Orson Welles Worked On A Porn Because Of Course He Did

There is perhaps no greater tragedy in the history of cinema than that of Orson Welles. Although he has since been recognized as the cinematic genius he truly was, he never enjoyed such courtesies in his lifetime, and was perhaps better remembered for his drunken behavior. There was also that time he worked on a porn to help finance a film he never completed. Wait, what?

That's right. According to the NY Post (link below), a project which Welles slaved over from 1958 until his death in 1985 titled The Other Side of the Wind eventually brought him into contact with cameraman Gary Graver. While struggling to get his own career off the ground, Graver took a job directing a hardcore film, and even sought Welles' help with editing a particularly artsy girl on girl scene.

Graver would spend the rest of his life (he died in 2006) burning through his finances and two marriages trying to help Welles make his vision a reality. At one point, Graver, direly in need of money since he was making very little from Welles, directed an erotic film called “3 A.M.” starring “The Devil in Miss Jones” star Georgina Spelvin.

When Welles called him, saying he needed him immediately, Graver insisted he had to finish “3 A.M.” So Welles offered to help, and wound up “editing a hardcore lesbian shower scene that he couldn’t resist cutting in Wellesian fashion with low camera angles and other trademark flair.”

I know this is a porn site and you more than likely don't give a shit, but Welles reinvented film editing with his 1973 pseudo-documentary F for Fake, so the notion of seeing a porn edited by Orson Welles is exciting for a film buff such as myself. 3 A.M. can be viewed in its entirety here and the scene that Welles allegedly worked on starts around the 65-minute mark. 

Via NY Post