Category: Celebrities

James Deen as James Dean

James Deen, James Dean, James FrancoWhen James Dean took the starring role in the now iconic 1995 film Rebel Without a Cause, nobody had any idea that he wouldn’t live to see the films premiere, dying in a car accident one month before its October 27 release date. The public would embrace his character, Jim Stark, as emblematic of the fifties’ trouble youth culture stripped of its innocence in the years after World War II. Dean would go on to solidify his status as an immortal heartthrob, even amidst rumors of his bisexuality and affairs with both costar Natalie Wood and director Nicholas Ray (who also allegedly had a tryst with Wood). Now, thanks to renaissance man James Franco, the behind-the-scenes romps that rocked the Rebel set are being presented in very, very explicit detail.

No, a ’55 Natalie Wood and James Dean-starring sex tape hasn’t surfaced; Franco has just turned to his friends in the porn industry to recreate an imagined encounter between the two Hollywood legends. Presumably cast not just for his name, but also for his sensitive heartthrob status in the adult industry, James Deen finally had a chance to play his namesake in a hardcore flick. Heather Vahn, a vastly underrated performer, plays Natalie Wood and the two get it on in thoroughly hardcore fashion, bringing the backstage tryst to life.

What’s the point? Is this another Axel Braun-directed porn parody? Nope, it’s another of Franco’s art exhibitions, though this time he is ably assisted by Douglas Gordon, Harmony Korine, Paul McCarthy, Terry Richardson, Ed Ruscha, and Aaron Young, who all contribute artistic odes to the era-defining American film.

Those interested can head on over to LA’s MOCA and see the works in person. The exhibition, simply titled ‘Rebel’, runs until June 23rd and will be followed by a book release of the same title.

Octo-Porn Has Arrived!

Octomom PornHey, remember that maternal train wreck the tabloid media dubbed “Octomom”? And remember the rumors that flew around suggesting she’d be taking to fucking on camera to keep her flock of 14 fed, clothed, and housed? Well, the rumors finally came true, with Wicked contract director Brad Armstrong helming her maiden venture into what could be the career that saves her from losing her La Habra residence after she filed last month for personal bankruptcy. That’s right, folks, the single mom who found worldwide notoriety for squirting out eight rugrats in one sitting is now a genuine adult performer.

While exact details of Suleman’s shoot are still largely under wraps, a few tidbits have leaked and are now being thrashed around the Internet, possibly as a respite from all the cannibalism stories that’ve been popping up of late. When her scene, which is masturbation-only, comes out, the curious can expect to see Suleman covered in, of all things, SpaghettiOs. Yup, SpaghettiOs. (No, I don’t know what the fuck is up with that particular prop either.)

Of her first experience pleasuring herself in front of a camera, crew, and eventually a home-viewing audience, Suleman said she owed a lot to Jessica Drake. “She opened my eyes to a whole different world of self-pleasure that I could never have imagined.” While the company releasing the movie still hasn’t been identified, Suleman seems quite happy with their professionalism, saying “I don’t think I could have asked for a better crew to work with. They were so patient and willing to teach me.” Clearly given a substantial confidence boost, she told Huffington Post “reporter” Naughty But Nice Rob “They made me look so glamorous, and for the first time in my life, I felt beautiful and sexy. I’m very excited for it to come out!”

Yeah, that’s what she said about the octuplets, too.

Against Her!

Laura Jane GraceA few notable exceptions aside, rock ‘n’ roll is generally considered a man’s game, and heavy rock is especially male dominated. Babes in Toyland might have been one of the most ferocious punk bands of the last twenty-five years but nobody gives a shit anymore and a lot people still believe that women aren’t supposed to rock unless they’re dressed in skintight pleather and belting it out Xtina-style. Now, though, one woman appears to be challenging that notion in a pretty surprising way.

Tom Gabel of Floridian punk band Against Me! recently announced to his fans and the music world at large that he intended to begin life as a woman, taking the name Laura Jane Grace. After initial concerns from fans that this could mean the end of Against Me!, or at least Gabel’s sharp, growling voice, Gabel confirmed that she would remain married to her wife, graphic artist Heather Gabel, and continue fronting Against Me! While Considering I can think of only one other instance of a biologically male member of a notable hard-rock band undergoing “the transition” – Keith Caputo of Life of Agony became Mina Caputo in October of 2011 – this is a pretty monumental event in the history of transgender people in entertainment.

With an outpouring of support from the music and transgender communities – there remain some ignorant, bigoted “ex-fans” throwing around insults and hate speech – it looks like a pretty positive start to Laura’s new life and, although the transition is never easy and isn’t something most cisgender people cannot really comprehend, with notes like this from the likes of WWE champion CM Punk, Laura’s path will hopefully be relatively easy one.

 

Against Me! continues its current tour supporting The Cult and fans can look forward to someday seeing a liberated Laura jane Grace, “six-foot-two, in heels, fucking screaming into someone’s face.”

Get More: Music News

Hungry for Fifty Shades of Grey

Fifty Shades of GreyErotic fiction has long been the butt of jokes and insults slung by the literati and pornographers, both. So imagine author E.L. James’ surprise when her erotic novel Fifty Shades of Grey raced up the bestseller list. The author, known to her husband of 20 years as Erika Leonard, claims to have had no inkling that what started as a BDSM-infused piece of Twilight fanfiction would soon become so popular she’d decide to change the names Bella Swan and Edward Cullen to Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey, move into print-on-demand publishing, and be courting offers from Hollywood bigwigs intent on making the Fifty Shades trilogy, which also includes Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed, the biggest thing since Twilight and The Hunger Games blew away box office records.

Describing herself as a shy mother of two who started writing what would evolve into the Fifty Shades Trilogy during something of a midlife crisis, James has apparently done what nobody expected would ever happen: she brought BDSM fiction into the mainstream. Telling the story of a recent college graduate (Steele) and her evolving relationship with a billionaire Seattle industrialist (Grey), Fifty Shades has some feminists all in a tizzy over its apparent willingness to place a naive, “innocent” of “independent spirit” (according to the author’s site) in the stranglehold of a domineering, manipulative, and downright abusive alpha male figure. Others apparently couldn’t care less about the sexual politics of the tale and are just along for the allegedly quite thrilling ride, a ride that involves repeated BDSM sessions in Grey’s “Red Room of Pain.” Twilight fans will surely notice some lasting similarities between the gazillion-selling vampire series, right down to the physical damage the male characters “love” inflicts on his victim… sorry, his “partner”. Whether or not Fifty Shades will attract the same degree of controversy as the novels on which it was originally based remains to be seen. So too does the question of whether the novels will turn a new audience into rabid erotic fiction devotees and bring them closer to the erotic artistry with which so many pornographers make their living. After all, it’s all sex (or something similar), isn’t it?

When the trilogy reaches your local cineplex, possibly starring Alexander Skarsgard or Ian Somerhalder who’ve both expressed interest in playing Grey, will you be standing in line waiting to see how the Red Room of Pain translates to the big screen?