Porn Star Makes Wrong Kind of Crossover with Mainstream Star Charlie Sheen: Will it Hurt Her Career?

Actor and Estevez family scion Charlie Sheen ended up in trouble again, this time at New York's famous Plaza Hotel. After a dinner briefly attended by ex-wife Denise Richards, Sheen excused himself and went back to a hotel room with porn actress Capri Anderson. Some reports called her an "escort" - something she hotly denies, insisting she's an actress. Sheen was found half-naked, intoxicated and had reportedly broken a chandelier. Anderson was found naked, screaming in the hotel room bathroom, and said she was afraid for her life.

The question is will all the tabloid attention help or hinder her budding career, and does she really want to stoop low enough to hang around with people like Sheen, who perpetually ends up in trouble with the police or in rehab?

"Sex workers" and adult performers have had mixed success "mixing" with mainstream stars in high profile situations.

Traci Lords

The famous porn actress and model who got drummed out of the business when it turned out she'd lied about her age and put everyone she'd worked with in danger of going to jail for child pornography has made repeated attempts at mainstream fame. She's put out music; she's had a guest turn in a Stephen King flick, "The Tommyknockers" (no joke there); and most recently had a supporting role as a pretty nasty porn actress in the Seth Rogen comedy "Zack and Miri Make a Porno." Lords probably won't win an Academy Award anytime soon and doesn't seem to have benefited anymore than long-time male porn actor Ron Jeremy from her star status. She remains essentially a bit-player in Hollywood.

Sasha Grey

A younger generation porn actress who starred in Steven Soderbergh's 2009 art-film "The Girlfriend Experience," which received mixed reviews. In the documentary, "9 to 5: Days in Porn," Grey said she considers herself an artist. She has appeared on "Entourage" and now has started making music, all after retiring from skin flicks. So far, one might consider her the most successful crossover adult performer outside Jenna Jameson, who started to become a household name after opening a popular website and appearing frequently on television talk shows. Mixing with Soderbergh and other stars has helped her career.

Heidi Fleiss

Another kind of sex worker, this one not originally over-fond of the media spotlight, and one who had something to say about Charlie Sheen.

Fleiss, popularly known in the '90s as the "Hollywood Madam," reportedly provided prostitutes to Sheen, who reportedly had a proclivity for asking them to dress up as cheerleaders.

All of the Madam's run-ins with the stars didn't stop her from ending up in prison and then eventually in a halfway house. It also didn't stop a jury from deciding one-time boyfriend actor Tom Sizemore physically abused Fleiss.

To sum up, it might seem counterintuitive, but sex workers who rub shoulders (and other things) with the stars often end up worse for the experience. However, the prevalence of porn online and in the culture means "adult entertainment" has become more common, and the people who work in the field perhaps more able to gain popular acceptance.