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/ By Yael Segev /
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Imagine the next scene: a young brunette woman approaches a dark tall stranger in the crowded LAX airport. “How long can you linger?” she whispers in his hear before they both disappear in the men room…. In the middle of this hot scene, while the narrow restroom’s walls are unable to stop this sudden passion, the young women pulls out a condom and urges her partner to use it: “We have no choice”, she breathes heavily, “The LA district health department is coming to get us…”
Sounds like a fantasy? Not if you ask Steven Hirsch, the well-known founder and co-chief executive officer of “Vivid” Adult Entertainment group” who filed a lawsuit against the senior management of the LA District Health Department and the district attorney, Jackie Lacey, due to the November 2012 new regulations, forcing the porn industry to use condoms on set.
The LA multi millionaire, also known as “The Porn Baron” has been advocating against government efforts to monitor porn watch for years. A short while after the HIV panic of 2004, after a series of HIV infections in the sex industry film Hirsch supported actor’s right to choose whether to wear condoms on set or not. More than that, Hirsch and Vivid describe the recent legislation as a violation of the first amendment, and a violation of the adult entertainment film makers’ freedom of expression. Hirsch also warns that recent legislation will force the prosperous sex industry to leave LA County.
As the head of one of the leading companies of the industry, producing around 60 movies a year – He certainly knows what he is talking about. Hirsch’s empire, founded in the mid-eighties, is reaching more than 7 million customers every month. Focusing not only on hardcore porn movies, but a series of branded products, such as Vivid vodka, hard cover books, condoms, sports equipment and T- shirts.
Since the early days of the company, Hirsch’s main goal was shifting the adult entertaining business into the mainstream through creating high quality films, comic books, erotic novels and putting the trademark “Vivid girls” on billboards in major traffic spots such as Sunset Boulevard and Times Square. This innovative marketing made Vivid the number one member of the adults business and granted the company a large number of film making awards, led by the prestigious AVN award as the creative visionary of 2012.
The co-owner of “The Microsoft of the porn world” who offered Pippa Middleton an amount of $5, 000, 000 to star in a porn movie, has an estimated net value of $100 million dollars, And though the Duchess of Cambridge’s sister declined the generous offer, Vivid’s web site presenst a number of celebrity sex tapes such as Kim Kardashian, Pamela Anderson and Jimi Hendrix. On the personal level, Hirsch’s name was also connected to celebrity figures such as Melissa Rivers.
The issue of a possible violating of Federal District Court in Los Angeles will have to rule on the matter. However, it looks like that the LA district efforts to impose restrictions on the adult entertainment this Multi-Billion Dollar Industry is far from being over.
