BijouBlog

By Josh Eliot

It was intended to be a “star vehicle” movie for one of the most in-demand actors of the day, Blade Thompson. Blade burst onto the scene in Matt Sterling’s Score 10 in 1991 playing “Football Player #24” and was matched perfectly with Chad Knight. Score 10 was a pretty awesome movie with a who’s who cast including Mike Henson, Ryan Idol, Dolph Knight, Danny Summers, Chris Stone, Craig Slater and Dcota. Blade was another “it boy” of 1991-92 with roles in Idol Worship, L.A. Sex Stories, View to a Thrill 2 and magazine covers everywhere. It was the same year Catalina sensation Cody Foster’s career took off and they both dominated in the Industry, but they both took two completely different paths in life and career. I wrote extensively about Cody Foster recently in my blog “The Malibu Pool Boy: Cody Foster,” and it was a bit of déjà vu working with Blade Thompson on Behind the Barn Door (1992). But, in this case, Blade didn’t get rattled despite Scott Master’s best attempts. Behind the Barn Door was very loosely based on Robert Walters' (Scott Masters) Nova Studios film Down on the Farm (1982), starring Lee Marlin and available from Bijou Video.

In Behind the Barn Door, Blade and Rush Adams were co-stars with an equal amount of sex scenes. Scott Masters secured a farm location in central California, so it was a good four and a half hour drive from L.A. and, unfortunately for the cast and crew, it wasn’t a designated “travel day,” it was a “shoot day.” Before leaving town, we needed to shoot some shots of Rush picking up Blade in his “Datsun” truck from the back of a warehouse. We could have used the Catalina warehouse, but for some reason Scott had us just pick one at random on our way to the 101 freeway. We were only able to get a single take in a wide shot before we were approached by security and asked to leave the grounds. That shot seems to go on forever in the finished movie, because of all the voice-over it needed to cover. If we could have taped different angles and close ups, the finished segment wouldn’t have been so painful to watch. We were about four hours into our drive through the countryside when the crew in my van started getting on my case because we hadn’t eaten, despite passing a number of fast food and full service restaurants. I finally started flashing the headlights at Scott’s car to get him to pull over. No cell phones back then! Once he did, I ran up and told him everyone was starving and asked if we could we pull over at the next restaurant we saw. Blade and Rush, who were in Scott's, car said that they were hungry too! I was answered with a big obnoxious scream from Scott, basically telling us all to fuck off because we needed to get to the location first and shoot some shots before the sun went down.

I went back to the van with my tail between my legs, and when I told the crew they weren’t very happy. It’s not like I knew the address of the location and could just meet Scott there if we were to pull off for food at a drive-through. His controlling nature had us following behind his car in the van with no other location info, and let’s just say it, he drove like an old lady. As soon as we arrived, the farmer greeted us and we were instructed to set up before it got dark. We needed to get a shot of Blade and Rush running through a field and into the barn. They were dressed like children in elementary school, with their school books in tow, and I felt a little embarrassed for them in their Pee-Wee Herman outfits. Couldn’t we have shot that same angle the next morning? The barn location was booked for two days! It was foolish decisions like this one, not to feed the cast and crew, that always haunted us on Scott Masters’ movies. It was a pattern of inflexibility that we became accustomed to, but that didn’t make it any easier on us. Blade and Rush then shot a J/O together in the barn, but the generator we were using for power was so loud that it was drowning out all the audio. It was decided that we would record voice-over dubs later when we got to our accommodations for the night. It was around 7pm when we drove to our house rental and I was immediately instructed to set up the video decks so they could record Blake and Rush’s voice-overs and then told to go to the local market and pick up something to cook for everyone. I was super pissed and took the photographer Jeff Burton and make-up man Mr. Ed with me, getting them mega-stoned while we drove to the market. We were dying of hunger by this point and started eating Suzie-Q’s and Ding Dongs in the aisles while we shopped, saving the packages so the cashier could ring them up, naturally. Unfortunately, the small mom and pop market sucked! All we could find to make for dinner was spaghetti, sauce from a jar and frozen meatballs. What a shit show.

The next day was not much better, because that generator from hell was so loud and obnoxious it was getting on everybody’s nerves. The sex scene with Rush and Blade was “good,” but they both were totally over Scott Masters' behavior and started talking back to him and getting in petty arguments. We went back to L.A. the following morning, and the day after that we shot Blade’s scene with sexy Rick Bolton in a classic car on the grounds of the Eight is Enough TV show house in Universal City. That actually went off quite well. The other scenes required another road trip to a country estate with a beautiful pond and several out buildings. This time, I took the initiative to load the van up with lots of snacks, drinks and pre-made sandwiches, just in case “Debby Downer” tried to starve us again. You have to realize that it was going on six years of dealing with Scott’s behavior, and I was really at my wit's end with him.

The first thing I noticed at the location was the amazing landscape and how picturesque the property was. Rush Adams was matched with a newcomer, to us, named Tom Katt. Tom Katt went on to work with us for years to come, however Rush only worked in two movies for Catalina and one for Vivid Video called Widespread. Rush co-stared in a little sleeper I directed called Good Vibrations. Good Vibrations was a super quirky, stoner vibe video with a mixed up, messed up storyline, which I made early in my career. I will go on record to say that even though I previously claimed Brother Trouble to be the worst movie I ever made, maybe Good Vibrations takes that honor. I linked a teaser of each - you decide.

It’s too bad Rush left the porn scene, because he had a big fat cock that worked and a macho yet endearing personality. For the Rush and Tom Katt scene, I spotted a fantastic camera angle featuring an incredible pond with a barn and farmhouse in the background. I remember walking Scott Masters over to where I thought we should set up the cameras, saying that it would be “gorgeous” to use that camera angle as a wide shot for the sex scene because it was so incredibly picturesque. He reminded me that the pond was only going to be used as the script warranted, for Blade and Rush Adams to be in a rowboat while Rush tells Blade about his encounter with Tom Katt in “a shower.” What a huge waste it was to only use the pond for a tiny piece of storyline in a stagnant shot with weird voiceover dialogue. With his wishes made known, we went on to shoot the scene in a tiny shower instead of simply modifying the script to have Rush’s dubbed voice-over tell the story about how he had sex with Tom Katt on the shore of that pond instead of a shower. Oy vey!

At least when the tiny shower wasn’t working visually for Scott, I was able to persuade him to move the boys to the front porch of the cabin for some sort of visual interest. Tom Katt and Rush had good chemistry once we got them out of that crammed shower, and the scene was saved.

I think it was Scott’s roommate Don who showed up with three new models midway through our day. Scott neglected to mention to any of us that we were doing a double shift; we had yet another nighttime scene to shoot on another area of the property near some hay bales. Thanks for the notice! We begrudgingly set up after eating the pizzas that Don brought with him. The scene was with Cory Evans, Jason Andrews and Joey Morgan and, despite the circumstances, the scene flowed very well and it kind of renewed our spirit because they were so into each other. I think the only scene without generator noise was a tag-on we shot in L.A. with Bo Summers and Todd Marshall, which I remember absolutely “zip” about. In fact, the generator problem was such a big deal that we had to shoot most of the storyline as voice-overs, which emulated a NOVA film from Scott's past. That could have been a good thing, because I love his NOVA films, but for this project it just didn’t work and the final cut of the movie was a disappointment for sure.

Some believe that, after viewing the finished version of Behind the Barn Door, it was the final straw for the GM. This would turn out to be the last movie Scott Masters directed for Catalina and, in addition, he and John Travis left the company within weeks. When one door closes, another one opens. John and Scott jumped into action and formed the company Studio 2000, where they released many hit movies for years to come. Movies directed by John Trennel (John Travis) and produced by Scott Masters always proved to be a winning combination. As for Blade Thompson, his career as a top box cover star covered the lengthy period of 1991 to 1997. He then transformed his career to that of director, working behind the cameras during the years 1997 to 2003.

Bio of Josh Eliot:

At the age of 25 in 1987, Josh Eliot was hired by Catalina Video by John Travis (Brentwood Video) and Scott Masters (Nova Video). Travis trained Eliot on his style of videography and mentored him on the art of directing. Josh directed his first movie, Runaways, in 1987. By 2009 when Josh parted ways with Catalina Video, he'd produced and directed hundreds of features and won numerous awards for Best Screenplay, Videography, Editing, and Directing. He was entered into the GayVN Hall of fame in 2002.

This week, we're reprinting an interview by Mitch Lawrence with Randy Cochran - an important early Black gay porn star - from the May 2003 issue of Black Inches Magazine. In it, Cochran candidly discusses his career during the '80s/'90s and shares about a production he had just directed/produced at the time of the interview.

Black Inches talks with the first African-American nominated for an Adult Video Award for Best Actor. Randy Cochran's career in the adult industry spans sixteen years. During that time, he has worked with some of the industry greats and earned himself a place in porn history as one of the first gay Black porn stars. These days, he operates his own escort service and recently stepped behind the cameras to produce and direct Mr. Cochran's Neighborhood.

Mitch Lawrence: Let's start with the basics. When is your birthday and where were you born?

Randy Cochran: I'm a Virgo, born August 28, 1962 at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland.

ML: Where do you live now?

RC: I moved back to the East Coast two years ago, after fulfilling a twenty-year life plan to life in California. These days, I split my week between Manhattan and a home in Maryland that's two doors down from the house where I grew up. Manhattan has beautiful men, but the air can be harsh. I love Maryland's four seasons, but the city is plagued with street drugs.

ML: What's your educational background?

RC: Being a U.S. Navy veteran and having the free time my profession allows, I've had a chance to study a number of different things. I went to a medically-oriented high school and became a surgical tech in the navy. I've since studied business, cinematography, photography, televison, and botany, just to name a few.

ML: Are those your major interests?

RC: Yes, plus fucking, of course!

ML: How did you get started in the adult industry?

RC: Back in the early eighties, I was living in Hollywood and working three jobs. I stayed so busy that I didn't have the time to spend all the money I was making. I didn't even have a car, very unusual for someone in Southern California. Anyway, I was on the bus one day and read an article that said, "You can't make any money working for someone else." About the same time, some guy told me that I fucked well enough to escort, so I popped an ad in the local gay rag and I was off and running.

Also, about the same time, I answered an ad in Drama Log that was seeking dancers. It was supposedly for a music dance video and I was sure it was legitimate, because there were lots of SAG and AFTRA members in it. As it turned out, a few weeks into rehearsals the producers announced it was actualy an adult production. There were some big cast changes, but I stayed on and ended up starring in my first adult video.

ML: What was the title?

RC: It was a Black Forest Productions flick called Making It Big, which took nearly a year to make. I was in other films that were released earlier, but that was my first and also the one that earned me a nomination for Best Actor at the 1986 Adult Video Awards.

RC: I was the first Black performer to go up for that category. Believe it or not, back then, Black actors still had white voiceovers.

ML: Why?

RC: The need for voiceovers came from a combination of difficulties. Even though Black videos are big moneymakers, they're usually low-budget productions. The earlier ones used inferior equipment for the most part, or the production just didn't have the bucks to have the actors lay down a proper soundtrack. White guys were hired to fix that.

ML: Have you encountered any sort of prejudice from within the porn industry?

RC: Absolutely! The worst was probably my fiftieth film, called In the Black. The producer wanted to make a Black flick, but he didn't want his neighbors to see Black guys going in and out of his neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley, so he cramped seven performers and a crew of seven more in a little two-bedroom unit elsewhere. The uncomfortable vibes definitely came across in the finished product.

I've worked on all-Black productions, interracial productions, and on all-white productions in a technical capacity, and unfortunately, there's a pretty big difference between each level. That includes everything from pay scales, dressing rooms, sets, catering, and makeup to technical support. It's just not equal.

ML: What's the climate like in the business today?

RC: A big part of my being in the industry was to get better conditions for Black performers. I've been successful on some levels and believe things have improved in my sixteen-plus years in front of the cameras, but I've recently heard rumors of backsliding.

ML: Do you enjoy making interracial videos?

RC: It's great! I love working with my brothas, but as far as production values, the level is always higher in an interracial flick versus an all-Black production. An exception would be Catalina, which has the most polished of the all-Black productions.

ML: What do you consider to be your best work in video?

RC: Heatwaves - a Catalina production, by the way. It's one of my favorites because of the treatment I recieved. A limo picked me up and took me to a yacht that had belonged to Elizabeth Taylor for a four-day cruise to Catalina Island. The cast was beautiful, the weather was wonderful, and there was great food, hot sex, the works for two days on and two days off!

My second favorite was another Black Forest production, In Thrust We Trust. Believe it or not, my co-stars were hung larger than me, and we had a scene where everyone cums three times. That was fucking hot!

ML: Speaking of dick size, care to enlighten us?

RC: 10" x 7".

ML: Did you have a favorite director?

RC: There are several, actually. First was Robert of Adam and Co., because he was terrific to work for and he taught me a great deal about the industry. Bill Higgins was responsible for those terrific Catalina productions. Gino Colbert is always a joy to work with, and Chi Chi LaRue is wonderfully professional.

ML: What about your less rewarding experiences?

RC: I suppose Lazlo gets my vote for least favorite producer, although I liked him personally. He's the one who killed off Cory Monroe and me in an auto accident. Cory and I delivered a great performance sex-wise, but Lazlo had scheduled too many scenes for one day and needed us to return for dialogue pickups, which give a cleaner soundtrack, eliminate director's instructions, still camera clicks, air and road noise, and so forth. Instead of paying for the extra day, he killed us off in the credits to save bucks.

ML: Tell us about your favorite co-stars.

RC: I like Steve Love, David Ashfield, and Gene Lamar. Brad Leatherwood was great, too.

ML: And your least favorite?

RC: Fortunately, his name escapes me. All I can remember is that he was a really boring sex performer and terribly unprofessional.

ML: How was handsome Ty Jones to work with?

RC: Absolutely great. He should also be included on my list of favorite performers. What a fantastic dick! He was a great friend and we got to play around a lot off-camera. His other half, Ron, used to screw me silly up against the wall.

ML: You worked with some of the early legends in the business. Do you still see any of the old gang?

RC: Absolutely! I spent a weekend with Steve Love in Chicago just a few weeks ago and I got together with Gene Lamar and Paul Hanson for my birthday the year before last. We try to keep in touch.

ML: What's your funniest experience in the porn business?

RC: Something that happened at the end of filming Mr. Cochran's Neighborhood, which was inclued as a blooper. Andre Bolla was sucking dick and getting worked over by a large dildo when he let loose with a huge belch right into the camera. Oops!

ML: You directed and produced your last video, Mr. Cochran's Neighborhood. Can we expect any more videos?

RC: There's talk about doing a trilogy with the old gang. I'm mostly focusing on my escort business. As I said, it predates my film career. I found the video work to be a great mode of advertisement.

ML: How long have you been escorting?

RC: Over twenty years now.

ML: What do most clients prefer?

RC: Bottoming.

ML: And what do you prefer?

RC: Topping.

ML: So that works out really well.

RC: Absolutely!

ML: What are your personal preferences?

RC: I also prefer to top in my private life, unless the dick is larger than mine. I'm a firm believer that one has to know what feels good to make it feel good. I enjoy a good dicking every now and then, and I'm lucky to have had some of the largest pieces in the industry.

ML: Are you in a relationship or single?

RC: I'm a bachelor all the way.

ML: If you were looking, what would be your criteria?

RC: A big-dicked, versatile man who's very butch yet kind and generous. Someone who can accept my lifestyle.

Check out Bijou's 2024 remastered reissue of Randy Cochran's porn debut in Dwight Antoine's Making It Big (Black Forest Productions, 1986) on DVD and Streaming! Plus, catch several other of Randy Cochran's classics through Bijou.

By Josh Eliot

Hands down, for me, the least interesting sexual position, whether you are in a bed or behind a camera lens, is 69. It blows, literally. It’s a bitch to light if you are filming it, a pain in the ass to execute it if you are an actor performing the position and not the most pleasant of views for the guy on the bottom. Now granted, it’s a simultaneous blow job, or a blow and a rim, but I much prefer the guy on his knees looking up with his eyes as he works his partner off. Doesn’t that always look better in a movie or to the receiver? I made a movie called 69: Discover the Secret in 2004 and I’ll be more than surprised, when I go back to watch it, if the movie even features one short segment with the 69 sex position. The title was a play on words and 69 stood for the year 1969, not the sex position.

The movie opens to a glorious black-and white-shot of a secluded home in the mountains of Yucca Valley, California with a half-moon glowing above it. Inside the house, actors Rob Romoni and Andreas Stern play a closeted 1960’s couple watching television as the astronauts walk on the moon for the very first time. Later, Andreas goes out back into the tool shed and discovers a distressed, naked young man who collapses onto the floor. The couple brings the young man inside and discovers he has amnesia but remembers someone calling him by the name Skyler.

Skyler is the main character of the movie, and we follow his journey from young man to middle-aged adult, learning more and more about his existence along the way. Young Skyler is played by Chip Noll, then as the story progresses into the 1980’s, Cameron Fox takes over the role of Skyler. Finally, as we reach modern day in the early 2000’s, Steve Rambo assumes the role of older Skyler. The big names only start there, with sixteen more top stars all contributing their awesomeness to this major movie for Catalina Video! The supporting cast includes Ray Harley, Maxime Cannon, Jack van Dean, Bruno Storni (aka Bruno Storm), Andreas Stern, Alex Steele, Riley Porter, Rob Romoni, Mario Ortiz, Andy Hunter, Jonathan Gabriel, Jessie Cooper, Adriano and the award-winning trio who received the Best Group Scene Award from GayVN: Arpad Miklos, Brad Benton and Jack Ryan. I remember shooting that award-winning threeway with those guys and thinking to myself, “This is the 'scene stealer' of this entire movie.” It was hotter than hot - all three of those dudes had such an incredible sexual presence with each other. They were almost giddy to get each other stripped down and pounce on each other.

Young Skyler is introduced for the first time into the world of sexual pleasure when he witnesses the 1969 gay couple involved in some deep penetration. Shot beautifully in gorgeous black-and-white, this scene rates high among all of my very favorites. Andreas Stern never looked better, and that giant fat dick of his sliding into Rob Romoni’s throat and muscle ass opens the movie with a bang! The following morning, they wake up and realize Skyler has flown the coop. We next see Skyler wandering through the wilderness stopping along a river to rest. This is where the audience begins to see glimpses and flashes of Skyler’s memories in both black-and-white and in color. I was going for a memory montage that looked as though moments from history were implanted in his brain, and I achieved this by using purchased stock footage of major events in history cut to overly dramatic music. When Skyler falls asleep, the time lapses and we move from 1969 to 1992, converting into color along the way

In 1992, Cameron Fox takes over the role, and he is now making his way from the mountains to the desert floor in Palm Springs, California. Cameron Fox started his career in 1999 at the age of twenty-two under contract with Falcon Studios. His first three movies for director John Rutherford were Sting: A Taste of Leather, No Way Out and In Deep: Miles to Go. We were lucky enough to work with Cameron in 2003 for directer Brad Austin’s My Overstuffed Jeans and also his role in 69. Cameron unfortunately passed away at the young age of 36 on June 12, 2014. He will be remembered for his wonderful demeanor and professionality on the set, with award-winning performances highlighting his legacy. A fun, friendly Texas boy who, through our brief time working together, made such a positive impression on myself and the Catalina crew members. Cameron was the perfect choice for the thirty-ish Skyler who falls in love with Adriano when they meet accidentally one day in the desert. Skyler is mistaken for one of the “working boy hustlers” hired for a birthday party and, even though he is just in the wrong place at the wrong time, Skyler joins in on the erotic five-way with Adriano, Jonathan Gabriel, Riley Porter and Mario Ortiz. After the party, Skyler stays with Adriano and the pair forms a relationship. Suddenly and without warning, the threat of mysterious bounty hunters looking for Skyler is made known. Skyler’s fear for Adriano’s safety forces him to take off in the middle of the night, leaving his lover behind. He makes his way into the nearby mountains, where he lives off the land for a little over a decade.

In a fun and fabulous transition scene, Cameron Fox transforms into Steve Rambo, who takes over the final casting for the “older” Skyler. After living off the land for many years, he is captured by the bounty hunters as the audience learns more about who exactly Skyler is. In his very last movie for Catalina Video (his work with which included a brilliant eight-year career as an exclusive for the company), Ray Harley steps in to play the hero of the movie. He portrays the one person who knows everything about Skyler and wants to help free him from the hands of the military monster, played by Maxime Cannon, who now holds Skyler captive. Maxime Cannon and Ray both starred in His Terrible Twin, Stag Show and Junior's Nude Cleaning Service, but this is the first time they performed together in a sex scene. It was perfect casting for the hottest bottom in our stable of exclusives to be rammed by our biggest dick exclusive. Ray can usually take anyone, but he was definitely feeling it when Maxime’s giant schlong went to town on his ass. It is at this point that we all find out exactly who and what Skyler is and why he was created in the first place. Yes, I said created.

Skyler and the audience are transported inside a digital program, and are introduced to a stable of studs who happen to be the newest “version” of Skyler: newly built Skyler models 2.0 with modern technology preventing them from escaping the military and having to be hunted down, like our character was. The original Skyler is simply out of date. Ray Harley brokers a deal to let the original Skyler return to the desert to spend the rest of his existence with his true love, Adriano, but only after he shares all of the sexual experiences he had along the way with the new group of updated Skyler 2.0s... because you just can’t get that “mouth on cock,” “dick up the ass” or “load on the face” realistic experience from a computer program. Basically, an excuse for a big final orgy to close out the movie.

69: Discover the Secret was my opportunity to dip my toes into a little bit of sci-fi. I had a really good time creating the futuristic world and all the characters living in it. I have to say, the actors all did an awesome job with the outside-the-box personalities. I recently re-mastered a 32-minute “PG” version of the movie for my YouTube Channel and am linking it for you to watch here.

Bio of Josh Eliot:

At the age of 25 in 1987, Josh Eliot was hired by Catalina Video by John Travis (Brentwood Video) and Scott Masters (Nova Video). Travis trained Eliot on his style of videography and mentored him on the art of directing. Josh directed his first movie, Runaways, in 1987. By 2009 when Josh parted ways with Catalina Video, he'd produced and directed hundreds of features and won numerous awards for Best Screenplay, Videography, Editing, and Directing. He was entered into the GayVN Hall of fame in 2002.

The year was early 1993, and I was running all over Hollywood looking for a waterproof casing for our Canon L1 camera, which recorded on Hi-8 video tape. The L1 was a smaller camera that we would use when we needed to shoot some footage in any area where we didn’t have electricity. You would think that we could have used our big three-quarter inch main cameras that cost a fortune and gave an excellent quality image, but our producer Scott Masters did not want to buy the rechargeable batteries for them, as the cost was “too much.” Instead he invested in this little piece of shit camera as our solution; I think it cost around $2500. I truly believe I lost a few votes for Best Picture on Single White Male (1992) because of this damn camera. I was told it was a dead heat between SWM and Jerry Douglas’ Kiss Off, which ended up with the GayVN for Best Picture award that year. I was forced to use that damn L1 for all the exterior shots in Single White Male, including the finale where Rob Cryston chases Brian Hart with an ax! Whenever you cut the footage in a scene alongside footage from our main cameras it was so obvious that they didn’t match, and the footage that was shot on some cheap camera affected the viewing experience for sure. The only good thing about the L1 camera, in my opinion, was that I was able to find the casing for it and shot my very first underwater sex scene for a movie called Wet and Wild.

I’ll be the first to say that Wet and Wild is no great movie; it’s kind of all over the place, yet it has an amazing cast and the underwater scene between Aiden Shaw and Rob Cryston is worth the price of admission. The other thing I absolutely love about the movie isn’t in the movie, it’s on the original VHS box cover. Our make-up man at the time, “Mr. Ed,” hand-painted a swimsuit on the naked body of star Tom Katt - who, as everyone reading this probably knows, had an incredible physique at the time, and probably still does. There’s one other great thing associated with Wet and Wild, and his name is Joey Morgan.

The previous year, I worked with Joey Morgan in Down Bi Law (1992), where he played a sheriff looking for an escaped convict in a brothel. It was great to have him back with us, especially because we were shooting out of town, in Palm Springs, on gay-friendly Warm Sands Drive. We were just a few buildings up from the Vista Grande and Atrium, nudist resorts where we normally shot our movies during the era. This time we had a triplex that we rented out for the week and had the private pool area to ourselves. Somehow, while shooting a scene, the crew was talking about porn star/director Paul Barresi, and Joey Morgan had a fun story to tell us about working with him in the past. Everyone on the crew all thought that Barresi was a fucking stud, and so did Joey. When shooting the movie for director Paul Barresi, Joey told him that he was having trouble getting hard - all as a ploy, mind you, as Joey never had trouble getting hard. Joey played it well, saying magazines weren’t working, videos didn’t help, yada yada, and the only thing that would get him hard and able to shoot the scene would be if Paul pulled his dick out and let Joey suck it. That sly little fox! Brilliant! Joey was so proud of himself when he told us the story, and of course we all were so envious! That was very much in character for Joey, not afraid to ask for what he wanted. Like any good blogger, I decided to see if the story lined up with reality, so I searched and searched until I found that Joey Morgan did work on a movie for Paul Barresi in 1992 called Razor Close. It took me awhile to find it, because he worked under the stage name Aaron Gunn instead of Joey Morgan.

Wet and Wild was the one and only time that my partner, Mark Rutter, came along on one of my video shoots. I invited him because we had enough space for everyone to have their own private bedrooms and we were still in the honeymoon phase of our relationship. Joey was totally chomping at the bit for Mark and kept saying we were a hot couple, but of course a threeway was out of the question. As far as I know, they didn’t play around behind my back, but who knows, as I was busy on the set a lot and Mark did kind of look like Paul Barresi!

Aiden Shaw worked in a few movies directed by Chi Chi Larue and Chet Thomas, which I was videographer on, but this was the first time I directed him. What a dream - his huge piece would get hard at the drop of a pin and stay that way until climaxes. The evening he arrived, we shot his oral scene, which basically called for him to slide his hard dick through a lattice wall alongside the face of Joey Morgan, who was relaxing by the pool. Joey worked the very large, fat piece beautifully, making that oral scene really stand out among the others. For some reason, we put vampire fangs in Aiden’s mouth, which the viewer saw through the lattice hole. I guess he was supposed to be sucking off a vampire? Who knows. I think I was in a “smoking a lot of pot” phase and never really completed the script on this movie or explained the vampire fangs. I used to get all over Chi Chi LaRue for showing up to the set without a script, which she would then scramble to write on a paper towel or whatever form of paper she could find. Admittedly, I was guilty of the same thing periodically, because it really was exhausting pumping out two or three movies every month and Mark Rutter did like to party and he kind of pulled me into it for a while. One of the great achievements in our relationship was how I got him to give all that up!

Truly the best scene in the movie was shot the next morning, the underwater scene. I was thrilled to have Rob Cryston back with us, as I knew he could handle Aiden’s dick like a champ. I made sure to set up one camera shooting Rob and Aiden from above ground so I could intercut those shots with the underwater footage. I had my snorkel gear and was ready to go, quickly discovering that Aiden and Rob were the perfect choice for the task. They were both rock hard under the water, which helped me capture some great oral by Rob, while the above-water camera caught all of Aiden’s facial reactions. Scott Masters was a savior when it came to the anal. He sent me to the set with this powder that, when mixed with water, became slippery, where normal lube would have produced friction on the condom underwater. It turns out the powder is what they use when birthing cows. The vet would rub it on his/her arms to “grease ‘em up!” Yikes! The fucking was amazing, as were the underwater cum shots. This wasn’t the last underwater scene I would shoot; I pulled the L1 out of mothballs again for the movie CatalinaVille in 1999.

I remember getting a phone call after the underwater scene from Scott Masters, telling me that Tom Katt’s flight was now landing in Ontario instead of Palm Springs and he wanted me to drive there to pick him about around 10 pm. Ontario was almost as far away as Los Angeles, so I asked if he could tell Tom Katt to take a shuttle to us in Palm Springs. That request was “no bueno” and Scott Masters jumped all over me, stressing me out more than I was already, basically “ordering” me to go. I said I would, but after I hung up the phone I quickly made an arrangement with Dennis from Drake's Bookstore (aka Moist Towelette from my movie The Hills Have Bi’s), who was helping us out. He happily agreed to go when I offered to pay him $100. I was thrilled that I didn’t have to drive 100+ miles round trip to the airport after shooting all day and playing mother to the cast and crew. It was also a major fringe benefit to me anytime I could disobey a Scott Masters order.

Tom Katt arrived and I greeted him in the morning, as I was fast asleep when they got in from the airport. He always looked like a million bucks, never needing make-up, but this time the body make-up would be extensive. Mr. Ed did an incredible job for the box cover shoot. The hand-painted swimsuit over Katt’s bubble butt looked incredible; as you see from the box shot, his thin waist accentuating his built-up chest and hot ass made that picture one of my favorite VHS boxes ever.

Tom and Randy White shot a scene together in CC Construction Company, a fabulous discotheque in Cathedral City that was packed every weekend. Randy, Tom Katt and the other models all danced on stage, and the Catalina sales and management team came down to toss out videos to the crowd. It was a good time, but I seriously don’t remember much because Mark Rutter kept feeding me Gold Schlager shots and it’s a minor miracle that I was able to shoot the remaining scenes (with Joey Morgan and Jason Andrews, as well as Bill Watkins and Ren Lickitt) over the next couple of days. A total blur, as the crew started partying at CC and we didn’t stop until days later when it was time to drive home. I watched those two scenes before writing this blog and I remember “zip” about them. So I guess this is a good place to end.

Bio of Josh Eliot:

At the age of 25 in 1987, Josh Eliot was hired by Catalina Video by John Travis (Brentwood Video) and Scott Masters (Nova Video). Travis trained Eliot on his style of videography and mentored him on the art of directing. Josh directed his first movie, Runaways, in 1987. By 2009 when Josh parted ways with Catalina Video, he'd produced and directed hundreds of features and won numerous awards for Best Screenplay, Videography, Editing, and Directing. He was entered into the GayVN Hall of fame in 2002.

As the winter holidays approach, I can’t help but get nostalgic as I find myself re-watching movies from the past that I desperately want to see again. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen All About Eve (1950), What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962), Francis (1982), for Jessica Lange’s performance alone, and even Carrie (1976), to name a few. There’s something about watching a movie that you love that transports you back to the time when you first viewed it. I’m starting a new recurring blog called “I Just Watched.” At first it was going to be a one-off, but then I started thinking about all of the movies I love and want to re-watch, as well as the movies I remember seeing advertised but never got a chance to see.

In addition to all the great remastered DVDs for sale through BijouWorld, Bijou's VOD website streams more content than you could ever watch in a lifetime! They have an amazing library of movies, and when I breezed through the movies, I found myself drawn to those from director Steve Scott. During the 2+ decades I worked at Catalina Video, I found myself as a young director influenced by my mentor John Travis. In hindsight, I wish I would have also looked upon the work of directors from previous generations to inspire me, as well. It’s not like I didn’t have access; the Bijou Video Catalog (Bijou's print catalog in the '80s/'90s) was always a staple in the Catalina offices, and I would frequently breeze through it to get information on new releases, check out the new and seasoned models on the scene and read the write ups on all the movies. Recently, I just so happened to find a copy of the Fall/Winter ’88-’89 catalog for sale online, so I quickly purchased it. Director Steve Scott was featured in, what one might call, the “full color centerfold” of this edition, and was the subject of a special dedication:

“This catalog is in memory of STEVE SCOTT, a great filmmaker and friend and STANLEY SARGOY, a great friend. At peace and with God.”

This passage confirmed to me that choosing a Steve Scott film for the first viewing in this series is more than appropriate. Steve Scott’s movie Screenplay, currently celebrating its 40th anniversary, won the Best Gay Film Award in 1984 from the Gay Critics Association, and even though I’d never seen it, I will treat myself by streaming it now.

The opening titles incorporate the same design as was used on the original VHS box cover, which I thought was cool. It then fades into a stagnate shot of Lee Ryder walking down a desert road towards the camera, free balling in a pair of gray sweat short-shorts. It appears as though it was shot in Joshua Tree National Park. Harmonica music is playing as he sits roadside to take a rest, as the camera peeks in to see his large endowment hanging out of both sides of his shorts, balls one side, schlong the other. The music stops when the movie cuts to Robert Vega and Danny Combs having sex in a movie studio’s grip truck, parked somewhere out in the desert. In fact, there will be no further music until the closing credits, which really helps to make this movie feel very realistic. It has the look of a major motion picture in regard to lighting, camera work and style. The harsh desert light and shadows are always perfectly blended for a fantastic viewing experience, and the restoration is second to none. Lee Ryder walks up on the pair and befriends Vega, who is a production assistant on the Western-themed porno movie that is being shot. Vega also doubles as a limousine driver for the lead actor in the movie, Cody Jackson, played perfectly by Eric Ryan. We now realize that the production team and actors are staying at The New Lost World Resort, which the movie also acknowledges was shot there.

***Side Note*** The Lost World Resort was originally homesteaded as a guest ranch in 1925. After major additions, it became the White Sun Ranch in the 1940’s, whose visitors over the years included Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. In 1981, it officially became a gay resort and was renamed “The New Lost World Country Club and Resort.” Many guests described it as run-down with cloudy pools. The resort had several news-worthy events: a guest setting himself on fire, another male guest found drowned in one of the pools and a fire that broke out in the parking lot, engulfing ten cars. The resort closed its doors in 1986 and, after getting condemned by the city, it was sold to a developer in 1988. I became slightly obsessed with it, so I tracked down the exact location through LGBTQ+ Desert Archives and took a drive to find it. In the photo below, I stand in the exact spot Lee Ryder was, just outside the gates, forty years later. The property is now a gated community called the White Sun Estates. ***

The movie treats us to some amazing rural and picturesque shots of the Rancho Mirage area near Palm Springs in the early 1980’s. The film cuts to Eric Ryan’s room at the resort as the wardrobe stylist played by Jon King enters to show the actor his costumes. Ryan takes no time in getting King on his knees worshiping his fat cock and eventually switches places. Both are rock hard throughout and director Steve Scott shoots some perfectly framed shots, including King puckering his butthole just before Ryan inserts into him. The two have some great chemistry as Ryan lays on top of King who is on his stomach and really drives it home, eventually shooting his load smack dab on that puckering butthole.

We then join Lee Ryder and Robert Vega, who is on his knees working Ryder’s giant piece. When Vega pops his own uncut dick out of his 501’s while sucking off Ryder, the pre-cum is already dripping and director Scott covers that nicely. Ryder unloads on Vega’s tongue, Vega blows a super-sized load and then licks up every drop of Ryder’s cum.

They then go to pick up Cody Jackson from the set, and it is at this point where Lee Ryder meets Eric Ryan (Cody Jackson). The two are smitten from the word go, and Ryan arranges with his PA to have Lee Ryder sent to his suite. Ryder, still in those gray sexy short-shorts, is looking so fine that Eric Ryan is literally pulling his dick out of them seconds after he enters the room. You can tell that Eric Ryan was totally into Ryder, because when he is sucking him he looks totally mesmerized by his dick. Yet again, rock hard madness ensues in this scorching scene where Eric Ryan gets plowed by Lee Ryder and again with just the real sound and no music you can see that Ryan is having a hard time taking the giant piece. You can hear Eric whispering to Lee to take it easy; Lee tells him to just relax then picks up the speed of the fucking before he shoots on Eric’s bubble butt. Some great camerawork with Eric still on his stomach blowing his load, yet the camera has just enough space to get in there and catch it beautifully. Eric invites Lee to stay with him and the drifter agrees.

The next day, the two are having breakfast at Sebastian’s, the Lost World Resort’s restaurant. Here, we see a packed room with many other actors and crew members enjoying breakfast. Included in that room are crew members Champ Larue and super-duper cutie-pie Michael Carr. They both are eating breakfast when they notice Eric Ryan jerking off Lee Ryder under the table next to them, a scene that is very sexy and well shot.

Next, we are treated to Larue and Carr in their room later that evening. Carr is naked on his stomach, sound asleep, while Larue is drinking beer in the bed next to him. Larue starts jacking off while slowly walking over and hovering over different parts of Carr’s hot body, inches away from his balls, then sniffing his pits and eventually blowing his load once Carr, still sleeping, rolls over, exposing his dick. This scene is very cool and so interestingly shot; I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything quite like it. My only disappointment is that hot little fucker Michael Carr does not have sex in this one. I guess I’ll have to watch him in Tony’s Initiation.

Back in Hollywood, the producer/partner of Eric Ryan gets a phone call from PA Vega letting him know that Ryan is getting pretty serious with the hot and horny young drifter. Before we know it, the pissed off partner, played by Michael Braun, arrives at the resort and has a bit of a tit for tat with Ryan. Braun, questionably one of the best blowjob performers of that time, tries to reason with Ryan by working his magic on him with his mouth. Ryan prematurely ejaculates and pisses off Braun, but impresses the audience with a really thick and creamy load.

To release his anger, Braun leaves the room and heads out to the courtyard, jumping in the pool. It doesn’t take long before he notices resort guest Brian Palmer stripping down in front of the window of his poolside suite. As the two lock eyes and start masturbating, we are treated to some cool underwater shots of Braun’s dick that shoots streams of seamen floating in the water while fat-dicked, handsome blond Palmer leaves his load of cream dripping down the picture window.

Braun has a brainstorm and arranges for wardrobe manager Jon King to get naked with the pesky drifter in order to show Eric Ryan that he is just being played. In what turns out to be the hottest scene in the movie, the chemistry that follows between Lee Ryder and Jon King is just sick! Jon King is hungry as hell once he gets Ryder's long fat mega bone in his mouth, and Lee is all about it! Again, cocks so hard it looks like they hurt. Jon sits on Ryder’s dick and is obviously in pain, yet ride up and down he does. Doggystyle is even more of a treat, and Ryder is rock hard and loving the fact he is inflicting this hot sexy pain upon Jon. At one point, you even hear Jon say, “Oh Lee,” which makes it feel even more real between them! Lee pulls out and blows his biggest and best load in the whole movie. Did I mention that during that terrific sex scene, Michael Braun escorts Eric Ryan up to their window, with a partially opened curtain, to witness it?

Harmonica music begins to play again, signaling the end of the movie, which I’ll leave as a mystery for you, because I’m sure you’ll want to stream it or buy it. This one is the real deal, with a cast I grew up with and fantasized about (Eric Ryan) in the 80’s, showcased in a great film. Will Cody Jackson, played by Eric Ryan dump the drifter Lee Ryder after seeing him boning wardrobe stylist Jon King? Or will the film’s star Eric Ryan blow off his boyfriend Michael Braun and choose to leave with the drifter? This Steve Scott movie is defiantly worthy of it’s Best Picture Award and your time. I’m no film critic, but I do know a hot fucking movie when I see one, and that movie is Screenplay!

Bio of Josh Eliot:

At the age of 25 in 1987, Josh Eliot was hired by Catalina Video by John Travis (Brentwood Video) and Scott Masters (Nova Video). Travis trained Eliot on his style of videography and mentored him on the art of directing. Josh directed his first movie, Runaways, in 1987. By 2009 when Josh parted ways with Catalina Video, he'd produced and directed hundreds of features and won numerous awards for Best Screenplay, Videography, Editing, and Directing. He was entered into the GayVN Hall of fame in 2002.