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''Boys in the Sand'' is a landmark American gay pornographic film, released early in the
Golden Age of Porn https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MediaWiki_talk:Spam-whitelist/Archives/2018/01#Another_Worthy_Journal_Article_on_Wordpress ---> The term "Golden Age of Porn", or "porno chic", refers to a 15-year period (1969–1984) in commercial American porno ...
. The 1971 film was directed by
Wakefield Poole Walter Wakefield Poole III (February 24, 1936 – October 27, 2021) was an American dancer, choreographer, theatrical director, and pioneering film director in the gay pornography industry during the 1970s and 1980s.
and stars Casey Donovan.'Wakefield Poole: Theater, Dance, and Porn'

The Rialto Report
audio interview with Wakefield Poole
It was the first gay porn film to include credits and to be reviewed by the film industry journal ''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'', and one of the earliest porn films – after Andy Warhol's 1969 film ''
Blue Movie ''Blue Movie'' (also known as ''Fuck'') is a 1969 American erotic film written, produced and directed by Andy Warhol. It is the first adult erotic film depicting explicit sex to receive wide theatrical release in the United States, and is r ...
,'' but preceding 1972's '' Deep Throat'' – to gain mainstream credibility. Produced on a budget of about $8,000, the film collects three segments depicting Donovan's sexual adventures at a gay beach resort. Promoted by Poole with an advertising campaign unprecedented for a pornographic feature, it premiered in 1971 at the 253-seat 55th Street Playhouse in Manhattan, where it was an immediate critical and commercial success. The film brought Donovan international recognition. A sequel ''Boys in the Sand II'' was eventually released in 1986, but in the much-changed film and porn markets did not match the success of the original. The film's title is a parodic reference to the 1968
Mart Crowley Edward Martino Crowley (August 21, 1935 – March 7, 2020) was an American playwright best known for his 1968 play '' The Boys in the Band''. Biography Crowley was born in Vicksburg, Mississippi. After graduating from The Catholic University of ...
play '' The Boys in the Band'', which had been adapted into a 1970 film of the same name.


Plot

''Boys in the Sand'' is composed of three segments set on
Fire Island Fire Island is the large center island of the outer barrier islands parallel to the South Shore of Long Island, in the U.S. state of New York. Occasionally, the name is used to refer collectively to not only the central island, but also Lon ...
. * ''Bayside'': Dark-haired, bearded Peter Fisk walks along the wooded paths of the island until reaching a beach. He strips and sits on blanket, watching the sea intently. Suddenly, out in the water, blond naked Donovan appears and runs up onto the beach to Fisk. Fisk performs oral sex on Donovan, who then leads Fisk into the woods. Fisk grabs the blanket and follows, catching up to Donovan in a clearing. They kiss and touch each other, then Donovan takes a studded leather strap from Fisk's wrist and attaches it around Fisk's genitalia. They continue the scene, with each performing oral sex on the other and Donovan penetrating Fisk. Following Donovan's climax he returns to servicing Fisk orally and, as Fisk is climaxing, momentary flashes of previous scenes are intercut. The scene ends with Fisk taking the strap from his genitals and attaching it around Donovan's wrist. Fisk runs into the ocean and vanishes, mirroring Donovan's entrance. Donovan dons Fisk's abandoned clothes and heads off down the beach. * ''Poolside'': The segment opens with Donovan on a pier, holding a newspaper. He returns to his house, strips by the pool and begins reading. Intrigued by an ad in the back of the paper, Donovan writes a letter in response. After a number of days pass (marked by fluttering calendar pages), he receives a reply in the form of a package. Inside is a tablet, which he throws into the pool. The water starts to churn and dark-haired Danny Di Cioccio emerges to Donovan's delight. The two couple by the pool, with each performing oral sex on the other and Donovan penetrating Di Cioccio in a variety of positions. Di Cioccio turns the tables and tops Donovan until Donovan's climax. The scene closes with the two engaged in horseplay in the pool and then walking off together down a boardwalk. * ''Inside'': This final segment opens with shots of Donovan showering, toweling off and wandering idly around his room, intercut with shots of African-American telephone repairman Tommy Moore checking various poles and lines outside. Donovan spots Moore from his balcony, and Moore sees Donovan as well. The remainder of the segment consists of Donovan's fantasized sexual encounters with Moore throughout the house intercut with shots of Donovan sniffing
poppers Popper is a slang term given broadly to drugs of the chemical class called alkyl nitrites that are inhaled. Most widely sold products include the original isoamyl nitrite or isopentyl nitrite, and isopropyl nitrite. Isobutyl nitrite is also ...
and penetrating himself with a large black dildo. The segment ends following Donovan's climax with the dildo, with the real Moore coming inside the house and closing the door behind them.


Production

Poole was inspired to make the film after he went with some friends to see a film called ''Highway Hustler''. After watching the film, he said to a friend, "This is the worst, ugliest movie I've ever seen! Somebody oughta be able to do something better than this." Poole was convinced that he was that somebody; "I wanted o makea film that gay people could look at and say, 'I don't mind being gay - it's beautiful to see those people do what they're doing.'" Having enlisted the help of his lover Peter Fisk and another man, Poole first shot a 10-minute segment titled ''Bayside''. The success of that initial shoot convinced Poole to plan two more segments and seek theatrical distribution for the completed work. He hired Tommy Moore and Casey Donovan for the third segment, ''Inside''. When Fisk's scene partner from ''Bayside'' heard about the potential distribution deal, he refused to sign release forms until he was guaranteed 20% of the profits. Instead, Poole decided to scrap the segment and re-shoot with Fisk and Donovan.Rutledge (1989) p. 229 The resulting footage was so good that Poole decided to use Donovan for the second segment as well, titled ''Poolside'', and he constructed the loose storyline around him. The three segments were filmed on a budget of $8,000 over three successive weekends in August 1971 in the gay resort area of
Cherry Grove, New York Cherry Grove (often referred to locally as The Grove) is a hamlet in the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, New York, United States. It is located on Fire Island, a barrier island separated from the southern side of Long Island by the Great S ...
.


Popular and critical reception

''Boys in the Sand'' had its theatrical debut on December 29, 1971, at the 55th Street Playhouse in New York City. Poole engaged in an unprecedented pre-release publicity campaign, including screening parties and full-page ads in ''The New York Times'' and ''Variety''. The line, for the first showing, reached 7th Avenue. The film made back most of its production and promotions budget the day it opened, grossing close to $6,000 in the first hour, and nearly $25,000 during its first week, landing it on ''Variety'''s list of the week's 50 top-grossing films.Burger p. 16 Positive word of mouth spread and the film was favorably reviewed in ''Variety'' ("There are no more closets!"),Stevenson p. 113 '' The Advocate'' ("Everyone will fall in love with this philandering fellator"), and other outlets, which previously had completely ignored the genre. While some critics were less impressed, others saw the film as akin to the
avant-garde The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or 'vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical D ...
work of directors like
Kenneth Anger Kenneth Anger (born Kenneth Wilbur Anglemyer, February 3, 1927) is an American underground experimental filmmaker, actor, and author. Working exclusively in short films, he has produced almost 40 works since 1937, nine of which have been grouped ...
and
Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the Art movement, visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore th ...
. Within six months the film had grossed $140,000 and was continuing to open in theatres across the United States and around the world. The film's mainstream popularity helped usher in the era of "
porno chic Porno may refer to: * Pornography, explicit depiction of sexual subject matter with principal intention of sexually exciting a viewer **Pornographic magazine **Pornographic film * ''Porno'' (film), a 2019 American film * ''Porno'' (novel), a 2 ...
," a brief period of mainstream cultural acceptability afforded hardcore pornographic film, having been cited as "very much a precursor" to the following year's crossover success of ''Deep Throat''. The film attracted critical and scholarly attention from pornography historians and researchers for years after its release. The film is credited with beginning the trend of giving pornographic films titles that spoof the names of non-porn films. With the success of ''Boys in the Sand'', Casey Donovan became an underground celebrity. While he never achieved the mainstream film career for which he had hoped, he continued his career in pornography and translated his fame into some appearances on the legitimate stage, including a successful national tour in the gay-themed play '' Tubstrip'' and an unsuccessful attempt to produce a revival of '' The Ritz''. His fame also allowed him success as a high-priced prostitute. He remained a bankable commodity in the adult industry, making films for the next 15 years until his death from
AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ma ...
-related illness in 1987.


Legacy

Poole and Donovan had wanted to make a sequel to ''Boys in the Sand''. In 1984, they shot ''Boys in the Sand II''. Also filmed on Fire Island, the film featured Donovan, the only cast member from the original to return. The original opening sequence, ''Bayside'', was recreated for the sequel, with Pat Allen performing the run from the water. Litigation tied up the release of ''Boys in the Sand II'' until 1986 and with the advent of the home video market, there was a glut of gay porn titles available. ''Boys in the Sand II'' did not distinguish itself from the competition and was not particularly successful. In 2002,
TLA Releasing TLA Releasing is a US film distribution and production company owned by TLA Entertainment Group. In March 2011, a new LLC was formed for the operation. Its primary output is LGBT-related films from all over the world under the "TLA Releasing" la ...
released ''The Wakefield Poole Collection''. The two-DVD set includes ''Boys in the Sand'' and ''Boys in the Sand II'' along with '' Bijou'' (1972), a third Poole/Donovan collaboration, and other shorts and material shot by Poole. The collection won a 2003 GayVN Award for Best Classic Gay DVD. In May 2014, filmmaker and writer Jim Tushinski's full-length documentary ''I Always Said Yes: The Many Lives of Wakefield Poole'', which features extensive interviews with Poole, producer Marvin Schulman, and many contemporaries, began playing at film festivals. In June 2014, the DVD company Vinegar Syndrome restored ''Boys in the Sand'' from the remaining film elements and released this new version on DVD along with early short films by Wakefield Poole and several documentary shorts about the filming and reception of ''Boys in the Sand''.


See also

*
LGBT culture in New York City New York City is home to one of the largest LGBTQ populations in the world and the most prominent. Brian Silverman, the author of ''Frommer's New York City from $90 a Day,'' wrote the city has "one of the world's largest, loudest, and most power ...
*
List of American films of 1971 A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby union ...
* List of LGBTQ people from New York City *
Sexual revolution in 1960s United States The sexual revolution in the 1960s United States was a social and cultural movement that resulted in liberalized attitudes toward sex and morality. In the 1960s, social norms were changing as sex became more widely discussed in society. Erotic me ...
*
Timeline of 1960s counterculture The following is a chronological capsule history of 1960s counterculture. Influential events and milestones years before and after the 1960s are included for context relevant to the subject period of the early 1960s through the mid-1970s. 1950s ...


References


Further reading

* Burger, John Robert (1995). ''One-Handed Histories: The Eroto-Politics of Gay Male Video Pornography''. New York: Haworth. . * Edmonson, Roger (1998). ''Boy in the Sand: Casey Donovan, All-American Sex Star'' New York: Alyson. . * Holmlund, Chris and Justin Wyatt (eds.), (2004). ''Contemporary American Independent Film: From the Margins to the Mainstream'', Routledge. * Poole, Wakefield interview, '' xplorations'' episode 5. 2005. * Poole, Wakefield (2000). ''Dirty Poole: The Autobiography of a Gay Porn Pioneer''. Alyson Books. . * Rutledge, Leigh (1989). ''The Gay Fireside Companion''. New York: Alyson. . * Rutledge, Leigh (1992). ''The Gay Decades''. New York: Penguin. . * Stevenson, Jack (2000). ''Fleshpot: Cinema's Sexual Myth Makers & Taboo Breakers''. Critical Vision. . * Weitzer, Ronald John (2000). ''Sex for Sale: Prostitution, Pornography, and the Sex Industry''. New York: Routledge. .


External links

*
'Wakefield Poole: Theater, Dance, and Porn'The Rialto Report
audio interview with Wakefield Poole {{DEFAULTSORT:Boys In The Sand 1971 films 1971 in LGBT history 1971 LGBT-related films 1970s pornographic films American avant-garde and experimental films Gay pornographic films 1971 directorial debut films Films set in Long Island Films shot in New York (state) 1970s English-language films 1970s American films