''Cinema X'' was a British film magazine best known for its coverage of sexploitation films. Early issues of the magazine were undated, but it is believed the first issue was published in 1969.
The first film to grace the cover of ''Cinema X'' was ''
Loving Feeling
''Loving Feeling'' is a 1968 British sex comedy-drama film directed by Norman J. Warren and starring Simon Brent, Georgina Ward and Paula Patterson.
Premise
Steve, a womanising DJ, wants to get back with his wife Suzanne, from whom he is separ ...
,'' directed by
Norman J. Warren
Norman John Warren (25 June 1942 – 11 March 2021) was an English film director best known for such 1970s horror films as '' Satan's Slave'' (1976), ''Prey'' (1977) and '' Terror'' (1978). Warren is also known for sex comedies such as '' Oute ...
. Other films covered in the first issue were ''
I Am Curious (Yellow)
''I Am Curious (Yellow)'' (, meaning "I Am Curious: A Film in Yellow") is a 1967 Swedish erotic drama film written and directed by Vilgot Sjöman, starring Sjöman and Lena Nyman. It is a companion film to 1968's ''I Am Curious (Blue)''; the t ...
,'' ''
Curse of the Crimson Altar
''Curse of the Crimson Altar'' is a 1968 British horror film directed by Vernon Sewell and starring Christopher Lee, Boris Karloff, Barbara Steele and Mark Eden. The film was produced by Louis M. Heyward for Tigon British Film Productions. Th ...
,'' and ''Therese and Isabelle.'' Interviewees in the premiere issue included Norman J Warren,
John Trevelyan and
Anthony Newley
Anthony Newley (24 September 1931 – 14 April 1999) was an English actor, singer, songwriter, and filmmaker. A "latter-day British Al Jolson", he achieved widespread success in song, and on stage and screen. "One of Broadway's greatest leading ...
.
Origins
Originally 'a Cinemonde publication', the magazine appears to have been envisioned by the company as the British arm of their publishing empire, which already included a similar publication in France (''Cinemonde'') and in Italy (''King Cinemonde'').
Gerald Kingsland was the magazine's first editor. Very much born of the permissive climate of the late sixties, the first issue's editorial stated: “So far the more adult magazines have reserved a few pages for the X cinema ... blood and sex are only lightly touched on. ''Cinema X'' devotes all its time to the world’s X cinema.”
The founding publishing house of ''Cinema X'' was Rosland Productions.
From Volume 2 Number 2 the magazine was published by
Top Sellers Ltd
Thorpe & Porter (widely known as T & P) was a British publisher, importer, and distributor of magazines and comic books. At first, the company was known for repackaging American comics and pulp magazines for the UK market. Later on, it became a pu ...
., based in London.
Similar publications
''Cinema X'' was superficially similar to the long-running ''Continental Film Review,'' which in the late 1960s had begun filling its pages with stills of nude scenes from foreign films. However, ''Cinema X'' was far less pretentious and, being mostly in colour, much more glossy.
Known formatting
Seen today, early issues of the magazine appear somewhat faceless, often consisting merely of an editorial followed by film pictorials with short plot synopses. However, around 1971/1972 the magazine began to develop more of a personality, with such regular features as 'Flash', a column by the film critic Peter Noble (1917-1997) on upcoming films, and articles on mainstream film stars under the heading 'Cine Go Round'. The 'Cineclub 24 Scene' and 'Cinecenta Scene' sections covered films that played at Membership Only Adult Cinemas. During this period the magazine was published by
Top Sellers Ltd
Thorpe & Porter (widely known as T & P) was a British publisher, importer, and distributor of magazines and comic books. At first, the company was known for repackaging American comics and pulp magazines for the UK market. Later on, it became a pu ...
, a division of
Warner Communications
Warner Media, LLC ( traded as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate. It was headquartered at the 30 Hudson Yards complex in New York City, United States.
It was originally established in 1972 by ...
known as
Williams Publishing
Williams Publishing was the short-lived European comics and magazines publishing division of Warner Communications in the 1970s. Headquartered at the Columbia-Warner House in London, Williams had European-language divisions in Denmark, Finland, F ...
, that also produced saucy books and posters, many of which were advertised in the magazine. The magazine also began accepting outside advertising; Subdean, the first company of
David Sullivan, advertised in the magazine in 1972. And in 1975 the magazine produced its own 'X'-rated cinema advertisement, featuring model Nita Blair and directed by Ray Selfe.
At this point
Tony Crawley
Tony may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters
* Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer
* Motu Tony (born 1981), New Zealand international rugby leag ...
was credited as managing editor, while contributing editors included William Rostler for articles on American films and
Luigi Cozzi
is a fictional character featured in video games and related media released by Nintendo. Created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto, Luigi is portrayed as the younger fraternal twin brother and sidekick of Mario, Nintendo' ...
for articles on Italian cinema. The mid-seventies version of the magazine drastically reduced its page count from 82 to 31, dropping many of its earlier features. Under Crawley’s editorship the magazine also adopted a more critical stance towards the films reviewed. Crawley’s review of ''
Deadly Weapons
''Deadly Weapons'' is a 1974 American exploitation film directed and produced by Doris Wishman. It stars burlesque performer Chesty Morgan and porn star Harry Reems.
Plot
Crystal is an advertising executive who tracks down the mobsters who k ...
,'' starring
Chesty Morgan, abruptly ended with Crawley proclaiming, “I can write no more, I feel ill.” Gerald Kingsland was the founding editor who was followed by Jordan Stone in the post from Volume 2 Number 3.
Editorial stance
''Cinema X'' was initially supportive of home-grown British sex films, particularly those of producer Bachoo Sen, giving over the first issue's cover to ''
Loving Feeling
''Loving Feeling'' is a 1968 British sex comedy-drama film directed by Norman J. Warren and starring Simon Brent, Georgina Ward and Paula Patterson.
Premise
Steve, a womanising DJ, wants to get back with his wife Suzanne, from whom he is separ ...
'' and comparing his next film, ''
Love Is a Splendid Illusion
''Love is a Splendid Illusion'' is a 1970 British sex comedy concerning a businessman (Simon Brent) whose cheating ways come to a head in Italy when the secret lover of his equally cheating wife (Lisa Collings) turns out to be a potential business ...
,'' to the works of
Radley Metzger
Radley Metzger (also known as Radley Henry Metzger, Radley H. Metzger and by the pseudonyms, "Jake Barnes", "Erich Farina" and "Henry Paris") (January 21, 1929 – March 31, 2017) was an American pioneering filmmaker and film distributor, mos ...
and
Russ Meyer
Russell Albion Meyer (March 21, 1922 – September 18, 2004) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, cinematographer, and editor. He is known primarily for writing and directing a series of successful sexploitation films that fea ...
. A British sex film edition followed (Vol.5, No.1), with ''Cinema X'' interviewing the likes of
Pete Walker,
Derek Ford
Derek Ford (6 September 1932, Essex – 19 May 1995) was an English film director and writer, most famous for sexploitation films such as ''The Wife Swappers'' (1970), '' Suburban Wives'' (1971), '' Commuter Husbands'' (1972), ''Keep It Up, Ja ...
and
Stanley Long.
By the mid-seventies, though, ''Cinema X’s'' love affair with the British sex film had begun to falter. The then extant policies of UK censorship meant that British films had to remain softcore while the United States and most of Europe headed into the hardcore
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 ...
era. But ''Cinema X'' discovered that many British filmmakers were shooting hardcore versions of their films for overseas release, while never publicly admitting to doing so. Annoyed by this hypocrisy, ''Cinema X'' eventually took them to task in a review of the film
Secrets of a Superstud
''Secrets of a Super Stud'', also known as ''It's Getting Harder All the Time'' and ''Naughty Girls on the Loose'', is a 1976 British sex comedy film, one of many to be also filmed in a hardcore version for export. It was shot at Twickenham Fi ...
: “At ''Cinema X'' magazine we know which directors have shot porno; we've talked to their stars. But it's little use quoting them, when the directors, producers, above all their distributors, vociferously deny everything. We prefer honesty in our pages.”
Spin-offs
''Cinema X’s'' interest in the American porno scene led to a 1975 spin-off magazine called ''Cinema Blue,'' which covered the
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 ...
era and interviewed many of its leading lights. The magazine was short-lived however, as was an American version of ''Cinema X'' titled ''Cinema X International.''
Closure
The magazine appears to have ceased publication in the late 1970s/early 1980s.
References
{{Reflist
External links
The Site of Movie Magazines: Cinema X
Film magazines published in the United Kingdom
Defunct magazines published in the United Kingdom
Magazines established in 1969
Magazines with year of disestablishment missing
Magazines published in London
Monthly magazines published in the United Kingdom