Special Screening Party at The New Parkway Theater in Oakland Featuring Carol Queen & Sharon Mitchell
Sunday, June 11 at 7pm Tix Now Available for Purchase
Oakland, CA (June 9, 2023) ——The world tour to commemorate the 50th anniversary of “Deep Throat” comes to a close this week in the Bay Area with a show in Oakland at The New Parkway Theater at 474 24th St, Oakland, CA 94612 Sunday evening at 7pm
And tickets may be purchased here https://www.eventbrite.com/e/deep-throat-50-4k-screening-talkback-history-culture-controversies-tickets-645050041037
The definitive version of the film will be presented by Gerard Jr. and Christar Damiano, son and daughter of writer/director, Gerard Damiano Sr. Following the screening they will be joined by legends of the “Golden Age of Porn” Dr. Sharon Mitchell and Richard Pacheco, for a discussion on the history, cultural impact, and controversies, surrounding “Deep Throat”, moderated by Carol Queen, co-founder of the Center for Sex and Culture. Gerard Jr. and Christar will share their stories of being on location in Miami during the filming of “Deep Throat” and growing up with “The King of Porn.”
Damiano’s daughter Christar says, “We’ve presented the film in 17 cities throughout 6 different countries around the world, and people are often surprised that it’s not at all what they expected. It’s a comedy, and our dad would be proud to know that after 50 years his jokes still get a laugh.”
Her brother Gerard Jr. adds “Some theaters have been reluctant to show the film for fear of push back based on comments the film’s star Linda Lovelace made years after it came out. Her story is a very complicated one, and there is no doubt that she suffered greatly at the hands of her husband. People assume that he beat her because she didn’t want to perform in the film, but the truth of what actually happened on the set of ‘Deep Throat’ is very different.”
“I’m so pleased to be able to look back at this important movie, made at the dawn of the “porno chic” years and one of the first to try to marry porn and feature films,” says Carol Queen. “On top of that, I’m so interested to see the audience’s response to this controversial movie when they realize it’s a comedy! The Golden Age of Porn gave us directors and performers who didn’t want sex films to be relegated to short 8-millimeter loops but rather to tackle any and every creative idea and sexual fantasy. It was such an ambitious time.”
This will be their final West Coast event and screening.
Sunday, June 11th
The New Parkway
474 24th St, Oakland, CA 94612
Doors Open – Meet the panel 6PM / Show starts 7PM / Talkback 8PM
FB Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/1032851947692979
Fetlife Event: https://fetlife.com/events/1300950
Promo Codes:
GETOFF (five dollars off ticket price)
You may follow The New Parkway on their website at https://www.thenewparkway.com/ on Twitter at https://twitter.com/TheNewParkway on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/thenewparkway and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/TheNewParkway/
You may follow Carol Queen on Twitter at https://twitter.com/carolqueen and Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/carolqueenphd/ and on her website at www.carolqueen.com
You may follow Sharon Mitchell on Twitter at https://twitter.com/sharonmitchell
You may follow “Deep Throat” on Twitter at https://twitter.com/deepthroatfilm on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/deepthroatmovie/
and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/deepthroatfilm
For more information on Damiano Films go here https://damianofilms.com and for more information on how you may #VoteThroat and help make Deep Throat join the ranks of American classic cinema in the Library of Congress go here https://damianofilms.com/deepthroat50/votethroat
About “Deep Throat”
The Zeitgeist of 1972, “Deep Throat” brought adult films into the mainstream and kick-started the Sexual Revolution. Its success was unprecedented, breaking box office records in its very first week of exhibition. Lauded as one of the first hardcore films to feature a plot, character development, and production values, it pushed the limits of what could be shown on screen and made an international celebrity of its star, Linda Lovelace. Busted by police, picketed, and banned, the ongoing prosecution only added to the film’s popularity. It would help to create the Adult Film Industry and an audience hungry for feature length films with adult content. Celebrities, dignitaries, couples and women joined the usual “raincoat crowd,” waiting in lines that wrapped around the block just to see it. The immense popularity of “Deep Throat” made it a symbol of the new sexual freedom and therefore a target. President Richard Nixon attacked the film in an effort to draw attention away from his own wrongdoing. “Citizens for Decent Literature,” used their crusade against pornography to galvanize the burgeoning “Conservative Christian” movement. Joining forces with the Republican Party made their cause not just a “moral” one, but a political one as well.
The newly organized Anti-Porn Feminists also staged protests and sought to ban the film. For a time, even Linda Lovelace joined their cause, making comments on the talk show circuit, which cast a shadow over the production. It would be years before she rejected the feminists, claiming that they had used her and returned to porn, posing for Leg Show magazine, before her untimely death in 2002. The Federal Government went after male lead Harry Reems. Fearing they could be next, A–list Hollywood stars formed the “Harry Reems Defense Fund,” a cause célèbre. He was eventually acquitted of all crimes, but the persecution took a tremendous toll on him. Legal battles were fought all the way to the Supreme Court. Finally, it was not the film itself, but the very definition of “obscenity” that was on trial. “Deep Throat” became emblematic of the Free Speech Movement and all the while its popularity grew.
The film’s title was used to conceal the identity of informant W. Mark Felt who helped Woodward and Bernstein to break the Watergate story. When the President was finally brought to justice, Damiano quipped “Nixon tried to take down ‘Deep Throat’, but in the end it was ‘Deep Throat’ who took down Nixon.” A half century later the film enjoys a cult status, having found its way into every aspect of popular culture. Referenced in countless films, documentaries, and TV shows, it has inspired songs, plays, and musicals. The term “Deep Throat” became a household word and can be found in Webster’s dictionary. “Deep Throat” is still considered to be the most profitable film of all time.
About Gerard Jr and Christar Damiano:
Visual Artist and Filmmaker Gerard Damiano Jr. and Sound Healer & Performance Artist Christar Damiano are the only children of director Gerard Damiano Sr. They grew up in Queens, New York, in a house that always seemed to have film in the refrigerator.
They were raised to believe that the human body was “a thing of beauty” and never something to be ashamed of. They often accompanied their father to the film set (although they were never exposed to hardcore sex), and were on location in Miami with their family during the filming of “Deep Throat”. Reacting to their father’s arrest and subsequent prosecution, their mother reassured them that “People don’t understand him because he’s ahead of his time.” Gerard and Christar believe that their father’s time has finally come. They have dedicated themselves to preserving his legacy and continuing his fight for Freedom of Expression without
censorship through their company Damiano Films.
