Saturday morning, I awoke, cranked out a quick one, then showered, dressed, watched the news, then headed downstairs to meet director/editor/porn star ANDREW ADDAMS. We had lunch at Webber's Grill Restaurant, where all the meat dishes are cooked on...wait for it...Webber's grills! This seemed to be a big draw for visitors, because the place was packed, and they didn't look like Chicagoans to me. A blond twink named Ethan, who was just on the wrong side of being cute, waited on us. He started to read the specials, then stopped and asked, "Do you want me to continue?" Uh...yeah. Andrew and I talked about the industry and upcoming projects. His new boyfriend had come to Chicago with him, but had opted to stay in bed instead of joining us for lunch.

Andrew headed off to IML's Leather Mart while I headed off to Water Tower Place to do some shopping for CVK. I always get him an outfit when I visit Chicago. To my dismay, Marshall Fields had been taken over by Macy's, but the clothes still seemed the same. I got CVK a nice green and white button-down shirt and some olive drab long shorts. He'll look good in them.

Next, I headed to the 900 N. Michigan building, where I had seen a stand of Ethel's Chocolates last year. I bought the Classic Collection box for CVK and a box of Fruit Chocolates for myself. I had also thought about getitng a box of the American Pop chocolates, but I didn't think I could get 3 boxes into my bag for the return trip. It turned out the Fruit box wouldn't survive the rest of my stay, anyway.

Back at the hotel, I took a cat nap, then called BRUNO RICELLI to see if he had gotten his Grabbys ticket. He had. He told me that he had been getting lots of requests at his booth for me to show up at the awards in chaps with a bare ass. Now, I'll do a lot for a laugh, but not that much.

JEREMY SPENCER called to tell me he'd meet me out in front of the Park West Theater to get his ticket. I dressed in black jeans and a dark red shirt and grabbed a cab over to the venue. I saw SISTER ROMA off to the side interviewing ROMAN HART, so I started to go up the middle entrance. "No! No! No!" STACY from Gay Chicago Magazine exclaimed, rushing at me. "You're a VIP, so you have to go up the right entrance and get interviewed! It's for publicity, darling!" He steered me back outside and into the far right entrance, where I waited my turn for Sister R to interview me. Off to the left, behind a velvet rope, were four photographers, busy snapping pictures of Roma and Roman, and suddenly, one of them lowered his camera, looking at me.

"Are you Jett Blakk?" he said.

"Yes," I replied. Are you Jett Blakk? was the most-asked question in Chicago that weekend, I think. I can't remember how many times I heard it. I even said it to myself in the mirror a few times, which admittedly, is a bit weird but not at all sad. Okay? Not at all.

The photographer ran around into the VIP runway, fishing through his bag. "I write articles for gay porn magazines in France," he said. "I'm a huge fan of your work! I loved DIRTY LITTLE SINS!" He pulled out a magazine called International Gay Porn and ripped the shrinkwrap off. "I love how you put messages in your films," he continued, thumbing through the issue. He stopped on a section that covered last year's Grabbys and pointed out a picture of me at the podium where I won Best Screenplay and made my semi-famous acceptance speech. He then began to translate the paragraph on SINS for me, about how it dealt with religious hypocrasy, coming out, acceptance, etc. "I've written several articles on this film!" he said. "Please make more like it!" I told him I would try, because I do like those kind of pics myself.

He took a picture of me alone, then holding the magazine, then thanked me again and returned to his place behidn the rope. By now, I had to get back in line for my video interview with the good Sister, slipping in just ahead of MICHAEL BRANDON. When I went up, I said nothing, wanting to see if Roma knew who I was. She didn't.

"And you are...?"

"Jett Blakk."

"Oh! Of course! Jett Blakk!"

"I'm rolling," said Mr. Pam, who clicked on her camcorder light.

"We're here with Jett Blakk," Roma said. "Are you nominated for anything this year, Jett?"

"Yes, Best Screenplay for BONESAW."

"Oooooo," Roma oooooed. "BONESAW. That was scaaaary."

"I'm glad you thought so," I said.

"Well, good luck!"

I entered the lobby where I got a bracelet on my wrist. I went to check out my table, which was butt up against a wall. "Can I get you anything to drink?" a young man in black standing nearby asked me. "Not right now," I said. I should have ordered a half dozen amaretto and Cokes right then and there, as his reappearance that night would be incredibly sporadic.

I went up to the VIP section where there was a free bar, but it was so crowded, I feared the balcony might collapse. And I didn't see anyone I knew anyway, so I came back downstairs and met Jeremy outside. He was panicking. "I have to get these dvds to MARK NAGEL for the raffle!" he panted, holding a stack of about a dozen cases. We went to our table and he pulled out some blue ribbon, fumbling to tie it around the discs. "Give me that," I finally interjected. As I tied them up and made stringy ends, I told him to turn in his gay card.

TY HUDSON joined us at our table, followed by Bruno. The two of them chatted so loudly during the show that a nearby audience member had to shush them. The opening video was quite funny. It was a take-off of DREAMGIRLS. Hosts CHI CHI LARUE and HONEY WEST really sang their parts, and they were very good (I have Honey's cd in my jukebox). The awards moved along at a brisk pace. I didn't win Best Screenplay, nor did ROB ROMONI win Best Non-Sex Performer, but it was still a good time. And the crowd laughed when they raffled off our Ann Coulter pinata. "You can beat the bitch until she breaks!" Honey said, although they again made the mistake of having the raffle and underwear auction at the end of the show, instead of right before the intermission. When Chi Chi says "goodnight", people start to leave, and that cuts down on the number of people who might bid on items. Since it's for charity, that's important. MATHEW RUSH and FRANCESCO DE MACHIO (sp?) did a great bit at one point. In everyone's grab bag, there was the requisite bottle of ID lube, several free 30 minute trial cards to various web sites, a dvd of MIRAGE from Raging Stallion and...a Mr. Limpy. Now, Mr. Limpy is a limp dick dildo toy. In fact, it's more toy than dildo, because it is so soft that to get it up your ass, you'd have to jam it in with a stick. But the thing's appeal is that it streettchess. When you were younger, did you ever have a Stretch Armstrong toy? It's like that. So Francesco walks out onstage with the Mr. Limpy penis sticking out of his pants, and Matt Rush grabs the head of it and starts doing arm curls and bicep curls with it. Visually very bizarre and funny. Other porn stars who were there and presented: JOHNNY HAZZARD, CHRISTIAN OWEN, STEVE CRUZ, CORT DONOVAN, CHAD HUNT, MATT COLE, DAMON PHOENIX, MICHAEL BRANDON, BRIAN HANSEN, DERRICK HANSEN, SCOTT SPEARS, JEREMY HALL, the list goes on and on.

By the end of the show, I didn't feel like going to the after party with Jeremy. I went into the thing knowing I wasn't going to win, but Jeremy was so excited by the prospect that I might ("If you win, it'll be Adonis' first awared ever and you'd be the first person to win the same award 2 years in a row!"), that when I didn't, I found myself actually disappointed. I knew I was up against some stiff competition (and having a table against the wall instead of near the aisle spoke volumes), but I guess somewhere deep inside of me, I thought that maybe there was a chance, and that little bit of me was disappointed. So I told Jeremy to go on without me, and Bruno and I decided to get a bite to eat.

We went to Nookies Tree, where I got a salad, and we talked about his self-distribution experiences. CHRIS WARD and the Raging Stallion posse came in, as did Andrew Addams and his boyfriend, who I finally got to meet. He seems nice, and I hope they make it. I got a chance to ask Bruno about a shooting date for UNSPEAKABLE, and he said "end of July". Fingers crossed, even though that means July is going to be very busy for me (if you read JasonCurious.com on a regular basis, you'll know why).

Bruno and I caught a cab, and he dropped me off at my hotel, where I noticed that Housekeeping hadn't made up my room, nor had Turndown service been in. I was too tired to care, so I just flopped down on the bed and was out.

To be continued...

JBK