LOS ANGELES — “Deep Throat” is celebrating its 50th anniversary with screenings at Laemmle Royal Theater on Friday and Saturday.
The red carpet event and screening of the film’s 4K restoration will be presented by the late director’s son and daughter, Gerard Jr. and Christar Damiano, respectively, who will share their stories of being on location in Miami during the filming of “Deep Throat.”
The event will also feature sexologist Dr. Susan Block moderating a post-screening panel with Hershel Savage and Nina Hartley, who will discuss the history, cultural impact and controversies surrounding the film.
"Deep Throat is synonymous with the sexual revolution of the 1970s,” said Hartley. “It captured lightning in a bottle, inspiring the intelligentsia of the day to embrace porno chic. The subsequent legal battle laid the groundwork for adult entertainment's transformation from an illicit part of the culture to its current ubiquity. All of us who enjoy adult entertainment today owe a debt of gratitude to Gerard Damiano's vision.”
Gerard Damiano Jr. addressed the film’s controversy.
“Some of the theaters have been reluctant to show ‘Deep Throat’ out of fear of push back based on comments the film’s star Linda Lovelace made years after it came out,” he said. “Her story is a very complicated one, and there is no doubt that she suffered greatly at the hands of her husband. People assume that he beat her up because she didn’t want to perform in the film, but the truth of what actually happened on the set of ‘Deep Throat’ is very different.”
“Linda’s comments were made while she was being coached by Andrea Dworkin and Gloria Steinem and are often taken out of context,” he added. “She was further used by the Reagan administration whose very public anti-porn agenda helped to galvanize his conservative Christian base. Linda later rejected the anti-porn feminists and made peace with her past.”
Buy tickets to the screenings here.
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