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Porn Star Jenna Jameson Must Pay for 'Zombie Strippers!' No-Show

By Andrew Lu on November 14, 2012 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

An Illinois judge has ordered porn star Jenna Jameson to pay for failing to appear as promised at screenings of her film "Zombie Strippers!"

Just as Jameson failed to show up for her movie-theater appearances in suburban Chicago, Jameson also failed to show up for her court appearances, reports the Chicago Sun-Times.

The 38-year-old adult film actress was ordered to pay $92,000 in damages to theater owner Ted Bulthaup. The theater owner's attorney seemed happy with the result, though it remains unclear just how they plan to collect from Jameson, who lives out of state.

Last year, Jameson signed a contract to appear at two suburban theaters owned by Bulthaup. Jameson would have received a minimum of $10,000 for appearing at the venues to sign autographs, greet fans, and attend showings of her 2008 comedy-horror film, writes the Sun-Times.

In anticipation of her appearance, more than 1,200 advance tickets were sold. However, less than 48 hours before the event, Jameson backed out and claimed that she was sick.

But after Jameson called in sick, Bulthaup saw a video clip of Jameson attending a birthday party for celebrity blogger Perez Hilton. In his lawsuit, Bulthaup claims that "the day after she was too sick to appear in Illinois, she seemed fine in Hollywood."

As a result, Bulthaup sought $290,000 in damages, including $42,000 to cover the cost of her airfare, his refunded movie tickets, and lost food and beverage sales from her appearances, reports the Sun-Times. In addition, he sought almost $250,000 to compensate for lost publicity that would have been generated by her appearances.

With Jameson a no-show in court, the Illinois judge ruled for Bulthaup -- though he found Bulthaup's damages request "extraordinarily speculative." Because of that, the judge decreased the award significantly to $50,000 for lost publicity and $42,000 for ticket refunds and other expenses.

This case shows that you don't always need to be present at your court hearing. However, it sure does help if you want to win your case. Jameson may have been indifferent to the lawsuit, as she is based in California. It can be complicated to demand that someone living out of state comply with another state's court ruling.

If you have been sued or are suing someone living in a different state, you should contact an attorney experienced handling interstate issues.

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