almost okay

Happy Birthday, Angel Kelly!

According to various Internet sources, Angel was born on December 7, 1962, which makes her a gently aging forty-six years old. Don't tell anybody, though, because according to her MySpace page she's trying to pass for a decade younger.

Born Pamela Moore in Lansing, Michigan, Angel made her mark on the adult film industry right at the end of the golden era of porn and at the very beginning of the video age. Most people don't realize this, but Angel Kelly was actually the first female black porn star to have scripts (yeah, they used to write scripts for these things) written for her as the lead.

During the course of her adult film career, Angel appeared in nearly two-hundred videos, starring in dozens of them and even directing a couple herself. She appeared in many all-black films, of course, but Angel made a name for herself doing interracially-themed movies (see my earlier review of 'Guess Who Came at Dinner?') starring opposite well-known white performers of the time, including John Holmes and the infamous 'Hedgehog' himself, Ron Jeremy.

Today's featured movie 'Alice in Whiteland' was shot in 1988, smack dab in the middle of her six-years in the industry. A follow-up to the all-black 'Alice in Blackland' (go figure) from the same year, this movie is a perfect example of Angel at the height of her popularity being matched with a mostly-white cast.

Based very, very, VERY loosely on the children's story by Lewis Carroll, 'Whiteland' gets right to the point when Angel, slumbering nude in her bed, is awakened by a tall white man who appears out of thin air and makes the hands disappear from her alarm clock by snapping his magical fingers. Within seconds the dude is on top of her and Angel gets her first 'taste' of 'Whiteland'.

But fucking isn't the only thing they do in 'Whiteland'. Oh, no. For some unexplained reason Angel is forced to endure golf and tennis lessons (her second scene is a hot girl-on-girl with her tennis instructor), before she's allowed to relax by the pool and work on her tan. Let me tell you, folks, a Williams sister she ain't. When she finally throws down her racquet in frustration, she actually misses the ground!

As a bonus, fans of 80's bombshell Keisha will be treated to a pair of scenes featuring the latina starlet, neither of them including Angel, however. The ubiquitous and tightly-toned Nina Hartley also appears in one scene.

My copy was purchased from the 'Adults Only' section of Ebay for a mere six bucks plus shipping. The box is a little beat up, but the tape played fine. My only gripe is that the screen went straight to snow the minute Angel delivered her final line, almost like the tape had snapped and been repaired. It was a little jarring, especially since Li'l Marty (still standing straight up and drooling) and myself were hoping Angel would put out one more time. Oh well.

Angel tried a brief modeling comeback some ten years ago and currently resides in Memphis, Tennessee where she runs Angel Kelly Enterprises, a booking agency that specializes in promoting local rap performers. Rumor has it she's working on an autobiography, which yours truly simply can't wait to read. Right on, Angel! Write on!

Seriously, I would be more than a little interested in her take on the adult film industry and her fellow performers. Semi-famous leading man Jerry Butler (in his own book 'Raw Talent'), compared Angel's looks to Sammy Davis, Jr. and claimed that she had to be told early in her career that she needed to douche so that folks could stand to go down on her.

I just can't believe it. Angel... Baby... Say it isn't so!