FILM
Loving Luke as Levi, But as Sassy, Too?
When a red-hot porn start turns his talents to the drag scene
BY GARY M. KRAMER
Out this month on DVD
and on demand, “Leave It
to Levi” is an affectionate
and affecting portrait of
Luke Kemmerle, aka porn star Levi
Karter. He spent six years of his life
making films such as “The Stillest
Hour” and “All Saints” for Cocky-
Boys before finding another avenue
for performing — working as Sassy
Frass, a drag queen.
The documentary opens with
Luke unhappy and lonely, having
gone through a breakup. It also
depicts his complicated relationship
with his mother, who found
out about her son’s adult film career
through a friend. As he reveals
his penchant for doing drag, Luke
reconnects with his mother, Anne,
but he also has maternal figures in
CockyBoys manager RJ Sebastian
and his drag mother Misty.
In a recent phone interview with
Gay City News, Kemmerle spoke
about his new documentary, performing,
relationships, doing drag,
and his “moms.”
GARY M. KRAMER: I’m curious,
why did you make this film
and reveal — or expose — yourself
this way?
LUKE KEMMERLE: I’ve lived a
transparent life — porn and drag
— that started with CockyBoys six
years ago. This is my personality.
It’s how I’ve always been. I want to
connect and humanize myself. I’m
doing it for a purpose. This documentary
has a message — about
mother/ son relationships. I’ve always
been a performer, be it dance
and cheerleading in high school
and college to being a go-go boy/
stripper or a drag queen. I love being
on a stage. And I love making
people happy and making them
smile. I’ve been able to move my
stage from dancer and cheerleader
to go-go and drag. I really am an
exhibitionist.
KRAMER: Do you feel you have
changed as a performer because
you have two lives?
KEMMERLE: The film was six
Luke Kemmerle with his mother Anne in Jake Jaxson’s “Leave It to Levi.”
years in the making. You see me
entering and becoming accomplished
in the porn world. I’m doing
the same thing in the drag world.
I’m starting in year one with drag.
Drag does give me the same rush.
When I entered porn, I wanted to
be the best, and Jake Jaxson, the
director made me write down goals
and achieve them. And I realized I
love the performing aspect. I was
looking for another thing to do.
Porn, for me, doesn’t pay for everything.
When I started performing
as a drag queen, I felt a same kind
of happiness and spark as when I
started porn and cheerleading and
stripping. Drag is a profession that
requires twice as much hustle as
porn, but if you want to do what
you want to do there are always obstacles.
KRAMER: You address being
lonely, having a breakup, and hurting.
What are your thoughts and
experiences with relationships and
what do you want from a relationship
now?
KEMMERLE: The breakup in the
film was the last relationship I was
in. I’ve been single since I’ve been
in the industry. That boyfriend was
also in the industry at the time. I
had a boyfriend from high school
until I was 19, and there were two-
to three-month relationships, and
one that was 18 months. But I took
myself out of the dating game for
five years.
TLA RELEASING
TLA RELEASING
Luke Kemmerle as Sassy Frass.
KRAMER: What prompted you
to first do drag?
KEMMERLE: I first started because
my best friend Misty is a
drag queen in New York and I am
always hanging out with her. In the
gay bars I’m Levi, but when you’re
a porn star in a gay bar people ask
questions — and I don’t need followup
questions in a public environment.
I was trying to avoid that.
Two years ago, Liam Riley helped
me get on stage. I wanted to perform.
Misty said she didn’t know I
wanted to take drag more seriously.
Now she helps me with makeup critiques
— but it’s always after the
show, when it’s too late!
KRAMER: Have you had any
negative feedback from fans who
learn about Sassy?
KEMMERLE: I haven’t had any
negative feedback. When we first
announced the film and posted
about it, there were some comments,
but more like, “I can’t watch
Levi’s porn again!” And someone recently
said, “I can’t watch Levi and
not think of Sassy.”
KRAMER: What observations do
you have about moms—your real
mom, your porn family, where RJ
is the mom, and your drag world,
where Misty is your mom?
KEMMERLE: I love that the
thread through the film is “moms.”
The real mom, the mom at work,
and the mom in friendship or chosen
family. They all mean different
things, but they all have nurturing
qualities in common. My mom is
my mom, and RJ plays mom and
he manages me and does the business
side — getting the groceries,
picking us up, and making sure
we’re fed and safe, and have enough
money, and that everyone is okay.
And Misty does the same thing,
but she does it as a friend and she’s
the least nurturing. I call her Mom
because that’s what you do in drag
etiquette. She has my back and I
have hers.
KRAMER: You state in the film,
“I’m not trying to piss anyone off
by being myself.” Who is Luke
Kemmerle, Levi Karter, and Sassy
Frass?
KEMMERLE: I do separate them.
I feel like Luke, Levi, and Sassy all
together make up one person who
I guess would be named Luke. But
Luke is who I am, Levi is a more of a
daredevil, take-chances kind of person,
and Sassy is very outspoken.
She will do and say things I wish I
had the confidence to. Putting on a
wig and makeup lets me say things
that I normally would not say. I created
a whole backstory for Sassy.
But Luke has laundry and bills,
Levi has to find a scene partner and
go to the gym, and Sassy takes up
all their time and money.
LEAVE IT TO LEVI | Directed by
Jake Jaxson | TLA Releasing |
Jan. 28 | tlareleasing.com
January 16 - January 2 26 9, 2020 | GayCityNews.com
/tlareleasing.com
/GayCityNews.com
