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| This maze illustration originally had a photo at the center of it, but I had to remove that. |
NOTE: This article continues my coverage of Ed Wood's When the Topic is Sex (BearManor Media, 2021).
The article: "Seek and Ye Shall Find." Originally published in Orgy (Pendulum Publishing), vol. 5, no. 1, January/February 1973. Credited to "Dick Trent."
Excerpt: "It must never be forgotten that sex is more than just a biological happening. It is an art. Just as no painter or writer would ever think of working without understanding the tools that they use, so the woman should not dream of having sex without knowing her tools."
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| Sex and suburbia: Ed Wood's last film? |
Reflections: As prolific as he was as a writer in the 1960s and 1970s—and I would describe him as superhumanly prolific in this arena—Edward Davis Wood, Jr. never gave up on his movie career entirely. While I'm sure he would have liked to write and direct his own theatrically-released feature films, just as he had in the 1950s, this was not always possible or practical. Even low-budget movies represent a sizable expense, and Ed Wood was nearly always at or below the poverty line.
But Eddie still found ways to stay involved in motion pictures: mainly, working for other directors as a screenwriter, assistant director, and actor. He also became heavily involved in the production of 8mm adult loops intended for home viewing. And whenever fate allowed him to direct a feature, well, he practically jumped at the chance. Had he lived into the 1980s and '90s, he would almost certainly have made direct-to-video pornography for the VHS market, both softcore and hardcore. That's where his career was heading.
To the best of our current knowledge, the final theatrically-released feature film Eddie ever directed was 1972's The Young Marrieds, the story of a young suburban couple and their desperate search for mutual sexual fulfillment. The husband, Ben (Dick Burns), is a hot-blooded type who seeks release for his carnal urges wherever he can find it, including with total strangers if necessary. The wife, Ginny (Alice Friedland), is much more reserved and tends to cringe at Ben's crude advances. (Though, when she's alone, she'll masturbate to soap operas on TV.) Ben and Ginny try various gimmicks to spice up their love life, including photography and even role-playing, with limited success. Eventually, one of Ben's coworkers invites him and Ginny to an orgy, and our young married attend—Ben enthusiastically and Ginny less so. This, too, has mixed results.
I thought about The Young Marrieds a lot while reading Ed Wood's 1973 article "Seek and Ye Shall Find," its title a rather incongruous reference to Matthew 7:7. For the most part, this is just another one of Eddie's rambling, shapeless diatribes about sex. Those who have been reading along in When the Topic is Sex have already heard these same basic points over and over. Yes, Ed, we know that books about sex used to be hidden away in the library basement. Yes, we know that people used to believe that sex existed solely for the propagation of the race. Yes, you've told us (many times) that oral sex is more accepted nowadays than it used to be, even endorsed by doctors. And, yes, you've made it quite clear that sexually incompatible couples like Ben and Ginny are headed toward divorce court.
Same old, same old? Not quite. "Seek and Ye Shall Find" frames all of this as a quasi-mythical quest. It's even accompanied by an illustration of a maze, reminding us of the labyrinth of Greek mythology. I've previously written about the biopic Ed Wood (1994) as a version of the "hero's journey" story. Well, if that movie was about the hero's journey, then this article is about the horndog's journey. A satisfying sex life is like the Holy Grail or Golden Fleece awaiting the traveler at the end of a long road. As with any quest, there are various creatures to slay along the path—your own puritan upbringing, the judgement of society, your festering insecurities, your partner's festering insecurities, etc. Not everyone will survive. But the rewards are well worth the peril for those who do.
Incidentally, in this article, Ed Wood again namechecks famed sex researchers William H. Masters and Virginia E. Johnson. That's nothing new. But this time around, he specifically references their 1966 book Human Sexual Response. According to Ed, this book held special importance for married women:
The Masters and Johnson's Human Sexual Response taught the young and not-so-young married women things about her own potential for pleasure that previously she had only suspected. Masters gave scientific verification to the legendary capacity of women to enjoy sex far more than man is able to. "First the female is capable of rapid return to orgasm immediately following an orgasmic experience, if restimulated before tensions have dropped below plateau-phase response levels. Second, the female is capable of maintaining an orgasmic experience for a relatively long period of time."
In mythological terms, Masters and Johnson serve as the wise mentors who guide the hero (or heroine) along the path. William Campbell says that the mentor will often give the hero a talisman or artifact that will be helpful in the quest. Their book is that talisman.
Next: "How Not to Get Trapped Into a Marriage" (1972)