Inspiring may not be the word that comes to mind about the performers, directors, studio heads and other professionals in the adult entertainment industry. But Darren Roberts found these professionals so inspirational that he wrote a book about them. The West Hills resident has been a part of the adult industry for nearly two decades. Roberts served as CEO of AVN Media Network Inc., based in Chatsworth, from 1996 until 2011, and now serves as a consultant on the nexus of adult content and technology. Roberts and business partner Paul Fishbein sold AVN in 2010. Years in the business has provided Roberts with plenty of fodder for “The Unsexpected Story.” Review copies are to be made available in October as Roberts finalizes choosing a publisher. The book should be available in stores in January and also will be available as an e-book, he said. “I’m not looking to change the perception of adult entertainment,” Roberts said. “I wanted it to be presented in a different way and let people formulate their own opinion.” “The Unsexpected Story” blends a chronological history of the adult industry with profiles of 25 people Roberts met during his career — industry pioneers such as Larry Flynt; studio operators Steve Hirsch of Vivid Entertainment and Allison Vivas of Pink Visual; and performers such as Ron Jeremy, Sunny Leone and Joanna Angel. His narrative is meant to get behind the façade so many in the industry put on when they go into “marketing mode,” Roberts said. “It is a shock when you get to know them as individuals, and I mean that in a good way,” he said. Roberts kept a journal for much of his career. He chronicled the transition of the industry from VHS to DVD and into the online space. What fascinated Roberts — and what he wanted to bring out in the book — was the economics of adult entertainment and why people made certain decisions that resulted in their success. “There is a story here from a business side of it that will appeal to people not necessarily interested in porn stars,” Roberts said. –Mark R. Madler
Local Author Pens Book on Adult Tales
