Tell us, what do you have to do with the "Adult Entertainment" business?
(Chgo. Beef) Chicago Beef is an agency involved in booking male dancers into clubs, bars and for private parties and events. Our new venture is Halsted Guys. We will be representing the best of the best - exclusive models and companions for select clientele who subscriber to our service.

How long have you been involved in the Adult Entertainment business?
(Chgo Beef) Chicago Beef was started in 1999 and Halsted Guys will launch in the spring of 2004.

What would your advice be to someone who wants to get a job as a dancer, porn star or escort (etc.)?
Chgo Beef) I would tell them to learn as much as they can and understand the business before they get into it. I suggest that they talk with a few people who are currently working in the business and find out their opinion of the business and what they consider to be the pros and cons. There is no better source for accurate information than those currently working in the business. I would suggest that a person talk with several people in order to get an accurate overview and not just a single opinion.

I would also recommend that a person thinking about the business consider their reasons for getting into it. Before we agree to represent anyone we ask their reasons for getting into the business. There are many valid reasons to enter the adult business; however we shy away from hiring the person who says they want to get into the business because they are desperate for money. While the money can be extremely attractive, when a person tells us they are willing to to do anything for money because they are desperate, we pass. Anyone who thinks this is a business to get into because things are desperate is just setting themselves up to be taken advantage of.

How do you respond to the people who say that the gay community should stop praising adult entertainment stars because their nothing but prostitutes.
(Chgo. Beef) It is so interesting that some in the gay community like to pounce on segments of our community. It is also interesting that these people are usually the same who are outraged when the gay community is judged by the narrow-minded straights! There are a lot of pompous, holier than thou people in any group of people. To those who criticize the adult entertainers I would simply tell them to go fuck themselves because nobody else wants to! We represent many adult entertainers who are dancers and who are also in the adult video / porn business as well. Some might say that they are all prostitutes because they have sex on film and get paid for it. Nothing could be further from the truth. I feel highly confident that the Gay Adult Entertainment business will always be ready and willing to acknowledge and praise the stars that excel in the performance of their trade and I also believe that there will always be a sea of fans for these stars to entertain!!

Has there been any major changes to the industry (good or bad) as a result of the internet boom?
(Chgo. Beef) Massive changes hit the industry with the advent of the internet. Many of the cutting edge security protocols and techniques for handling on-line payments were developed for adult sites by the adult entertainment industry. New methods for streaming video and audio were also championed by adult content providers. On-line dating and "hook-up" sites were developed and perfected with money invested by adult internet entrepreneurs. The first sites to be profitable on the internet were adult sites! Sex will always sell and the internet makes adult content available to entire geographic groups of people to whom such content was formerly unavailable. Some people will log on to enjoy adult content that would never walk into a porn shop or rent adult films for fear of being judged by others. The ability to acquire adult content in the comfort and privacy of ones own home is an undeniably attractive option for countless numbers of people.

The internet has created a multitude of new "porn stars" that would have never had a chance in the business 20 years ago. Back in the days of film a producer had a substantially higher investment in order to get a production from concept to sales shelves. Today, digital video puts the production cost for a video within the reach of anyone who can afford a camera, a computer and some basic editing software. A little technology and a few willing "actors" round out the requirements to produce a video. Once taped and edited, a DVD can be duplicated for $5.00 and for less in high volume and a VHS version can be made for under $3.00!

Your comments on Viagra?
(Chgo. Beef) Well, it allows a man to rise to any occasion! Like all medications, I think that time will tell whether there are any long term side effects or complications that are unknown today. It is interesting that drug companies spend fortunes to give people what they want versus what they need.

What do you see as the next adult craze?
(Chgo. Beef) As broadband internet access becomes more pervasive, I think that the entrepreneurs in the adult entertainment business will be ready, willing and financially able to deliver almost any service that the market will buy. I see video telephone and streaming video as being the technology on the verge of exploding. Anyone can be a content creator if they have a DSL and a web cam. Many websites are popping up to accommodate these "in-home" porn stars with billing and serving up their content to the global market. The internet has made porn pervasive and that has a LOT of people in government scared shitless!