''Electric Blue'' is a
softcore pornography
Softcore pornography or softcore porn, is commercial still photography or film that has a pornographic or erotic component but is less sexually graphic and intrusive than hardcore pornography, defined by a lack of visual sexual penetration. So ...
show that aired mainly on the
Playboy Channel
Playboy TV (originally The Playboy Channel) is a pay television channel based in the United States.
History
The channel first launched on December 9, 1980, as Escapade by AMC Networks, Rainbow Programing Services (a joint-venture of four cab ...
in the early 1980s. The show was produced in the UK. Many prominent porn stars performed on ''Electric Blue'', including
Ginger Lynn
Ginger Lynn Allen (born December 14, 1962), known professionally as Ginger Lynn, is an American pornographic actress and model who was a premier adult-entertainment star of the 1980s. She also had minor roles in various B movies. '' Adult Vi ...
,
Traci Lords
Traci Lords (born Nora Louise Kuzma; May 7, 1968) is an American actress and singer. She entered the adult film industry using a fake birth certificate to conceal that she was two years under the legal age of eighteen. Lords starred in adult f ...
,
Marilyn Chambers,
[ Christy Canyon,][ Sasha Gabor,][ Blake Palmer,][ Janey Robbins,][ and ]Rick Savage
Richard Savage (born 2 December 1960) is an English musician best known for being the bass guitarist and one of the founding members of the English rock band Def Leppard. Savage and lead singer Joe Elliott are the only two remaining original ...
. ''Hustler
Hustler or hustlers may also refer to:
Professions
* Hustler, an American slang word, e.g., for a:
** Con man, a practitioner of confidence tricks
** Drug dealer, seller of illegal drugs
** Male prostitute
** Pimp
** Business man, more gener ...
'' centerfold model and " scream queen" actress Gail Harris
Gail Harris (born 16 December 1964) is a British-born model, actress, adult-magazine publisher and adult-industry entrepreneur.
Life and career
Modelling
Before her film-industry work, Gail Thackray was a Page 3 girl (glamour model) for the ...
made appearances in many episodes.
''Electric Blue The Movie'' (1981) is a film compèred by the US pornographic star Marilyn Chambers. It consists of a compilation of clips from the ''Electric Blue'' home video series. These include sketches, erotic songs, lesbian fantasies and a nude disco dancing competition. There are also film clips showing archive nude footage of celebrities such as Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe (; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; 1 June 1926 4 August 1962) was an American actress. Famous for playing comedic " blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and early 1960s, as wel ...
, Joanna Lumley
Dame Joanna Lamond Lumley (born 1 May 1946) is an English actress, presenter, former model, author, television producer, and activist. She has won two BAFTA TV Awards for her role as Patsy Stone in the BBC sitcom ''Absolutely Fabulous'' (1992 ...
and Jacqueline Bisset
Winifred Jacqueline Fraser Bisset ( ; born 13 September 1944) is a British actress. She began her film career in 1965 and first came to prominence in 1968 with roles in '' The Detective'', ''Bullitt'', and ''The Sweet Ride'', for which she rec ...
, as well as Jayne Mansfield
Jayne Mansfield (born Vera Jayne Palmer; April 19, 1933 – June 29, 1967) was an American actress, singer, nightclub entertainer, and ''Playboy'' Playmate. A sex symbol of the 1950s and early 1960s while under contract at 20th Century Fox, Man ...
's naked bath scene from the film ''Promises! Promises!
''Promises! Promises!'' (presented as ''Promises... Promises!'' on screen) is a 1963 American sex comedy film directed by King Donovan and starring Tommy Noonan (who also served as coproducer) and Jayne Mansfield. Released at the end of the Produ ...
'' (1963). ''Electric Blue The Movie'' was released theatrically in the UK in March 1982 under an X certificate
An X rating is a rating used in various countries to classify films that have content deemed suitable only for adults. It is used when the violent or sexual content of a film is considered to be potentially disturbing to general audiences.
Aust ...
and on VHS in 1983 as a tie-in to the ''Electric Blue'' video releases.
History
In 1979 the home video
Home video is prerecorded media sold or rented for home viewing. The term originates from the VHS and Betamax era, when the predominant medium was videotapes, but has carried over to optical disc formats such as DVD, Blu-ray and streaming me ...
market in the UK was in its early stages of development, and was dominated by cheap exploitation film
An exploitation film is a film that tries to succeed financially by exploiting current trends, niche genres, or lurid content. Exploitation films are generally low-quality "B movies", though some set trends, attract critical attention, become hi ...
s available from rental shops. In December 1979 ''Electric Blue'' was launched, costing £31 (US$). Described as "the UK’s first men’s magazine on video", ''Electric Blue'' was an hour-long compilation of "video centrefolds" intercut with acquired film footage. A new instalment of ''Electric Blue'' was released about every three months. The full-colour video magazines were sold in the form of X certificate
An X rating is a rating used in various countries to classify films that have content deemed suitable only for adults. It is used when the violent or sexual content of a film is considered to be potentially disturbing to general audiences.
Aust ...
videotapes in UK shops alongside more conventional films. They were produced under a commercial relationship with Paul Raymond, a publisher of "top shelf" men's magazines, including ''Men Only
''Men Only'' is a British magazine title that originated in 1935 as a pocket-sized men's magazine. It became a standard-sized pin-up magazine in the 1950s and was relaunched in 1971 by Paul Raymond Publications as a soft-core pornographic maga ...
'' and ''Club International
''Club International'' is a British softcore pornographic magazine published by Paul Raymond Publications that features pictures of nude women. It is a sister magazine of American magazine ''Club''.
History and profile
''Club International'' was ...
''. Raymond also owned the Raymond Revuebar
The Raymond Revuebar (1958–2004) was a theatre and strip club at 11 Walker's Court (now the location of The Box Soho nightclub), in the centre of London's Soho district. For many years, it was the only venue in London that offered full-fronta ...
, a striptease club in Soho, London. The ''Electric Blue'' videos were an extension of his magazines into new media, making use of his existing magazine models.[ They presented images of women in a ]glamour photography
Glamour photography is a genre of photography in which the subjects are portrayed in erotic poses ranging from fully clothed to nude. The term may be a euphemism for erotic photography. For glamour models, body shape and size are directly rel ...
style that was far from explicit, showing little more than breasts and pubic hair. The videos were also on sale in Australia. The ''Electric Blue'' series came to an end in the mid-1980s. Playboy entered the cable television
Cable television is a system of delivering television programming to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted through coaxial cables, or in more recent systems, light pulses through fibre-optic cables. This contrasts with bro ...
market in the early 1980s[ and the videos were shown on the Playboy Channel][ between 1983 and 1987.
]
Distribution
It appeared on home video releases in North America, Australia, New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s.
''Electric Blue'' was derived from the UK and were a subsidiary of the Video Classics group of labels in Australia. After that company ended, ''Electric Blue'' films were released by Virgin Video. Then, in the mid-1990s, they were distributed by Columbia TriStar.
The versions released on home video in North America differed from the UK versions, adding localized content and a greater emphasis on American porn stars.
The type of films released by this company consisted of female centrefolds, nudity and sexual situations.
Episodes
* ''Electric Blue 1'' (1979) Fiona Richmond
Fiona Richmond (born 2 March 1945) is an English former glamour model and actress. She became a British sex symbol in the 1970s for her appearances in numerous risqué plays, comedy revues, magazines and films. She has been described as one of ...
, Long Dong Silver
Long Dong Silver is a British retired porn star known for his large penis. He was born in 1960 in London, England, as Daniel Arthur Mead. His stage name is a reference to the fictional ''Treasure Island'' character Long John Silver.
Career
Fam ...
, Marilyn Chambers
* ''Electric Blue 2'' (1981) Joanna Lumley
Dame Joanna Lamond Lumley (born 1 May 1946) is an English actress, presenter, former model, author, television producer, and activist. She has won two BAFTA TV Awards for her role as Patsy Stone in the BBC sitcom ''Absolutely Fabulous'' (1992 ...
, Marilyn Chambers
* ''Electric Blue 3'' (1982)
* ''Electric Blue 4'' (1982) Seka
* ''Electric Blue 5'' (1982) Marilyn Chambers, Michelle Bauer
Michelle Bauer (born October 1, 1958) is an American actress, model, and scream queen.
Early life
Bauer was born and raised in Simi Valley, California.
Career
Bauer was ''Penthouse'' magazine's Pet of the Month for July 1981 and also appeare ...
* ''Electric Blue 6'' (1981)
* ''Electric Blue 007'' (1982) (James Bond
The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
themed video)
* ''Electric Blue 8'' (1982)
* ''Electric Blue 9'' (1982)
* ''Electric Blue 10'' (1984) Dee Booher, Veronica Hart
Jane Esther Hamilton (born October 27, 1956) is an American former pornographic actress and current adult film director who performed under the stage name Veronica Hart during the 1980s. She is sometimes credited as Jane Hamilton, V. Hart, Ver ...
, Ginger Lynn
Ginger Lynn Allen (born December 14, 1962), known professionally as Ginger Lynn, is an American pornographic actress and model who was a premier adult-entertainment star of the 1980s. She also had minor roles in various B movies. '' Adult Vi ...
* ''Electric Blue 11'' (1984)
* ''Electric Blue 17'' (1984) Crystal Breeze, Venus DeLight
* ''Electric Blue 19'' (1984)
* ''Electric Blue 20'' (1985)
* ''Electric Blue 21'' (1985)
* ''Electric Blue: Beverly Hills Wives'' (1985) Christy Canyon, Ricky Diamond
* ''Electric Blue 22'' (1985)
* ''Electric Blue 24'' (1985)
* ''Electric Blue 26'' (1985)
* ''Electric Blue 27'' (1985)
* ''Electric Blue 30'' (1985) Michelle Bauer, Robin Cannes
* ''Electric Blue 31'' (1985)
* ''Electric Blue 33'' (1985)
* ''Electric Blue 34'' (1986) Lois Ayres
The ''AVN'' (''Adult Video News'') Hall of Fame has honored people for their work in the adult entertainment industry since 1995.Careena Collins
The ''AVN'' (''Adult Video News'') Hall of Fame has honored people for their work in the adult entertainment industry since 1995.Samantha Fox
Samantha Karen Fox (born 15 April 1966) is an English pop singer and former glamour model from East London. She rose to public attention aged 16, when her mother entered her photographs in an amateur modelling contest run by ''The Sunday Peopl ...
, Gail Harris
Gail Harris (born 16 December 1964) is a British-born model, actress, adult-magazine publisher and adult-industry entrepreneur.
Life and career
Modelling
Before her film-industry work, Gail Thackray was a Page 3 girl (glamour model) for the ...
* ''Electric Blue 39'' (1986)
* ''Electric Blue 40'' (1986)
* ''Electric Blue 41'' (1986) Blondi, Gail Harris
* ''Electric Blue 42'' (1986)
* ''Electric Blue 43'' (1986) Blondi, Careena Collins, Gail Harris
* ''Electric Blue 44'' (1986)
* ''Electric Blue 45'' (1986)
* ''Electric Blue 46'' (1987)
* ''Electric Blue 47'' (1987) Gail Harris, Ginger Lynn
* ''Electric Blue 48'' (1987) Gina Carrera, Careena Collins, Gail Harris
* ''Electric Blue 49'' (1987) Michelle Bauer, Careena Collins, Gail Harris
* ''Electric Blue 50'' (1987) Aja, Careena Collins, Gail Harris
* ''Electric Blue 51'' (1987)
* ''Electric Blue 52'' (1987)
* ''Electric Blue 53'' (1987)
* ''Electric Blue 55'' (1987) Tracey Adams, Barbii
* ''Electric Blue 56'' (1987)
* ''Electric Blue 57'' (1987)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Electric Blue (TV Series)
British pornographic television shows
Erotic television series
Television series by Playboy Enterprises
Playboy TV original programming
1982 British television series debuts
1983 British television series endings
1980s British television series
Television shows set in the United Kingdom