L.A. Times Interviews Belladonna about Co-Hosting the 2009 AVN Awards

LOS ANGELES - Columnist Richard Abowitz interviews Belladonna about co-hosting the 2009 AVN Awards in today's edition of his Los Angeles Times blog "The Movable Buffet: Dispatches from Las Vegas."

Hailed by the Times as "one of the best-known porn stars in the world," Belladonna is co-hosting the awards show with Jenna Haze Saturday, Jan. 10 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center. 

"I have been interested in hosting for awhile, and I always wondered how they go about choosing the talent for the hosts," she said. "I wanted to do it. I thought I would be really good at it. My husband told me to call [AVN] up. But I don't like to do things that way. I want people to call me, because they feel they have the desire to have me there. But I called in 2007 and asked them to please think of me. In 2008, I asked again. And then they asked me to come in for an interview and they told me they wanted me to co-host the show for 2009. It was really exciting. I never do things like that. I don't go out and find things for myself. I let them come to me, because I feel better about that."

The multiple AVN Award-winning performer/director told Abowitz she is working on her autobiography and hopes to do more mainstream work in 2009.

"Mainstream never appealed to me through my career until this year," she said. "What happened was I did a couple features. They were adult features, but there was acting involved. I don't do a lot of acting. So, it was fun and I learned a lot from it. Now, I got cast in a horror movie that is being shot next year. And it is all new to me still and I like to try new things. I get bored really easily and don't like to ever do the same things over again."

While she's been attending the AVN Adult Entertainment Expo for nearly a decade, Belladonna told the Times, "To me, it isn't the same every year.

"This one stands out because it is a huge awards show that has been going on for years," she said. "It is in Las Vegas and that in itself is exciting and everyone comes to AVN."

Up for 12 AVN Awards including Female Performer of the Year and Best Supporting Actress for Pirates II, Belladonna is most excited about her Best Director nomination.

"Last year, I won for best director and that meant a lot to me," she said. "This year I am up for a bunch, but again I would love to win best director. I work really hard at my movies. That would mean a lot to me. 

Belladonna is participating in a promotional contest that gives one lucky fan the chance to accompany her down the red carpet at the 2009 AVN Awards. Visit EnterBelladonna.com and AVNAwards.com for full details.

To read the complete Times interview, visit vegasblog.latimes.com.