Wednesday 22 April 2009

Jenna shows us how it's done

If you're easily offended, look away now. Still here? Good.

In case you don't recognise her, this is Jenna Jameson. She's something of a legend in the world of grumbleflicks, having starred in over 100 specialist titles, including 'Deep Inside Celeste', 'Where The Boys Aren't' and the spectacularly titled 'Jennatilia'.

So the news that Jenna was 'blessed with an easy birth' last month when she delivered twins came as less than a surprise, given that the foxy star's pelvic floor must be sprung like a gymnasium's. But when I looked into Jenna's backstory, easy jokes about the heavy traffic that must have passed through her Blackwall tunnel suddenly seemed a little harder to come by. Because Jenna has always called the (pop) shots, and been very clear about what she would and wouldn't do.

Jenna's actually a pretty interesting character. Her early life reads like a rather predictable cautionary tale, peppered with tragedy and hardship, including an eating disorder, drug use and violent sexual assaults. But somehow, Jenna managed to turn things around, starting by earning $2,000 a night as a stripper before she even finished high school. From there she moved into porn, largely as an act of revenge directed at a cheating ex.

Six years of 'hard' work later, Jenna was earning $60,000 for a day and half's work, and more importantly, had set up her own company called ClubJenna. She gradually stepped back from performing and turned her hand to production and other business affairs, including the acquisition of a cabaret club and the creation Club Thrust, an online gay grotshop. In 2006 Jenna and her husband sold ClubJenna for an undisclosed sum. Now Jenna can count successful author, mainstream actress and mother amongst her accomplishments.

So to anyone who dismisses pornography as a misogynistic, oppressive and exploitative industry should look at Jenna's biography. She might never be a guest on The Apprentice: You're Fired!, but she's an inspiring businesswoman nonetheless.

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