Cruising the Movies

Latest Episodes:

Episode 36: Jack Deveau's FIRE ISLAND FEVER (1979) Feb 04, 2022

Show notes

Somewhere between RASHOMON and a telenovela, Jack Deveau's FIRE ISLAND FEVER does what many of us wish we could at this time of year: launch from mid-winter chills to summertime splendor. Featuring a supporting cast of New York gay entertainment grand dames, FIRE ISLAND FEVER takes us to the scandals of Cherry Grove, as well as the men who came to the seaside village to find themselves. Our story not only follows the travails of tumultuous couple and beach house renters Ron and Rick, but also the temporary lovers they take up out of spite along the way—as well as a third roommate who may or may not have had an acid-induced romantic experience with a portrait he imagined into being.

While maybe not one of Hand In Hand's best-known features, FIRE ISLAND FEVER offers a comedic and engrossing glimpse at a true gay getaway. (And, at the very least, it's worth comparing the bustling, zeitgeist-y, cliquish portrayal of Fire Island that Deveau provides in this film to the outdoorsy, nearly pastoral depiction Wakefield Poole offered just a few years prior!) In this episode, we discuss this film's place within Hand In Hand's trilogy tribute to Fire Island, consider the obscure film knowledge and campy wordplay peppered in throughout, and wonder whether the movie's truly mind-boggling amount of plot also covered up for some performance fatigue. We also appreciate AAB staple and genuine thespian Garry Hunt, theorize about the film's confusing marketing campaign, and remember another classic director's Fire Island series.

Episode 35: Wakefield Poole's BOYS IN THE SAND (1971) Jan 14, 2022

Show notes

Wakefield Poole's Boys in the Sand wasn't the first gay porn film, nor was it star Casey Donovan's screen debut. It wasn't even the first gay film to be be shot on Fire Island. But its runaway success and crossover appeal marked a turning point in the nation's growing gay consciousness and collective pornographic fantasy — not to mention establishing Wakefield Poole as one of the leading figures of the new movement. That said, BOYS IN THE SAND holds up as a lush, heady, and yes, fully versatile romp through the salt-breeze, sand-bar idyll of Fire Island, that gay oasis just a couple of hours away from Manhattan.

Over the course of this week's episode, we'll take a look at the unlikely career trajectories and chance circumstances that led Wakefield Poole and Casey Donovan into the adult film world — and each other. We'll also dispel some myths about the film's production and explore the groundbreaking marketing and distribution campaign that fueled a genuine groundswell of intrigue and fascination. By the end of the show, you'll understand while we still seem to be reckoning with the impact of BOYS IN THE SAND five decades after its original release.

Episode 34: Roger Earl's BORN TO RAISE HELL (1975) Dec 24, 2021

Show notes

Guess who's back? The podcast returns for a special holiday Fistmas treat, with one of the roughest films we've covered: Roger Earl's BORN TO RAISE HELL. Filmed with an unflinching documentary feel, Earl's film comes with a disclaimer that it is 'based on a psychological study of a sadomasochistic relationship between adult men.' Quite an understatement for a film that features golden showers, ruddy beaten asses, alligator clamps, and — yes — brutal fisting. We'll go in-depth on the Brazilian leather icon and star sadist, Val Martin; discuss the cyclical influence of Fred Halsted and Earl; and learn why the film is banned from screening in L.A. to this very day.

And speaking of L.A., we also take a deep dive into one of the most notorious chapters in the city's queer history: a 1976 charity "slave auction" that resulted in the arrest of 40 leathermen, including many of the principal cast and crew of BORN TO RAISE HELL, Fred Halsted, and the staff of Drummer magazine. We cover the raid from its initial discovery via a postal inspection informant to detailed reports of the auction to its the accused's lengthy legal battle.

This is a corker of an episode — sit back, grab a recycled beer, rest your legs on a willing sub, and listen!

Episode 33: Michael Zen's FALCONHEAD II: THE MANEATERS (1984) Oct 29, 2021

Show notes

Happy Halloween, everyone! We wanted to cap off Spooky Season with a true classic—and so we're covering one of the most beloved films in the adult male genre. FALCONHEAD II throws us back into Michael Zen's haunting realm of narcissistic self love, but with a few key twists. We're no longer in a trippy 70's atmosphere but, instead, a foreboding 80's new wave space, complete with lush dark synths. We follow Derek as he's thrown into a journey literally to hell and back, one replete with tempting cherry twinks, bearded brides, dick twins, and tattooed love boys.

In this episode, we dive into what led Zen to make this sequel nearly a decade after the original, as well as the ways FALCONHEAD II builds off of the Orpheus myth to explore gay narcissism in new ways. After discussing distinctive tattoos and the tabloid notoriety of the titular actor, we consider whether we personally prefer the first or second chapter of the Falconhead myth. Regardless of which one we like more, both movies are truly artistic—and truly hot—classics that you should scout out.

And while you're still in the Halloween spirit, make sure to check out the rest of our Spooky Season selections from this year and last year! (It turns out ghost dick and haunted hole was more popular a sub-genre that we thought.) You'll get to hear our coverage of not only the first FALCONHEAD, but also several other gems, such as the psychedelic doppelgänger tale THE DESTROYING ANGEL, the bizarrely darling GAYRACULA—and our *free* bonus on SEX DEMON.

Happy listening—and watch out for fangs.

Episode 32: Linus Terri's WE'LL MEET AGAIN (1978) with Marc Paris Oct 15, 2021

Show notes

Spooky Season is in full force with this week's episode: Linus Terri's horny phantom melodrama WE'LL MEET AGAIN! Don't worry if you're more of a Care Bear than a horror hound, since this movie has more in common with an episode of GHOST WHISPERER than Terri's previous work, the recently-discussed SEX DEMON. (Which, make sure you check out that episode if you want a fuller story on the precocious Terri's winding and wondrous career.)

Over the course of the episode, we discuss how subtle details in adult films can reflect major shifts in the study of gay history, impeccably framed dance sequences, and the usefulness of downer endings. (Don't worry, there's also ghost dick.)

We also have a special treat for you: excerpts from our interview with WE'LL MEET AGAIN star Marc Paris! Marc graciously told us how he got involved with the film, connecting a lot of dots for us about the New York dancer scene in the process. He also told us about his life in theatre after the movies—and how you sometimes you can't really shake off the past.

If you are in the L.A. area, make sure to get your tickets for Terri's unearthed classic, SEX DEMON. It is being screened for the first time in four decades at Dynasty Typewriter, thanks to our friends at Dirty Looks. Even better: Evan is going to be at this screening! Grab a seat and prepare for a truly exhilarating time.

Special Bonus Episode: J. C. Cricket's SEX DEMON (1975) with Joe Rubin Oct 08, 2021

Show notes

Happy Spooky Season, everyone! In the spirit of being more treat than trick, we're releasing this bonus episode to everyone!

And boy, do we have a treat for you: we're discussing the previously-lost possession film SEX DEMON. Truly more interesting than THE EXORCIST—it knows when to actually be funny and scary—and building off the suppressed demonic classic ABBY, SEX DEMON has not been seen for forty years. That is, until now: our host Evan came across this holy grail in the middle of sourcing and preserving dozens of other gay adult classics. Without spoiling this treasure, we discuss the film's precocious director, his many lives in entertainment, and the film's interesting take on sexual possession and May-September romance.

Now, as people return to the theaters, we're finding places to screen SEX DEMON. If you live in New York City or L.A., great news: we have screenings in your cities at the end of the month! Tune in to see where you can find this gay horror thriller.

PLUS: We have excerpts from our interview with Vinegar Syndrome co-founder Joe Rubin. Joe talked with us about the challenges of preserving adult films, the differences in vintage hetero and all-male film, and the need to truly support the archival work you enjoy.

None of this would be possible—finding rare films, preserving and digitizing prints, heavy research and consistent production—without your support. If you like our work and want to keep seeing it—as well as get amazing perks like these bonus episodes—please join our Patreon, and please spread the word. (And thanks to all of you who already do.) You make this possible.

Episode 31: Hand in Hand Films's GOOD HOT STUFF (1975) with William E. Jones Sep 24, 2021

Show notes

Have we got a surprise for you this week, listeners! On this episode, we discuss Hand in Hand's ode to itself GOOD HOT STUFF. Part cheeky documentary, part meta-history, and part outright salvage job, GOOD HOT STUFF takes us through the young studio's early artistic successes and previews its raunchy upcoming creations. Along the way, we meet an adorable narrator with an incredibly thick mid-Atlantic drawl, see some of the men who made magic behind the scenes through editing and scoring—and see an excerpt from an unfinished Scheherazade ripoff with a patently wacky backstory.

But that's not all: we also have a conversation with author and filmmaker William E. Jones about GOOD HOT STUFF! The movie played a pivotal role in his previous novel 'I'm Open to Anything'—and we discuss where his and his protagonist's relation to the film differ. We also have a chance to discuss with Jones regionalism in porn, his enduring fascination with Fred Halsted, and his latest novel 'I Should Have Known Better' (now available through We Heard You Like Books Press or many other retailers).

Tune in and learn what makes this film much more than a clip package or a cheap ripoff of THAT'S ENTERTAINMENT!—but, instead, a hot and artistic production in its own right.

Episode 30: Ray Harrison's ALL ABOUT ALICE (1972) Sep 10, 2021

Show notes

What happens when a short story becomes a classic movie, which then becomes a radio play, and then a Broadway musical, and then a campy drag parody featuring the beefy one-time owner of the Gold's Gym empire? You get Ray Harrison and the GGRC's 1972 film ALL ABOUT ALICE.

This week, we're celebrating the American Genre Film Archive's upcoming blu-ray collection of films by the GGRC—a Los Angeles gay social club that began making a series of increasingly elaborate drag parodies for fun on weekends in the early 1960s. These are truly hidden gems of queer cinema, especially the very rarely-screened ALL ABOUT ALICE, which was both the group's most ambitious effort and its final film.

Over the course of this episode, we talk about the difficulty in camping a camp classic, how quickly audience demand for hardcore solidified, and the joy of making art just to give your friends a few laughs. (Plus: the cross-generational bodybuilder appeal of Dakota.)

'WHAT REALLY HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? and the Films of the Gay Girls Riding Club' is due out later this month from the American Genre Film Archive and is currently available for pre-order at vinegarsyndrome.com.

Episode 29: Jerry Douglas's BOTH WAYS (1975) Aug 20, 2021

Show notes

This week on the podcast, we're exposing 'the eternal triangle of bi-sexuality' and all the trials and tribulations that come with trying to have it… BOTH WAYS, directed by Jerry Douglas and released in 1975. Future disco queen Andrea True and Douglas regular Gerald Grant star in this sensitive drama (or is it a comedy?) as a married couple whose loving relationship is torn apart by the husband's inability to choose between his wife and the blond bodybuilder he's been seeing on the side. Who will he wind up with, and who will be hurt?

Over the course of this episode, we'll discuss Jerry Douglas's earlier successes in the theatre world and the film's many connections to his breakthrough play, TUBSTRIP; bisexuality in adult film; and whether or not the film might've worked better as a play.

Episode 28: Tom DeSimone's SKIN DEEP (1982) Aug 06, 2021

Show notes

This week on the podcast, we're taking a look a title that many consider to be among the greatest all-male films ever made: Tom DeSimone's SKIN DEEP. Released in the period after DeSimone's mainstream slasher classic HELL NIGHT, SKIN DEEP tells the story of Eric, a porno writer who falls for Mark, a hustler he sees on the regular — but is he in love with the character or the man himself? A haunting chamber piece that plays more like a one-handed two-hander than it does a standard adult film, SKIN DEEP is a classic deserving of a wider audience.

Over the course of this episode, we'll explore the history of a shooting location that almost serves as a character in and of itself, dig into a whole new crop of superstar performers, and find out how the success of this film led directly to DeSimone's retirement from the genre.

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