Fringe Florida: Travels Among Mud Boggers, Furries, Ufologists, Nudists, and Other Lovers of Unconventional Lifestyles (49 page)

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there are twenty thousand 1%ers. The Justice Department goes so far as to cat-

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egorize the Outlaws and the Mongols motorcycle clubs as “a serious national

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domestic threat” and says they traffic drugs across the U.S.-Mexican border.

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The history of Taco Bowman’s rule over Florida motorcycle clubs was com-

art

piled from federal court records and interviews. More than thirty articles

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by the Associated Press, the
Orlando
Sentinel
,
Tampa
Tribune
,
St.
Petersburg
0

Times
, and the
Daytona
Beach
News-Journal
provided additional background.

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It’s worth noting that several Florida leaders and members were convicted of

carrying out Bowman’s orders.

Chapter 4. The Other Wild Kingdom

While I couldn’t find any scientific studies on the fur fandom, several unof-

ficial surveys compiled by furries gave me a better sense of the sexual compo-

nent. Kyle Evans, an Australian fur artist and psychology student, surveyed

276 fellow furries online in 2007. Almost 80 percent said they were turned on

to some degree by anthropomorphic characters. The majority (46 percent) clas-

sified the turn-on as a minor motivation. Meanwhile, a 2007 University of Cal-

ifornia-Davis study of 600 furs showed that about half were in relationships,

and of those, 76 percent were seeing another furry.

After discovering Dolphin John’s online description of his furry partner

as a hermaphrodite whale, I wondered how I could have overlooked some-

thing so obvious as the Naketa Orcan fursuit having a penis or breasts.

I still didn’t see any sex organs when I later looked at the fursuit online. Then

I realized the attributes are a fantasy much like a piece of John’s furotica that

I also discovered. The porn art depicted characters from one of his sci-fi uni-

verses. The lingerie-clad herm whale not only had human sex organs, but also

was involved in a three-way with a bound busty dolphin and a macho dragon-

whale hybrid.

Florida Furs typically arrange a field trip to Disney World during the annual

Megaplex anthropomorphic convention in Orlando. Much to their disappoint-

proof

ment, they aren’t allowed to wear their fursuits in the park. Megaplex adver-

tises fursuiter and puppeteer performances for children and adults and an art

show (G to furotica, which must be covered). Furry foxes, panthers, puppies,

and such also parade through the hotel lobby and generally act silly. What goes

on in guest rooms is left to the imagination, but rules posted on the event web-

site imply that like any convention, hooking up is common, albeit furry-style.

“Holding hands, hugging, chaste kissing, and the like are fine; anything beyond

that is best taken to your hotel room.”

For those unfamiliar with Sonic the Hedgehog and Renamon the fox, they

are anthropomorphic characters in popular video games. They have been widely

fetishized in the fur world.

The underground south Florida glam fetish scene referenced at the Fetish

Con after-party relates to the Fetish Factory (FF) store and its Alter Ego events

in Fort Lauderdale. FF’s co-owner claims theirs is the longest-running monthly

fetish party in North America. Their annual four-day bash draws kinksters from

as far away as Australia. FF shuns publicity for events and maintains a strict

fetish dress code. I was allowed to attend their Halloween party, the only one

set

with laxer costume rules, after I promised not to interview anyone. I nearly suf-

on

focated while trying on a conservative latex dress in the FF store, and my hus-

1

band nearly passed out when he saw the $350 price tag. I opted instead to wear

62

a frumpy witch costume from Target. All said and done, the massive party was

no more extreme than Fetish Con’s after-parties. See one latex-clad performer

pull something from her crotch, you’ve pretty much seen it all.

Chapter 6. Spirits, Fairies, and a Blow-Up Mary

I made several attempts to interview Holy Land Experience cast members

and employees online as well as in person, but none were willing to talk, at least

not to a freelance writer. The park’s most popular Jesus actor, Les Cheveldayoff,

the Fabio look-alike, did a soft interview on CNN. He also has a Facebook fan

page with a profile photo of him as a bloody Jesus carrying a cross.

Details about the Crouches’ lifestyle come from the cited
New
York
Times

article, a lawsuit filed against them by the granddaughter’s uncle, and an ex-

amination of the ministry’s property records. The
Times
article also includes

information about the lawsuit and the Crouches’ family feud.

Chapter 8. Alien Riviera

Don Ware’s ouster from the national MUFON board was a painful decision

for the board, according to the group’s official announcement. However, for

two years they had asked Don to stop mailing New Age books on channeling to

board members and directors. The final straw was when he brought a channeler

to a closed MUFON meeting in 1992, and she shared information she had sup-

posedly received the night before from a spirit guide, “Master Kuthumi.” She

read it from a computer printout.

proof

Don refused to resign and was voted out of office by roughly three-fifths of

the board. The board stated that “Since it has taken 25 years to establish MU-

FON’s scientific credibility, it seems unwise to allow one individual’s unscien-

tific interests to be taken as representative of those of MUFON.”

Chapter 9. Showtown’s Last Showman

Ward Hall also likes to write about himself. His biographical accounts of

life in a sideshow can be found on SideshowWorld.com, a website that’s run by

sideshow historians and operators who are keeping the past alive, or rather, as

their slogan goes, “Preserving the Past and Promoting the Future.” The web-

site’s various interviews and articles gave context to Ward’s oral tales.

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I must add that the Boston butt barbecued roast was just as delicious as the

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bar crowd at Showtown U.S.A. promised it would be.

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Chapter 10. Fringe on Fringe

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The Pasco County Office of Tourism Development estimates that the three

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largest nudist resorts, with about 151 traditional hotel rooms, bring in about

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$3.3 million in room taxes, or 4.8 percent of the county’s overall room tax rev-

ts

enue. This doesn’t take into account the condo, home, and modular home rent-

2

als of various resorts or what nudists spend in the county.

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The first American nudist club was formed by a Baptist minister in Spring

Valley, New York, in 1930 with fewer than one hundred members. By 1940, a

group was forming in Florida.

Caliente’s planned lingerie football event fell through when the network

realized the resort couldn’t guarantee a nude-free environment. The game was

to be aired during halftime of the Super Bowl. Talk about a potential wardrobe

malfunction.

As for biking naked on federal land, B.G. of Bare Buns Bikers is correct that

there are no federal laws against nudity, but some national parks honor local

restrictions. Discretion is advised.

proof

seton 362

proof

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In addition to interviews and firsthand experiences, I consumed a

g

voluminous amount of research material—magazine and newspa-

ni per articles, books, documentaries, and court and property records. I

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also lived where modern subcultures thrive, the Internet. I registered

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with online communities of furries, mudders, and pony players and

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received e-newsletters of UFO trackers, big-cat lovers, and nude bik-

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ers. Message boards, chat rooms, and Youtube.com proved invaluable

resources in getting intimate and broader perspectives of fringe in

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Florida and beyond.

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Here are select traditional resources that might be of interest to

tC other fringe junkies. Additional notes follow.

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For the overall cultural history of Florida, I recommend:

l

Mormino, Gary R.
Land
of
Sunshine,
State
of
Dreams:
A
Social
History
e

of
Modern
Florida
. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 2005.

s :
Chapter 1. Menagerie of Fla-Zoons

eg Bilger, Burkhard. “Swamp Things, Florida’s Uninvited Predators.”
New

n

Yorker
, April 2, 2009, 80–89.

i

LaPeter Anton, Leonora. “The Big Cat Fight: Activism, Accusations

r

Lurk behind a Pet Project.”
St
Petersburg
Times
, November 11, 2007.

Laufer, Peter.
Forbidden
Creatures:
Inside
the
World
of
Animal
Smuggling
F

proof

and
Exotic
Pets
. Guilford, Conn.: Lyons Press, 2010.

F

Lewis, Carole. “How I Began Rescuing Wild Cats.” thedailytail.com,

October 31, 2010.

os Pittman, Craig. “A Florida Crackdown Targets Exotic Reptiles.”
St.
Pe-

d

tersburg
Times
, December 25, 2006.

n

Snake
Underworld
. Video. Produced by David Clair and Laura Fravel;

a

hosted by Henry Rollins. National Geographic Channel, 2011.

r

Waddell, Lynn. “Where Is the Cat Man?”
Weekly
Planet
, 1999.

ts
Chapter 2. The King of Trampa

Clendinnen, James. Interview by Gary Mormino. August 21, 1980.

Hillsborough County Oral History Collection, University of South

Florida Digital Collections.

http://ufdc.ufl.edu/UF00006513/00001.

Deitche, Scott.
Cigar
City
Mafia:
A
Complete
History
of
the
Tampa
Underworld
. Fort Lee, N.J.: Barricade, 2004.

Goffard, Christopher. “Tampa’s Name Back in Lights.”
St.
Petersburg

Times
, March 9, 2002.

Guzzo, Paul. “Six Feet of Fame: Joe Redner.”
Cigar
City
, January/Feb-

5 6

ruary 2010.

2

Klinkenberg, Jeff. “Joe Redner in the Flesh.”
St.
Petersburg
Times
, January 20, 1991.

Melone, Mary Jo. “Dark Days and Crimes Paid Series: Tampa 1887–1987.”
St.

Petersburg
Times
, June 21, 1987.

O’Connor, Rory. “The Prince of Sleaze.”
Tampa
Magazine
, February 1982.

Raab, Selwyn.
Five
Families:
The
Rise,
Decline,
and
Resurgence
of
America’s
Most
Powerful
Mafia
. New York: St. Martin’s Griffin, 2006.

Strip
Club
King:
The
Story
of
Joe
Redner
. DVD. Directed by Shelby McIntyre.

Tampa, Fla.: Aphelion Film, 2008

Chapter 3. Sisters of Steel

Biker
Chicks:
Leather
and
Lace
. National Geographic Channel, 2010.

Chachere, Vickie. “Biker Gang Charged with Murder, Extortion.” Associated

Press. AP.com, August 20, 2003.

———“Bikers Rally Behind Outlaws Leader as Trial Looms in Tampa.”
Orlando

Sentinel
, March 19, 2001, B-3.

Joans, Barbara.
Bike
Lust:
Harleys,
Women,
and
American
Society
. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 2001.

Leusner, Jim. “Bag of Tricks Made Officer a Warlock: Motorcycle Gang Is Un-

dermined by an Undercover Agent.”
Orlando
Sentinel
, March 4, 1991, A-1.

———. “Warlocks Charge Police Entrapment: A Widow Claims Club Member

Were Armed at Her Husband’s Funeral Because of a Deputy’s Warning.”
Or-

lando
Sentinel
, June 19, 1991, B-1.

proof

Osgerby, Bill.
Biker,
Truth
and
Myth:
How
the
Original
Cowboy
of
the
Road
Became
the
Easy
Rider
of
the
Silver
Screen
. Guilford, Conn.: Lyons Press, 2005.

Outlaw
Bikers:
Inside
the
Outlaws
. National Geographic Channel, 2010.

Outlaw
Bikers:
Warlock
War
. National Geographic Channel, 2010.

Chapter 4. The Other Wild Kingdom

Gates, Katharine.
Deviant
Desires:
Incredibly
Strange
Sex
. New York: Juno, 1999.

Gurley, George. “The Pleasures of Fur.”
Vanity
Fair
, March 2001.