MontagFoto 6.06.11—Erotica & Exxxotica

I always had a problem with the word “erotica,” especially when used in conjunction with implants. Erotica implies something left to the imagination. Beyond a certain cup size, erotica just becomes porn, doesn’t it?

For hundreds of years, the second biggest porn event in America was the annual Erotica L.A. in June. Held at the L.A. Convention Center and sponsored by AVN, Erotica L.A. was like a mini-Adult Entertainment Expo, featuring most of the same players fans had seen a few months before in Las Vegas.

For me and my esteemed colleagues, Erotica L.A. was an opportunity to actually take a subway somewhere in Los Angeles and to justify eating at the world-famous Pantry. For the porn stars, it was a chance to take off their heels at the end of the day and to sleep in Tarzana rather than endlessly tottering between Circle Bars or, barring that, at least qualify for in-network coverage in case of emergency room visits.

And the event was, by comparison with the far skankier and surprisingly dimly lit Adultcon, more wholesome.

But, like AVN itself, Erotica L.A. fell on hard times and no longer promised—even without smirking—any kind of return of investment for exhibitors. Its last year was 2009. Its FAME Awards (in which we see Jenna Jameson, Stormy Daniels, and Carmen Luvana in 2006) no longer has a visible webpage.

The sort-of fan-voted show moved to Exxxotica L.A. last year when Erotica L.A. failed to happen. Last year Exxxotica L.A. seemed hastily-concocted (it happened during Erotica’s time slot in June and was poorly attended), but perhaps a porn convention in sweltering downtown L.A. in August is so crazy it just might work. That said, the FAME Awards domain expires in October.

Exxxotica Exo is run by Philadelphia’s Victory Tradeshow Management, which just announced a Chicago show in July in addition to its LA incarnation, its New Jersey show in November, and its just-completed Miami show. Drawing from a similar pool of sponsors as the AEE (including Evil Angel, Hotmovies, and AVN itself), Exxxotica agrees to not get close to Vegas in January, either physically or temporally, to not infringe on the ancient magic of the AEE.

But I miss Erotica L.A., its protestors, its fans, its 400-threadcount sheets, its manageable size. Now that the goddamn Lakers didn’t make the playoffs, there’s no reason to go downtown in June any more.

Previously on Porn Valley Observed: Erotica L.A. 2009—2009 is the new 2002
See also: Exxxotica Expo

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Gram Ponante is America's Beloved Porn Journalist

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