In 1969 a "serious documentary" called Pornography in Denmark opened in a New York movie theatre and didn't get busted. That opened the door to other explicit films, like Sex USA and Deep Throat.
When Deep Throat opened in 1972 at Times Square's New World Theatre, it was just another low-budget porn film—until the adult tabloid Screw called it "the best porn film ever made." Because of the lurid publicity, Mayor Lindsay ordered police to visit the World Theatre and confiscate the print. The bust made front-page news in all the daily newspapers: MAYOR CRACKS DOWN ON DEEP THROAT. Playboy, Time magazine, and other media also jumped on the story.
Meanwhile, the World Theatre went to court and got an injunction. Deep Throat reopened, and lines of excited patrons stretched around the block. People who had never dreamed of seeing a porn film came out in droves—and "porno chic" was born. Businessmen took their clients. Husbands took their wives. Giggling executives from the New York Times and the New Yorker magazine came in groups, while celebrities like Johnny Carson, Mike Nichols, and Truman Capote arrived in stretch limos. Deep Throat was a film whose time had come.
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Deep Throat is one of the most profitable adult films ever made. Produced for less than $25,000, the film grossed over 100 million dollars. Now the floodgates were open. The porn film business seemed unstoppable, and adult entertainment would never be the same.
I took my wife to see Deep Throat. She loved it, and asked me to take her to see more porn films. The times, they were a'changin' !
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