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a
conversation with . . .
Billy
Herrington
by
Richard LaFrance
Copyright
2002 by Richard LaFrance. All Rights Reserved.
Billy
Herrington at Cherry's, July 18, 2002.
CHERRY
GROVE, N.Y. July 18, 2002. Billy Herrington was
raised on the North Shore of Long Island and
presently lives in New Jersey. In his own words,
?I was a fighter and into boxing, wrestling and
martial arts, but wasn?t really interested in body
building. In his teens he compared to the skinny man
in the Charles Atlas ad, until ?somebody left me
for a bodybuilder. Then, I started going to the gym,
fell in love with the sport and here I am now, two
hundred sixty pounds later and willing to show it on
film.
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?First
there was a year-and-a-half of print work;
I?ve been in the adult film industry for
three-and-a-half years now. A friend of
mine sent a photo of me to Colt and they
flew me to California to test. We did a
photo shoot, then another. In a year?s
time, we did some eight photo shoots and
one video. Then I became Colt Man of the
Year 2000 and moved on to All World Video,
which produces sixty percent of the adult
gay video market, and became their biggest
star.
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| ?So
far, I?ve made about six films and the
rest of the time make personal appearances
around the world at White Parties,
Caligula, Black Parties and other big
events with people like Boy George and
Taylor Dane.?
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I
told him that I?m not a fan of adult film videos
because they make me feel left out and instead of
turning me on, everything that goes on looks like it
hurts.
He
smiled and said, ?Some of it does.?
Before
his appearance at Cherry?s,
Billy said, ?We?ve got a lot of
tee-shirts and videos to give away to the fans, and
even if we didn?t, they?d be getting something,
because I?m going to get onstage and we?re going
to have a ball.
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?I?m
just a crowd pleaser. I get off on
people?s reactions to me. At an event
like this, it?s more about the crowd
than it is about me.
?When
people see me, they create a fantasy in
their minds. That?s what I try to give
to my fans, to give back to them, to
interact with them.
?I?ve
traveled all over the world -- Beijing,
Barcelona, Madrid ? and when I get there
I?m ready to go.?
I asked
him what it felt like to be admired for
his body, and he said, ?Gee, I could get
real deep about it .
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. it?s a good feeling, but sometime,
when you?re by yourself . . . you have
to keep an even keel because it?s my
image. The person that they see onstage is
completely different from the person I am
at home. I try to keep a clear separation
of the two. Sometimes, I feel a little
sad, because they see the image, not the
real me . . . actually, I don?t want
them to see the real me, because it?s my
buffer.
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?When
I come here, I put on my mask. I?m a performer . .
. it?s my role. When I leave, I take that mask off
or do whatever I have to do to come back down a
notch. Usually my lover will just bring me back down
to size.?
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When
I repeated,
you have a lover
, Billy
said, ?Actually, I have a boyfriend and
a girlfriend. Even if I were not in this
industry, I would only go with people who
are secure within themselves.?
I
reminded him, ?Yes, but you?re being
sexually admired by people around the
world -- having sex on film. It takes a
very strong person to not feel threatened
by that.?
He
replied, ?I think it?s up to me to
convince them that what he or she gets is
different from what my
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Billy
and Chi Chi LaRue at Cherry's.
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audience
gets. The audience gets
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my
image. The person who I'm
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| dating
gets me . . . the real meat
and
potatoes . . . that?s who they date.
Personally, I?m a pretty secure
individual. I wake up every morning, do my
laundry, vacuum the floor and all that
regular stuff.?
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I
said, ?How about the person who wants the guy you
are on film??
Billy
said, ?I try not to date those people because
convincing a person that I?m not that image is
very hard. If we had an argument, they might say,
?You?re being this way because you?re a famous
star . . . because you?re a spoiled brat.' It
gives them fuel.
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?Relationships
can be very tricky in this industry.
I?ve learned that pressure is on the
star to make their partner understand that
what they?re doing is completely
external from their relationship. I?m
extremely loyal to the people I date. My
healthiest relationships are with those
who I can communicate, who I am underneath
. . . when I say something witty and the
person gets attached to that, that?s
when a real relationship starts.
?I
need to have an entirely different
environment when I go home . . . the last
thing I want when I go home is to be sexy.
. . we derive sexual activity through
mental stimulation,
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| conversation,
romance. I?ve been with the girl I'm
dating for a year and a half; the guy, I
met just recently.?
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I
asked him how the people he dates deal with his
bi-sexuality, and he said, ?The real thing is if I
can deal with how they react.
?The
adult film industry has helped me to cope with my
bisexuality. It didn?t trouble me in any respect,
but I?m a coward. I didn?t feel comfortable
going to bars and just picking up men, going home
with them and anything goes. I didn?t want to dive
headlong into a relationship with a guy. I wanted to
put my toe in the water first. Three years ago my
first big step was kissing a guy, a guy performing
oral on me, then me on him. It progressed ?til in
my last film I was bottoming.
?I
have complete control of my films. I go to my
company and say I have an idea for a film. The
structure is my own. I know what I?m going to do
and what I?m not going to do. I use it as a diving
board. Then I go home and examine whether I feel
comfortable including it in my life.?
Billy
emphasized that by producing his own films, he makes
sure that people are treated well. He likes to treat
everyone like they?re the star. He said, ?It
just puts out a better product. My purpose is to put
out a good product.?
I
asked him a question that I had wanted to ask Matt
Rush last week, but forgot, ?Why are all porn
stars tops??
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Billy
said, ?Actually, they?re not.
They?re bottoms. But the real stars of
the industry are tops. The cr?me of the
cr?me are tops.?
I
asked, ?Why ??
He
said, ?Probably because tops are
considered more alpha male . . . I don?t
know many feminine guys who are put up on
a pedestal.?
I said,
?I?m not talking about guys who are
feminine . . . ?
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Josie,
Cherry's manager, and Billy
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"Well,
bottoming to me segues into
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being
more feminine. If you're
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| bottoming,
you?re being passive. Somebody is
putting their dick inside you, and you
have to be accepting of it.?
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I
said, ?As a bottom, one gives up control??
He
said, ?Exactly. A top never loses control Tops are
thoroughbreds in a stable of quarter horses.?
I
asked him how often he worked out.
?He
said, ?Every day. I love it.?
And
according to the reception he got last night, his
fans love it, too. He seemed to have genuine
affection for the people who showed up at Cherry?s
to see him last Thursday night and then stood in
line for an autographed photo.
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told me he gets tired of signing
autographs on his photos and likes to get
?creative.?
With
just a bit of a smile, he added,
"Last night I signed two pairs of
tits and three asses."
Billy
likes to dive and is currently looking for
property around Melbourne and Sebastian,
Florida, where he has family and hopes to
live ?so my money goes a little bit
further.? You can reach him on the
Internet at the following web addresses:
http://www.billyherrington.com/
or
http://www.perfectman.com/
.
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(Editor:
Dominick has given me permission to do a series of
articles on people in the adult gay film industry
who appear at Cherry?s this summer. I guess I?m
interested in demystifying the image and discovering
what makes them tick So far, the answer is: A LOT!
Stay tuned . . . )
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