A Nude Form of Entertainment

On this episode we are going to have a discussion about the most controversial, X rated, disgusting, yet slightly pleasurable forms of entertainment. Wait for it, porn. It's all online just like this podcast, except I keep my clothes on. My guest is actor Kyle Merrick. He and I are gonna chat about the porn industry, OnlyFans, and why despite its controversy, we still seem to gravitate towards it. Chatterbox is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, and YouTube at @Chatterbox-94. Don't forget to check me out on IG @atkmedia_ #chatterbox #porn #nudeentertainment #onlyfans #podcasts

Transcript

SPEAKER_03 0:00

Tom Ford once said, I do everything completely naked. I highly doubt that. I mean, people do stuff uh nude all the time. I mean people walk around their house nude. People are in the shower nude, but that's kind of necessary if you want to be as clean as can be. Uh people dance around a stripper pole without a single thing of ounce of clothing on, and we're nude in bed when we're having intercourse. But yeah, uh, I don't really believe that he's that kind of guy. Today, we're gonna be talking about nudity in the weirdest, most awkward, and controversial form of entertainment that exists. It's something you guys know all about. I'm sure you're gonna think about it right now. I'm sure you're already playing the guessing game. But for now, sit back, relax, let's get started. Hey folks, how y'all doing? I'm Al Tassier. Welcome to another episode of Showerbox. Joining me today is fellow actor and former entertainer Kyle Marrick. Kyle, great to have you on the show.

SPEAKER_00 1:07

Former entertainer, boy, am I skeptical with that phrase.

SPEAKER_03 1:13

Well, we've all found ways to entertain in the past, if you catch my drift. So, folks, today we are going to be talking about what is basically considered quite possibly the most controversial, judgmental, and uh eyebrow raising form of entertainment there is. And no, it's not stripping, and no, it is not reality television. We're going to be talking about the porn industry. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 1:44

Kyle's the difference, dude. That's my question. What is the difference? Strippers don't get as much attention, especially via internet, unless they're like they're unless they're doing the whole like kind of like OnlyFans tracking.

SPEAKER_03 2:00

Correct, exactly. Yeah, yeah. So share us a little bit about your entertainment background.

SPEAKER_00 2:06

Uh I did I think like jokingly, offline, I might have suggested that I was previously in some industry related. I have not been. Uh my understanding of it is simply that of just like a dude these days. But, you know, this comes also from like, you know, I was born in 1992. And so these were this is like the pre-internet days. Or like if we did have the internet, it was so much in its infancy that finding and accessing this stuff was just not even really an option. So, you know, it's like sports illustrated swimsuits are like tucked onto your bed and you're like just hanging out with your buddies and like just the you know, the 90s kids stuff. You know? Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 2:56

Uh one second, I'll edit this out. Uh okay. Uh I just need to uh get some action.

SPEAKER_03 3:11

I'll do the uh editing. Okay. Yeah, um, okay, get back to where you were at. I just had to do a little research. Uh sure.

SPEAKER_00 3:23

Uh that was I mean, that was the end of that thought. Uh yeah. So I mean I can go more into like my actual background if you want, but yeah.

SPEAKER_03 3:32

Well, I'm I'm one of the things that kind of got me into wanting to do this episode is I'm definitely one for controversy when it comes to the world of media and entertainment. And I don't know if you heard about it, but uh the owner of OnlyFans, Leonard Rodvinsky, uh recently died of cancer. Oof. Yeah, he was only 43 years old, so pretty young. I can tell you one thing. This guy was a mystery man. He has been labeled as the most perverted billionaire uh in history. I don't exactly think that's much of a title you should be proud of, but I've done my research and seen YouTube videos about him. This guy lived and breathed the entire pornographic industry to the next level. And I'm not sure if he was like an addict or if he just had his own deranged, twisted mind towards the idea of men and women ripping their clothes off and doing very interesting things for people's amusement. Um, but it's definitely clear to me that this guy spent a shit ton of money on probably about uh I'd have to say a third of his earnings on cloaking software. Because if you look him up online, you will only find one picture of him, and there's barely anything. One picture. So you can tell he was determined to hide. Might have to do with the fact that he was uh a major lobbyist for Israel, so that sets the tone as to things he believed in. Uh, but that's political, and I don't like to get into politics.

SPEAKER_00 5:20

Fair. Let's just keep it on porn. We'll keep it safe. I think that's that's a very reasonable approach. Yeah. Um okay, to like I'll so I'll play devil's advocate because I'm I am not at all familiar with um like that guy's background or anything. But like if the porn industry is your industry, if this is your business, it would make sense to be the most well-read individual in the room. Now, given the category of business, I couldn't see why people would be like perv, for sure. But perhaps like an enthusiastic perv that also is good at business. I don't know. I had no idea. Like he built an incredible platform, the whole coking thing. I I could also see that.

SPEAKER_03 6:10

Well, I'm gonna say this. There is a level of brilliance to the guy. I mean, think about it, he created an empire. Mm-hmm. And that's the only word I can use to describe it. He created an empire that is still uh growing today, uh, but also shrinking at the same time. One thing that also popped up uh is with his death, uh, Elon Musk, uh not a fan, um, has proposed that he intends to buy OnlyFans, which I think is BS because he owns way too much as it is, just so that he can cancel it. Uh honestly, knowing how Elon operates and what goes on in his head, my best guess is that he would have it hacked so that he's the only person on Earth who has access to it.

SPEAKER_00 7:01

I got no statement on any of that, but I'd hey, you know what, to the first OnlyFans star from Mars?

SPEAKER_03 7:07

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_00 7:08

I'll tune in for that one.

SPEAKER_03 7:10

Yeah. And and here's the thing, like, I mean, everybody takes satisfaction in it from time to time. Uh would i and yes, it falls under the category of highly controversial.

SPEAKER_00 7:27

Would you say one thing I'm is it specifically here in the States that we uh believe all of this to be as controversial as it is? Because Europe for sure doesn't feel the same way about porn or simply the nude body.

SPEAKER_03 7:40

Very true. I think it may just be an American thing uh more than it is a European thing. I mean, they've got like uh nude beaches in Europe and stuff like that, as well here in the US, stuff like that is very much hidden underground.

SPEAKER_00 7:58

Um in other words, our nude sex clubs are all basement clubs. Yes, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 8:05

Very much. Yeah, I I'd have to agree with that. Uh I mean there are nude beaches in the U.S., uh, but well, people don't really know about it because when they think of the beach, they think of Miami Beach, they think of Cape Cad, they think of the Hamptons and stuff like that. Uh unless you're looking for something new. Uh I don't think you go seeking out, okay, you're on Google, nude beaches near me.

SPEAKER_00 8:34

Let's see if there's a Costco on the way so we can pick up some snackies.

SPEAKER_03 8:39

Most definitely. One thing that I I kind of feel or get a sense is I sort of feel that the porn industry is well, maybe here in the United States at least, is kind of starting to die. But there are a lot of people who are determined to keep it alive and regrowing because you don't really hear about like Playboy much anymore. And uh everything's online too. You have to go to like uh Pornhub or uh websites like that. But I I've done my research and stuff, and I've found that a lot of people who are on OnlyFans um identify themselves are big uh all over social media, primarily Instagram, uh, and they'll identify themselves as like content creators or digital artists and stuff. Influencers, yeah. Exactly, yes. And then you see the links underneath, and it immediately takes you to either OnlyFans or some other like stripper pornographic-based website, and you're like, oh, this is how they make their nut.

SPEAKER_00 9:55

Nut is a very interesting word choice there. I can appreciate that. But it's so when you all right, let's let's define something here for a moment. Like, so when you say the porn industry, a lot of this conversation is around OnlyFans. So when you're talking about like the porn industry, you're talking what's more like probably historically stereotypical porn. Like, are you talking about like is that Pornhub and like all of those different like production companies that we see on that platform with regularity? Yes, yeah, that's that's what is defining of essentially like porn. Yes, porn industry when you refer to and like you br you bring up Playboy, which they went through I think two interesting phases. One, they're like, you know what? Enough of this nude crap. Who cares? Turns out a lot of people did. Most definitely, yeah. So why would we not continue doing the one thing that's working for us? Because apparently it hasn't been the advertisements that everybody's was reading, the articles. Um but then I think they went like with like a new creative direction, like once they realized, like, oh okay, maybe we do have to go back to like the whole nude thing, but like it the since Hefner left, like my uncle who lived in Chicago, he lived adjacent from the original Playboy mansion. Oh wow. Uh yeah, like right in uh like the Gold Coast. And um there's not a single entity within the Playboy brand these days that any of like this younger like Gen Z, Gen Alpha, like none of them will be able to point to anything in Playboy and be like, yep, that's the original X, Y, and Z. Oh yeah, absolutely. They're not doing anything that's worth establishing them as uh this new groundbreaking thing. I think like back then, Playboy had a lot more like graphitas because it was this like new wild, like we're all just naked and fucking all the time, and it's you, and that's it. We don't it's the same as the music industry. It's like it's almost impossible to be earth-shatteringly new.

SPEAKER_03 12:13

Yeah, definitely. Um and I mean, especially with Diddy behind bars, temporarily, I guess one could say. Uh but that's a story for another day. Right. Here's here's another thing, is that I've kind of questioned what goes on in the mind of uh a porn star and stuff like that, their train of thought. Um and I've seen a few interviews. Um I saw an interview with uh with a woman who um I I don't know if she's like quit the industry or is still going on with it and stuff like that. And she said uh that she is on birth control basically 24-7. Um and another uh local guys I hear. Yeah, and the guys, I can't even imagine how much Viagra they consume on a daily basis.

SPEAKER_00 13:14

I could not tell you.

SPEAKER_03 13:17

Honestly, I don't think I even want to know. And and also like what is it? Another thing that I think maybe they need to understand better, and I'm not going to like speak on their behalf, because this is something that my knowledge is so limited to, is that when you finally quit and get back to normality, I guess one could say, normality is never truly going to exist. I read an article recently where a woman who's a retired porn star uh has been literally begging with uh multiple websites that she uh was on to take down every last bit of content featuring her because she now has a kid and she does not want that child to ever have access or see it. I'm like, you signed the contract, you uh did the deal, they paid you, and once it's online, it's online. Endo story.

SPEAKER_00 14:20

Yeah, that is that's a tough one to step into court with. I did all this legally, knowingly, and in sound mind. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 14:32

But now Stevie's here. Your pet. No, Stevie, my child.

SPEAKER_03 14:41

Oh, your child.

SPEAKER_00 14:42

Not mine.

SPEAKER_02 14:43

I'm gonna be. Okay, got it.

SPEAKER_03 14:45

Example. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Now Stevie's here. I want Stevie to see mommy. Yeah, Stevie doesn't want to see mommy. I'm like, uh, what's gonna happen when he comes 14 and he starts exploring when he starts exploring with himself? Dude, it's he gonna stumble across.

SPEAKER_00 15:03

Are you kidding me? With the amount of access that we have these days, if something's infant right now.

SPEAKER_03 15:08

And also with Gen Z being born into this cyber this cyber world and generation, they'll never know what I think that the uh the 90s and the 80s were a lot healthier, to be honest. Uh like social media didn't consume our lives. Uh, we weren't asking for iPads for Christmas and stuff like that. We were asking for Legos or uh just or even books. I mean, how many how many like 21-year-olds now even so much as read a book for Cripe's sake?

SPEAKER_00 15:43

We're lucky if we're listening to them.

SPEAKER_03 15:45

Correct, yeah. Like there's a line in the movie, No Hard Feelings. I don't know if you've seen it, where Jennifer Lawrence uh is at this patty uh with a bunch of Gen Z, and uh she's like going into room after room, and they're all on their phones, on their iPads, like uh communicating in different ways, and she has a line, it's my favorite. She's like, doesn't anyone fuck anymore?

SPEAKER_00 16:10

Uh the but the answer is no, no, we don't. We have like half of us are gonna get like a dick, like one of the most dangerous, and this is where a lot of like overlap is, we because we live in this digital world, like all of our friends, our family, uh everybody is in our phones. And now we have AI coming into the space. And so when you go on to these different porn sites, don't ask me why I know this, but you have all of these different like AI-generated videos and um, you know, like the profiles of AI women that are just it it is a level of perfection that doesn't exist on a human level. Yeah. And that is what I see as being the most problematic because there's so many people that are already just like frustrated. Like just if we're talking only from like a guy's standpoint, like the amount of men out there in today's modern dating world that are just like beyond frustrated with what women are these days and what they've come to expect of us, and vice versa, that it would not surprise me in the slightest that the uptick of individuals, whether or not there's much reporting done on this, I can guarantee this is a a gradual uh increasing bell curve here, is the amount of people that are getting addicted to AI-generated porn. Because it removes the human aspect. Yeah, the grounding thing that is just problematic. Like it's the ball and chain that keeps people exact uh stuck in like the woes of their reality. And AI can just fuck it. We'll just do whatever you want us to.

SPEAKER_03 17:55

I I'm not a big AI enthusiast. I mean, I use AI for like sound editing whenever I do this podcast just to make sure that everything is crystal clear uh and so that my listeners can actually hear what we are talking about. But next to that, I really step as far away from it as I can because uh James Cameron predicted what will happen uh back in the 80s uh with Arnold Schwarzenegger.

SPEAKER_00 18:19

Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_03 18:19

Yeah. I'll be back. And he's coming back.

SPEAKER_00 18:23

And we're all happy that he is.

SPEAKER_03 18:25

Yeah. Yeah. It was right. James Cameron was right. The machines are gonna take over, they're gonna dominate society, they're gonna crush us all.

SPEAKER_00 18:36

Very much agree.

SPEAKER_03 18:38

Yes, yeah. I uh here's a thing, going back to kind of like the psyche and what's going on in their mind. Um, I was watching uh Vice Insider, which is a thing on YouTube I really like, um, with a woman who is an escort. Um, and I know like porn escorting, totally different things, but I mean one way or another, when you're in a porn video, you're having sex with another individual. And you could sense a certain level of of shame with her. Um basically she she talked about like having to want a transition to normality. I'm like, girl, look at what you've been doing since you were in your 20s for Cripe's sake. Not only that, but when it came to like I guess one might say shame per se, she said, with this job you have to have roughly four layers of skin. So that's the thing. I'm like, is the money you make from this truly that important to the point where you're willing to deal with maybe like internal psychological battles that you can just think you can cover up with a smile and good looks?

SPEAKER_02 20:00

Yeah. If the money's good.

SPEAKER_00 20:04

Which is the problem because like I think it sounds like from a couple of different interviews, and you know, what wouldn't surprise me, especially that like the the former porn star who's now got the kiddo, the word normal is a very intriguing word to me. Because I think about like what the fuck is normal? What is correct, yeah. Like the hippies used to say, what is normal, man, anyway? Yeah, I like uh I'm not trying to be a hippo, I'm I'm not a hippie.

SPEAKER_03 20:32

Um neither am I.

SPEAKER_00 20:34

Like new age ways of considering things that some might categorize as being hippie dippy, but you know, well, I'm in Denver. What do you expect from me? Um but look, I for all these people, okay, coming out of the porn world, normal. I anticipate, whether they're in like interviewed by somebody or this is just their own line of thinking, is like, well, what's how do I react? I mean, how do I get to to something that is normal? I don't know. You figure it out, you try something different. Yeah. Different is a much better word because normal, your previous normal was fucking people on camera. Yeah, I I definitely agree different, different shift, change explore, discover something different, but for some reason, I think if you have the the wherewithal to go publicly, like profit from having sex on camera, I think the the inner brainology of those kinds of people, whatever you do after that is not going to be considered normal by most people's standards. Because I can't imagine you're gonna thrive at a desk job and be satisfied. Yeah, because you need that certain level of stimulation. And if you don't have that, then you're gonna still try to find it somewhere else. That would be my you know, consideration is normal, I don't believe, is a word. That is even possibly attainable for those folks. Much as they might desire it.

SPEAKER_03 22:05

Yes, yeah. It's that, like you just said, it's a desire. It's not a reality. Because when I saw that interview with the one who's like current who talked about like being on birth control 24-7 at a constant rate, she also said, Oh, I want to eventually become a nurse. And being somebody who's worked in healthcare, um, we definitely are always sharing our backstories, questioning how you got from A to B to becoming a healthcare worker and stuff like that. The only thing I'd I'd say to her as wisdom is this you will not be looked at with like regular eyes. When people see you in your scrubs with your scrub hat and stuff like that, now that they know what you did to profit in order to get here, they're probably just gonna see you in lingerie or absolutely naked.

SPEAKER_00 23:12

It is a tough one. If somebody is you know is privy to that kind of background information, people just zero in on that and they can't unsee it. Exactly. From an actor's standpoint, I would say figure it out, make up a lie, and stick to it.

SPEAKER_03 23:27

Uh or in the case of or in the case of Channing Tatum, you can use it to your advantage to entertain people from uh a different angle. Like the ones who claim to be like content creators and influencers and stuff. Part of my train of thought is that I I saw some who are like on podcasts. I'm like, I think these are people who are trying to use a different avenue to get famous. I mean, you're an actor now. And it's not like it's impossible. Um, because Cameron Diaz, she was a porn porn star before she became Cameron Diaz. And Shannon Tatum, he was discovered at a strip club in Tampa, Florida when he was 18.

SPEAKER_00 24:16

I love Tampa, Florida.

SPEAKER_03 24:18

Haven't been. Uh definitely need to go.

SPEAKER_00 24:21

I I'm not even sure I've been. Yeah. But that's, I mean, the like Transporter 3. The the woman in that, as I understand it, I forget her name, but she's got this immaculately very specific, unique, like freckled look to her. Um I believe that the director like saw her like at a restaurant that she was like a waitress at. Then the director essentially put her through acting classes because he's like, you're you're the girl. So let's get you to a place where you can actually function as this girl. And inevitably Transporter 3. That's a I mean, it's a pretty reasonably big movie at the time. Jason Statham, like heck, if you got that, that somebody's like I am literally zeroed in on this individual and I cannot take my eyes off of them, then we'll yippee do bravo for you.

SPEAKER_03 25:24

Yeah, congrats.

SPEAKER_00 25:25

Yeah, that's not a flavor I have ever known.

SPEAKER_03 25:29

No. So neither have I. Uh, because I one thing I always emphasize with people is that in this industry, whether you believe it or not, luck plays a big role in how you're talking just acting, or are we back to porn now? Uh we're talking about acting. Like the ones who like like I said, uh Trevor Tatum, he was discovered at strip club in Tampa, Florida. I feel that his stroke of luck was that he used that background to his advantage to create Magic Mike, because Magic Mike is based on a true story. What he did was he took all of those fabricated elements of what it was like in his teenage years to the age of 18, being a stripper, the journey he went on, how it affected his life to create that film. So there is something you can use it to your advantage if you're a good storyteller, that is. Yeah. Um, but like I said, he was discovered there. Um and it's it's that way with so many people, like when we're making that transition into acting to try and get to Hollywood, to try and get to the A list. Luck plays a key role in it.

SPEAKER_02 26:43

Quite so. Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 26:48

And I don't know. Like I said, I I do feel that like the industry is sort of dying, or one might say like fading. What would you say? Is it not fading, or is it just porn?

SPEAKER_00 27:05

I feel like let's get back to now. We're both like there's overlap in this statement for both.

SPEAKER_03 27:10

Oh definitely, yeah. Yeah. Let's get back to let's get back to porn. Uh because it is a you are acting, or at least may think you are in it.

SPEAKER_00 27:21

Um And we we love the ones that try. Yes. Uh is the industry fading? That wasn't there at a some like some point that like OnlyFans essentially like restricted the amount of money that you could actually make on the platform.

SPEAKER_03 27:38

I heard about that. Yes, yes, there was. I don't know when it was per se. I do know for a fact that COVID made that dude uh Leonard, whatever his last name was, filthy, stinking rich because it's COVID. We're isolated, we're inside, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 27:59

We're lonely, work from home, and that turns out everybody else at home, they need something to do. So why not wank off profusely?

SPEAKER_03 28:09

Yeah, most definitely.

SPEAKER_00 28:11

And now's the time we can hide. And verticals are popping up, it is now this like new guilty pleasure platform thing. It's I don't know, it's weird. Um so I feel like a call like that, because I worked at a sales company. Well, it wasn't a sales company, it was a tour company, and I was doing sales for it. Yes. And just before I came on, they had uncapped commission. And boy, was everybody happy to be working there when that was the case. And then bada bing bada boom, they called it. They just said, you know what, there's a roof. Because our profits are we're we're hurting and business isn't as good, so we gotta put some uh you know, boundaries up so that we can actually kind of regulate this a little bit. People don't like to be regulated. That has the same exact psychological effect on anybody who's on these kind of creative platforms where they're like, I could be doing more. But I can't, I'm literally not able to. Yeah. So I I don't know, I could see that being a definitive influencing element. Um there's a tremendous amount of free resources out there. And uh I mean that's been the case for quite some time. So I know that not to be I mean, that's not in the favor of anybody, but what we're like what we're talking about, like OnlyFans and like this kind of like influencer content creator marketplace means that like, all right, you and me, but if we wanted to, we can essentially think, and I say think very appropriately, because we want to think that we can befriend these adult entertainers. And now these different platforms, Instagram to OnlyFans and whatever else, open up this ability to now converse with these creators and get more of that personalized touch, so to speak, without ever having a lap dance or ever actually speaking to them, you know, one-on-one or anything like that. And that just costs money. So you know, uh I don't know, do free resources.

SPEAKER_03 30:28

What's more is that you can monetize through Instagram too. Not being a big thing now. So all these people need to do is like put together a collection of like fifty to a hundred photos of their best look, and next thing you know, the the money comes raking in.

SPEAKER_02 30:47

Yeah. And it ain't difficult for some extraordinarily well-endowed individuals.

SPEAKER_03 30:56

And I'm not gonna lie, and um I guess this is the most advice I'll give people, is that with the way things are now economically and with the job market being what it is, you really do have to get creative about how you make money because people just aren't hiring. And also, everything is online now, so the internet is probably like the biggest bank you can turn to. I mean, I don't know if you see that way, but that's that's kind of what I've caught on to. Especially through monetizing through YouTube and social media.

SPEAKER_00 31:45

Yeah. Um, I mean, it is a definitive uh like Meta just lost the the lawsuit.

SPEAKER_03 31:54

Oh, really? I didn't know they were in a lawsuit.

SPEAKER_00 31:56

Oh yeah. Well, if you've seen the the teen accounts, like ads on Instagram, I believe that those are a direct result of the loss that was essentially like um like teen suicide and whatnot because uh like human trafficking. So essentially like the the conversation was like the old cigarette companies like Marlborough, like Meta knew that these feeds, the way that they designed their product was addicting and that it opened up the gates to conversation with unsavory individuals, but yet they continued operating as such. And I believe that that was the the base grounds for a lot of their loss. And another, you know, litany of lawsuits were kind of hanging out in the wings waiting on the verdict from that specific lawsuit. So it's a good thing. Um but all this is to say that's one very specific category of individual, this maker. Not every fucking person out there wants to go make. I can't tell you how many like people I know that are like I hate social media. I hate social media personally. I need it, yes, but I hate it. And it's suck, and it's made me more sporadic, and my attention span has suffered greatly because of it. Um the ability to tell stories to our respective audiences has been crippled because of how audiences absorb entertainment. Um so it largely, you know, okay, so there is this online marketplace, and that is the reason I bring any of this up, is because Marlova, you know, would point to that marketplace and say, well, we are now bringing jobs to our people. This is a a marketplace. This is e-commerce, um, and we are viably part of today's modern economy. That said, there's still a lot of people that have no interest in doing that. And many of them are probably older, like, you know, like millennials and up is probably where you still see a lot of that because we, and I'm assuming you're probably millennial. I don't know how old you are, but yeah, I'm a millennial. I'm a 90s guy. And that's where, like, you know, the the millennials are still like we have that old school, we have that new school. We're that last generation that really still has that sort of dual appreciation. So I I would speculate that millennials and up, there still has to be more consideration about like, look, if technology and like robots and all that stuff, if you know James Cameron's truest the speculation does come to fruition, then uh all right, that puts a lot of people out of work. You know, the trades are gonna start taking up, you know, become a plumber, an electrician, build a house. I don't know. Um, you know, the physical trades, the things we still need. Um and I would anticipate that that's gonna be a lot of the older generation that ends up having to kind of go that direction. By older, I mean simply our generation and upwards.

SPEAKER_03 35:14

I I agree. I mean, me, I when I'm not doing filmmaking, when I'm not doing this, in order to, I call it the bill job, which we've all been in before. I work at a refrigeration storage unit that's an off-base part of Logan Airport. It is a sweatshop job, labor, back breaking, killing my shoulder bones, being on my legs for sometimes up to 12 hours straight, no sitting down. Yeah. And you realize that that's like some of the only work that's available. And if things continue the way they are, that's all that is going to be available. Because one way or another, you need people to do it.

SPEAKER_00 36:02

And I think like, you know, I mean, look Walmart greeters.

SPEAKER_02 36:07

We love them. We need them. But technically a robot could take that over.

SPEAKER_03 36:12

Correct, yeah. And they said that's one of the top things that's going to be uh evicted from the uh job market is uh greeters, uh cashiers, um, people who smile in front of you rather than you've just got a big electronic box computer and you can just plug in whatever you need and bada bing, bada boom, you've paid for your groceries. End of story.

SPEAKER_00 36:35

Well, I mean, like hotels in Tokyo have been doing like robotic you know, front desk clergy for years already. And now it's more of a consideration here in the States, but uh it's not a novel concept, it's just coming online, I think, more universally.

SPEAKER_03 36:55

And you had mentioned addiction. One thing, um, and you you might know this a bit more about this than me. I mean, I've kind of thought deep and had about it, is uh people this does not get a lot of attention, but porn is in addiction and not a healthy one at that. Uh what would you say kind of not just really fuels that addiction, but will eventually end up creating it and the real repercussions from it?

SPEAKER_00 37:25

Well, good questions, considerations. They largely one of the key factors being the dating market, it is completely unsatisfactory for many people. I'm not saying everyone, you can still find success if you find your right person, whether online, in person, you know, heck, dating apps. When I still hear that people like meet on those, I'm like, oh, well, good, you met the old fashioned way, that's nice. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 37:52

I met my I met my wife through an international dating website.

SPEAKER_00 37:56

Well, there you go. I um so all right, so I should give context. I'm a a rather staunchly single fella. Um because I've I've dated more than I'm going to admit here. Um but enough to understand the value of one's piece. Because from the maker's standpoint, from the actor's standpoint, that's a wonderful space to build from. It's a general space of calm, collection that allows you to be able to think more tactically and strategically in a very stressful field. Um so I think that's a very helpful. But nonetheless, I mean, who uh it was somebody that I brought to set the other day that um is my cameraman and he he's in this you know fantastic four-year relationship. I'm like, oh man, like I envy you. You know, that's awesome. And he's like, I'm sorry, man. Like, well, sorry about what? He's like, sorry that you haven't found that. I'm like, well, don't apologize. I can envy you, but still be just fine on my own. I like I admire individuals that can find a good, healthy relationship. But for those who can't, look, I'm healthy. What that means is I have a continuous sex drive, but I have the acknowledgement that I need not find random boontang wherever I can find it. Because that just causes more harm than it does good at a certain point. So, you know, this is one of those instances where, okay, well, if I still have sexual cravings, then I have to take care of them. It's my like inner animal instinct, and I understand about myself that is sometimes it just has to be like taken care of. And it's I don't know why I'm saying this live on air, but this is kind of like the consideration these days is like okay, it's work from home.

SPEAKER_02 39:52

You know, I like how do we put this?

SPEAKER_00 39:56

Because like I listen to like Tom Segura and Christina P on your mom's house podcast. And so they talk about essentially like like she has to milk him. And uh that level of conversation is always pre uh preceded by he's always calmer, you know, once the once that whole process has been done. Because leading up to it, he's edgy, he gets you know, all that. And that is actually largely true. Um that if those are not met, the like whatever those cravings and circumstances are, if they can't be met with like a human uh level, and if they're not taken care of on you know a behind the scenes level, we'll call it that. Um, I'm not gonna like walking into a business meeting all horned up, that's not gonna play well for anybody. Oh, no, not under any circumstance. My advisory here is not like go furiously masturbate whenever you want to, but understand yourself as a human and acknowledge if you gotta get milked, you gotta get milked. Yeah. That would be my business advice.

SPEAKER_03 41:15

My advice is do not take any advice from Matthew McConaughey. For those of you who have all seen the Wolf of Wolf of Wall Street. I'm not gonna lie. Let's get those numbers up, shall we? Yeah. I can actually do the entire monologue. All right, those are rookie numbers in this tracket. Uh it's I masturbate twice daily. Yeah. One after I work out, one before I hit the gym. You gotta feed the geese to keep the blood flowing. I do it because I want to. No, because I need to. You're dealing with numbers every day. So when you need to, just go, pop one out. That is the only scene in the movie where Leo is outdone by a supporting actor. The the only scene.

SPEAKER_00 42:02

Well, he's he hadn't become his full self at that point in the movie yet.

SPEAKER_03 42:06

So no, and you do catch on uh if you've seen the movie enough and just like kind of really observe the film. Like that's one thing I do as a filmmaker and a screenwriter is I believe in times I need to observe films in order to better um understand good storytelling. In that moment, you can tell that he is grooming Jordan Belfort to become him. Yeah. At first, he's just a normal guy, 22 years old, married, looking to make money through the stock market. Next thing you know, and I've seen interviews with the real Jordan Belfort, quite an interesting individual, I'll tell you that. Uh you you get asshole vibes the moment he starts talking and opens his mouth. Uh, he said, Oh, yeah, we were having office orgies on a daily basis, nothing but blow quaaludes and sex wherever we felt like it. And the 80s were a healthier time. Uh something along those lines, uh, he said he would do up to 22 different drugs a day. I don't know how that man is still breathing. I really don't.

SPEAKER_00 43:17

Well, for what it's worth, Wolf Wall Street was a hell of a movie, so I'm glad he is.

SPEAKER_03 43:23

Leo admitted that he found it kind of disgusting at certain points because uh when you see uh a lot of those uh those orgy-stylized scenes, he said they used body doubles uh constantly. Uh I guess a lot of people in the film did not feel perfectly comfortable, the stripping ass naked. Uh so it kind of became a bit of a necessity. Uh the scene where Margot Robbie Margot. Yeah. The scene where Margot Rabbi walks in like no clothes on whatsoever. Of her ass naked, that was actually her idea. She's the one who uh pitched that to Scorsese. Originally in the script, it was like, oh, she walks in in lingerie, looking how hot and sexy she's like, No, I gotta go full nude.

SPEAKER_00 44:13

Well, we love her too.

SPEAKER_03 44:15

Yes, and when her family saw it in theaters in Australia, I think she tried to like hold him out or something. She felt the shame. Yeah. Just something like that.

SPEAKER_00 44:27

I I But okay, all right. So then that's an interesting topic because all right, so that like now we're talking uh nudity in Hollywood. Yes. And for her, in that situation, full frontal, um within the bounds of what is still considered like R-rated. Um that has garnered more acceptance than the porn industry on the whole.

SPEAKER_03 44:59

I definitely agree. Uh you you are right, you're spot on.

SPEAKER_00 45:03

I mean, uh there's a definitive difference. Like, you know, there but there's a lot of material, it's like HBO and all these different um Yeah, I mean Netflix has you know dipped a toe into some like highly erotic stuff that is borderline, like pornographic, if not outright at times. Um so what is the defining difference? What makes one more acceptable than the other?

SPEAKER_03 45:30

Uh I think it does boil down to storytelling. Because if you look at like if you look at pornographic videos online, wherever it is you guys go to jerk off, there is no hands.

SPEAKER_00 45:44

My hands are up here.

SPEAKER_03 45:45

I'm just yeah, there is no plot, there is no storyline to it. I think in some videos they tried to create a story, but there is no story under any circumstances. Me as a screenwriter, so when I'm writing something romantic, uh where there's where it's very passion-driven, the relation between uh the two characters, I actually try to avoid sex and nudity to a high extent, because I believe that it is what is within personality, uh commitment, uh drive, love that really that's what fuels true romance. If I if I have reached a point where I do feel that a stronger, more intense sexual element or some element of nudity is required, I will put it in. But next to that, it's not my go-to. I don't really like it um that much. Or well, I don't like writing it. I mean, what can I say? People, I think some people just watch Game of Thrones just so that they can see Daris Tar Daenerys naked. I I'm sure.

SPEAKER_00 46:59

Well, yeah, I mean, there's bona fide markets for all of this stuff. Like the it is interesting. Uh I was on one set, and I'm talking to my co-star, and she brings up the this was on the heels of Olivia Wilde. Uh talking about her like her new movie and uh the fact that she wanted to make essentially like the the sex in the movie more female-centric. Not like as I understand, like I never actually saw the movie, but my understanding was just make it more enjoyable for women as opposed to it always being written by and for seemingly dudes. And so I brought this up on the set, and I said, Well, okay, well, what was she intonating, you know, with with that line of thought? And essentially the response that I got largely, and then I kind of I ran it by some other friends too, women. And uh essentially the gist is like less thrusting, more like like vaginal pleasure, essentially like uh like eating out, licking, you know.

SPEAKER_03 48:15

I think you're referring to don't worry, darling.

SPEAKER_00 48:18

I having never seen it, I can't I don't know, but if it's Olivia Wilde movie, then it is an Olivia Wilde movie.

SPEAKER_03 48:25

She directed it and she uh co-says in it. Uh very well made. Uh Florence Pugh, Harry Styles, uh Chris Pine. Uh I was actually quite impressed by Harry Styles' uh uh performance in that because I've always known him as a musician. I didn't know what he was capable of as an actor. Um I liked it. Yeah, but what you're describing, I think that was in uh Don't Worry Dialing. Um yeah, good movie. I do highly recommend seeing it. Um and like me, when I do write in those that sexual element of new or any form of nudity, like I said, it has to serve a purpose. And kind of like what you were saying about from a more female-driven angle, that is part of where I've come to find I'm starting to come from. There's a script I'm currently working on. It's called Phantom, and in it there's a scene where the uh female lead uh stares at herself uh completely naked in the uh mirror um when she's in the bathroom. Th for me, the premise behind that was not, oh, I'm gonna arouse the audience or anything like that. Uh she is judging herself in that moment. I wanted it to be where a uh woman judges herself. And uh kind of that idea, women really do complain a lot about body image. And um, I thought maybe that's something that can be used to my advantage to really better understand why this woman uh acts, behaves, and kind of interacts with men and in society in general.

SPEAKER_00 50:10

Yeah. I mean, if it's a tool to help further the story within reason, then I mean I think most people would say like, you know, we're behind that as long as it's not like gratuitous gratuitous nudity. Like that's where historically I've heard most people be like, just the gratuitous stuff. It's like, yeah, why are we doing all this? We're just working for eyeballs at this point.

SPEAKER_03 50:30

Yeah, like I mean, I only know of one movie that has ever portrayed part uh porn, and that's uh Boogie Nights with Mark Wahlberg. He actually um I I think he turned it down on more than one occasion because it just raised his eyebrows and was like, I'm gonna be making a movie about the porn industry. Like, uh, doesn't exactly seem like my glass of vodka.

SPEAKER_00 50:57

I well, having never seen it, I can't really speak to it, but neither have I.

SPEAKER_03 51:04

And I and I have the utmost respect for Mark Wahlberg. I'm I'm a Bostonian, uh, and uh we love him out here, that's for sure.

SPEAKER_00 51:13

Oh yeah. Well, it's uh like uh it is a key point of consideration when all right, you know, we as actors we have to consider our own personal brands. What projects do we endeavor on, and which ones do we just say, you know what? All due respect, I'm gonna pass on this.

SPEAKER_03 51:27

Yes, yeah. And of course, we I think we both learned or well, that if you turn sometimes if you turn down turn down one down, it can backfire on you. Because then you see the success and you're like, oh my god, I didn't get in on that. Best example I've ever used is uh I don't know if you've seen the 1980 comedy Airplane. I have. Yes. So you know the Doctor that's uh portrayed by Leslie Nielsen. He was not the original choice. Um I'm gonna get into fun facts, folks. You know I'm uh those of you who have listened to me before, you know I'm a movie encyclopedia. So originally a majority of the cast were very serious actors who had a prime uh in the 50s and uh the 60s. So they felt it would be amusing if they used very serious dramatic actors uh to be ridiculous. Uh their first choice to play Dr. Rubinovich uh was none other than the late great Sir Christopher Lee. Lee found the concept kind of like ridiculous, was like, nah, this ain't worth it. No. Turned it down, they gave it to Leslie Nielsen, whose comedy career skyrocketed instantly. Lee openly admitted that to the day he died, uh, that it was his biggest career regret turning down that film.

SPEAKER_00 52:59

Never take yourself too seriously, boys and girls.

SPEAKER_02 53:02

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_03 53:03

Yes, yeah. Yeah, you really can do anything. Samuel L. Jackson, he actually was coached to never turn down a role, no matter how ridiculous it may be. Hence why he's the highest-grossing actor in Hollywood.

SPEAKER_00 53:16

Yeah, well, he and that's an interesting one too, because he started later in life. Yes, and now as beloved as he is, this iconic beast of a human. Like that's just that's awesome. Good. Yes. And that's the other side of it, too, is I don't know. However long it takes you to find whatever your thing is, the moment you do, go.

SPEAKER_03 53:41

Yeah. Don't look at it. Michelle Yeo said at the Oscars when she won uh Best Actress for Um Everything Everywhere All at Once. Uh nobody is ever out of their prime. I think I think that was I think that's how she put it or anything like that. Ultimately the message was you're never too old, you're never too young, like it's gonna come for you. Really is. Um it it just a ma I I really take that to heart because me being I I haven't had my big break yet, but the project I'm working on now found out is gonna be is a feature film, it's gonna be in theaters, and the director wants me to be on his next project, and he already has a pretty big A-list cast. And like, I thought uh that I think when I was at least 30, like, this is the end of the road, and was kind of a bit ready to almost uh hang it all up. And was I I mean, I worked for the government at the time, was gonna take my buddy's advice, which is they want me to work for the CIA. Never no, never I I turned down the offers. Yeah I turned down the offers uh for those of you who may be in the military, who do work for the government, who are consider considering this path uh of work, let me give you some advice. If you have absolutely no morals and know how to lie at a consistent basis, go into you.

SPEAKER_00 55:17

Oh, I'm sorry. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 55:20

It's for you. But no, that that applies to other people who are up and rising and don't know where they're going. Yeah, if you have no morals and uh don't really have a perfectly clear conscience, yeah, go into porn. I mean, you may end up like that woman I mentioned who is now negotiating, begging all of the big name websites to take down everything because she's got a kid. So uh I you you've been do you have some regret? Would you say you have some regrets or uh mixed appealings about having lived that lifestyle before prior? What lifestyle? Uh having worked in like pornographic uh entertainment.

SPEAKER_00 56:08

I never did. You didn't?

SPEAKER_03 56:10

I was joking with you when I You were bullshitting me the whole damn time.

SPEAKER_00 56:15

Man, you're good. I actor, I lie. Uh no, I'm sorry. I did not to call my own lion iron, but no, I I've never worked in that industry. Um the the closest I ever got, I've done a lot of nude photography.

SPEAKER_03 56:30

Ah, okay, gotcha.

SPEAKER_00 56:31

So that angle photographed. I have been myself nude. I've been uh like the nude model for drawing classes. None of this is what's constituted as porn. This is not porn. Drawing class modeling is historically it's one of the oldest existing art forms out there. Um so that is nudity within the bounds of you know what's societally accepted without you. Um so uh no, there's just I don't have any regrets for any of that, because if I can spin it in my own personal path, nude photography is uh it's it's a form, it's a craft that like there's a lot that can go wrong. In other words, somebody can, in the blink of an eye, essentially turn into your biggest enemy, your biggest hater, um, all because you did something rather small, but in circumstances that are okay, well, now we're dealing with the nude figure, that elevates things. And things get a little bit more touchy, not physically, but uh touchy as in we're kind of walking on eggshells. And so if you are operating in these different circumstances, you need to know how to handle them. And largely these days, it's something that like I only do with people that I'm actually seeing, like the women that I'm actually attracted to. Like I I don't I'm not into like advertising that I do this anymore as a career path or money-making endeavor, like a boudoir studio. That's a terrible endeavor for a straight guy these days, a straight single guy, no less. Um it's a really tough one. So I like what it taught me is uh hospitality, though. You know, it showed me yes, we are flirting with the edge of titillation, satisfaction, art, creation. And you know, in those moments, whether or not there's actually dialogue between, you know, the photographer to the model, zzz girl, uh you know, you can still tell a lot about the individual when you're endeavoring to build something creative in film. It's much the same way. And understanding the nuances of those kind of more extreme moments is something that is very difficult to explain without literally going through it with other people. And it's like those little nuances have just shown me a lot about how to operate in life. Weirdly enough. So now I have no regrets. I made my decisions and I'm the human that I am because of them, but largely in the same can be you know said for the porn industry too. I just anticipate that they're probably slightly the less vocal about it, but you take whatever you learned in those instances and you try to transfer it to whatever you're doing now.

SPEAKER_03 59:43

Yeah. Me, I mean, I have a lot of regrets in life, but those are more like uh personal things.

SPEAKER_00 59:52

Uh uh, no judgments for any of them either. I do harvest plenty of them, just not in context, these.

SPEAKER_03 59:58

Yeah. In regards to though, like, I guess one might say career-wise and stuff like that. My I'd have to say my biggest regret is not working hard enough to get um on the set of little women. I remember when they first started advertising it and everything like that. I didn't know much about it. And the only two actresses I knew in it at the time was uh Emma Watson and uh Sosha Ronan. Um I uh I don't think I even really knew who Greta Gerwig was. Um, and I didn't make an attempt even to so much as get a job as a production assistant, and hey, look how big of a thing that that hit to be. That really so I do regret not making much uh as much of a concrete effort as I think I could have to get on that set. Uh the other one, it's not really a regret, it's more like there was a barricade in front of me is uh um I don't know if you're familiar with the uh Netflix film Don't Look Up. Oh yeah. I I love that movie. I was inches away from getting on set as a PA. Inches away. But because of COVID restrictions that I feel they should have loosened a little bit. I'm this close, I am I'm I'm one step away, and they're like, oh, there are certain COVID restrictions. Uh you can't do this, that uh I mean, and I I missed it, and it hisses me off so damn much because that movie hit it big, did well. I'm like, damn. Yeah. So I am it's part of it.

SPEAKER_00 1:01:40

Hopefully. If done yes, yeah, yeah. And then make it for yourself.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:44

Uh I'm actually um what is it? I'm in the process of uh beginning uh pitching for a uh uh a film. Uh I wrote it. It's called My Cousin Juan. It's a it's about the drug wars from uh a different angle, a more human angle. Uh the lifestyle of what is it to be a drug trafficker? You don't really hear about those guys and hear their stories. And if you do, you can go on YouTube and find them. I've seen interviews with people who trafficked cocaine, who trafficked heroin, etc. Uh the lifestyle, um it's pretty different. This is based on uh the they everybody kind of asks this, but they it's based on a lie. I told friends of mine when I was 28 that I was related to an individual who worked for the cartel. Conversation surrounding that lie, and like you said, you're an actor. I was able to milk them for three hours straight. Wow. Mind you, they were pretty stoned, but I sold it well enough. I s well, I sold it well enough. And when I just ran out of storytelling, they uh were like, I told them, guys, I've I've been bullshitting you this whole time. This is a lie. And they're like, you have to write this as a script, you have to turn this into something.

SPEAKER_00 1:03:08

It is it's a fascinating world. Uh I mean you know everything that went on in uh what Mexico somewhat recently, like there's there's still stark realities that are uh always, always happening. I was in Costa Rica in 2021, uh volunteering at a hotel in a oceanside town, and we're on for a walk, myself, the hotel years. And uh these two gentlemen joined us. The way that they spoke was like none other that I had ever experienced. Uh but I I didn't know anything because they were all speaking Spanish, and I understand the very cursory uh level of it. Inevitably, the two other individuals they split off and we kept on our uh path. And the guys are like, yeah, so those are essentially the two most dangerous uh narcos on this peninsula.

SPEAKER_03 1:04:00

Wow. I mean, I uh hey, uh everybody has those experiences. I heard some life stories. I worked briefly for Channel 7 News here in Boston, the guy who trained me, um, he he did a lot of coverage during uh peak era of the Cold War in the 70s, and they were covering um some of the turbulence that was going on in North Africa at the time. A group of South African mercenaries mistaked them for being what we now refer to as contractors, and nearly, I'd have to say, kidnapped them to put them on a plane and take them with Ang take them to Angola to fight in the Civil War.

SPEAKER_00 1:04:47

Oh boy.

SPEAKER_03 1:04:48

Yeah. Another interesting thing was that he uh in 1979, Iran hostage crisis, when he was flying to Tehran, guess who was first class. Ayatollah Homeini was flying first class on the same plane as him. Wow. That is, I'd have to say, a disturbing life to have lived.

SPEAKER_00 1:05:18

Small world, right?

SPEAKER_03 1:05:19

Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, we yeah, trust me. I've me? You guys want to know a bit more about me and my disturbing background. I've almost died nine times.

SPEAKER_00 1:05:35

In Cat World, that's not good.

SPEAKER_03 1:05:38

And here's the crazy part my horoscope sign is a Leo. Oh boy. So I already threw away nine of my lives. Let's be careful out there now, okay? Oh yeah, I've found a way to survive. I I'm I'm making it there. I'm not uh not gonna make it in point. Industry, that's for sure. That is not my field of work. Uh not yet. Time will come. And I'm saying that for both of us.

SPEAKER_00 1:06:08

Who knows?

SPEAKER_03 1:06:09

Yeah. I I hope we don't end up reaching that boiling point. One thing that I think might push people to that level is financial desperation. Because when we get financially desperate, our cognitive function changes. It shifts. And also, like I'd have to say, maybe in the world of crime, is this. Um if you are a very straightforward, uh committed, honest individual, if you reach levels of clear bankruptcy and stuff, what is considered illegal becomes an option. What is considered to not maybe be moral becomes an option. That is how I guess one might say almost threatening money can be. And although I do know many 20-something year old stoners, uh, they just enjoy smoking marijuana. They're not ones who uh are looking to profit off of making that big, beautiful blue crystal.

SPEAKER_00 1:08:51

Well, I know two things beyond anything else. One, Albuquerque and an RV can make those happen pretty dang easily.

SPEAKER_03 1:09:00

Oh yeah, you're in the middle of the fucking desert.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:05

It ain't that difficult. You can at least start there and then I don't know, go watch some Bill Nye and figure out the whole chemistry side.

SPEAKER_03 1:09:13

True. Yeah, I uh I didn't even think about that. Yeah, YouTube knew, man. YouTube, you can actually find out how to create IEDs on YouTube. Not something I would advise anybody to do.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:26

Now this podcast played for all the right reasons.

SPEAKER_03 1:09:32

Yeah, and speaking of which, and uh, this is a shout out to all you media junkies out there, anyone listening in, if you want to support this podcast and have a chance to be a guest on the show, you can follow me on Instagram at ATK Media or check me out on YouTube, like we mentioned, at chatterbox 94. Don't forget to like and subscribe. You can leave your thoughts and comments in the section below. Uh, you can DM me via Instagram and don't forget to tune in, listen on on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, uh, wherever it is you get your podcasts from. Uh, do your browsing, you can find me. Well, it was great having you in the show, Kyle, and quite an interesting conversation. I'm sure we're both definitely going to get some interesting feed. Don't worry, I don't think it'll ruin either of our careers. This is just a topic that uh I guess I'm not trying to say I'm trying to bring a lot of attention to it. It's just I find uh controversial uh subjects can lead to quite an interesting conversation, discussion, debate. There's a lot of amusement that comes from.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:38

Yeah. Well, thank you for having me. Um certainly a titillating discussion. Yes, I'll say that for sure. Um can I uh can I just say if anybody wants to give me a follow, it's Kyle Merrick.actor. That's insta, Facebook, LinkedIn. Maybe less on LinkedIn for this specific discussion.

SPEAKER_03 1:10:58

Remember, folks, LinkedIn is practically worthless these days. Like everything I don't even use it under any circumstances anymore. I should have terminated my profile a long time ago.

SPEAKER_00 1:11:13

My first thing under my name, Kyle Merrick, is no soliciting. And yet, people solicit. No one fucking reads. You've already brought up. No one reads.

SPEAKER_03 1:11:22

Nobody reads. I read, but I read in order to also more to uh for creative reasons, like helps me uh brainstorm come up with ideas for that next great script.

SPEAKER_00 1:11:33

Yeah. Well, either way, keep up the good work and look forward to seeing you on the big screen, man.

SPEAKER_03 1:11:38

Same to you. So till next time, folks, stay high on life. Out.