In adult movies, having a flop means much more than mere box-office failure, and whispers of a letdown see Japan's most famous male porno star apparently facing a career crisis, according to Shukan Bunshun (5/31).

Rumors are spreading widely that 45-year-old stick flick stud Taka Kato is having trouble rising to the occasion, after a glittering career said to have included working with over 5,000 actresses.

Kato is a legend in the Japanese adult movie world, his dexterous digits attributed with the ability of making women ejaculate at will and earning him the moniker of "Goldfinger."

"Taka's a pro among pros, not just when the cameras are rolling, but also off-screen when it comes to dealing with actresses and the mood of the shoot," an adult video filmmaker tells Shukan Bunshun. "We get loads of requests from porno starlets to work with Taka because they say they've never ejaculated before and they know he'll make them shoot."

But another industry insider has a slightly different view.

"It's true Taka hasn't been showing up in many movies recently. The business has enough 'soup men' (actors paid to provide money shots without appearing on-screen), but there's a distinct dearth of popular male stars, so it's not as though there's no demand for his services," the insider says. "With Taka, there's a feeling that he's as high maintenance as some of the actresses. He gets really mad if there's no canned coffee ready on the set. He's older than most of the directors are and speaks his mind about camera angles and stuff, so a lot of the younger directors don't want to work with him. Taka earned his 'Goldfinger' reputation for being able to make women spray jets of ejaculate, but even that isn't as popular as many think, and most actresses say the practice is nothing but pain."

But Kato scoffs at the suggestions that little Taka's on the fritz.

"There's been lots of crap like that recently. It's all just a vicious rumor," Kato tells Shukan Bunshun, laughing. "Mind you, even if I was impotent, it's none of your bloody business."

Nonetheless, Kato does concede that his rocket doesn't quite launch the way that it used to.

"Does anyone's?" he asks rhetorically of Shukan Bunshun's reporter. "Is there anyone in their forties who rises better than they did in their twenties?"