I Pornographer

[eroticartist]

If you can't see thetween the difference review might give you a clue!





5.0 out of 5 stars Sex, The Sixties & The Soho Jungle, 8 Feb 2012
By
Julian Marsh - See all my reviews
This review is from: I Pornographer (Kindle Edition)
In the past decade there's been a growing number of books about the history of American adult movies but Britain's blue underground is far less well documented. It's not because the background to the films and the people who made them is any less fascinating though.

This account of Soho in the 1960s - when wholesale corruption saw Scotland Yard's Obscene Publications Squad granting 'licences' for pornographers to operate - is as rich as any of the stories of New York's or California's pioneering smut peddlers.

The era of the notorious 'Dirty Squad' has been told by journalists and in fiction. But here we have a detailed memoir by London's foremost producer of explicit photos and 8mm films. (And, if you learn nothing else from I Pornographer, you'll discover that we did not call them 'loops' on this side of the Atlantic but 'rollers'.)

What a remarkable tale Michael Freeman has to tell. A working class lad from South London with a talent for art, he became a supplier of the more explicit types of pictures that were sold illicitly in the back rooms of Soho's bookshops. But his success brought him to the attention of the police and, when he refused to pay them off, he was jailed for 18 months.

Having learned his lesson the hard way, on his release he stepped into line and regularly handed over plain brown envelopes bulging with bank notes to hard-drinking detectives in noxious pub toilets. But Freeman was a born entrepreneur and pretty soon he was pushing the restrictive boundaries that the cops had set, including expansion into Amsterdam.

This was the era of Swinging London and Freeman had no problems finding horny dolly birds who wanted to shed their mini skirts and enjoy their new found freedoms in front of his camera. He also developed a liking for grass and later experimented with acid.

But it was far from being all peace and love in the West End jungle. He recalls numerous memorable characters, drawing them with all the vivid relish of Damon Runyan describing his Times Square hustlers. Many were friendly but there were also violent skirmishes with competitors who pirated his work and the constant, menacing shadow of 'the Twins' - Ronnie and Reggie Kray.

With a botched European smuggling trip souring relations with the 'Dirty Squad' and rumours of a contract being taken out on him, Freeman employed an unstable ex-con, who he had met while inside, to act as his 'muscle'. But things were quickly getting out of control and eventually they spiralled towards a bloody killing...

So who should read this remarkable autobiography?

Anybody interested in the inside story of the British porn business - obviously - but also anyone who wants a first-person account of a key period for crime and policing in the capital during the second half of the 20th century. If you're a student of sociology or psychology, you'll learn a lot from Freeman's insights as well.

And if you want a cracking good tale, I Pornographer will satisfy that desire too. Freeman writes no-nonsense prose that transports you straight to the pounding heart of 60s Soho. His recall of hard-boiled street talk is sheer joy. His experiences are so extraordinary they will have you on the edge of your seat. Quite simply, you will not be able to put this book down.

But he never falls into the trap of recalling these events from a 40-years-on perspective. He does not gloss them with unconvincing 20/20 hindsight; nor does he romanticise them with macho swagger. He is candid about the excitement of the fun times but honestly recounts the fear that he was feeling inside while facing the world with a hard-man facade.

I already have the second volume waiting on my Kindle and intend to start reading it the minute I've posted this review.

[eroticartist]

Yes of course!

[Dick Moby]

I probably could and I appreciate what you've done for British porn.
You seem to be missing my point.
You want people to buy your book so you are Promoting it.Which is why there is a Promotions Forum.
Quite simple really.

[eroticartist]

I can see that you don't have any respect for me MobyPrick! Quite simple really.

[Dick Moby]

Any slight respect has now gone so you can shove your book up your arse and follow it with your head.

[eroticartist]

A typical remark by an obvious moron MobyPrick!

[Dick Moby]

If you can't take it, don't dish it out you knobend.

[mark cremona]

a great read, someone should turn it into a film.

[one eyed jack]

I wanted to say that Mark. If I was going to pitch it I'd say it was Red Riding meets Boogie Nights with an awesome 70s soundtrack.

Ben Dover credited Mike for the roots of gonzo/ pov porn way before anyone else was doing it (even Ugly George who is mentioned as the pioneer of this genre) and talked about your free form style in "running with it" Mike.

He had nothing but praise for you, since you started him off in the business

Credit where credits due

[eroticartist]

You are so eloquent!