Max Hardcore
Max Hardcore | |
---|---|
Born | Paul F. Little August 10, 1956 Racine, Wisconsin, United States |
Other names | Vince Hardcore, Paul Hardcore, Video Paul, Sam Smythe, Max Stein |
Paul F. Little (born August 10, 1956) is an American pornographic actor, producer and director better known by his stage name Max Hardcore. He rose to prominence in 1992 with the film series The Anal Adventures of Max Hardcore,[1] which in 1994 was awarded the X-Rated Critics Organization's award for Best Amateur or Pro-Am series.[2] His work has been classified as gonzo pornography and described as "testing the limits of acceptability".[3] He is a member of the X-Rated Critics Organization's Hall of Fame.[4] Max and actress Layla Rivera appeared on the Howard Stern show on September 24, 2007.[5][6] He spent two and a half years in prison (2009–2011), convicted in a trial for obscenity. His company, Max World Entertainment, was headquartered in Altadena, California.[7]
According to the Adult Film Database, he has also performed under the names Max Steiner, Max Hardcore Steiner, Paul Little (his real name), Rex Reamer, and Sam Smythe.
Nature of content
Max Hardcore's films generally consist of sexual acts executed by himself, with women, often porn industry newcomers, who act like girls or their upset mothers,[8] with an emphasis on anal sex.[9]
The sexual situations depicted in Max Hardcore's films frequently include acts such as urinating on his female co-stars, fisting them, or inserting specula into their anuses or vaginas and widening them to extreme degree.[10] There are also scenes wherein the actresses, at his direction, vomit or blow mucus into their mouths or on themselves, or drink urine from their anuses using a tube.[11] Films by Max Hardcore often depict their director and star inflicting apparent pain and humiliation on his co-stars.[12]
Hardcore calls his own material "vile and crazy" and considers that he has been influential on the porn industry, spawning many imitators.[13]
Writer Susannah Breslin, reviewing Hardcore's work, has commented: "In Max Hardcore movies – Pure Max, Hardcore Schoolgirls, Don't Fuck Up My Mommy! – the women are verbally and physically degraded in an unprecedented myriad of ways."[14] The treatment by Hardcore of his female co-stars has been described by several critics as occasionally abusive.[9][15] The tone of Hardcore's work has been considered misogynistic.[16] His films and alleged work methods have reportedly made him relatively unpopular in the porn industry.[17]
Prosecutions
Based on Max Extreme 4, the city of Los Angeles in 1998 charged him with child pornography and distribution of obscenity. That the actress was over the age of 18 was not disputed; charges were brought because the actress was portraying a character who was underage. Just before the case was brought to trial in 2002, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled (in Ashcroft v. Free Speech Coalition) that the statute prohibiting adults from portraying children in films and books was unconstitutional. Based on this ruling, the child pornography charges against Little were dismissed. The misdemeanor charge of distribution of obscenity was retained, but the jury failed to reach a verdict. An additional obscenity charge was subsequently levied against him by L.A., again resulting in a hung jury. Little commented after the trial that it "was a frivolous waste of public resources."[18]
On October 5, 2005, while Little was in Barcelona to attend an international FICEB Erotic Expo, the offices of Max World Entertainment were raided by the FBI. Five video titles and the office's computer servers were seized, ostensibly for research toward a federal obscenity indictment or a charge related to the record-keeping law (18 U.S.C. 2257).
In the execution of the search warrant, one officer accidentally discharged a weapon into the floor of an upstairs office, as the housekeeper was being detained below. No one was injured.
After the FBI raid, Little released the following statement:
Once again, the government is wasting tax dollars and otherwise invaluable law enforcement resources to try to force a minority view of morality on all of America. Five of my movies have been targeted by the Federal Prude Patrol. There is no indication of any crime to be alleged except obscenity. If indicted, I will fight to protect my liberty, as well as the liberty of consenting adults to watch other adults engage in lawful, consensual, pleasurable sexual action. Shame on the Bush Department of Justice. I am proud of the movies I make and proud of those who buy and sell those movies.[19]
In 2007, Little and his company, Max World Entertainment, Inc., were indicted by the United States Department of Justice Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section with five counts of transporting obscene matter by use of an interactive computer service and five counts of mailing obscene matter, relating to five movies[20][21] showing fisting, urination and vomiting.[22] Little was subsequently found guilty on all charges,[22] and sentenced to 46 months in prison.[23] On appeal, the 11th Circuit Court in Atlanta, Georgia upheld the conviction, but remanded his sentence.[24] Little began serving his sentence on January 29, 2009.[25][26]
The jury ordered the internet domain www.MaxHardcore.com to be forfeited but declined to forfeit Little's house in Altadena, California.[22]
Little was originally assigned to the Federal Metropolitan Correctional Facility in downtown Los Angeles, and then transferred to Federal Correctional Institution, La Tuna in Anthony, Texas, a low-security correctional facility for men. He served the final five months of his sentence under house arrest.[27] He was Federal Bureau of Prisons number 44902-112 and was released on July 19, 2011.[28]
Since he has been out of prison, Little stated in a February 2012 interview that he "wants to do good in the world", and has now gone back into the porn industry.[29] However, Hardcore has not been credited as a porn performer or director since 2013.[30]
Awards
- 1994 Anal Adventures of Max Hardcore was the winner in the XRCO's category Best Amateur or Pro-Am Series.[2]
- 1996 Max 8: The Fugitive was the winner in the XRCO's category Best Male-Female Scene.[2][31]
- 2009 Admitted to XRCO's Hall of Fame, in the category "Outlaws of Porn".[4]
Popular culture
Paul "Max Hardcore" Little is a subject of the 1998 David Foster Wallace essay Big Red Son, which analyzes the American pornographic industry of the 1990s.[32]
References
- ^ Devil in the Flesh, Minneapolis Arts, January 14, 1998, page 2 Archived January 25, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b c THE BEST OF 1994 (1995 Show) Archived October 6, 2014, at the Wayback Machine, retrieved October 1, 2014.
- ^ Gerrie Lim, In Lust We Trust: Adventures in Adult Cinema Archived January 25, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, Monsoon Books, 2006, page 191
- ^ a b http://www.dirtybob.com/xrco/hall.htm Archived December 5, 2013, at the Wayback Machine, retrieved October 1, 2014.
- ^ Peter Warren (September 13, 2007). "Max Hardcore Prepares for First 'Howard Stern' Appearance". AVN. Archived from the original on March 21, 2017. Retrieved October 1, 2014.
- ^ Interview shot by Michael Moody preparatory to Howard Stern appearance, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JUmZqKPwg8 Archived January 25, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, retrieved October 1, 2014. The voice of Howard Stern is heard at the outset.
- ^ "Privacy Statement". Archived from the original on December 23, 2005. Retrieved June 6, 2017.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) Max World Entertainment. December 23, 2005. Retrieved on June 28, 2010. - ^ Martin Amis (March 17, 2001). "A rough trade". The Guardian. UK. Retrieved April 10, 2009.
- ^ a b Max Hardcore Archived January 2, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, article on Rotten.com
- ^ Katharine Viner, While we were shopping... Archived March 20, 2017, at the Wayback Machine, The Guardian, June 5, 2002
- ^ Jury Finds Max Hardcore Guilty On All Counts in Obscenity Trial Archived February 7, 2019, at the Wayback Machine, AVN, June 6, 2008
- ^ Eriq Gardner, The most Hardcore obscenity decision ever Archived March 28, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, The Hollywood reporter, February 10, 2010
- ^ Max Hardcore interview on Friskystoriesnerd.com/ [permanent dead link]
- ^ Susannah Breslin (October 6, 2008). "To the Max". The Reverse Cowgirl. Archived from the original on October 10, 2008.
- ^ Stephen Walker, My fear for all Felicities Archived September 24, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, London Evening Standard, March 29, 2001
- ^ Evan Wright, Maxed Out Archived March 11, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, Salon.com, June 18, 2000
- ^ Devil in the Flesh, Minneapolis arts, January 14, 1998, page 1 Archived January 25, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Kernes, Mark; Rutter, Jared (May 18, 2004). "Max Hardcore – Free At Last!". AVN. AVN Media Network. Archived from the original on August 22, 2009. Retrieved November 15, 2007.
- ^ "Max Hardcore Raided by FBI". AVN. October 6, 2005. Archived from the original on August 22, 2009. Retrieved September 1, 2007.
- ^ "Feds Nail Hardcore Producer – May 31, 2007". Archived from the original on June 2, 2007. Retrieved May 31, 2007.
- ^ "Producer Paul Little Indicted on Obscenity Charges". DOJ. Archived from the original on December 7, 2008. Retrieved December 6, 2008.
- ^ a b c Mark Kernes (June 6, 2008). "Jury Finds Max Hardcore Guilty On All Counts in Obscenity Trial". AVN. Archived from the original on February 7, 2019. Retrieved June 7, 2008.
- ^ 2008-10-03, 2008-10-03; Hamilton Nolan (October 3, 2008). "Sleazy Pornographer Is Unfortunately A First Amendment Martyr". Gawker. Gawker. Archived from the original on October 6, 2008. Retrieved October 3, 2008.
{{cite web}}
:|last=
has numeric name (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "USA v. Paul F. Little 11 Circuit Court Unpublished Opinion". 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. Archived from the original on February 27, 2017. Retrieved February 26, 2017.
- ^ Hunter, Tod (January 24, 2009). "Max Hardcore Ready to Surrender; 'I'm Not Down, I'm Up'". XBizNewswire.com. p. 1. Archived from the original on January 29, 2009. Retrieved January 25, 2009.
- ^ Kernes, Mark (January 29, 2009). "Max Hardcore Surrenders To U.S. Marshals". AVN.com. p. 1. Archived from the original on June 11, 2009. Retrieved February 1, 2009.
- ^ Little, Paul (January 16, 2011). "Max Hardcore: Letter From a Former Inmate". AVN.com. p. 1. Archived from the original on November 30, 2011. Retrieved January 24, 2011.
- ^ "Federal Bureau of Prisons". Archived from the original on May 21, 2010. Retrieved April 30, 2009.
- ^ "Interview w/ Max Hardcore @ AVN Adult Entertainment Expo 2012". YouTube. February 2, 2012. Archived from the original on April 13, 2014. Retrieved May 1, 2014.
- ^ "Max Hardcore". IAFD. Archived from the original on March 29, 2018. Retrieved April 1, 2018.
- ^ http://www.iafd.com/title.rme/title=Max+8%3A+The+Fugitive/year=1995/Max+8%3A+The+Fugitive.htm Archived September 24, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, retrieved October 1, 2014.
- ^ Foster, David Foster (2006). Consider the Lobster. New York City: Bay Back Books. pp. 3–50.
External links
- Max Hardcore's official Web site
- United States Department of Justice press release, announcing Max's conviction and sentence at the Internet Archive PDF (25 KB)
- Federal Bureau of Prisons information on Paul F. Little
- Max Hardcore found guilty on 20 counts of obscenity by Tampa, Florida jury
- rotten.com article
- Biography from talkingblue.com
- Feds Nail Hardcore Producer, thesmokinggun.com article
- Max Hardcore Trial Travesty, by Steve Nelson, Adult Industry News
- News story about a 2005 raid on Max Hardcore's studio
- Max Hardcore Raided by Feds in Obscenity Probe News release from Free Speech Coalition (October 4, 2005)
- "Devil in the Flesh: From painful sex to foul-mouthed revenge fantasies, a meaner brand of pornography takes the back door to commercial success." by Peter S. Scholtes, City Pages (January 14, 1998) Archived January 25, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
- Max Hardcore at IMDb
- Max Hardcore at the Internet Adult Film Database
- Max Hardcore at the Adult Film Database
- 1956 births
- American male pornographic film actors
- American pornographic film directors
- American pornographic film producers
- American prisoners and detainees
- Living people
- People convicted of obscenity
- Businesspeople from Racine, Wisconsin
- Pornographic film actors from Wisconsin
- Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government
- American outlaws
- Criminals from Wisconsin
- Film directors from Wisconsin