She was a former Miss USA hailing from Kansas, and played the whacked-out Beth Wallace on the now defunct soap “Passions” from 1999 to 2006. Now she has taken her career in a new direction, which is an adult film star. This stunning revelation has rocked the mainstream and soap press for the last few weeks, with the bombshell of the release of her first porn title, “Faithless: From Beauty Queen to Porn Queen” on February 4th. Kelli has appeared on many of the top entertainment news shows due to this unconventional choice in her career path.

“On-Air On-Soaps” however, caught up with her in a bit of a different atmosphere than a porn set. This past Saturday, Kelli was the guest host with the famed Los Angeles, ACME Comedy Theatre Sketch Comedy Troupe. She participated in their “Saturday Night Live” weekly take-off; the highly successful, ACME This Week. Kelli,
who has a background in improv and
riding the wave of PR for “Faithless”,
showed the audience that an ex-beauty
queen, soap star, and current porn star,
could also be innately. . . funny!

In this very revealing interview, Kelli chats with me about her decision to enter Porn, her parents, friends and former “Passion’s” cast mates reactions, how she cast the film, what it’s like shooting sex scenes, the code of ethics in the adult film industry, and being the former Miss USA to boot. From her humble beginnings in Middle America to a XXX adult film, I think we can safely say, “Kelli, you are not in Kansas anymore.”

Listen to the audio:

[display_podcast]

MICHAEL:

I’m with Kelli McCarty backstage after her performance at the ACME Comedy Theatre. First off, how it did feel being up there doing sketch comedy? What skits did you enjoy appearing in?

KELLI:

I loved being up on stage. It’s the first time I did sketch comedy, and it was definitely intimidating, but I was looking forward to it. They actually did not tell me there was a teleprompter. So I was overly prepared, as far as knowing my lines, which was cool. But I loved doing the spoof on pageant moms. As Miss USA while traveling, I met so many pageant moms and stage mothers, and they really are out of their minds sometimes. So, it was fun to take that over the top and put a spin on it.

MICHAEL:

Now what about all the preparation the troupe does for the show, since you did a porn movie and that would be something they would spoof. Were they asking you “Yay” or “Nay,” for approval about certain skits? How does that work?

KELLI:

They threw 20 sketches at me, some spoofing the pageant and some spoofing the porn. Then we did pick and choose what were the funniest ones of all of them.

MICHAEL:

This has been a whirlwind for you, since you released your porn film, “Faithless”. There is so much publicity, and obviously, that was the plan. Now when you look at what’s happened because of it, are you uneasy about it? How do you feel at this point, honestly?

KELLI:

Honestly, when I decided to get into the adult film industry, I knew it was going to cause a bit of a stir, not only in the pageant world, but the soap world and press world in general. I’m really happy about what happened. I want to let people know you can do mainstream entertainment and then go into the adult world and then go right back. In the meantime, I am talking to a lot of different people in radio and television, and it’s cool. We are getting offers from mainstream
shows when they weren’t interested before.
The phone is ringing a lot, which I always
think is positive.

MICHAEL:

Did you do “Faithless” partly to jump-start your career post-“Passions”? Is that why you decided to get into the adult film business?

KELLI:

I did not do an adult film to jump-start my career. I just did it because I thought it would be interesting. I was sort of bored, and one day I woke up and I thought, “You know, I want to know what it would be like to be a porn star, and let me see if I could make that happen.” So I approached Vivid Entertainment, and they said they would like to work with me and it went from there.

MICHAEL:

Did you create the concept and script for your XXX film, “Faithless”?

KELLI:

I went to Vivid with the idea for a storyline and they put me in touch with the writers. So I had it in my contract that I would also cast the movie and help edit the movie, and have final approval over everything….

MICHAEL:

…With you putting people on, “The Casting Couch”?

KELLI:

Yes, I put them on the, “The Casting Couch”.

MICHAEL:

You obviously picked the people you wanted to have sex with, since you were involved in the casting process. How did you choose? What were your criteria?

KELLI:

If I am not attracted to someone, I am not going to want to have sex with him, and especially on camera. I wanted it to come off very real and passionate. So I waited till the right guys walked in the room and I said, “OK. Perfect! That’s who I am going to go with,” and they agreed.

MICHAEL:

There are people who like to do voyeuristic amateur porn in their homes, and like to watch themselves having sex. Were you like that? Voyeuristic sexually, as a woman? Did doing this film fulfill that in a way for you?

KELLI:

I am not a voyeuristic person in general. I really hate watching myself on-camera doing anything, whether it’s with my clothes on or off. So this was not about that at all. I did sit in the editing booth for hours. I sort of had to disconnect and try to make this the best that I can, so it was not the most fun for me to watch myself.

MICHAEL:

Ok, so now when you see the film and you watch it back, do you look at it like actors do, who are sometimes uncomfortable watching their work?

KELLI:

I am really critical and hard on myself. I could knit-pick forever, and at the end of the day I had to say, “I am really happy with this and let’s release the movie.” Otherwise, I could keep tweaking it forever and it would never get released for years.

MICHAEL:

You went from Miss USA, to a successful soap career and mainstream acting, to porn. Some people may not understand this interesting journey.

KELLI:

Well, for me, life should be interesting. My motto is, “Let’s just mix it up,” and I don’t want to feel I am being pigeonholed for the rest of my life. So, I would encourage other people to step outside whatever they are doing and say, “You know what? This is what I have always been interested in, and let me explore something else,” not necessarily adult films, but in general. Life is too short.

MICHAEL:

What are your ex-“Passions” co-stars saying?

KELLI:

I have not spoken to any of them.

MICHAEL:

None of them?

KELLI:

None of them. They have not face booked me or called me. Nothing! I guess they do not know what to say to me. That’s my guess. I expected to get a lot of calls, and I have gotten very few.

MICHAEL:

Once you got into doing the production on the film, was there one part of it that you realized was not comfortable for you and you had to overcome it, like an actress would have to overcome some obstacle playing a scene?

KELLI:

It wasn’t really uncomfortable; it was more funny to me and different, because on a regular set you are going to go grab some potato chips and a cup of coffee, and going to Kraft services. And a couple of times during the sex scenes they yelled, “Cut” and they were changing their lighting. I was going to go get a bottle of water and I look over and my co-star was “keeping himself up” sort of speak, to continue the scene. When the “five” was over, I was like, “Well, that has never happened to me on the “Passion’s set.” So it was silly and I laughed out loud. There are no “fluffers” left in the porn industry, so they have to do it themselves.

MICHAEL:

There was a “No Viagra” clause in the performer’s contracts, right?

KELLI:

In this day and age, a lot of porn stars do take sexual enhancers, but I wanted it to be very real. I did not want to be having sex for an hour or three or four on camera. I just did not want to go there. It was overwhelming for me to begin with. I needed it to be as tame as possible, and it still came out very sexy, but I had to taper the time limit.

MICHAEL:

There is this whole adult film industry protocol, that they test you for STD’s, correct?

KELLI:

The porn industry is completely pro ‘safe sex’. If people are not getting tested, they are not going to work. If they do not have a clean bill of health, month after month, they are not going to work.

MICHAEL:

So, does the production company check that?

KELLI:

The production company has it as a requirement overall in the sex industry, so they are not playing around. They are in the business to work. They have to do the blood and urine tests monthly, and they are not taking any chances, otherwise their livelihood is gone.

MICHAEL:

How do you look back on your time on the soap “Passions”? Were you sad when they killed you off as Beth Wallace in 2006?

KELLI:

I was disappointed that they killed me off

MICHAEL:

She was wacky!

KELLI:

Yeah, she was psycho, and that’s the next step. When your character is crazy, they blow you up on a train or something. They were talking about bringing my character back to life, but they canceled the show. So I did not have a chance to come back, but it was a great run, and I would not trade it for the world. It was a great experience.

MICHAEL:

Was it fun working with on-screen mom, soap vet Kathleen Noone (Ex-Edna)?

KELLI:

It was fun working with her. She is a pro and has been a long time. She definitely added spunk to the show.

MICHAEL:

Where do you keep your crown from your win as Miss USA 1991?

KELLI:

The crown is kept very safe at my parent’s house in Texas, and my mom keeps a very watchful eye on it.

MICHAEL:

Do you still look back on how cool it was? Or, do you now think about all the stigmas that some people attach or think about beauty pageants? Do you have a different perspective on it?

KELLI:

I don’t know specifically what other people think, but for me, it was an amazing experience. I met so many people and traveled around the world. It made my
mom really happy to see me win, and
that’s important, too.

MICHAEL:

Do your parents know about your new porn career? If so, what have they said to you?

KELLI:

My dad has not said anything, like “no comment”, and he’s fine. I don’t think most porn stars talk to their dads about their sex life or working careers. My mom is very supportive and a cool woman. That’s how she raised me, to do what I want and to make things happen, so that is what I am doing.

MICHAEL:

Will you do more adult films?

KELLI:

I do not know if I will do more. I am seeing how this movie turns out. I might end up writing some or directing some. I might want to write and direct again. We will see how this movie does and go from there.

MICHAEL:

In closing, what would you want people to take away from this interview, for those who might say, “I can’t believe she is doing this? What’s with her?”

KELLI:

I would say, what’s with me is, I do whatever I want to do as long as I am not hurting other people. I would encourage everyone to do that. This was not something I expected to do for years and years. It just came to me one day. I just made it happen. Hopefully, people will like the movie, and if they are not supportive, then they don’t have to watch it.

MICHAEL:

You have this rockin’ body. So are you picky about what you eat and what you look like? You know, many people obsess about their body. Do you get like that because you are nude in front of the camera and in show business?

KELLI:

I don’t obsess over anything except my dogs. I do Yoga. I have been doing it for ten years, and I take care of myself. I do allow myself to eat what I want in moderation. I am from Kansas. I was raised on fried chicken and potatoes and I still eat and cook that type of stuff.

MICHAEL:

But you are OK with seeing yourself naked in movies? (He laughs)

KELLI:

I don’t think I would have chosen to do an adult film if I had any reservations. (She laughs)