there is.
Not only does your client see you naked. And get too see everything, but millions, maybe even a billion people get too see you naked.
Like Lanny Barby, Nikki Benz, Bree Olsen.
And people are always saying this world is corrupted. You gotta admit, when people start getting trophies for sex (which really is only to multiply the specie) Theres something wrong.
Thats like basicly sayin:
Hey well, i hope you guys/girls never get children, cuz they’d prolly be bullied to shit.
But you sure can suck great dick and fuck with your ass! Heres a trophy, and heres money!
Meh… i know i’ve been rambeling.. But i just wanted to give away my two cents..
Peace
Dan
He recently bought a House in Vermont so you won’t be seeing much more porn out of him.
b
http://www.rentboy.com/Listing.aspx?lid=282777
His rentboy profile. Not a hooker? Really?
bearfuzzlover
I think that the distinction of gay porn star and gay porn performer is also real – depending on whether one has talent and achieved a level of acceptance, but the question of gay porn and being an escort/hustler/prostitute/whore/Rent-Boy … or whatever else the label is, I do believe there is a difference, although when starring in porn in the daytime and having sex for money at night, the line gets blurred.
In fact, whether your are in gay porn or work as an escort, it is something you get paid for, although assume rightly or wrongly, porn is the “shop window” for escorting but in one sense, there is no difference as there is a payment for a service you provide, whether having sex in front of a camera or a hotel bedroom.
I guess you need as a porn star/performer to be clear how you define your role, as I see nothing wrong with either label porn star/performer and escort/hustler etc., but some want to degrade one or both roles because they involve sex, and neither has priority. It is employment where you rent out your body if you are lucky enough to have one that is beautiful of is a niche type that is in demand and clients are willing to pay for. After all, renting out your body for sex is the world’s oldest profession and is not likely to change simply because you don’t like the role or title of Hooker!