By Uncle Abdul

Over the years in Janus there were several programs that I've found memorable. The first of these was ...well ...the first of these, i.e., my very first program meeting.

It was held at a bookstore in Berkeley, Earthsign Books. The program featured Kat Sunlove basically talking about her play philosophy. Early in her presentation, Don Miesen suggested that a demonstration was called for. He then proffered a young lady--a newbie--who wished to experience bottoming. Well Kat had the young lovely shuck down to her panties and handcuffed her wrists behind her. Then Kat traced the tips of a cattle prod across the woman's body.

My reaction to all of this on my first time? "Hot Damn, I've died and gone to heaven!"

There was another Janus program years ago. The topic was flogging, and it was held in a former brewery. Not only that, the stage was inside one of the former brewing vats.

Like a giant, empty swimming pool, the several presenters were about ten feet below the audience, who were arranged around the top of the vat leaning against a tiled wall about 3-1/2 feet above the floor. The presenters had to climb down to the stage on a ladder. It was like watching gladiators in an arena. That and the incredible quality and reputation of the presenters made this one quite memorable for me.

One program that even today stirs controversy was one on interrogation in the mid-80's. Janus' expert on military interrogation (based on his army training in escape and evasion) worked with someone he had worked with before. They were use to using a revolver during their scenes, so he used one at the program. During the scene done for the presentation, he used the revolver in a Russian Roulette thingie. It was a real gun with no bullets in the chambers. However, to add to the flavor, the presenter flipped an oversized bullet (one that wouldn't fit the gun) in his hand. (Now I can swear the gun was empty. I was playing the role of cold, fascist guard [dammit, no comments about type casting] and a Janus officer at the time.) At any rate the chamber was spun. The hammer was cocked. The trigger was pulled, and as the hammer snapped solidly on the empty chamber a woman in the audience lets out a whelp that could be heard in LA and jumps three feet into the air. Now that's audience involvement!

Then there was the time there was a scene Show and Tell program one time where yours truly and two others did a scene with a young damsel tied to a chair. The three of us were all itinerant punsters, so we PUNished the poor woman. It was probably the only time at a Janus program where audience appreciation was marked in groans.

Even these days I still find some of the current Janus programs memorable. Certainly there's the recent one of Cleo on the history of the scene. (I've written about this recently.) Not only that, there are some of you out there who will be writing this column in the future. Are you tucking your memorable programs into your pocket of memories? I might just be around to enjoy it.

Chao-4-Now

Unc'