University of Virginia Library

Skin Flicks Waning, But Still The Popcorn Pops

By JANE CLOSE

Do you have an unsatiable
sex drive or need a cure for an
impotent body? Searching for
the ultimate in ctatic
experiences? Look west, north
or south but forget
Charlottesville if the only thing
that satisfies you is a skin flick.

The "U" boys just don't go
to such pleasers and expect
them to satisfy their
never-ending desires. As a
fourth-year man says, "I just
went cause I heard they were a
scene. And Christ, what a
scene!"

Why are these late night skin
packages losing popularity?
"Well, it's too big of a hassle to
show them," says University
Theatre manager, Tom Thorpe.
"The posters that are
distributed nationally
advertise admittance ages at
17, but the Virginia
state law says you have to be
18. Such inconsistency makes
people mad because they think
they're being unjustly barred
from the movie."

Of course University Theatre
never really showed the hard
core stuff anyway. About the
"worst" films("smokers") Mr.
Thorpe can remember showing
were Midnight Cowboy, rated
"R" and Myra Breckenridge,
whose rating he couldn't
remember off hand. "The
ratings have changed even
though it's only been a couple
of years," he said. "They're
both probably 'PG' by now."

Even though obscene flicks
seem to be a dying tradition in
Charlottesville, there are two
places around here that still
roll some skin, cross-Main
Street rivals,the Paramount and
the Cinema. Although
Virginia's laws are not reason
enough for them to abandon
their evening soirees, the
managers of these two flesh
palaces hold some radically
different views about
presentation techniques and
skin flicks in general.

Peeling Skin

Cinema manager, James
Ford, a two and a half year
veteran of the business, "peels
some skin" every Tuesday
night at ten o'clock. And he
does it for the sole pleasure of
profit. At $2.25 a show, a full
house, and no other Tuesday
night competition, it's possible
for him to net a lucrative sum
of $1,210 per week. Not bad,
and certainly reason enough to
keep the corn popping.

Seldom though, does the
Cinema have to turn away
throngs of "U-men" as they
once did because of

overcrowding. A couple of
years back, the University
audience was its greatest
strength, but today, even with
ads in The Cavalier Daily, the
"townie" is about the only
customer in its hollow halls.

Of course maybe it's not the
fault of the theater itself. For
when you have a manager like
Mr. Ford who sits in his 4×4
office and prudishly comment
that "the only reason beer cans
are thrown is because the
management allows it," it's no
wonder that none of the
University's bright and witty
gentlemen are attracted by its
glittering lights.

Anyway, after you
compared Mr. Ford and an
clean-up gang with the
bright-eyed moustachioed
Chuck Walton and his student
employees at the Paramount,
it's difficult to ever cross the
street again. Apparently Mr.
Walton's additional year and a
half of experience over Mr.
Ford has helped him
tremendously in a financial
sense.

Slackening Popularity

The Paramount started
running a late show on a
regular basis two years ago.
According to Walton it was the
first theater in Charlottesville
to do so, usually going for a
series of five in the spring and
five more in the fall. Popularity
began to slacken last fall,
Walton switched to every other
week, and now he's just
waiting to run out this year's
contract.

So unfortunately,
Paramount fans will no longer
view "smokers" on a regular
basis. "Business is falling off,"
says Walton. "Curiosity for sex
is definitely on the way out. I
guess it's the more permissive
attitude of today."

Mr. Walton runs his place
quite efficiently, though, even
handing out questionnaires for
popular movie requests. "I'm
not running them for profit
alone, and it's by no means the
serious business that the
Cinema makes of it. We look
for the more tongue in
cheek runs."

In fact, it was the
Paramount's policy in '72 to
book the worst skin flicks they
could find, not in hard core sex
but in production terms.
"Some of them are so bad,"
crooned Walton. "I remember
a whole string of them directed
and produced by one Bula
Bugaloo."

One dignified scotch sipper
from the Lawn seemed to
agree, "The acting is
horrendous and the girls are
ugly. You have to laugh."
"That's right", says Walton,
"Some of those girls look like
they came right out of the
circus."

Selecting such tantalizing
teasers as Midnite Plowboy,
The Erotic Adventures of
Zoro, or Love Thy Neighbor is
a hard job for any manager.
Walton is constantly in touch
with the American
Broadcasting chain's district
office in Greensboro, N.C.
With the advice from these
bookies he keeps space with
the newest in body looks and
oftentimes can preview just-cut
films for his audience.

Smokers

Competition is not as steep
now. The Paramount runs a
smoker every other Friday and
Saturday night avoiding any
conflicts with the Tuesday
night slot and crowd at the
Cinema.

Fraternities, however, seem
to have an undying interest in
watching some skin – it's part
of the brotherhood tradition.

To break the monotony of a
fraternity bachelor party
someone whips out the
projector and spins about seven
or eight 15–minute quickies.
Everyone roars, drinks some
beer, and roars some more.

Most of these males are
inclined to agree that only a
"townie" female would go to
one of those flicks. But if not
subjected to the social norm
"Girls just don't do things like
that", many UVA coeds would
take the chance. As one daring
dame sees it. "I think girls
would go out of curiosity but
they're too embarrassed. It's
not expected of them."

However, downtown a
significant increase in females
has been noticed at the
Paramount. Mr. Walton
attributes it to the
proportionate increase in
women at the University. "My
employees and I used to bet on
how many girls would leave
before the film ended. We
don't do it any more."

The most striking discovery
is that, while refusing the role
society places on them, the
girls push a derogatory role off
on the boys. "To fulfill their
strong sexual desires" seemed
for the girls to be the major
reason why boys go to skin
flicks. "They say we don't
understand what it's about, it's
not in our make-up. I think it's
disgusting that they go. It's
just the image that society
imposes on them with
emphasis on sex and being
strong."

A ZBT brother sums this up
the best: "You see, you
fantasize what sex would be
like, then you go to something
like Mud Honey or Pig
Keeper's Daughter and you see
how it compares with the way
you fantasized it."