Satirist Greg Scarnici Wants You to Experience '70s Porn with 'Hot Rods'

Writer/director/producer/performer Greg Scarnici long had a fascination with gay porn magazine starting when he was a kid and would sneak peeks at them at a local variety store in Queens where he grew up. Some years later, Scarnici was given some of the original mags from a friend on Fire Island, where he spends his summers. He became, as he expresses in the interview below, "obsessed" with the hot cheeziness of the magazines and came up with an idea of a parody of them for his fourth book.

"And what better time to bring back these types of magazines than during a global pandemic?!?" Scarnici writes on Instagram about his photo book, which he shot on Fire Island last summer with real life adult performers Alex Mecum & Stephen Harte at such locales as the Belvedere Hotel in Cherry Grove and the infamous Meat Rack.

"Featuring feathered hair, mustaches, speedos, un-manscaped torsos, striped athletic socks – and of course – terribly written erotic stories. You can buy it directly on my website, as no other major retailer would carry this filth."

When he not recreating classic porn memes, Scarnici works as an Associated Producer on "Saturday Night Live." "Hot Rods" is his fourth book. He earlier published two books of essays, "Dungeons And Drag Queens" and "I Hope My Mother Doesn't Read This," as well as a photo book parody of Madonna's "Sex" book, "Sex in Drag."

He has also been found in some of New York's clubs performing as his gender-bending, alter-ego Levonia, and can be seen as just himself in "Bitch, Please," his web series where he goes off on things that annoy him.

EDGE spoke with the multi-talented Scarnici from Fire Island about "Hot Rods," '70s porn and what his name would be if he were a porn star.

EDGE: What's it like to quarantine on Fire Island?

Greg Scarnici: I have to say that I am definitely blessed to be able to be out here, because there is lots of access to outdoor space where there is not a lot of people around. When I go back to Brooklyn it's a little more difficult to go for a walk and not encounter people not wearing a mask. Over here, most people are following protocols and it just feels safer.

EDGE: Do you remember the first time that you saw a gay porn magazine?

Greg Scarnici: Yeah! When I was a kid growing up in Bellerose, Queens there was a corner store that sold cigarettes and beer. As a teenager, I would have my fake ID and buy beer and right next to the alcohol section was the adult magazine section. I would see those and the ones with the men on the cover instantly caught my eye.

EDGE: How did the idea for "Hot Rods" come about?

Greg Scarnici: A few years ago, there was a man on the island who ran a second-hand store and he had about 50 vintage gay porn magazines and friends just started giving them to me as gifts. They just thought it would be a fun gift to give me. I just become obsessed with them, because they are just so different from the porn we seen nowadays. The men were all lean and regular and just seemed like guys that you would run into on the street. Plus, they were over-stylized, and the stories were horribly written. I just loved them.

EDGE: What was it like working with real adult performers Alex Mecum & Stephen Harte?

Greg Scarnici: The funny thing is they are both my friends and who happen to do porn. So, it was just fun, natural, and easy to work with them. Basically, everyone who is in the book, they're friends of mine. So, when I knew they were coming to the island I would just shoot them a text saying, "Hey, do you want to be in this vintage porn parody?" They were all like "sure!" With Stephen, it was very natural. Just hanging out at the beach and having a good time. Alex is a little more sexually free, so the shoot that we did turned into actual sex. I won't be publishing the images after consulting with my husband, aka my legal team.

EDGE: Once you had all the models involved, did knowing who they were help create the kind of scenes you would shoot?

Greg Scarnici: No, I had about 7 to 8 different scenarios that I had written up that I could basically plug anybody into. Then when I started reaching out to people, I started casting the stories and slightly tweaking them for the person who was in it.

EDGE: How did you select which stories to write for "Hot Rods?"

Greg Scarnici: I wrote all the stories and sadly I will take credit for it. All the stories were based on concepts of stuff you would find in gay porn magazines. They were all based on stuff that would happen on Fire Island like meeting a hot guy at the gym or seeing a hot guy at the Meat Rack or hooking up in the bathroom. Like the things that you always read about.

EDGE: Any plans on shooting more editions of "Hot Rods?"

Greg Scarnici: Yes, I really plan on doing an 80s version set in Malibu or somewhere on the West Coast. I would love to do a 90s version set in Miami. I am just going to make it a trilogy.

EDGE: If you were a porn star, what's your name and what kind of porn do you perform?

Greg Scarnici: Since my name in the book is Rock Hanson, that is the name I will give myself. Since I am close to 50, I guess I am Daddy porn.

EDGE: What are the challenges of producing SNL during a pandemic?

Greg Scarnici: There are so many challenges. In fact, we have been on nothing but Zoom calls for the past month trying to figure out how we can go back to the studio safely in October. All the challenges you face in daily life are amplified because of COVID. We normally have 350 people in a studio producing a show. Now we have to figure out how to get those numbers down and how do we still produce the same kind of show safely. There is so much to deal with, and we are really hoping that we can make it happen.

EDGE: You are a man of many talents: SNL Associate Producer, writer, director, actor, and DJ. Do you have a favorite medium to work in?

Greg Scarnici: I guess if I had to pick one it would be film making, because I love being on set and crafting a scene and then getting back to the editing room and fix all the problems that happen during production.

"Hot Rods" is now available, but only domestically. For more information on Greg and to purchase Hot Rods, visit his website.

Watch Levonia return to the dance floor with her latest anthem to middle age, "50 Years Old."