Tina's Feature Feedback
By Tina Louise
ONE OF MY FAVORITE pastimes is reading. Whether I am out on the road, in between shows, or at home curled up in a corner, you can usually find me with a book in my hand. I especially love to read the dictionary. Just for fun I've decided to write down all the words and job-descriptions pertaining to women in my profession and look them up in the dictionary. Here is a partial list of my findings:
Dance: (verb) move rhythmically, usually to music; (noun) dancing as art.
Entertain: (verb) amuse; (noun) entertainer, artist, artiste, dancer, performer.
Exotic: (adjective) strange, unusual, romantic, wonderful, exciting, striking, rare.
Strip: (verb) remove clothes or covering from, undress, leave bare, remove accessory; (noun) act of stripping, esp. in striptease.
Strip Club: club where striptease is performed.
Striptease: entertainment in which performer slowly and erotically undresses.
Erotic: (adjective) arousing sexual desire or excitement.
HMMM...VERY interesting bit of information, wouldn't you say? And yet, nowhere in all of this do the words whore, prostitute, lowlife, junkie, alcoholic, unfit mother, adulteress, abused, runaway, slave, nymphomaniac, masochist, no self-esteem, child molester, immoral, sex fiend, home wrecker, or tramp appear. Why is that? The definitions I looked up were from the Oxford Dictionary and The Oxford Thesaurus. All of the other words are what society perceives us to be. Does this mean the majority of the public is uneducated and illiterate? That they make up their definitions as they see fit? Is society correct in their assumptions, and if so, are the scholars at Oxford University the uneducated ones?
THIS DEBATE HAS been going on for as long as I can remember. And yet, no one seems to have an answer. Does the general public truly believe we are stupid whores, or has the media brainwashed them into believing so, for the sake of higher ratings, more book sales, shock value, and movie madness? Does the media itself suffer from a lack of creativity and the knowledge necessary to accurately portray us in print and on film?
Sally Jesse Raphael and Her Bag Of Tricks
I WENT ON THE Sally Jesse Raphael Show a year ago. They invited me to be on a show entitled "Stripper Moms" to tie in with the release of that eyesore Striptease. They called me at home, and recorded our phone conversation without my permission. They disclosed details of my private life that I wanted to remain private. They showed pictures of my child on the air, and used my real name, after I requested that they didn't. In addition, a so-called psychotherapist from the show even went so far as to suggest that I should have taken my chances living at a $300 a month crack house in Lynn, Massachusetts, rather than being a stripper!
Jerry Springer and Jenny Jones: Thriving on Dirt
I WATCHED Jerry Springer last week. It was a show called "Bachelor Party Revenge". A bride-to be had a bachelorette party where she and her maid of honor engaged in three way sex with...guess who? A male stripper. Jenny Jones did a show on out of control teens, and one sixteen-year-old girl had unprotected sex, did drugs, flashed boys at school for their lunch money, and couldn't decide if she wanted to be a prostitute, or a stripper when she grew up!
Oh, Those Misconceptions
DID ANY OF YOU SEE the embarrassment called Showgirls? Do you remember the scene is which Elizabeth Berkley did that lap dance and had an orgasm with the customer? Oh yeah, like that really happens. A more realistic scene would have shown Ms. Berkley looking at her watch to see when the song would end or scouting the room for other prospective customers. It could have shown her drink down five shots of tequila just to get through the night. It could have shown her after work, arguing with her boyfriend, because she didn't want to have sex after being looked at like a piece of meat all evening. It could have shown her in the shower dousing herself with the hottest water her naked body could tolerate. I have never done a lap dance. As a feature entertainer, I have the option of saying no. This is what I have observed watching and talking to girls who do. And, these girls aren't whores, alcoholics, junkies, etc. They are wives, working moms, and college kids paying for their education. Yes, there are the unfortunate ones who are supporting some worthless leach who takes all their money, or is too lazy to get a Job. But, those girls are less prevalent as they once were.
I KNOW A WOMAN WHO drove three hours to work for fear that she might see a fellow PTA member at the club where she was performing. She was afraid that the prejudices of society would reflect on her child. They still might. That woman is me. Although, if you ran into me at the grocery store, or the bank, or WalMart, you would never guess that I am a feature entertainer. That's because I keep a low profile. I do what I have to do, to protect my family, and to help take care of them.
MAYBE IF MORE OF US low profile dancers "came out" society might change its views. Maybe if Jerry Springer, Sally Jesse Raphael and Jenny Jones would find women in our profession with some intelligence to be guests on their shows, instead of "women who had sex with three hundred guys on film, and the ones who want to break their record," more of is would come forward.
HOWEVER, AS ALL OF us know in this business, sex sells. With the invasion of X-rated porn stars in the gentlemen's club industry, I believe things will get worse before they get better. Unless some of us are willing to go out on a limb and clean up our acts. If you want to get drunk, wait until you get home. If you do drugs, get help. This is a business, not party central. Don't wear stage make-up or micro mini skirts to Toys R-Us. If you walk and talk like a lady, you'll be perceived and treated like a lady. If you walk and talk like a whore, the same rules apply. If you are invited to be a guest on a talk show, don't feed into the media frenzy by ranting and raving. Believe me, the old saying "less is more" definitely applies here.
AS FAR AS GOING OUT on a limb, I am looking for house dancers, feature dancers, club personnel, managers, agents, retired features, and even gentlemen's club patrons would be willing to participate in a "Day In The Life Of An Exotic Dancer" documentary. A hands-on, behind the scenes look at the people in our industry. This will be a legitimate piece of filmmaking--not an X rated film.
IF YOU'RE INTERESTED, send two color photos (one head-shot and one full body shot, in clothes) to:
A DAY IN THE LIFE, c/o Tina Louise, PO. Box 542, Petersburg VA 23804. Please include a brief description of yourself, an interesting story you have to tell, and/or your reasons for wanting to be in the film. I look forward to hearing from each and every one of you.
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