JAPAN — Asian cultures have long venerated their elders and the generations that have come before. The degree of worshipful adoration that 74-year-old Shigeo Tokuda is experiencing, however, is likely familiar only to emperors, pop stars, and movie icons. In his own way, the long-time travel agent is a movie star; if by “movie star” one also means “porn star.”Tokuda isn’t merely a porn star in his native country; he is a recognized brand whose work in such “old-man/grandpa” titles as Maniac Training of Lolitas and Forbidden Elderly Care has given mature performers a rare opportunity to strut their fully erotic selves in an industry where “too old” can come early in a person’s life.

Glory Quest, which took the first brave step of releasing Tokuda’s films in 2004, soon learned that elder-porn wasn’t just a novelty act with a freak show following.

“The adult video industry is very competitive. If we only make standard fare, we cannot beat other studios,” Glory Quest representative Kayoko Iimura observed to Time magazine. “There were already adult videos with Lolitas or themes of incest, so we wanted to make something new. A relationship between wife and an old father-in-law has enough twist to create an atmosphere of mystery and captivate viewers’ hearts.”

Although a not unfamiliar sight to fans of hentai, real-life grandfathers wooing and winning the sexual favors by force or charm in front of a camera was unknown until Tokuda stepped into the limelight. In the Shigeo Tokuda series, the elderly gentleman is depicted as a tactful and age-neutral instructor of all women interested in the sensual arts. His work has led to the hiring not only of other men of age, but also of female performers, including some in their 70s.

Ruby Productions, which hopes to market its own line of “mature women” videos to those living in retirement homes, says that the term used to refer to any actress in her late 20s. Now it can mean anything up to women in their 70s.

“Adult videos with young actresses sell well only in the first three months after the release,” Ruby Productions director Ryuichi Kadowaki informed AsianTimesOnline.com. “On the other hand, ‘mature women’ films enjoy a steady, long-term popularity, which after 10 years or so might lead to a best-seller.”

Given the aging Japanese population and its already impressive appetite for pornography, elder-porn is only expected to become more popular.

Sadly, for all their video shelf-life and profitability, elder performers get paid far below what the hot young talent receives, with mature actresses seeing a mere $2,000 paycheck per project compared to their less sexually experienced fellow thespians, who take home a tidy $100,00 per title. Japanese consumers spent $19.98 billion on adult-oriented video games, magazines, hentai, and manga during 2006 compared to a mere $13.33 billion spent within the United States during the same time.

Alas, even with billions being spent to view erotic material, Japanese society is not ready for its elder porn performers to acknowledge their work openly. Even as Tokuda, who hopes to work in porn until he’s 80, speaks out against body shame and in favor of his professional work, he does so with an assumed name – because neither his wife of 44 years nor their daughter — know about his 14 year/350 film part-time job.

If surveys from the World Health Organization (WHO) and condom-manufacturer Durex are to be believed, the vast majority of sex Tokuda has enjoyed during his career, if not his entire life, has been in front of a camera. Studies have repeatedly indicated that Japan is one of the most sexless societies in the industrialized world, most likely due to its extreme work-related stress. The WHO survey discovered that 25-percent of all married couples involved had abstained from sex with one another during the year previous and 38-percent of couples in their 50s had completely stopped having sex.