“As a porn PA, I met a bunch of different people in the industry,” Watkins told XBiz. “At first I was pretty shocked at some of the things I saw, but I realized it’s just like any other industry when you get down to it; lots of great folks, and some bad ones, but interesting nonetheless.”
Watkins had worked in the art department at Bay Area website TheMan.com until the men’s lifestyle and commerce site folded in 2000. Adult industry friends in Los Angeles suggested that Watkins should try being a PA in the adult movie business.
“I was always a big fan of watching porn,” Watkins said. While at TheMan.com, he started reading The Onion as well as porn blogs by the likes of James DiGiorgio (SimplyJimmyD.com) and Mike South (MikeSouth.com), which mix a little news with a lot of wry commentary.
But Watkins, who now works for a mainstream talent agency with the goal of becoming an agent, noticed that, despite an abundance of commentary blogs that often lean heavily on humor, such as those of South, DiGiorgio, Gram Ponante, Luke Ford and Tod Hunter, none was a strict parody site.
And since he hadn’t “seen [The Onion] write a single article on Porn Star Karaoke, yet,” Watkins launched PornOhs.com in May, offering insights like, “Up until a few weeks ago, I thought 2257 was an old TV show with that chick who played the maid on ‘The Jeffersons.'”
Containing stories about Tom Cruise suggesting that Scientology would have saved Chloe Jones’ life and detailing Nick Manning’s "endorsement deal" with Caterpillar Tractors, PornOhs is a site that industry insiders who can laugh at themselves can appreciate.
“Adult's Most Beautiful Directing Duo Splitting Up, Axel Braun Leaving Scott Taylor and New Sensations,” reads one headline.
“Most of my articles would be confusing to outsiders,” Watkins said, “[but] I know my audience is limited. Someone who reads the various porn blog sites would understand most of the material.”
Watkins is not selling advertising on his site, nor is he soliciting it. He updates infrequently, doing the brunt of his writing on the weekends. But he is receiving high praise from admirers in the blogosphere.
“Funniest site ever,” Mike South wrote.
