Circus of Books

Circus of Books, directed by Rachel Mason, first premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2019 before being distributed globally by Netflix in 2020. This intimate, well-rounded documentary features Karen Mason, Barry Mason, and their son Micah Mason. The Mason parents owned and operated the titular business — Circus of Books — for over three decades. More than a simple general interest bookstore, Circus of Books was a haven in Los Angeles that sold gay pornographic movies and magazines, along with a variety of sex toys, while also serving as a meeting place for the city's gay community.

The uniqueness of Circus of Books lies not only in the subject matter it tackles but in what it casually subverts. On the surface, Karen and Barry Mason, shoppers may seem like any typical couple. Barry, a special-effects engineer, and Karen, a front-line journalist, are committed parents and proud members of their Jewish community. Over time, they were driven by financial necessity to enter the adult movie industry, even as they maintained a certain distance from it, a paradox that forms the crux of the documentary.

Named after the couple's well-known store, Circus of Books is a snapshot of an era and an examination of evolving awareness and acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community. Here, Rachel Mason shines a light on her parents' unconventional business and its cultural impact, while investigating the family dynamics surrounding such an enterprise. The documentary delves into the personal and the political, shifting between periods and exploring the various socio-political pressures that the bookstore, its owners, and patrons faced throughout those years.

Part of what makes Rachel Mason's documentary work so well is the dichotomy between her unconventional childhood (growing up in a household where the family business involved selling gay pornography), and her parents' steadfastly traditional and somewhat conservative outlook on life. The blend of personal history, gay history, and cultural change through the latter half of the 20th century gives viewers a time capsule of life in Los Angeles and wider America during those transformative years.

The documentary follows the trajectory of the shop from its humble beginnings in the 1980s, when Barry Mason responded to an LA Times job posting about distributing a gay magazine called 'Hustler.' This led to the unexpected path of entrepreneurship, culminating in Circus of Books — two adult book stores, a lucrative mail-order business, and eventually, a movie production company. Circus of Books the film not only documents this journey but also deftly manages to capture the zeitgeist from which this store emerged.

Karen Mason emerges as the compelling, complex figure in the documentary, wrestling with her religious beliefs, and coming to terms with their business and how it impacts their family, especially when one of their own children, (not the director Rachel Mason), comes out as gay. The parents' extraordinary journey from the business they ran to advocating for gay rights is portrayed sincerely and touchingly, creating an affecting narrative about acceptance, love, and understanding.

Additionally, Circus of Books gives its viewers a front-row seat to the AIDS crisis, government obscenity trials, shifting societal norms, and the effects of the internet on individual businesses and the pornography industry at large. Notably, their business directly faced the brunt of federal and local law enforcement pressure as they were targeted due to the nature of their products.

In its heart, Circus of Books is a revealing, insightful exploration of the contradictions and complexities of a family navigating their journey through cultural history. The Masons shared a slice of their life with the world, offering a microcosm study of societal changes over the last four decades. Their resilience and compassion, coupled with their unique position at the vortex of commerce, community, and controversy make their story all the more fascinating.

With disarming honesty and a keen eye for irony, Rachel Mason's Circus of Books is a refreshing take on family bonds, identity, acceptance, and surviving in the face of unexpected adversities. The documentary is a mosaic of family, business, community, and historical narratives, leaving viewers with an enduring impression of an extraordinary ordinary family and their journey.