Porn Stars Strut Their Stuff at Vegas Awards.

[edbermac]

LAS VEGAS (Jan. 8) - Cameras whirred and fans pressed 10 deep against a velvet rope in Las Vegas to catch a glimpse of their favorite stars sashaying into one of the first entertainment awards shows of the year.

As at any Hollywood awards ceremony, photographers asked the performers to twirl and pose, and reporters stationed along the red carpet begged for quips about the next project or the state of the industry.

But unlike the Golden Globes and Emmys, the goody bag contained "Barely Legal" playing cards and Hustler condoms, and the stars such as Arnold Schwartzenpecker and Britney Rears were not quite household names.

The 23rd annual Adult Video News (AVN) Awards, the Oscars of porn, boasted a higher attendance than ever this year, with more than 5,000 watching Saturday night's two-hour-long event in a huge ballroom at the ritzy Venetian Hotel.

The winners were as earnest and even as tearful as their Hollywood counterparts in their appreciation of the glass trophies they took home, and works such as "A Day Without Whores" and "Big Butt Road Trip" won fulsome praise.

Best Film Actress winner Savanna Samson was cheered when she recognized the support of her peers as crucial because "most of my family is pretty ashamed of what I do."

Actor Manuel Ferrera, who picked up an award for Male Performer of the Year, drew laughs when he thanked "everyone, especially the ladies".

Porn is big business. Adult entertainment, including porn videos and films shot mainly in Southern California's San Fernando Valley, racked up estimated sales of $12.6 billion in 2005, according to statistics compiled by AVN.

That compared with U.S. theatrical revenue of $8.9 billion for mainstream Hollywood films, according to figures from box office tracking firm Exhibitor Relations.

http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/movies/article.adp?id=20060108155009990005

Ferrera won for Male Performer?? What about Jeff Gannon?? He was ROBBED!!! :wtf: