Surprise

Passages

Every passage tagged with this emotion in the Vela corpus. Search the body text, narrow by source or register, click through to a book’s profile to see how the passage sits with the rest of the work.

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• From Vision Quest (1979)

  Dad thought she was pregnant. “I’ve been dieting,” Carla explained in a reassuring voice. “I can’t stand to eat while Louden starves himself.” That was a surprise to both Dad and me. I told Carla please to eat and assured her that in a couple months I’d be eating like my old pig self again. Dad wanted to pursue it. “Look,” he said to both of us. “You two have a home under my roof as long as you want and you can live here any way you want. But you’ve got to be careful about your futures. Don’t let things get out of control.” He looked like he was going on, but Carla interrupted. “Dad,” she said. “I’m not pregnant and I’m not going to get pregnant.” “Well, you’ve got to be sure to use—” “Condoms,” I interrupted. Carla had been taking pills but I’d convinced her to stop. “Rubbers.” Carla smiled. “Prophylactics.” Dad nodded. “Worth a pound of cure.” I smiled at Carla. “I’m hungry,” she said.

• From The Triumph of Christianity (2018)

  < 95 < Lecture 14  The Exponential Growth of the Church The Population Explosion ` Even with the reduced numbers in the year 300, an amazing phenomenon was at hand. How did the Christian population go from 20 people to 2–3 million in 300 years? y Some have argued that it would’ve taken a divine miracle. (This view has obvious problems: If it was accomplished by God, why did it take so long, and why was the job never finished?) y Others argue that it required massive conversions at one time, with thousands abandoning their pagan ways to become Christian simultaneously. ` As it turns out, neither is right. All that the phenomenon required was a steady rate of growth. The first scholar to recognize this was the sociologist of religion Rodney Stark, as set forth in his controversial book The Rise of Christianity. y Stark begins by assuming that the book of Acts exaggerates a bit on how many Jews converted within the first weeks, months, and years of the movement. He suggests that we simply start in the year 40 CE with 1,000 Christians. y He ends with the standard number of 5–6 million Christians by 300 CE. How fast would the church have had to expand to go from 1,000 members in 40 CE to 5–6 million just 260 years later? y It would’ve required a completely believable and achievable rate of growth: about 40% per decade. Put another way, if there were 100 Christians in a given year, they would need to grow to 140 by 10 years later. y To achieve that, 100 Christians, as a group, need to convert 3–4 people. If every 100 Christians did that year after year, after 260 years, they would’ve grown from 1,000 people to 5–6 million.

• From Combating Cult Mind Control: The Guide to Protection, Rescue and Recovery from Destructive Cults (1988)

  “Yes. We believed in a spirit world. In fact, we believed that whenever someone died, like Tom, it was to pay indemnity for some past sin in the person’s lineage. In this way, another member of the family could join the group, serve the man we revered as the living Messiah, and then later intervene to save the person who had passed on to the spirit world. In this way, God could not only restore the whole world back to its original state of goodness, but restore all of the spiritual beings in the spirit world who were unable to advance without earthly ‘vitality elements’ provided by those on earth.” Phil’s jaw hung open a bit. He asked, “You really believed that?” “At the time, absolutely,” I said. “You see, in the Church, members were not allowed to ask critical questions of anything the leader said or did. We were taught to believe that anything that challenged the leader or the group’s beliefs was ‘negative’ and was caused by evil spirits. We were taught to do thought-stopping to shut down our minds. In my group we did this by praying intensely as well as chanting whenever we started to doubt, or whenever we felt homesick.”173 “What was the name of the group again?” he asked. “The Unification Church,” I said. “You probably know it as the Moonies.” “You were in the Moonies? No—I don’t believe it!” Phil exclaimed. “It’s true. In fact, I was a devoted follower of Sun Myung Moon. I would have gladly died on command, if he had told me to,” I replied. “That’s incredible!” Phil said. “Not only that, but we were literally made to feel that if we ever left the group our lives would fall to pieces,” I continued. “We were told that we would be betraying God, the Messiah, ten generations of our ancestors—the whole world, in fact—if we ever left. We were told that all of our relatives now in the spirit world would accuse us throughout eternity for betraying God.174 It was quite a heavy trip. We were told to avoid all former members because they were controlled by evil. If someone we were close to left the group, we were made to feel that he or she was now a Benedict Arnold and was possessed by demonic spirits.175 Can you put yourself in my shoes and imagine what I felt when I was in there?” “Yes.’’ Phil said. “Amazing. How did you get out?” “Well, I was in an automobile accident in which I was almost killed,” I said. “After two weeks in the hospital and an operation on my leg, I was able to get permission to go visit my sister. She had given birth to my nephew over a year earlier, but I had never seen him. I had never been able to get permission from my central figure. Anyway, my parents hired some former Moonies to come talk with me.” “Didn’t you try to resist?’’ asked Phil.

• From The Mystical Tradition

  Lecture Twenty-Nine The Appearance of Sufism Scope: For a religion that, in its exoteric form, is so anti-ascetical, the emergence of Sufism (the distinctive form of mysticism in the Islamic tradition) in the early 8th century is something of a surprise, as is its remarkable success. This lecture assesses various possible causes for this development, then sketches the Sufi way of life as a path (tariqa) of knowledge, love, and prayer. The lecture concludes with a general guide to the stations and states of the Sufi’s progression toward Allah, as well as some of the tensions created by this powerful form of mysticism within the House of Islam. Outline I. The appearance and the continued flourishing of Sufism as the dominant form of Islamic Mysticism is a surprise to those who are unaware of the place it holds in the history of this religious tradition. A. A Hadith of the Prophet declares, “There are no monks in Islam,” and the Qur’an has a strong anti-ascetical tendency: Marriage, property ownership, and political involvement are all encouraged. 1. The Shari’ah was developed and organized by scholars (ulama) with little attention to the internal response of the individual. 2. The ulama, furthermore, was closely attached to the political power of the caliphate, with a concern for the Islamic state. 3. Islam, in this framework, is a religion of the will (obedience) and the mind but not necessarily of the heart. B. Sufism offers a powerful alternative way of being Muslim, both within and at the fringes of the Shari’ah. 1. It emphasizes the individual’s response to Allah through mind, heart, and mystical experience. 2. Politically, its system of Sufi brotherhoods (orders) offers a place not totally defined by the theocratic state. C. Sufism’s relation to exoteric Islam has always been both emphatic and debated. 1. The ulama has responded variously to Sufism, with attempts to resist it, co-opt it, and reform it. 116 ©2008 The Teaching Company.

• From The Mystical Tradition

  2. In certain times and places, Sufism has represented the dominant expression of Islam and one of its powerful missionary impulses. 3. Even internally, the question arises of the degree to which Sufism is properly an expression of Islam or a universal mystical religion. II. The origins of the movement remain, to a large extent, obscure and disputed. A. Sufism is generally thought to have arisen in Basra (in Iraq) in the 8th century, though some manifestations could be earlier; internally, Sufis trace their origins either to ‘Ali or to Abu Bakr. B. The etymology of the term Sufi is debated even within the tradition: Does it come from suf (“wool,” referring to the garments worn by Sufis); safa (“purity”); ashab (or ahl) al-suffa (“companions/people of the porch”), or sufiya (a transliteration of the Greek sophia, meaning “wisdom”)? C. Possible factors contributing to the rise of Sufism include the following: 1. Neoplatonic Greek philosophy or Gnostic groups (Iraqi Mandeans), or Persian Dualism (Manichaeism); 2. Jewish mystics or Christian dissident groups (the monks of East Syria); 3. The rigidity of the Shari’ah and the corruption of the caliphate during the Umayyad dynasty; 4. The universal impulse within all religions for a commitment to personal transformation. III. Like Islam itself, the basic components of the Sufi way of life are both simple and difficult. A. The Sufi is a traveler or seeker who sets out to follow the path toward Allah. 1. The goal is unity with that which is most real (al-haqq), in contrast with that which is illusory. 2. In order to follow the right path (tariqa) toward God, dedication and discipline are required. B. The Sufi Orders provide the social framework for the seeker to move securely in the path. ©2008 The Teaching Company. 117

• From American Swing (2008)

  YEAH, SO THIS CALL CAME IN FROM SOMEBODY-- I DON'T REMEMBER WHO IT IS ANYMORE, SOME FRIEND OR ACQUAINTANCE AND SAID, "THERE'S THIS LIVE SEX CLUB WHERE PEOPLE ARE HAVING SEX IN FRONT OF EVERYBODY." AND I SAID, "YOU MEAN A GAY BAR?" AND THEY SAID, "NO NO, THESE ARE STRAIGHT PEOPLE." ♪ AM I DREAMING ♪ ♪ THAT YOU'RE WITH ME? ♪ - ♪ AM I DREAMING... ♪ - Steve: PLATO'S WAS ALWAYS FOR COUPLES ONLY. AND OF COURSE WE ALWAYS INVITED SINGLE LADIES. IT WAS A TACKY LITTLE PLACE. AND SITTING BEHIND THERE IS THIS GUY LARRY-- WHO I LATER LEARNED IS LARRY LEVENSON. HE SEEMED IN CHARGE AND HE'S SITTING THERE IN A TOWEL, AND THAT'S IT. ONE OF THE BEST PARTS OF IT FOR ME WAS THAT IT WAS RELAXED IN THE SENSE THAT PEOPLE WERE COMING AND NOT NECESSARILY DOING ANYTHING. NOT EVEN NECESSARILY TAKING THEIR CLOTHES OFF. TWO OF THE MEN... WERE WEARING NO CLOTHES EXCEPT FOR BLACK SOCKS AND SHOES. AND WALKING AROUND THAT WAY, KINDA LIKE THAT STAG-FILM LOOK. SO I WROTE IT UP. I PLAYED IT PRETTY BIG. AND A FEW DAYS LATER I WENT THERE-- WENT BACK. ♪ ONE THING I FEEL THAT I LIKE... ♪ PLATO'S WAS A SIMPLE NAME. IT'S THE ONLY ONE I COULD SPELL ACTUALLY. SO WE USED PLATO'S. THEN AFTER THAT I FOUND OUT THAT PLATO'S WAS GAY, BUT IT WAS TOO LATE. THE LINES WERE JUST UNBELIEVABLE. I MEAN WE WENT FROM, WHAT? 30, 40 COUPLES OR PEOPLE TO 400! NOW YOU HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT DON'T KNOW THE OLD CROWD. THERE WERE PEOPLE THAT USED TO COME TO PLATO'S THAT TO MOST PEOPLE-- WOULD SAY WERE NOT THE MOST PHYSICALLY APPEALING, BUT THEY WERE THE NICEST PEOPLE YOU'D EVER WANT TO MEET IN THE WORLD. THEY WERE WALKING AROUND WITH THE BLACK SOCKS AND THE SHOES, AND THIS NEW GROUP WERE JUST NAKED AND MUCH WILDER. PEOPLE SAY, "HEY, YOU GOT A DATE? YOU WANT A NIGHT OUT?" ET CETERA, ET CETERA. "YOU AND YOUR DATE, YOU GOT A DATE THAT'S SORT OF ON THE WILD SIDE?" PERSONALLY I THINK THAT WITH A LITTLE ENCOURAGEMENT EVERYBODY'S ON THE WILD SIDE. ALL OF A SUDDEN HE REALLY WAS ON A RUNAWAY TIGER-- OF SEX. - IT WAS LIKE A BIG PARTY. - THERE WAS LITERALLY LINES AROUND THE BLOCK. Charlie: THEY WERE JUST COMING DOWN AND IN AND TAKING OVER AND DANCING AND HOLDING HANDS, AND HUGGING. IT WAS A SIGHT. FREAKED ME OUT. I DIDN'T KNOW. Steve: PLATO'S WAS BECOMING BIG. WE NEEDED A BIG PLACE. WE NEEDED A SPECIAL PLACE. HE CONTACTED A COUPLE OF GOOD FRIENDS OF HIS WHICH I ALSO KNEW: FRANK PERNICE, FRANKIE-- HE WAS SOME SORT OF CATERER. FRANK CAME HOME ONE DAY AND SAID, "WHAT A GREAT IDEA. THIS HAS TO BE FANTASTIC." ABOUT A WEEK OR TWO WEEKS LATER, WE MET HY GORDON THERE. COULD BE DANGEROUS. THEY WERE GENTLEMEN.

• From American Swing (2008)

  ( laughs ) I HAD JUST COME FROM PARIS SO I WAS A YOUNG PHOTOGRAPHER, AND KIND OF A SHY GIRL FROM OHIO. SO I-- I-- I DISROBED... AND I PLUNGE INTO THE POOL. AND I'M SWIMMING. I, LIKE, GO. I SORT OF UNDERWATERED THE WHOLE LENGTH OF THE POOL. AND WHEN I COME UP, I SEE ALL THESE MEN STANDING AROUND THE POOL AND THEY'RE ALL JERKING OFF. AND THEIR COME IS, LIKE, COMING IN AN ARC ACROSS THE POOL OVER MY HEAD. IT WAS JUST AMAZING. THAT WAS ONE OF MY BIGGEST REGRETS-- WAS THAT I DIDN'T GET THAT PICTURE. - YOU GO THERE, RIGHT? - DEFINITELY, YES. - THERE'S A MEMBERSHIP FEE? HOW MUCH IS IT? - RIGHT. IT COST $25 PER COUPLE. NOW FOR THAT, YOU GET A MEAL THAT WAS FANTASTIC, LIKE YOU GET AT ANY BAR MITZVAH, A FULL SMORGASBORD. CHICKEN, RIBS, CHOW MEIN, LASAGNA, MEATBALLS. - SPAGHETTI. - NO, LASAGNA. - OH, OKAY. - POTATO SALAD, MACARONI. - COLD CUTS. - COLESLAW. - COLD CUTS. - COLD CUTS. - DID I SAY CHICKEN? - YEAH. WHY ARE YOU ASKING ABOUT THAT HORRIBLE FOOD? JESUS. WHICH, BY THE WAY, LARRY THOUGHT WAS WONDERFUL. LARRY REALLY THOUGHT THAT WAS WONDERFUL. HE WAS SO PROUD OF HIS BUFFET. BUT THE BUFFET WAS DISGUSTING. THERE WAS PEOPLE-- ORAL SEX THIS AND THAT-- ALL CRAZY SEX THINGS. SO WE LEFT THERE. I SAID I WANT TO GO TO THE ROOM AND EAT MY SANDWICH. SO WE WENT TO ANOTHER ROOM-- I GUESS THE POOL TABLE-- AND THEY WERE HAVING SEX ON THE POOL TABLE. WE USED TO GO BUY PIZZA FOR OURSELVES AND IT WAS REAL GOOD PIZZA AND WE SAID TO LARRY, - "IT WOULD BE NICE AFTER THE FOOD'S ALMOST GONE"-- - JUST TO BREAK IT UP. - ABOUT 1:00 IN THE MORNING. - WHEN YOU START RUNNING OUT OF FOOD AND PEOPLE COME OUT OF THE ORGY OR THEY'RE DANCING, SWIMMING-- YOU FEEL LIKE GRABBING SOMETHING. THEY'RE TIRED OF A BOLOGNA SANDWICH. I SAID, "HEY, WHY DON'T YOU ORDER 10 PIES?" "WHY NOT?" - Woman: YOU WEREN'T HIDING, WERE YOU? - NO. - DID YOU MEET A NICE GIRL? - NO. Leo: EVERYTHING WAS OPEN EXCEPT THESE FEW BLACK CUBICLES. THAT YOU COULD HAVE PRIVATE SEX IF YOU FELT EMBARRASSED TO BE DOING IT IN FRONT OF THE JAPANESE TOURISTS. Don: YOU COULD HEAR CONVERSATIONS IN THE ROOM TO THE RIGHT OF YOU, ON THE LEFT OF YOU. YOU'D HEAR WOMEN TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHO WAS GOING TO CARPOOL TO HEBREW SCHOOL IN THE MORNING. WE SPENT SOME VERY VERY HAPPY HOURS CONTROLLING OUR HYSTERIA SO THAT PEOPLE INSIDE WOULDN'T KNOW THAT WE WERE LISTENING TO THE KIND OF FORCED DIALOGUE BETWEEN PEOPLE WHO HAVE JUST MET IN AN ORGY ROOM. IT WAS GOOD STUFF. I WISH I'D RECORDED SOME OF IT.

• From American Swing (2008)

  - ALTHEA, HIS WIFE... - ALTHEA, HIS WIFE. ...PULLED HER SHIRT UP. OH, MAN, HOW COULD I FORGET HIS NAME? HE'S A WRITER-- HUGH HEFNER'S FRIEND, HE COMMITTED SUICIDE... JERZY KOSINSKI. MUCH OF THE CAST OF "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE." WHAT'S HIS NAME? DREYF-- RICHARD DREYFUSS. HE NEVER CAME DOWN WITH A LADY. AGAIN HE WAS INVITED TO STAY. Hanson: DAN PASTORINI WAS HAVING A BIG YEAR WITH THE HOUSTON OILERS. AND THE MEN RECOGNIZE HIM. AND THE MEN STARTED, "IT'S DAN PASTORINI! IT'S DAN PASTORINI!" AND JUST IMMEDIATELY GRABBING THEIR WIVES AND JUST-- YOU KNOW, "FUCK DAN PASTORINI!" Reporter: WHY DID YOU DECIDE IN EARLY 1973 TO GO UNDERGROUND? THERE WAS NO WAY THAT I COULD POSSIBLY GET A FAIR TRIAL. Smith: ABBIE HOFFMAN WAS UNDERGROUND, RUNNING FROM THE FBI, BASICALLY. AND ONE OF THESE TIMES I GOT A PHONE CALL FROM HIM SAYING, "I'M IN TOWN. AND I'VE BEEN READING ALL ABOUT PLATO'S IN YOUR COLUMN IN THE 'VOICE' AND I WANT TO GO TO PLATO'S RETREAT." AND I SAID, "ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?" ( slurring ) THIS IS WHERE WE'RE WORKING ON THE NEW CONSTITUTION. - ( giggles ) - Smith: AND HE SAID, "NO NO NO, I GOTTA GO. I GOTTA GO. I GOTTA GO THERE. I GOTTA SEE IT. I CAN'T MISS THIS." HE COMES OVER AFTER AWHILE AND HE SAYS, "CAN'T I TELL THEM WHO I AM? I MEAN, THEY-- THEY-- THEY JUST WALK AWAY FROM ME. I THOUGHT YOU SAID EVERYBODY GETS LAID HERE." I SAID, "GO AHEAD, BUT I THINK IT'S REALLY DANGEROUS." ABBIE WAS ONE OF THE FIRST PEOPLE THAT I KNEW THAT COULDN'T GET LAID AT PLATO'S. I PROBABLY WOULDN'T HAVE GONE AS MANY TIMES AS I DID, BUT FRIENDS FROM CALIFORNIA KEPT ASKING ME TO WALK THEM IN. I WAS WONDERING, DO YOU GET A LOT OF CURIOSITY SEEKERS, PEOPLE THAT JUST LIKE TO GO AND WATCH? - Man: YES, VOYEURS, DEFINITELY. - LIKE ME. YES, THERE'S NO PRESSURE, THERE'S NO OBLIGATION AND NO COMMITMENT TO DO ANYTHING AT OUR CLUB. AND I'M POSITIVE IT'S THE SAME WAY AT LARRY'S CLUB. Woman: I COME FOR... SEX, GOOD CONVERSATION, INTELLECT. Michael: THE ONLY RULE, ACTUALLY, IN THE ENTIRE CLUB WAS NO. IF SOMEBODY SAID NO, THAT WAS IT. BUT IF THEY ALLOWED IT, ANYTHING WENT. FEMALES FIRST. THEY SET THE RULE. IF THEY WANT TO BE TOUCHED, THAT'S FINE. THEY DON'T WANT TO BE TOUCHED, THEY'RE NOT GONNA BE TOUCHED. IF SHE WANTS TO WALK AROUND WITH HER TOP OFF... SHE WALKS AROUND WITH HER TOP OFF. THAT WAS IT. I THINK AT PLATO'S IT WAS KIND OF INTERESTING THAT WOMEN WERE REALLY IN A POSITION TO BE ASSERTIVE, TO APPROACH MEN FOR SEX, TO KIND OF TRY OUT A LOT OF THE THINGS THAT WE HAD BEEN ON THE RECEIVING END OF. IT WAS YUMMY. WHY LET THEM HAVE ALL THE PLEASURE?

• From Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies (2020)

  And there were movies with explicit nudity at the time. But this was playing at your neighborhood movie theater. So it became a really big deal. In fact I remember seeing huge lines of people waiting to go into the theater. But then there was also a group of protestors there with signs, ban the film, and pornography and stuff. The movie itself could be difficult to watch. And it's very much of its time. It's kind of like an experimental film. - The code started crumbling in the '60s, 'cause the '60s were the '60s. I mean there was a lot of upheaval in our society. We had a president shot, and a lot of things were going on in real life that didn't match the strident mores of the code. And people were rebelling against it. - And as in physics, every action has an equal and opposite reaction. [calm music] They said we need to have a rating system in order to determine who can see these films. - We are not censors at all. What we do, and we don't make value judgments. There's not one of our ratings that means a film is good or bad, it just indicates the level of content. And then we give descriptors along with the level to show all those elements that are present at that level in the film. - There was that general feeling of change from the old classic Hollywood which pretty much died around 1962 or '63. ♪ Greeting greeting greetings - "Greetings," came out in 1968, and it was the first film to be rated X. It's a counterculture comedy. Robert De Niro starts to get involved in being a peeping Tom. - You've heard of pop art. - Oh yes, sure. - Well, this is called peep art. - And eventually he figured out how to make movies using this obsession. The X rating definitely helped, they wanted the X. The sex stuff is mostly relegated to Robert De Niro's scenes where he's spying on women. But there's also a scene that involves Gerrit Graham, who plays the character that's obsessed with the Kennedy assassination, where there is a naked woman on his bed. And he starts tracing the bullet trajectory of the gun that killed Kennedy. - I did my first nude scene in 1968 in my first movie called, "If," with this beautiful girl. And I think it was the first time in a studio movie that a man and a woman had been naked together. So I went up to the director and I said when we're fighting on the floor, wouldn't it be great if just a cut and we're naked like animals? And he looked and he went, you ask her. So we come to the end of the day, she comes out in a bathrobe, and just drops it. And I said [grunting] and they go, okay get your trousers off.

• From Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies (2020)

  - "Women in Love," and there's a nude wrestling scene between Alan Bates and Oliver Reed. And it was weird, and shocking, and surprising. That's one of the few male nudity things that I remember seeing in movies. - When it was released in the United States, the American censors cut this scene to where you see Olie and Alan start to get into each other, and then it cuts to them laying on the floor panting. - Was it too much for you? - So what we get is probably the best known sodomy scene in a major motion picture, when it wasn't a sodomy scene until they cut it that way. ♪ Everybody's talking at me - The first X rated movie that became mainstream, and that actually won the Academy Award was, "Midnight Cowboy." It does have nudity in it. But I think it's more rated X because of the subject matter. - So Sylvia Miles in, "Midnight Cowboy," is a society lady, and Jon Voight is a hustler. And they hook up and have sex. And the next day he asks her for money, and she freaks out. - You know Cass that's the funny thing you mentioning money. Because I was just about to ask you for some. - You were gonna ask me for money? - Hell, why you think I come all the way up here from Texas for? - Who the hell do you think you're dealing with? Some old slut on 42nd Street? And I think, sometimes I watch occasionally. It'll come on and I'll see that scene. It's hard watching it you know. I'm just so shocked at how real I was. In case you didn't happen to notice it, you big Texas Longhorn bull, I'm one hell of a gorgeous chick. There was no arrangement made about nudity. No contract to deal with things like that. - And so you had brief nudity from Sylvia Miles, and from Brenda Vaccaro, who were two of his bolder conquests. - "Midnight Cowboy," won an Oscar and was rated X. And that was the true application of the X rating, meant it was a more adult film. - In 1969, a film came out called, "Last Summer," that was X rated, and it was known for being a pioneering film because of the male nudity in it. - "Last Summer," is basically four kids left to their own devices in a sort of a rich summer town. - Hey come on, let's go for a swim. Bare ass? - They'll see us. - Not here, up the beach, come on. - She'll probably go tell her mother. - At the end of, "Last Summer," the rape scene is basically very emotionally fraught, because we have been four friends. And sex has been just creeping up all the time. But we've both been pretty much in love with the Barbara Hershey character. - Major truth. I love you both.

• From Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies (2020)

  - Viddy well, little brother, viddy well. - And this kind of confusion realized itself, you might say, in the pages of the local newspaper. If you wanted to go to a movie, you looked up where it was playing in a newspaper. Well, for example, the Los Angeles Times. They got protests from their readers protesting why are you advertising, "Deep Throat," and, "The Devil and Miss Jones?" Our little kids are being corrupted by this. And so the Los Angeles Times became one of the first newspapers to ban X rated ads for movies. - Another early Hollywood film that featured male full frontal nudity was a movie called, "Drive He Said," directed by Jack Nicholson. - I'm going. - Hey! [screaming in foreign language] - In, "Drive He Said," Michael Margotta does a nude streaking scene across a college campus. And that was pretty new for the early 1970s, and pretty shocking. - This was probably the first time you saw, except for the Oscars, where we had a streaker in that as well during a David Niven speech. - Quite likely-- [audience laughing] - The '70s, with its hedonism, and also sort of the crass commercialization of that freedom, brought about exploitation films, as well as art films, and then just regular Hollywood movies where it was liberating for actors and actresses to get nude on screen. - In, "Carnal Knowledge," you have huge mega stars like Jack Nicholson, and Ann-Margret doing nude scenes, wanting to do nude scenes specifically. And it kind of gives tacit approval to all kind of American stars doing nude scenes in films. ♪ Bye bye birdie - Ann-Margret was a dancer who had dated Elvis Presley, and had been in, "Bye Bye Birdie." And she had done no nudity in films, and it was rather surprising in the movie, "Carnal Knowledge." - Where Jack Nicholson is in the shower in the background. And Ann-Margret's lying on the bed. - [Barry] And she's reading the newspaper, and she turns the page of the newspaper. And as she does that she lifts her arm, and her breast is exposed. - And she gets up and goes to the shower. And you see her from behind, but you go wow, that's Ann-Margret and she's naked. And that was like, whoa. - A lot of times after the actresses kind of broke their screen nudity virginity, when they finally did it and saw that it wasn't that bad, or that it didn't hurt their career, and they could get through it, then they started doing more and more nudity. Ann-Margret followed up, "Carnal Knowledge," by doing a nude scene, a topless scene in the movie, "Magic," with Anthony Hopkins. - "The Last Picture Show," from Peter Bogdanovich is a remarkable movie, a wonderful film. And it also partakes of these kind of new freedoms of this period. - I know there was a lot of talk about the freedom of the screen.

• From Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies (2020)

  - "Caligula," which was I guess, one of the great porn movies of all time. We didn't know at the time, but that's what it became. - It is a pure X rated movie, back when X meant something. - I hated it because somewhere, when you watch that movie, you realize there is really a wonderful movie here that's been sort of hijacked by Bob Guccione, who was the publisher of Penthouse. But he had absolutely no taste. And all you had to do was look at his magazine to figure that out. - Peter O'Toole, and John Gielgud, and Helen Mirren are all in this movie. - I know, he hates me. - Because you are wise. So, when I am gone, watch out for Macro. - He figured if I've paid for these sets, my business is pornography. Hey, let's shoot a porno movie. And the shot would be of me close up. When I shot that shot, I'm looking at a pet falcon. So cut, two lesbians in the 69 position, licking, and God knows what else, at it, humping, writhing around. Come back to me, quizzical smile. And I sat there with Mary, my then wife. And we were like holy fuck, what is this? - There was a landmark movie in 1979 called, "10," which was directed by Blake Edwards, the husband of Mary Poppins, Julie Andrews. And the idea of the movie is looking for the perfect 10. Bo Derek became the go to actress in the nude movies of the early '80s. And if you went to a Bo Derek movie, you would expect that several times she would disrobe. - George. - I think in the history of cinema, it's always been considered much more artistic and acceptable if the actress does nudity, as opposed to if the actor does nudity. - I think this is this hypocritical side of the business. And indeed, men in general, isn't it? Of course we want to look at this beautiful, voluptuous body of a woman. But a man with a penis hanging out, who wants to see that? It doesn't have the same sort of beauty. Or not, at least, to a heterosexual man. [calm music] - Nudity in American films is slowly becoming more like your European films used to be. - And then we go through this kind of Renaissance of directors like Paul Mazursky, and Paul Schrader with, "American Gigolo," with a new kind of freedom. - What's amazing about, "American Gigolo," which was a very popular movie in 1980, is that the star of the movie, Richard Gere, showed his penis. - So it still remains, I think to this day it's a little bit of a, I don't want to say scandal. But it's a little bit shocking and surprising when a major male star consents to do nudity.

• From Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies (2020)

  - Blake Edwards made a movie called, "S.O.B." about the movie industry, and put his wife, Julie Andrews, as the star. He played on the fact that Julie was a squeaky clean, Disney heroine who never swore, and was just the sound of music. ♪ The hills are alive with the sound of music ♪ - The movie is a huge flop, and there's no nudity in it. And he decides I'm gonna put some nudity in it. And the only kind of nudity he could come up with that would be daring, or would be box office, is to have his wife show her breasts. [dramatic music] [audience applauding] - [Mat] It wasn't a long nude scene, but it was Mary Poppins naked. And that is an exciting thing to see. - That was all done for comedy. Yeah, I just think it's a great send-up of Hollywood. But Hollywood doesn't always like send-ups. - "The Happy Hooker Goes Hollywood," right. Well it's Xaviera Hollander, who I never met, unfortunately. But I was the third hooker. The first one was Lynn Redgrave. Then there was Joey Heatherton, and then there was me. - [Announcer] There back again, Xavier Hollander and her girls. Money comes easy to the girls of Xaviera Hollander. - Bouncy, bouncy. - So Martine Beswick is an actress who was in tons of films throughout the '60s and '70s. And in fact she was in a lot of Bond movies. She was in, "From Russia with Love," and, "Thunderball." - Tell London I've made contact with the girl. - Well, it's not what I'd call contact. - Let's face it, it's about a hooker. I mean, what am I gonna do? I'm gonna pretend that she's gonna have it off with someone dressed? - [New York Cop] Boys downtown were right, Xaviera. You are the best. - Do they really say that? - Oh yeah, and more. But of course, they're very respectful. - Of course. It's always a pleasure to serve New York's finest. Actually, it was really a cute script. And it was about a film within a film. And it was about Hollywood trying to undermine this woman. - And I gotta tell you, one of the most campy, great nude scenes of all time happens in that movie where Martine Beswick is completely naked at the side of the pool, rubbing oil on Batman, Adam West, while he smokes a cigarette. And he's completely naked, by the way, as is she. Only in the late '70s, early '80s would you do a nude scene that was this weird and crazy. But it's classic. [dramatic music] - "The Howling," from 1981 is a great, one of the great werewolf movies ever made. - And one of the conceits of the movie is that during sex is a particularly propitious time to turn into a wolf.

• From Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies (2020)

  But this one was the most kind of out there. And he looks like a guy at the end of his rope. Not just a bad police officer, but he is a drug addict, he's a murderer. He's just an all around bad person. - [LT] You fucking stand there, and you want me to do every fucking thing. - Keitel is drunk, and he's very naked. It's not disgusting because he's naked in it, the character is disgusting. You know what's coming 'cause it's so infamous in that movie. But it's a powerful moment for that character, I think. - In 1992 the movie, "The Crying Game," was released. It really became a hit because of a surprise, a secret that was supposed to be kept about some big revelation in the film. - And it's like the song, "Lola." She walks like a woman, and talks like a man. [calm music] - [Dil] You did know, didn't you? - It was stunning. And it was done so brilliantly, and it's a beautiful film, and it's a great film. But I think it also played off of the fact that we expect to see certain things in movies when it comes to nudity. We're taking male sexuality, and we're playing with it. And that makes most men very uncomfortable. - No, don't ask me in. - Please, Jude. - No, I can't pretend that much. - It says as much about how we expect to see things in movies as about the movie itself, and the characters in it. - In the early mid 1990s there was this just cluster of erotic thrillers. - There were so many movies where women became empowered. - "Basic Instinct," is another film that had the kind of publicity you can't manufacture in advance. - Are you sorry he's dead? - Yeah. I liked fucking him. - You've got Michael Douglas. - Games are over. - Playing a sex addict in the movie. And he just literally is up to his eyeballs in Sharon Stone's charisma. - It's really really rare, and certainly at the time for any actress to do that graphic of a nude scene, where she uncrosses and crosses her legs like that. - It's one of the most famous and iconic scenes in contemporary cinema. - But the scene that was really surprising to me was the beginning. It wasn't just that she was naked and to be a tool of some other man's sexual gratification. She was naked, and murdered a man. And so that juxtaposition of clearly intentional, clearly acting and planning out her plans but also naked is stuck in my mind. - One of the most empowering images, or nudity in film that I can recall, or the first thing that really struck me was Julianne Moore in, "Short Cuts." - It's more like she is so in her scene that she has no idea that she's bottomless.

• From Talk Dirty to Me: An Intimate Philosophy of Sex (1994)

  One of the sets of stereotypes that hovers around prostitution is the set relating to clients. Depending on the basic emotions you bring to the subject in the first place, you might tend to see the john as a slovenly loser, a cold manipulator, a sorry old fellow. Many women, I suspect, assume johns as a group are cruel and hostile toward all women. No one really knows—no one’s done that research, either. I know of one book about johns, called Lovers, Friends, Slaves: The Nine Male Sexual Types, written by Martha Stein in 1974, a book talked about and passed around by prostitutes. Martha Stein was a social worker who admits she knew little of sex, and nothing of cunnilingus, until she saw two whores perform it on each other. She became friends with a prostitute through her work, and eventually began observing exchanges through one-way mirrors and peepholes, sometimes actually hiding in the bedroom closet. She frequently tape-recorded the sessions, and kept track of the clients’ statistics—age, body type, religion, amount of money spent, common topics discussed, sexual fantasies, and details of their sexual behavior and orgasms. Over four years, Stein claims to have watched 1,242 men with dozens of different women. Her methodology is suspect at best, although not original. Spying is an ancient way for novice prostitutes to be trained, and spyholes for rent to voyeurs are nothing new. Still, I can’t help but enjoy such an exquisite betrayal of the contract. Stein found surprises in her observed population of mostly upper-class professional white men. Ten percent “exhibited homosexual impulses”; four percent cross-dressed during sex; forty-three percent wanted to perform cunnilingus. (A number of others said they were interested but too shy.) One-third wanted anal stimulus or penetration. One-fourth had some kind of sexual dysfunction such as impotence. Almost every one wanted fellatio. Some men sought in the whore a kind of “hostess,” a lubricant for business entertainment. Others wanted an adventure, and saw prostitutes as being open to “exotic” or “kinky” sex. Some men wanted largely to talk about their personal lives, listen, and give advice. Others preferred cuddling and sometimes cried. Stein was surprised to find all her stereotypes defused. She found happy, attractive, healthy, prosperous prostitutes, many of whom worked part-time as whores and in their other lives were students or housewives. She also found happy, healthy clients. All the women claimed to have good personal sex lives, and any pimping was merely a matter of one whore referring a client to another whore or vice versa. She eventually came to admire and support the profession, seeing in it a twin to her own. Stein also found that many of the clients had the same stereotypes of prostitutes as she did and were genuinely puzzled by the women’s normality, so much so that sometimes the women would make up stories about sordid and abusive pasts just to satisfy them.

• From The Breast Archives (2017)

  And it was very different than it would have been with a boy, 'cause it wasn't the taboo of the foreign land, and we both had breasts, and hers were bigger. And it made the exploration, I think, a little more fun. It wasn't charged in the same way it would have been with a boy. - One of the first times I had a boy touch my breasts, just as soon as he got to my breasts he just stopped. And it was just awful for me because, of course, in my mind, who knows what he was thinking, but in my mind then I thought, oh, they're so ugly. He just, it just made him stop. - The whole second base thing, I didn't get it. It was like, okay, he's got his hand on my boob. Why? It didn't feel like anything to me. I had no sensation whatsoever. - (gasps) Oh, what pleasure! Oh, isn't it a pleasure to have breasts when you make love, and you, woman, who are so multi-erotically centered, have many other options, but I hope this is one you won't miss. (laughs) Oh, yes. - My becoming aware of my breasts as a source of pleasure didn't come until probably in my mid 20s. And I was very surprised. (laughs) - Okay, let's talk about nipples. My nipples have never been my erogenous zone. So they weren't necessary foreplay. I'll never forget this. My friend told me that she could have an orgasm by having somebody stimulate her nipples, and it was like, really? (laughing) - Without the above, for me, the below doesn't happen, if you get my drift. I mean, it's very obvious that they are the two things (laughs) that lead the way. - My nipples are not very sensitive, which has been disappointing. (laughs) And probably why I don't remember the first time someone touched my breasts. Or maybe because I was scared to death. (laughing) I was always aware that men, the men that I was exploring with, wanted to touch me, to touch my breasts to arouse them. So I was trying to hide that, that they weren't sensitive, and trying to act as if they were. - Nipples absolutely are part of orgasm for me. Like, bring it on. I like to have them stimulated, and (snaps) okay, let's go. - Randomly I'll get cold, and all of a sudden I feel my nipples, like I can feel them getting so hard. And it just goes all through me. And I can feel it, it's all tingly and I'll be like, oh! And then I'm very aware of my breasts and that they're there, and I'll touch them and I'll play with my nipples. I'm like, ahh, that feels kinda good. - I was dancing two weeks ago, and a young man spoke poetry to me and my breasts went, boong!

• From The Perfect Vagina: The Dangers of Extreme Plastic Surgery

  26:59 that to me is absolutely extraordinary 27:02 27:02 that's the the one Wicked and wonderful 27:04 27:04 world of cosmetic 27:07 27:07 surgery then we got a vodka and tonic oh 27:10 27:10 my God I'm not the only one getting my 27:13 27:13 bits out today on my advice Kelly has 27:16 27:16 gone to Brighton to have a vaginal cast 27:19 27:19 she hates the way her volula looks so 27:21 27:21 much that she's considered surgery but 27:23 27:23 I'm hoping that having a cast might 27:25 27:25 persuade her to love her lips the way 27:27 27:27 they are come on in 27:31 27:31 so here 27:33 27:33 are some of the 27:37 27:37 others what's your what do you think 27:39 27:39 just looking at them one my initial 27:41 27:41 reaction 27:42 27:42 is they all look really really different 27:45 27:45 I wasn't expecting to 27:47 27:47 see that sound that 27:52 27:52 variety knock knock I'm as prepared as 27:55 27:55 I'm ever going to be and just lay down 27:57 27:57 just lay down yeah it's like that there 27:60 27:60 we are this is bit I hate about it the 28:02 28:02 most what's that the parrot beak parrot 28:07 28:07 big well that's what I think it looks 28:09 28:09 like really yes do what you got to do 28:12 28:12 okay a little bit wider 28:15 28:15 oh oh have you told other people that 28:18 28:18 you're going to do it um well my husband 28:22 28:22 knows um I told my grandmother and I 28:25 28:25 wouldn't have told my granny probably so 28:27 28:27 well but she raised me me and I think it 28:30 28:30 was nice we we actually had a proper 28:32 28:32 conversation about it and it's it's 28:34 28:34 almost like a weight is lifted and um I 28:38 28:38 think she understands now why I felt the 28:40 28:40 way I 28:41 28:41 did here's 28:45 28:45 your here's your mold oh that looks 28:47 28:47 really 28:50 28:50 small I was expecting this a massive 28:53 28:53 thing that was going to go all right 28:55 28:55 [Laughter] 28:56 28:56 Cal quite neat 28:60 28:60 so this is surprising for you yeah 29:01 29:01 really yeah I feel like crying 29:03 29:03 [Music] 29:05 29:05 now I actually would say to 29:10 29:10 anybody to recommend to do this to to 29:13 29:13 have a good look and to to see if your 29:16 29:16 perception of yourself is 29:18 29:18 actually the way it is and because I 29:20 29:20 think that that would stop a hell of a 29:23 29:23 lot of women from going down the wrong 29:26 29:26 route and and making a mistake 29:30 29:30 cuz I wouldn't want to get anything done 29:32 29:32 to 29:35 29:35 that I'm happy that Kelly's seen the 29:37

• From The Breast Archives (2017)

  (laughing) And I said, oh, now I'm gonna have to tell him I'm married. Darn! (laughing) - Sometimes I feel that they're in direct connection with my clitoris. Sometimes I feel that they're even more, like, that I could only have, I'm not sure if I have experienced that, but by just being stimulated through the nipples that it's orgasmic. - Well, at this particular time, because I'm pregnant, when my nipples are touched, they're pretty sensitive. They burn a little. It's definitely nothing sexual. (laughs) And I would say that it's never really been sexual for me. I remember many a time when my nipples were being caressed or touched in a sexual way by a partner, kind of going, (sighs) until they were done (laughing) because I felt the need to please them. They wanna do it, go ahead. Get it over with, please. - Well, my partner say they are my best kept secret. (laughs) And because he gets to, times when they're in and we're sexual, he gets to play with them and find ways to get them out. And so he's totally happy with that. - The relationship I'm in now, we've been together 15 years and this is the first relationship I've been in where orgasms were part of it. And I suspect it was probably related to the fact that I'm with someone who is so into my breasts and my nipples. And so having a strong sexual response was a surprise, and having orgasms was a surprise. So all of it was a surprise, and never occurred to me that the nipples, the nipples, my nipples, (laughing) yes, the ones I'm attached to, would be part of that. - My husband might be touching me and my mind is somewhere else. I'm not present in the act, and he'll say things to wake me up like, uh, are these connected? (laughs) And I'll realize I need to get in the room. And other times I can feel him wanting to please me and love me by the way he's touching my breasts, and that will make my nipples erect and my breasts sensitive. - It took me until I was 25 to really experience what it was like to be made love to and me participate. That is when I would say my nipples played a part, because my heart pounded out of my chest through my breasts, and understood that there was something delicious here, and it was love. And my body was wet with it. My breasts heaved in a very different way, and it was associated with that place of, this is beauty. This is beauty. This lovemaking was beauty. It wasn't about sex. It was, he's touching me. He's kissing me. I'm being loved. My nipples, my breasts, did not feel ashamed.

• From Tomorrow Sex Will Be Good Again (2021)

  Many women will have been unsurprised by these ‘ findings’ – that both the clitoris and the vagina can be sources of intense pleasure – and yet their enshrinement within a scientifically backed opus was a significant moment. The implications of these findings – the dispensability of vaginal sex, and perhaps too of men – were shocking, but Masters and Johnson may have mitigated their impact (and perhaps strategically so) by insisting on male and female sexuality as essentially analogous. They underscored this similarity at two levels. The first was at the level of physiology: erection and lubrication were in essence the same process; ejaculation and orgasm too. The progression through the sexual response cycle was the same in men and women, and both men and women displayed, in the lead up to orgasm, a rise in heart rate and temperature, as well as changes in skin tone and colour, with muscles tightening and skin flushing red. Rapid breathing occurred as orgasm approached, and both men and women showed the same rate of muscular contraction during orgasm. The second zone of similarity was at the level of desire; Masters and Johnson were seeking to put female sexual needs on the same footing as those of men, and they did so by invoking – or rather, assuming – a shared biological drive for sex in both. They repeatedly emphasized, explicitly and implicitly, that women had sexual appetites, capacities and desires. They drew explicit and implicit analogies between the capacities and needs of the penis and those of the clitoris. And just as no man would expect sex without stimulation of his penis, no woman should expect or tolerate sex without attention to her clitoris. Instead of seeing the clitoris as a little penis – a poor cousin of this more flamboyant organ – Masters and Johnson’s analogy between the two was a ground for the clitoris’s importance. They claimed for it a phallic significance. Masters and Johnson in fact insisted on sameness even when their findings suggested a more complex picture. In their work, women were if anything more desirous and sexual than men, since the intensity of pleasure and orgasm from clitoral stimulation outstripped the intensity men derived from the penis, and since women, it seemed, had a capacity for multiple orgasms, remaining at near orgasmic levels for much longer than men before the refractory period. Women therefore had, at least in principle, a greater physiological capacity for sex than men. But the sexologists did not dwell on or extrapolate from these differences. For them, the idea of difference between men and women – physiologically speaking – was outdated, associated with conservative psychoanalytic models of sexuality that subordinated women’s pleasure to that of men. For Masters and Johnson, sexual progressivism depended on similarity. Equality was sameness – a political argument proved by the science of desire.

• From In the Unlikely Event (2015)

  She was in a sour mood because Rusty wouldn’t let her invite Mason to dinner at The Tavern, where they were going to celebrate Henry’s engagement to Leah. “It’s not appropriate,” Rusty told her. “This is just for the immediate family.” “Nana is bringing Ben Sapphire,” Miri reminded her. “Yes, but she’s hosting this party, so if she wants to bring Mr. Sapphire, she can.” “He’s not immediate family.” “He’s picking up the bill.” “So you’re saying I should ask Mr. Sapphire about inviting Mason?” “Damn it, Miri! Don’t push me. And don’t you dare ask Nana or anyone else about inviting Mason.” So when the doorbell rang, Miri was more than glad to get away from Rusty. She wasn’t sure who she expected to find on the other side of the front door, but certainly not this woman in slacks and a matching wool coat with a big fox collar. A yellow Cadillac was parked in front of the house. Miri had never seen a yellow Cadillac on her street. The only yellow Cadillac she knew of belonged to one of the Levy brothers, who owned the department store on Broad Street. “Are you Miriam?” the woman asked. Her voice was smoky, her lipstick red, not a strand of her dark hair moved in the wind. “Do I know you?” Miri asked. No one called her Miriam. “I’m Frekki Strasser but my maiden name was Monsky. I believe I’m your aunt.” Miri grabbed hold of the door to steady herself. Rusty called from the upstairs window, “Who is it, Miri?” Jazzy music floated down from Rusty’s radio. When Miri didn’t answer, the woman called, “A voice from your past.” Miri didn’t turn, didn’t take her eyes off the woman, but she could hear her mother’s footsteps on the stairs. Rusty had been vacuuming. Her hair was carelessly tied back. She was in an old shirt with the flaps hanging out, worn slacks and beat-up moccasins. The woman held out her gloved hand. “Hello, Rusty. It’s Frekki Monsky Strasser.” “Frekki?” Rusty went pale. She made no move to shake Frekki’s hand, which floated in midair, until Frekki shoved it into her coat pocket. Rusty stood in front of Miri as if to protect her from this stranger. “What are you doing here?” “Unexpected events…” Now she used the same gloved hand to gesture toward the sky, and Miri knew it wasn’t God she was talking about. “Well, it made me stop and think, I have a niece, I should know her.” Rusty turned to Miri. “Go upstairs.” “But I—” “Right now.” Miri moved toward the vestibule as Rusty said, “How did you know I have a daughter?” “It’s not a secret, is it?” “Fifteen years later you decide you want to know my daughter?” “Better late than never,” Frekki said. “I’m not sure that’s always the case.” Rusty turned back to Miri. “I said go upstairs. Now.” Irene appeared at the door wrapped in a shawl.