Real Sex
Real Sex is a documentary television series broadcast on and a production of HBO. As its name implies, Real Sex is a sexually explicit "magazine" which "explores sex '90s style."
Real Sex explores human sexuality, Gary R. Edgerton and Jeffrey P. Jones described the fare in The Essential HBO Reader as "a peek into the diversity of sexual activities...with an emphasis that ranges from the unusual to the bizarre." The show typically explores three to four topics each episode. Segments are separated by street interviews with random people, relating to the episode's topics.
Older episodes as well as "best-of" episodes are frequently re-aired during late nights on HBO.
It spawned a spin-off series called Pornucopia.
Episode guide
| Episode # | Segment name | Segment title | Description |
| Episode 01 | November 1990 | ||
| "How to Strip " | A striptease class taught by LaGioconda. | ||
| "A Family Business" | A husband and wife strip couple filmed at Big Al's in Peoria, IL. | ||
| Sex by Telephone | - | A brief segment about phone sex which grossed $400 million last year. A vast majority of callers are male and earn more than $30,000/yr. The average caller spends $45 for 30 minutes. | |
| "Portrait of a Virgin" | A 31-year-old virgin talks about her chaste lifestyle, and how she plans to wait to have sex until she is married. | ||
| "Homemade Home Video" | A kinky homemade video of a couple jumping into bed filmed by Adam Crown. | ||
| "Sex for One" | A masturbation class for women taught by Betty Dodson, Ph.D. | ||
| "An Actress Turns Director" | Erotic films for women directed by Candida Royalle and Femme Productions. | ||
| Episode 02 | |||
| "Stripper with a Difference" | Jane Jones strip show and exotic circus includes a 600 lb. Siberian tiger named Qadesh, a Burmese python, and a topless saxophone performance. | ||
| "Sex Under Glass" | Carol Queen's peep show. | ||
| "The HOW-TO-MAKE-LOVE Couple" | Married couple Donna and Gary filming Videos for Lovers for the Better Sex Institute. | ||
| "The Madam and The Prostitute" | Madam Beverly Harrell of the Cottontail Ranch | ||
| "Annie Sprinkle's Sluts and Goddesses" | Women dressing up in Annie Sprinkle's clothes and acting out slut and goddess fantasies. | ||
| Episode 03 | |||
| "Cherokee Sex Workshop" | |||
| "A Stimulating Collection" | |||
| "The Honorable Cicciolina" | |||
| "Mister Madam" | |||
| "Auntie Maim's House Of Domination" | |||
| Episode 04 | |||
| "Annie Sprinkle's One Woman Show" | Annie Sprinkle's show about her sexual evolution from a shy teenager to porn star and exhibitionist. | ||
| "The Agony & The Ecstasy" | 1991 Miss Nude World pageant organized by Samantha Jones. | ||
| "Deutschland's Top Quiz Show" | German game show called Tutti Frutti where contestants removed various items of clothing. | ||
| "Tell Me Your Fantasy" | Live tele-fantasy New York public access show called Voyeurvision hosted by Lynn Muscarella. | ||
| "Riding the Orgasmic Wave" | Oceanic Tantra workshop where the couples undulate like dolphins through the waters of Maui. | ||
| Episode 05 | A sex-shop entrepreneur; and a stripper who moonlights as a boxer. August 5, 1993 | ||
| "Introducing Venus De Light" | Lynn Chase's exotic burlesque dance and animal show. She boxes for stress relief. | ||
| "Of Human Bondage" | Frank and Ona Zee show home spanking and bondage play. | ||
| "Doctor/Director Frank Sommers M.D." | Dr Frank Sommers, M.D. makes short sex education films for women. | ||
| "Susanne Bartsch's Girls Girls Girls" | Susanne Bartsch throws a drag queen show. | ||
| "Sex Shop Granny" | Beate Uhse talks about her well-known German sex store. | ||
| Episode 06 | August 5, 1993 | ||
| "Cyber-Sex Game" | Mike Saenz creates an early adult interactive video games called Virtual Valerie. | ||
| "The Royal Sex Maniacs' Ball" | Tuppy Owens creates the anything goes Sex Maniacs Ball to raise funds for disabled people. It includes an early view of virtual reality sex. | ||
| "A Filmmaker's Fetish Fantasy" | Eric Kroll takes fetish photos of 3 women wearing girdles. | ||
| "Adam's Whips & Gillian's Toys" | A couple makes sensual whips and toys. | ||
| "Pleasure Bus of Brazil" | An exotic play called Soltando a Franga by Sady Cinema which loosely translates to "Release the Inhibitions". The driver is :pt:Sady Baby|Sady Baby an infamous actor and filmmaker | ||
| Episode 07 | November 11, 1993 | ||
| "Naked City" | Photographer takes quirky fine art black-and-white nudes of his friends on the streets of New York. | ||
| "For Women Only" | Michelle's XXX Revue is a Los Angeles lesbian and bisexual strip club founded by promoter Michelle Levy. | ||
| "From Russia With Love" | Russian men's magazine Andrei. | ||
| "Libido" | The couple behind Libido The Journal of Sex and Sensibility shoot a nude layout for the magazine. | ||
| "The Master of Non-Ejaculation" | A virile Chinese senior citizen. | ||
| Episode 08 | |||
| "Moscow's School of Striptizi" | Alla Maximova striptease school for the "new" Russian woman | ||
| "Members Only" | Male sexual seminar, men only | ||
| "Lady & Lord K of RIO" | Sexy male and female 'rock stars' in Rio perform in the nude "they practice what they preach" | ||
| "How to read a Dirty Movie" | Porn critic and sex educator Susie Bright gives seminar on 'how to read a dirty movie' | ||
| Exotic Erotic Ball | "The Exotic Erotic Ball" | Exotic Erotic Ball was held up through 2009 at various locations throughout California; the 2010 ball was cancelled the day before the show, and no ball was scheduled in 2011 | |
| Episode 09 | August 13, 1994 | ||
| Late Night Swedish TV show | "A Thousand and one Nights with Ylva" | Ylva Maria Thompson's wild late night Swedish TV show. "Tusen & en natt" | |
| "Body, Heart and Soul" | 5 day Love, Sex and Sensuality workshop in Hawaii with Alan Lowen | ||
| Drag King Show | "Girls will be Boys" | Drag king show mixed with strip show, to show how fluid sexuality is. | |
| Making adult audio CDs | "CYBORGASM The Making of a XXX-rated CD" | An erotic party that is recorded to create an adult audio CD Lisa Palac and M. Gantt | |
| Mr Nude Universe | "Bare & Bold" | ||
| Episode 10 | |||
| "Pins & Needles" | |||
| "Paris After Dark" | |||
| "Interactive Fantasies" | |||
| "Cross Dress For Success" | |||
| "Valeria: Queen Of Carnival" | |||
| Episode 11 | |||
| "Call-In Love Radio" | |||
| "The Ultimate Orgasm" | |||
| "Doris Does Dungeons" | |||
| "Pajama Party Live " | |||
| "London's Rubber Ball" | |||
| Episode 12 | |||
| "Getting Off On-Line" | |||
| "The Black Orchid" | |||
| "Truck Stop On Highway 93" | |||
| "Video Erotique Avec Laetitia" | |||
| "Taking Care Of Business" | |||
| Episode 13 | |||
| "Electric Sex With Dante Amore" | |||
| "Jocelyn Taylor's Lesbian Erotica" | |||
| "Whiplash" | |||
| "A Tight Squeeze" | |||
| "Golden Oldies" | |||
| Episode 14 | "Wild Cards Special" | Annie Sprinkle with Lily Braindrop Borana, Jennifer Einstein, Dominique D'Anthony, Danielle Willis & Jennifer Blowdryer | |
| Episode 15 | |||
| "Heather Takes Off" | |||
| "Homemade Love Movies" | |||
| "Hot Shots In Rio" | |||
| "Folsom Street Fair" | |||
| "A Family Tradition" | |||
| Episode 16 | |||
| "Miss Black Nude" | |||
| "For Swingers Only" | |||
| "Passion Food" | |||
| "Supermarket Du Sex" | |||
| Episode 17 | January 14, 1997 | ||
| "Nudes-A-Poppin'" | |||
| "Out To Africa With Photographer Uwe Ommer" | |||
| "Fun House" | |||
| "Yoyogi-San Master Of Orgasm" | |||
| Episode 18 | March 14, 1997 | ||
| "Wild Anna Malle" | |||
| "Through The Looking Glass" | |||
| "Secrets Of Nina's Boudoir" | |||
| "Erotic Art Auction" | |||
| Episode 19 | February 7, 1998 | ||
| Mud Play | "Down 'N Dirty" | A group gets together to play in the mud in the desert. | |
| Jamaican Beat | "Miss Black nude: Going Tropical" | Club 55 in Washington DC and Hedonism II sponsored beauty pageant for black women. | |
| Fantasies | "Male-Order Fantasies" | ||
| Decadence | "Doktor Hirschfeld's Museum Of Sexologoy" | ||
| Episode 20 | May 2, 1998 | ||
| Miss Nude World | "The Barest In The Land" | Miss nude world 1998 exotic dancer competition at the "pink pony club" in Atlanta GA. Won by "Holly Montana" | |
| "Ladies' Night" | Monthly Male exotic dancer show in Philadelphia PA. Arranged by Lady Simzie | ||
| Love without Limits | "Polyamory" | Deborah Annapol workshop on polyamory and relationships. | |
| Angels and Demons exhibition | "Naked Art" | a Nude art exhibition in New York City 'Natasha VonRosenchilde' is the artist. | |
| Episode 21 | September 5, 1998 | ||
| Private Parts | "The Feel of Real" | The making of realistic sex toys from capture of porn stars' "parts" to manufacturing | |
| Voyeurism | "Voyeur's Vacation" | Oakland, CA's Edgewater West Hotel | |
| Old-Fashioned Erotica | "Doris Wishman: Queen of Sexploitation" | ||
| Titillating Art | "An Art Gallery Exhibition" | the production of a lesbianism-themed art exhibition called "Women Loving Women," which included live lesbian sex performances by porn star Missy and other women in the gallery, with some of the female patrons participating | |
| Episode 22 | February 20, 1999 | ||
| Dolls | "Real Dolls" | Making of and playing with realistic female RealDolls from Abyss Creations | |
| Tantric Sex | "Tantric Sex: Riding the Orgasm" | workshop on full-body orgasms | |
| Dutch Swingers | "Fun 4 Two" | European Sex Club for Couples, Holland farmhouse where couples live out their fantasies | |
| Sacred Vows | "Exotic Erotic Wedding" | Performers '13' and 'Princess' of the 'Impotent Sea Snakes' get married at San Francisco's Exotic Erotic Ball | |
| Episode 23 | May 8, 1999 | ||
| arousing African-American dancers | |||
| a stimulating sex club in Paris | |||
| an adult-film star-turned-performance artist | |||
| Episode 24 | February 26, 2000 | ||
| Different Strokes | "How to please a penis" | Suburban housewives learn new oral and tactile techniques at a home party | |
| Dirty Words | "Punany Poets" | Exotic Performers read erotic poetry they've written as part of their show | |
| Footsies | "Tootsie Roles" | Foot fetishists | |
| Bon Apetit! | "Sploshing" | British specialty that features arousal by playing in a variety of sloppy foods. | |
| Episode 25 | June 17, 2000 | ||
| Strap Ons | "Strut Your Strap On" | featuring Tristan Taormino | |
| Flirt Fest | "Texas Flirt Fest" | ||
| Erotic Cabaret | "Blue Angel Cabaret" | ||
| Pleasure Party | "Dr. Suzy's Speakeasy" | featuring Susan Block | |
| Episode 26 | Lessons in Love & Lust | April 7, 2001 | |
| Love Licks | "Clit Tricks" | Cunnilingus workshop | |
| Swing Fest | "Swingstock " | Swingstock '99 Swingers camping convention in Rural Minnesota | |
| Tropical Tease | "how to be Miss Florida" | Florida Exotic Dancer competition | |
| Tight Squeeze | "Latex Sex" | The joys of latex from paint-on liquid latex to being vacuum sealed between sheets of latex | |
| Episode 27 | Slippery when Wet | ||
| Deep Sex | "Underwater Erotica" | ||
| Peek-a-boo | "Voyeur Dorm" | Nine college girls live in a house filled with 55 cameras | |
| Long Licks | "Lick It" | Exotic Dancer with very long tongue | |
| Hot Toys | "Sex Odyssey" | Sex toys made of Pyrex | |
| Episode 28 | Bedroom Tricks & Treats | ||
| Giddyup! | "Ride Pony Ride" | Women who enjoy playing as horses | |
| Naked Shakespeare | "Much Ado about Nothing" | Exotic dancers get around local laws by performing MacBeth in the nude | |
| Sex Doll | "Boy Toy" | Making of and playing with realistic Male Love Dolls from realdolls.com | |
| Teasing 101 | "Bring Back Burlesque" | Modern exotic dancers learn the fine art of classic burlesque dancers | |
| Episode 29 | Let it all hang out | April 6, 2002 | |
| Slippery Sports | "Santa Fe Wrestling Asylum" | Oil wrestling | |
| Dick Tricks | "Penis Puppeteers" | Off-Broadway show: Puppetry of the Penis | |
| Bareback Thrills | "Ms Nude Great Plains" | Exotic Dancer Competition that includes nude horseback riding in Topeka, Kansas | |
| Nude Twists | "Secrets of the Kama Sutra" | Couples' Kama Sutra workshop | |
| Episode 30 | Down & Dirty | ||
| Hi-Tech | "Sex Machines.cum" | Violet wand and Sybian | |
| Erotic Awards | "London's Erotic Oscars" | Erotic Oscars | |
| Dirty Movies | "Lights, Camera, Fantasy!" | Company that provides professional video services for couples that wish to act out their fantasy | |
| Kinky Circus | "Cirque du Sex" | ||
| Episode 31 | Am I good in bed? | ||
| Anal 101 | "Bottoms up" | featuring Tristan Taormino | |
| Punk Pinups | "The Suicide Girls" | featuring SuicideGirls | |
| Latin Lovers | "Ay! Papi Chulo! Hot Latin Daddy Revue" | ||
| Sex Party | "Sexual Soiree" | ||
| Size Matters | A Real Sex Xtra | Segments from past specials | |
| Pimp 'n Ho Costume Ball | Themed erotic Halloween party in Vegas | ||
| Masturbation Club | "Club Relate", the only heterosexual masturbation club in America | ||
| Ladies' Night | Lady Simzie hosts a monthly show of "supersized" male exotic dancers in Philadelphia, and manages for "The Immortal TMs". | ||
| Real Dolls | A tour through Abyss Creations' studio where Real Dolls are made. | ||
| Strut Your Strap-On | Lesbian "girls only" parties and the toys they use. | ||
| Episode 33 | Stocks Down, Sex Up | Produced in late 2009, this almost standalone episode looks at how sex workers are adjusting during the economic downturn of the year before. |