January 7, 2010 | 2:14 pm

Porn Star Fans

Posted by Ilana Angel

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So a few weeks ago I wrote an article about Jews and the porn industry.  I was fascinated by it because I didn’t think there were Jewish porn stars. One of the people I mentioned was Joanna Angel who is a Jewish girl who is a huge star in the adult entertainment industry. 

Joanna Angel and I are not related and to be honest I’m not even sure it’s her real name.  When I blogged about her she sent me an email to say hello and said she liked what I wrote.  I thought it was very kind.  If you’re reading today Joanna, Hello!  I hope you had a nice holiday.

I get asked all the time if Angel is my real last name.  It is.  There are a lot of Jewish Angels actually.  Rabbi Angel of London and Angel’s bakery in Jerusalem.  There is in fact another Ilana Angel.  She is a super sweet young girl in London and we are Facebook friends.  She is also Jewish.

While I am not a porn expert, I think I can safely say that Joanna is not your average porn star.  She grew up in Boston with an Orthodox Jewish Israeli mom and an American dad.  She graduated from Rutgers University with a BA in English Lit. and a minor in film studies.

She is a hard-core porn actress.  We’re not talking about late night Playboy channel stuff here.  She is hard-core and so to my naïve mind, if someone were to know who she was, they would have to be familiar with her work right?  That brings me to last night.

I’m online returning an email from a man on JDate when he sends me an instant message.  I say hello.  We are chatting and doing the first dance of surface questions and answers.  Then, out of nowhere, he asks the question.  The one question that changes everything. “Are you related to Joanna Angel?”

So now my mind is racing.  Is he asking because he is a fan of her work?  Is he asking because he read my article and wants an introduction to my new BFF?  Is he a sex deviant?  Is he testing me to see what my level of knowledge is on hard-core porn?  I am shocked and stunned and don’t know what to do.

So I say, “I don’t think so.  Where does she live?”  He replies “She is an actress and I think she lives in New York.”  Well there you have it.  It was over before it even began.  I told him I had to go, wished him well with his search and signed off within 10 seconds.

Not only are there Jewish porn stars but there are Jewish men who follow Jewish porn stars.  I live in a tiny bubble of suburbia where there is no porn and no one does drugs or cheats on their spouse.  I was born in the wrong era. I would have been the perfect 1950’s housewife.

Another potential suitor is cut down before he is even given a chance.  To any men who are writing me to get to Joanna, not going to happen. 

As for me, with each and every day the Internet becomes less and less appealing.  I think it’s scary and overwhelming.  I might not have a tough enough skin to navigate these waters and on some days, like today, it’s not enough to just be able to keep the faith.