The film first opened in June 1972 at the New Mature World Theatre in New York. According to Harry Levine of Aquarius Releasing Inc., who is the film’s distributor, the film was later screened in seventy other cities in the United States (Montgomery, 34). The exact production cost of the film has been debatable; some sources claim that it cost $25,000 while others insist on $40,000 (Flint, 32). Deep Throat was shot on location in Miami in six days. It cost $5 to view the film, which was a higher price then the usual $3 (Flint, 32). The final figure on the profit of the film, which was released in 1973, was estimated to exceed $6 million (Flint, 33). It made $1,300,000 during its initial run of 39 weeks at the New Mature World Theatre alone (Flint, 33). According to the FBI’s estimates, the total profits of Deep Throat by the year 1980 were in excess of $600 million, which does not include video rentals and sales of subsequent years (Flint, 33). These incomparable statistics make Deep Throat the most profitable movie ever made. Furthermore, upon the viewing of the film, it becomes apparent that Damiano’s approach to its production entailed an increased sophistication in the stylistic and narrative functions, than that of its predecessors.

A number of different factors set Deep Throat apart from other pornographic films of its time. One of the most striking deviations from the norm was its inclusion of a story line (Meehan, 80). It is a story of a young woman, by the name of Linda Lovelace, who enjoys sex but is unable to achieve a sufficient orgasm through intercourse. Linda shares this secret with her sexually liberated or excessively promiscuous roommate, depending on personal interpretation, at which point her roommate suggests that they conduct an experiment by inviting a number of different men to attempt sexually pleasing Linda. After the situation proves to be hopeless and Linda fails to achieve that “explosive orgasm”, she goes to visit Dr. Young, who subsequently discovers that her clitoris, “by some anatomical freakage” is located in the back of her throat (Barnes, 78). Thus, she only achieves complete satisfaction through the practice of oral sex. He teaches Linda to take the penis all the way down her throat and hires her as his “special” nurse (Flint, 31). For the duration of the film, Linda practices her craft on a number of patients and, by the end of the film, settles down with a “prodigiously endowed” young man (Flint, 31). Furthermore, this film proves to be a rather ambitious porno as it makes an attempt to include humor at the forefront of its dialog. Ralph Blumenthal, of the New York Times, suggested that this film is “by general agreement a better product than its porno predecessors, for as well as raw sex, it offers viewers a sense of humor and story line” (Blumenthal, 30). He harshly critiques the cinematic practices of its predecessors, in regard to plot construction, as he states, ”There is really no story, just coupling-exhaustive, boring, mechanical, relentless minute-after-minute of poker-faced fornication in “loops”, so-named for the slicing of film into 10-minute repeating cycles” (Blumenthal, 30).

Another factor that sets Deep Throat apart from other adult films, of the early seventies, is its significant advancements in cinematography, which contributed to an overall appearance of increased professionalism (Meehan, 80). It was shot in colour on 35-mm. film with the employment of high-fidelity synchronized sound (Meehan, 80). The picture quality had the “glossy look of a real movie that might have been turned out by Warner Brothers or MGM” as opposed to the usual graininess of adult cinema. (Meehan, 80). In contrast, the majority of adult films were short stag reels, shot with unstable hand-held, 8 or 16 mm. cameras (Bogdanovich, 50). The colour was often faded and thin (Blumenthal, 30). They usually disregarded incorporation of sound, but in the case that it was used, the sound was warped. They were distributed under the table for twenty-five to fifty dollars (Bogdanovich, 50). Furthermore, Deep Throat applies more advanced editing techniques (Meehan, 80). This is evident in the scene where Linda first learns to perform the act of “sword swallowing” or “deep throating” under the instruction of Dr. Young. In order to illustrate Linda’s triumphant orgasm, Damiano employed the technique of montage editing. He cut between medium close-up shots of Linda performing fellatio to what appeared to be vintage footage of robotic, statuesque men hitting a large bell. Some other images of the montage included glorious fireworks and rockets shooting into space. Through this unique employment of editing, Damiano illustrated the realization of Linda Lovelace’s expectations of how intense orgasms should be.

Deep Throat also differs in its creation of an original musical score (Meehan, 80). Its theme song included the lyrics, “Deep Throat, don’t row a boat, don’t get your goat, that’s all she wrote” and was said to have been quite catchy. Furthermore, this film employed sound in order to assist in narrative progression. This becomes evident in the scene where Linda is walking to her patient’s house, after being hired by Dr. Young, to be his “special” nurse. As she proudly and contently walks through the mise-en-scene of a garden, it is the first time that Linda is seen in her nurse uniform. The sound throughout this scene resembles drum music employed in army marches, which gives the sense that Linda is engaged in a serious pursuit of fulfilling her duties as a nurse. This becomes quite comical as the audience discovers that this duty only consists of her dedication to the performance of sexual intercourse with, and fellatio on, every “troubled” patient who could afford her services.

Not only does Deep Throat introduce the possibilities of plot development in pornography but it also appears to make an ambitious attempt at symbolism. In another graphic depiction of Linda’s performance of “sword swallowing” as she appears to have begun to climax, the shot is cut to an image of a statue. The camera rotates around this statue of a rabbit, which creates the scene of Linda becoming enveloped by the overwhelming sensations that she is experiencing. The logical association that can be drawn from this image is that of the Playboy bunny. However, while the success of Damiano’s use of symbolism is debatable, the actual attempt to include symbolism in the narrative of a pornographic picture is more important and influential then the symbol itself. I believe that such attempts inspire progression in the cinematic practices.

One of the reasons that Deep Throat evoked such passionate and opposing dialog is due to its graphic depiction of sexual acts. It is not a soft-core erotic film, which addressed sexuality through implications of its occurrence or even its simulation (Meehan, 80). On the contrary, this sixty-two minute film is hard -core in nature as it explicitly presents over fifteen sexual acts, which include sexual intercourse, fellatio, sodomy, and cunnilingus (Meehan, 80). Nothing is left to the imagination with its employment of close-ups. In the early 70s, the only evidence of such explicit images could be found in classrooms of gynecological studies (Meehan, 80). Hugh Heftier stated that, “I think the major thing that set Deep Throat apart was, it had a gimmick” (Inside Deep Throat, 2005). This gimmick could be found in the title of the film, which overtly refers to its centrality on the act of fellatio, and clearly advertises its explicitness.

It attracted new audiences as it became the “New York party hit” (Bogdanovich, 50). It brought in New York’s famous and wealthy people, such as Mike Nichols, Jack Nicholson, Truman Capote, and Johnny Carson (Meehan, 80). In the craze of “Porno Chic” it became required viewing. Before the arrival of Deep Throat, pornographic films were designated viewing material only for “balding middle-aged men who wore raincoats and slunk furtively into seedy porno houses when they hoped that nobody was looking” (Meehan, 80). As it “broke down traditional codes of decorum” a pornographic film was brining in audiences of bourgeois intellectuals, dating couples, women, diplomats, critics, and businessmen (Miller, 166). It had become the hottest topic of cocktail-parties and dinner-table conversations (Blumenthal, 28). “lt was a badge of the new freedom. ‘Have you been to the experience of paying to go in a porno theater and see a woman give a blowjob in a movie theater in your community?’” (Inside Deep Throat, 2005).

One of the films that was distracting some of the attention circulating around Deep Throat, was released February 1^st of the same year. The film was Bertolucci’s, Last Tango in Paris, which was a major Hollywood production staring Marlon Brando. It was about a young Parisian woman who becomes involved in a squalid affair with an American middle-aged businessman, who insists on the rule that their secret relationship remain strictly sexual (Meehan, 80). According to Clive Barnes, who reviewed both of the films in the April 1973 issue of Vogue, the two movies have a number of things in common. Aside from the fact that they were released in the same year and were the highest-grossing films at the time, they “both understood the sexual revolution…and its limitations. This is why both will make a fortune“ (Barnes, 19).

However, despite the success of Last Tango in Paris, the most talked-about film remained to be neither a “critically acclaimed import from Europe”, nor this high-budget feature (Meehan, 80). The controversy around its subject created a great deal of publicity, which proved to be the best marketing took for the film. As critics voiced their professional opinions, people flocked to the theatres to witness it for themselves. Clive Barnes called it, “Unbelievably dirty. Everything a young boy or girl want to know about sex but never expected to see a movie to learn” (Barnes, 20). Peter Bogdanovich, the critic for Esquire, called it a “depressingly ugly piece of work that displays not a hint of talent in any department, isn’t sexy and isn’t funny (Bogdanovich, 50). Another critic possessed an opposing view as he confessed to finding the film “amusingly written, well – photographed and instructive to couples interested in expanding their sexual activity” (Lesley, E6) However, the most talked about review of the film was Ralph Blumenthal’s “Porno Chic”, in the New York Times. It proved to be some of the most effective publicity for Deep Throat, as it included a variety of opposing as well as supporting voices (Blumenthal, 30). One of these voices was that of Truman Capone, who claimed not to have been scandalized by it at all and found Linda Lovelace charming (Blumenthal, 30). This article addresses the film’s profitability, its unexpected viewing by celebrities and high-society, and the notorious court controversies (Blumenthal, 30). It efficiently compiles and engagingly presents the issues surrounding the film, under the catchy slogan of “Porno Chic.”

The success of the film and the revolutionary impact of the “Porn Chic” phenomenon, possess immense social implication (Barnes, 78). Clive Barnes suggested that Deep Throat made stronger claims on their country’s ideological state than the state of art or entertainment (Barnes, 78). However, Barnes also recognized the influence that this film was having on the artistically cinematic arenas as well by suggesting that without Deep Throat, it is doubtful that filmmakers like Bertolucci would be courageous or inspired enough to include sexually implicit content in their films (Barnes, 78). He proposed that the film was intriguing for the same reason that the book The Sensuous Woman was on the top of the best-seller lists for months (Barnes, 78). It was a part of the social movement that was “changing the climate of talking about issues of sexuality in the United States” (Inside Deep Throat, 2005). An article of the New York Times, entitled “Behavior in ‘Throat’ Termed Normal” exemplifies the narrow-minded approach to sexuality that was dominating the rigid ideological norm of the time. It addresx sed the professional opinions of numerous psychiatrists regarding the issue of whether the acts presented in the film where “within the bounds of normal behavior” (Montgomery, 49). One of the opinions that was verbalized during the trial suggested that Deep Throat might relieve some of the shame associated with sexuality and encourage people to “expand their sexual horizons” (Montgomery, 40). Furthermore, Dr. Hornic spoke in defense of the social value of the film by addressing a number of relevant notions. He suggested that Deep Throat encourages freedom and liberation in couples’ approach to sexuality and it introduces humor and light heartedness to the subject (Montgomery, 49). He also insisted that it does not exploit women because it depicts a young lady who seeks to fulfill her own orgasmic pleasure (Montgomery, 49).

In his commentary on the social climate of the early 1970s, Peter Bogdanovich suggested that “That grubby little porno film, coupled with its incredible success could almost stand as evidence of the state of the country at this particular state of our lives” (Bogdanovich, 60). He believed that there was a ‘deep self-revulsion’ at work, against which amendments of legislation were hopeless (Bogdanovich, 60). Esquire called Deep Throat, “an anatomical metaphor for the transvaluation of all values in this decade” (Miller, 166). Furthermore, while some believed that the film was crude, antisocial, and might prove to be hurtful to a normal man by misleading him as to the “true nature of female sexuality”, and by “producing sexual fantasies of an unhealthy nature” for others it represented the contrary. Deep Throat’s supporters viewed the film as a liberating force at the forefront of a sexual revolution, which the legal system shortly deemed as “obscene” (Montgomery, 40).

After the newly re-elected Richard Nixon declared war on pornography, the film was seized from the New Mature World Theatre and prosecuted under the charges of obscenity in the Manhattan Criminal Court (Flint, 34). The gravity of the social turmoil that was being evoked by Deep Throat, was confirmed as the judge, Joel Tyler, found it guilty and banned the film (Flint, 34). He settled on the final verdict after consideration of 1,000 pages of expert testimony. The case addressed the question, “At what point sexual entertainment, which is legally protected by the First Amendment, become obscenity?” (Schwartz, SM111). While the legal system proclaimed it to be devoid of any “redeeming social value” it presented an issue of censorship for artists around the country (Bogdanovich, 50). If this decision hadn’t been appealed and overturned, it would have set a precedent for the definition of obscenity, which would greatly affect this genre or any cinematic practices in general, in the United States (Montgomery, 34). In December 1972, in its drive to “clean up Times Square” the police closed down the New Mature World Theatre (Lesley, E6). The city claimed that the theatre failed to obtain a license required for places of “public amusements” (Lesley, E6). However, the next day a Federal judge ruled such action unconstitutional and Deep Throat was once again available to be viewed (Lesley, E6). Most of the legal controversy surrounding the film came out of a political decision to make Deep Throat a test case in the cleanup drive (Montgomery, 49). A writer for the New York Times, Anthony Burgess suggested that the most effective way to ‘kill pornography is to let it flourish”, which is ironic considering that legally or politically attacking this issue only added to its rapid growth and mass consumption (Burgess, 197). “Deep Throat succeeded commercially at least in part because the government went after it. The government became the driving force behind the public relations” (Inside Deep Throat, 2005).

The speculation that if Deep Throat hadn’t been produced at this exact point in history, some other pornographic film would inevitably have taken its place as the subject of controversy, does not detract from the fact that it will always remain the most influential adult film ever made – a “souvenir of a time and place” (Canby, 33). Within the “Porn Chic” phenomenon, Deep Throat expanded the parameters within which the pornographic genre had previously functioned, and it drastically broadened its demographic. Through daring experimentation, Gerard Damiano commercialized a genre which was seen as an underground taboo. He achieved this through the presentation of explicit content, improved cinematographic features, imaginative use of sound, and the construction of a plot line with a humorous undertone. It was at the forefront of a sexual revolution as it became “less about the joys of oral sex as it was about freedom to speak out against sex and hypocrisy. Deep Throat epitomizes an epochal moment in the history of modern sexuality” (Inside Deep Throat, 2005).

Works Cited

Books

Flint, David. Babylon Blue An Illustrated History of Adult Cinema. Vol. 12. Britain: Creation Books International, 1999. 31-49.

Magazines

Bogdanovich, Peter. "No Title." Esquire Vol. LXXIX No. 6. June 1973: 50-60.

Miller, Neal E. "Proof that the Seventies have Finally Begun." Esquire Vol. LXXIX No. 5. May 1973: 159-166.

Barnes, Clive. "Sex Shockers: Hard Porno - Cash." Vogue New York Vol. 161, No. 4. Apr. 1973: 19-78.

Meehan, Thomas. ""Deep Throat" Is Hard to Swallow." Saturday Review of the Society Vol. 1. Mar. 1973: 80.

Newspaper

Brett, Harvey. “Review 10 – No Title.” New York Times (1857-Current file) New York, N.Y.:Jul 6, 1986.
Canby, Vincent. “What Are We To Think of 'Deep Throat'?: What to Think of 'Deep Throat’.” New York Times New York, N.Y.:Jan 21, 1973:

Blumenthal, Ralph. “Pornochic:" Hard-core" grows fashionable-and very profitable.” New York Times New York, N.Y.:Jan 21, 1973. 28 -33

 

Burgess, Anthony. “For Permissiveness, with misgivings: Pornography: 'The moral question is nonsense.” New York Times New York, N.Y.:Jul 1, 1973.

Montgomery, Paul L. “Film Critic Says 'Deep Throat' Could Expand Sexual Horizons.”, New York Times New York, N.Y.:Dec 21, 1972: 40

Montgomery, Paul L. “Behavior in 'Throat' Termed Normal.” New York Times New York, N.Y.:Dec 30, 1972.

Montgomery, Paul L. “Psychiatrist Testifies That 'Deep Throat' Could Be Harmful to a Normal Man by Clouding Female Sexuality.” New York Times New York, N.Y.:Dec 27, 1972: 40

Oelsner, Lesley. “What's Really 'Deep' Is The Logic: Obscenity.” New York Times New York, N.Y.:Dec 31, 1972: E6

Montgomery, Paul L. “Obscenity Trial of 'Throat' Ends: Ruling Expected in a Month--Both Attorneys Lauded.” New York Times New York, N.Y.:Jan 4, 1973: 34

Schwartz, Tony. “The TV Pornography Boom: Video Video” New York Times New York, N.Y.:Sep 13, 1981.

Documentary

Inside Deep Throat. Dir. Fenton Bailey, Randy Barbato. Perf. Larry Flynt, Warren Beatty, Dr. Westheimer. DVD. Universal Studios, 2005.