Today in Supreme Court History: September 10, 1949

9/10/1949: Justice Wiley Rutledge dies.

Justice Wiley Rutledge

Comments

[Dan Schiavetta]

Williams v. Rhodes, 89 S.Ct. 1 (decided September 10, 1968): Stewart, after conferring with other Justices, directs that George Wallace and his “American Independent Party” be put onto the Ohio ballot; the full Court then held that Ohio laws making it almost impossible for third party candidates to get onto the ballot violated Equal Protection, 393 U.S. 23 (Oct. 15, 1968)

Meredith v. Fair, 83 S.Ct. 10 (decided September 10, 1962): Black vacates numerous stays issued by the same judge and allows Meredith, whom the Circuit Court had ruled was wrongfully excluded because of his race, to enroll in the University of Mississippi (Meredith, a Republican from the days when it was still the Party of Lincoln, stayed in the party and served as advisor to people like Jesse Helms; I wonder how much they listened to him)

[Dan Schiavetta]

today's movie reviews: Body Girls, 1985, Friends and Lovers, 1991, and another film whose title I don't remember starring Megan Leigh as the first female president

I'm running out of porn films to review, so this is a grab-bag. For Sundays I think I'll switch to religious-themed movies from now on. (Six of one, half-dozen of the other.)

Friends and Lovers starred Teri Weigel, who went from Playmate of the Month to porn. This got her blackballed from Hefner's franchise. He was careful to stay away from actual porn; the "Playboy Channel" never went past soft-core. Why did she do this? Was she mistreated? Screwed up? (This film features a very real-looking orgasm from Alice Springs, who nearly knocks over a table with her spasms.)

As for the Megan Leigh film, I don't remember the plot but it makes a real-world point in that her opponent, a male, gets to be open about his conquests while she can't be seen sleeping around. Leigh was one of the best deep-throaters in the business. But she was screwed up. She committed suicide in 1991 . . . by shooting herself in the mouth.

There's no whiff of dysfunction in Body Girls, in which the radiant Hyapatia Lee ducks under the table to influence a non-speaking judge (Francois Papillon) at female body-building competition by biting his penis when the opposition girl is on, and giving him some expert licks when her girl is on. There's a scene where she's holding a "baby" and saying she's going to quit the business to take care of it, and in a post-film outtake she laughs as she shows that it's just a dumbbell inside those swaddling clothes -- "see! there's no baby! no baby!" In another outtake she escapes from a guy chasing her by slipping out of her teddy and running through the woods naked, giggling the whole time.

Female porn stars also did the dancing circuit, often with idiosyncratic "acts". This included Leigh and Weigel and Lee.

I know nobody here wants to talk about sex things (ex-therapists like me have no problem with it, but here I'm writing for lawyers) but a few things about the two "exotic dancers" I was involved with in the 1980's. Let's call them D. and T.

Both were black. Both had white boyfriends before me (this, and dancing, were their forms of rebellion).

When I met them I didn't know they did that for a living. One was a guest at a party my band played at (in a band one gets to gawk at the ladies on the floor, and T. was a very good dancer). The other was a volunteer at the crisis center I had been the director of.

Both were "screwed up", D. in a bad way (she was a compulsive liar and cheat), T. not so bad (she was disorganized and "loopy", without ambition, but didn't hurt anybody). It's no news that a lot of girls in that line of work are screwed up. My friend's daughter was always a "bad girl", running around, doing drugs. Her daughter dances and is successful at it. I've never met K. (except when she was a baby) but if she's mentally well put together, I'd be surprised. On the other hand some of the girls I met through D. and T. seemed happy and well-adjusted. As D. put it, "Dancing is good exercise, good money, and perfectly safe -- if anyone lays a hand on you their ass is out on the street." You just have to get used to spreading your legs for anyone who wants to look.

Both D. and T. were intelligent and inventive. D. was a natural comedian. T. was a talented painter. Neither was ever under the control of an abusive boyfriend.

Both had limits. D., who played the "circuit", refused to dance in a club way upstate because though the girls could sleep upstairs, the manager locked them in (so that they couldn't hook). Also she told me the two things she wouldn't do onstage were 1) show her anus and 2) sexual contact. T. told me about dancing in Alaska for the oil crowd in the '70s, where after closing time the doors were locked and "extra" stuff was done. An older dancer got her into a "69" position and started licking her. T. decided she would not lick back. It was a line she wouldn't cross.

D. also modeled for art classes and for artists, both indoors and outdoors. In other words, she earned her living by being naked. But the first time we had sex, she turned off the lights and covered herself with a blanket.

D. had deep-seated issues with her family (the day I met her parents, very pleasant people, she tried to fellate me in the kitchen she grew up in, while they were out in the back yard). T. was a victim of incest but had nothing bad to say about her father ("it was his way of showing he loved me"). T. was very good in bed but it was difficult for me to enjoy it, after I knew how she developed her expertise.

Back to dancing. D. had an ostentatious stage show where she wore a wig and had a special blanket with her stage name on it. She was moderately successful at it but to me it was a dead turnoff. In fact seeing her act was the beginning of the end as to my attraction for her. T. had a natural sensuality which she brought onto the stage.

As noted, Lee and Leigh and Weigel had dance acts. Lee's was notable in that it brought out her Native American ancestry. Did it attract white guys only, or Native American men? I'm willing to believe both. As I hung out in bars, waiting for my girlfriend to come onstage, I noticed one girl had a "jockette" act -- wearing sneakers and running shorts. Another had a "hippie" act, dancing to the Beatles' "Abbey Road" medley in bare feet (not a good idea for a dancer -- nobody wants to see blackened soles). Others were coked up and their addiction was sadly apparent onstage. Occasionally there was something really inventive -- I've mentioned Lucia Lexington (my review of Takin' It Off, July 23) who performed with a stick marionette, the "Nookie Monster". One dancer distributed party horns which the guys would blow at her, ersatz tongues flicking her nipples.

Lee, as I recall, carried her identity off stage, being a Native American activist. So was Adam Ant, who pranced around onstage in exaggerated costumes which seemed to me to be as insulting as Stepin Fetchit. Apparently people weren't offended (or at least some of them weren't). T. told me about one time she did have an "act", as a '60s girl in Carnaby Street clothes (which of course didn't stay on her past the first song). She stopped it when she noticed the tears in the eyes of some of the guys who sat with her afterward to chat (etc.). Some were Vietnam vets. They were in their late 30's or early 40's and she was told she reminded them of their old girlfriends. The strip club scene had been a total turnoff to me, and I had never gone into one before I met D. (except once, with a friend who cynically put "Private Dancer" on the jukebox). Though afterwards, I did go to clubs occasionally, thinking about D. and T. The last time was around 1995. Nowadays my memories are not so much of the dancers but the faces of the men sitting around the stage. Some were rowdy, immature frat jerks (dancers hate those guys). But many were sad, abandoned men, and as I tried to shame them by throwing 5-dollar bills at D. or T. so that they also would throw 5's instead of 1's (it didn't work), I knew that they were there to catch a glimpse of a girl they dreamed of having, maybe one they wished they had, or one they'd lost.

[Mr. Bumble]

"I’m running out of porn films to review, ..."

Not soon enough

[BrotherMovesOn]

Aren't you due for another post calling gay Americans "fags"?

[Krayt]

I know nobody here wants to talk about sex things (ex-therapists like me have no problem with it, but here I’m writing for lawyers)

The desire to have a prestigious job, earn lots of money, and boss people around fits the evolutionary need to feather one’s nest and to raise oneself up as far as possible, in the eyes of potential mates.

Hence sex is a fine topic, which is what all business BS is about anyway. And pretty much everything else.

[Dan Schiavetta]

That is an aspect of sex I've never witnessed, except maybe among people who don't want to talk about it.

[Sarcastr0]

Humans are not actually high quality reproduction-maximizing devices. Evolution is not nearly so directive.

Acquirement a goal for it's own sake for plenty of people. Or to put it more generally, it's fine and good to find your fulfillment in non-sex and non-reproduction ways.

[Dan Schiavetta]

Reproduction is the basic drive, but it expresses itself in multifarious ways, usually not having to do with whether one's own genes are passed on. For example, reproduction of the species as a whole, which doesn't require one's egg merging with another's sperm so much as making sure children have a warm and loving upbringing (by whatever family arrangement that is achieved), that we get along with people we know and people we don't know, and that society itself is nurturing and growing.

[Mr. Bumble]

captcrisis. VC's Dr Ruth on call.

[Syd Henderson]

Megan Leigh did a film called "Mischief at the Mansion" but I can't find a description.

Also note Betty Boop was elected President in one cartoon.

[Dan Schiavetta]

Betty Boop as President? I’ve got to see that!

Looking at the cast list of “Mischief in the Mansion”, I think that’s the one. Randy West played her playboy opponent. And I think Megan was already President (and single). Thanks!

In one scene, Megan is talking with her aides on a bench at the beach. A fly lands on her co-star’s face as he’s talking. It shows how on the cheap porn films were. They probably couldn’t do a retake because they didn’t have permission to film on that beach and had to get out of there quick.

(Not to be confused with “Malice in the Palace”, 1949,https://youtu.be/Rv7b9-ustaU )

[Magister]

Mike Pence had the same issue in 2020, and they couldn't redo the debate. Mike Pence having something so unusual in common with a porn star? Sometimes the world has a beautifully understated sense of humor.

[Dan Schiavetta]

Also Dan Quayle in 1988.

[Magister]

Did Dan Quayle have a fly land on him? He was too obvious a punch line for an understated sense of humor.

I did watch Pride and Prejudice and Zombies after mentioning it some time ago, and now I wonder whether Mr. Darcy had released a carrion fly at the vice presidential debate. So much would be explained.

[Dan Schiavetta]

I’m angry at Pence (for not slapping sense into Trump — he was the only one who could do it without getting fired) but I kind of feel sorry for Quayle. There was a lot of ridicule directed at him but he took it like a good sport.

[Magister]

The significant mockery was Bentsen's "you're no Jack Kennedy", to which Quayle reacted peevishly after setting himself up with a comparison eclipsed only by Trump's comparison of himself to Abraham Lincoln, mocked by Joe Biden at one of their presidential debates.

Quayle did tell a self-deprecating joke at the White House Correspondents Dinner, but it sounds like his press secretary did not manage the "good sport" part over the long haul. In fairness, presidents have an easier time deflecting mockery than vice presidents.

[Magister]

No "Debbie Does Dallas" review? Dllan Esper's hopes (or fears) are dashed.

[Dan Schiavetta]

I didn't see that one. It seemed like the kind of film that would attract Republicans.

I did see a TV movie called "The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders" in 1979. It starred Bert Convy (which was a big red flag). I was sitting in the living room with my brother and we said to each other practically at the same time, "Why are we watching this movie? We both know it's terrible and they're not going to 'show' anything."

[Magister]

I'm not sure why it would attract Republicans; could you explain?

It apparently was highly successful and is associated with court cases over trademark, copyright and obscenity -- perfect for erudite legal discussion.

[Dan Schiavetta]

NFL, Texas. I might have been wrong of course.

Playboy and the NFL got into a dispute when cheerleaders who posed for Playboy got fired. To me it just exposed (ha) the NFL’s hypocrisy. Murray Kempton called it a dispute between two institutions central the American male identity: “a temple of false piety”(the NFL) and a “shrine of dogged paganism” (Playboy).

[Mr. Bumble]

Given his politics (the capt that is) I'm amazed he has neglected "Nailin' Paylin' ".

[The Margrave of Azilia]

"[Hefner] was careful to stay away from actual porn; the “Playboy Channel” never went past soft-core"

Uh, sounds like porn to me.

"the first female president"

Ah, that must be the redeeming social value.

[Dan Schiavetta]

“Actual porn” was erect penises, penetration, ejaculations. As usual, the definition was male-centered, although considering the basic mechanics, it was easier to draw the line that way. But actual porn had more dire legal consequences.

[The Margrave of Azilia]

Ah, I see you're trying to draw some (no pun intended) firm distinctions.

But on the whole, I'd rather see your review of the Wizard of Oz (clean version).

[Dan Schiavetta]

Will do.

(I didn't know there was a porn parody until you made me google it. The truth is, I haven't watched all that much porn in my life.)

[The Margrave of Azilia]

I thought I was joking. I didn’t know they did a full dirty version. Gross.

All I knew was that Tom Lehrer had a song about obscenity, where he intoned

I could tell you things about Peter Pan
And the Wizard of Oz – there’s a dirty old man!

To change the discussion in a cleaner direction, L. Frank Baum was, I think, among the most successful franchise-milkers. He had who-knows-how-many sequels. Better than John Bunyan, who only did one sequel.

[Dan Schiavetta]

Nina Hartley was a serious person who insisted on creative control and I doubt if her movie would be gross.

True about franchise milking. A friend of mine, her parents had a summer cottage where I was surprised to see the full set of Oz books (more than a dozen). During a rainy afternoon I skimmed through them. In one, Dorothy and Ozma visit a planet where people keep their brains in tin cans.

Another franchise milker was Edgar Lee Masters with Spoon River Anthology (the original is excellent and an easy read — I recommend it to anyone).

Another one was Edgar Rice Burroughs with Tarzan. In the later novels Tarzan smoked, drank and had a driver’s license. I can’t find it now but someone actually read his entire output and did a review. And said that toward the end of his life Burroughs seemed to regain interest in his creation and the last few were quite good.

[David Nieporent]

(I didn’t know there was a porn parody until you made me google it.

Um, there's a porn parody of everything that's famous.

[Magister]

Nobody commenting on Wiley Rutledge? A fairly short time on the Supreme Court, but according to Wikipedia

On a Court plagued by internecine squabbles, Rutledge was, according to the legal historian Lucas A. Powe Jr., "the sole member both personally liked and intellectually respected by every other member".

That sounds admirable.

He shares the last name of the shortest serving Associate Justice, also the shortest serving Chief Justice, John Rutledge.

[Mr. Bumble]

Thanks for getting back on track.

[Dan Schiavetta]

Being respected by people who hate each other is a high compliment. Especially in politics, there are very few examples. In fact I can’t think of any right now, except Sun Yat-sen, who had the esteem of both Mao and Chang Kai-shek, but he died before things got really serious.

[Dan Schiavetta]

He had to think of himself as superhuman to survive the real threat of lynching and never got off that pedestal.

Quite unlike that girl in the Norman Rockwell painting.

[Mr. Bumble]

Yeah, he wasn't lynched; only shot.
Your life should be half a purposeful.

[BrotherMovesOn]

Bumble's more of a Ross Barnett guy.
Oh, and super effeminate.