From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This list of prostitutes and courtesans includes famous persons who have engaged in
prostitution and
courtesan work.
Historical
Ancient world
Roman copy of the
Aphrodite of Cnidus .
Phryne was the model.
Early Modern era
Nell Gwyn
Madame du Barry
19th century
Famous nude painting of
Emma Dupont by
Jean-Léon Gérôme on his original canvas with scratches
Laura Bell , the "Queen of London whoredom"
Theresa Berkeley ,
dominatrix
Jeanne Brécourt , born 1837, one of France's most notorious courtesans
[1]
Annie Chapman , one of the "canonical five" victims of
Jack the Ripper
Mary Jane Kelly , one of the "canonical five" victims of
Jack the Ripper
Lizzie Lape , mid-Ohio madam, operator of multiple bordellos, 1880s-1900s
Mary Ann Nichols , one of the "canonical five" victims of
Jack the Ripper
Shady Sadie (
Josephine Marcus ), courtesan who had an affair with
Wyatt Earp
Elizabeth Stride , one of the "canonical five" victims of
Jack the Ripper
Martha Tabram , a possible victim of
Jack the Ripper
Libby Thompson , "Squirrel Tooth Alice," madam of a brothel in
Sweetwater, Texas
Julia Bulette , American prostitute in
Virginia City ,
Nevada
Emma Dupont , French courtesan and artist's model
20th century
Xaviera Hollander
Elizabeth Adams , (1933 or 1934–July 8, 1995), also known as Madam Alex, Hollywood madam
Polly Adler , New York madam, 1920s to 1940s
Air Force Amy , a legal prostitute in Nevada, pornographic actress, and adult model, who starred in the HBO television documentary series
Cathouse: The Series . MSNBC has called her "a living legend in the world of sex."
Josie Arlington , madam in
Storyville , New Orleans
Caridad la Negra (María de la Caridad Norberta Pacheco Sánchez) Spanish prostitute and madam, early to mid-20th century
Sexy Cora , German former prostitute, pornographic actress and reality show participant
Kimberly Daniels , former sex worker and drug addict who became a prolific author, religious minister and member of the Florida House of Representatives; introduced successful legislation to put
In God we trust in Florida school classrooms
Anette Dawn , make-up artist, ceramist and professional sex worker
Zahia Dehar , Algerian-French fashion and lingerie designer and model
Suzy Favor-Hamilton , 3 time Olympian for Track and Field, and the subject of intense publicity when her activities as an escort became public.
[2]
Heidi Fleiss , a.k.a. the "Hollywood Madam", ran an upscale prostitution ring based in Los Angeles during the 1990s
Mata Hari (born Margaretha Geertruida Zelle), Dutch spy
Gangubai Harjeevandas , a prostitute, an Indian social activist and madam of a brothel in the Kamathipura area of Mumbai during the 1960s
Xaviera Hollander , author of the memoir The Happy Hooker: My Own Story
La Macorina , Cuban courtesan, 1910s to 1930s
Carol Leigh , a.k.a. Scarlot Harlot, coined the term "sex worker"
[3]
Molly Luft , German prostitute, brothel owner and television personality
Brooke Magnanti , blogger and scientist who wrote as Belle de Jour and was the inspiration for
Billie Piper 's character in
Secret Diary of a Call Girl
Domenica Niehoff , German prostitute, dominatrix, sex worker rights activist and television personality
Barbara Payton , American actress turned prostitute
[4]
Charlotte Rose , an English sex worker, dominatrix, sexual trainer and political candidate
Liara Roux , American prostitute, sex worker rights activist and author in New York
Annie Sprinkle , American sex worker, porn star, and sex educator and writer
Margo St. James , activist and sex worker
Valérie Tasso , French author
Estella Marie Thompson , also known as Divine Brown, an American and former prostitute who gained public attention in 1995 when actor Hugh Grant was caught receiving oral sex from her in his car
Sheila Vogel-Coupe , at 85+ the oldest prostitute in the United Kingdom and, possibly, the world
Clara Ward, Princesse de Caraman-Chimay , daughter of a Michigan lumberman who spent most of her life in Europe
Lulu White , madam in Storyville, New Orleans
Fictional
In literature
Vasantasena from the
Sanskrit play
Mṛcchakatika
Angel/Sarah, Lucky, & Mai Ling, in
Redeeming Love by
Francine Rivers
Bella Cohen, Florry, & Zoe, in
Ulysses by
James Joyce
Belle,
Ah, Wilderness! by
Eugene O'Neill
Belle Watling,
Gone with the Wind by
Margaret Mitchell
Betsi, a female Whiphid,
Star Wars: X-wing (book series) by
Michael A. Stackpole .
Candy, in
Candy: A Novel of Love and Addiction by
Luke Davies
Candy, in
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by
Ken Kesey
Chandramukhi , in
Devdas by
Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay
Eccentrica Gallumbits , "The Triple-Breasted Whore of Eroticon Six" in
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by
Douglas Adams
Elisabeth Rouset, in "
Boule de Suif ", a short story by
Guy de Maupassant
Fanny Hill, in
Fanny Hill by
John Cleland
Fantine , in
Les Misérables by
Victor Hugo
Marguerite Gautier , from
Alexandre Dumas, fils ' work
La Dame aux camélias , inspired by real life 19th-century courtesan
Marie Duplessis ,
Jenny Smith, in
Kurt Weill 's
Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny and
The Threepenny Opera
Juliette, in the
Marquis de Sade 's
Juliette
Kamala, in
Siddhartha by
Hermann Hesse
Lady Sally, in
Callahan's Lady by
Spider Robinson
Lozana,
Portrait of Lozana by
Francisco Delicado
Lulu, in
Frank Wedekind 's plays and
Alban Berg 's
opera of the same name
Mamie Stover,
The Revolt of Mamie Stover by
William Bradford Huie
Manon Lescaut
Mistress Overdone, manager of a bordello in
Measure for Measure by
William Shakespeare
Moll Flanders ,
The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders by
Daniel Defoe
Molly Malone , Irish urban legend
Mother Goose, in
Stravinsky 's
The Rake's Progress
Nana,
Nana , by
Émile Zola
Nancy ,
Oliver Twist by
Charles Dickens
Odette, in
Marcel Proust 's Un amour de Swann
Phedre no Delauny of
Jacqueline Carey 's
Kushiel novels
Pie 'Oh' Pah, from
Imajica by
Clive Barker
Romulus, central character in
The Romanian: Story of an Obsession by
Bruce Benderson
Mrs. Rosie Palm, brothel owner and president of the Guild of "Seamstresses" in various
Discworld novels by
Terry Pratchett
Satine, in
Moulin Rouge! by
Baz Luhrmann , a story based on the Paris nightclub of the same name
Séverine Serizy, in the 1928 novel
Belle de Jour and the
1967 film based on it
Sonya Marmeladova ,
Crime and Punishment by
Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Suzie Wong, from
The World of Suzie Wong by
Richard Mason
Talanta, La Talanta by
Pietro Aretino
Thúy Kiều,
The Tale of Kieu by
Nguyễn Du
Tra La La,
Last Exit to Brooklyn by
Hubert Selby
Tristessa,
Tristessa by
Jack Kerouac
Vasantsenaa, a
Nagarvadhu , or wealthy courtesan, in
Śudraka 's
Sanskrit play
Mṛcchakatika
Violetta, main character from the opera
La Traviata by
Giuseppe Verdi , is also inspired by Alexandre Dumas'
La Dame aux camélias . "La Traviata" means "the reprobate".
Yumi Komagata, in
Rurouni Kenshin by
Nobuhiro Watsuki
Zaza, in
Zaza by
Pierre Berton and
Charles Simon [
fr ]
Film, television, and musical theater
Belle the Sleeping Car , train in
Starlight Express by
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Christine/Chelsea, central character in
The Girlfriend Experience
Inara Serra ,
Firefly by
Joss Whedon
Ai Nu (
Lily Ho [
fr ] ) in
Intimate Confessions of a Chinese Courtesan (1972) by
Chor Yuen (Hong Kong) (Mandarin) (Action, Drama)
Bree Daniels (
Jane Fonda ) in
Klute (1971) by
Alan J. Pakula (USA) (English) (Crime, Mystery, Thriller)
Cabiria (
Giulietta Masina ) in
Nights of Cabiria (1957) by
Federico Fellini (Italy, France) (Italian) (Drama)
Chandramukhi (
Vyjayanthimala and
Madhuri Dixit ) in
Devdas (1955) by
Bimal Roy and
Devdas (2002) by
Sanjay Leela Bhansali respectively (India) (Hindi, Urdu, Bengali) (Drama, Musical, Romance); from novella by
Saratchandra Chatterjee
Chiyo Sakamoto (
Ziyi Zhang ) in
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) by
Rob Marshall (USA) (English, Japanese) (Drama, Romance); from novel by
Arthur Golden
Claire Reine / Garance (
Arletty ) in
Children of Paradise (1945) by
Marcel Carné (France) (French) (Drama, Romance)
Constance Miller (
Julie Christie ) in
McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971) by
Robert Altman (USA) (English) (Drama, Western); from novel by
Edmund Naughton
Doris (
Barbra Streisand ) in
The Owl and the Pussycat (1970) by
Herbert Ross (USA) (English) (Comedy, Romance); from play by
Bill Manhoff
Eréndira (
Claudia Ohana ) in
Eréndira (1983) by
Ruy Guerra (France, Mexico, West Germany) (Portuguese, Spanish) (Drama); from novel by
Gabriel García Márquez
Fanny Hill (
Letícia Román ) in
Fanny Hill (1964) by
Russ Meyer (USA, West Germany) (English, German) (Comedy); from novel by
John Cleland
Fleur (
Anita Mui ) in
Rouge (1988) by
Stanley Kwan (Hong Kong) (Cantonese) (Drama, Fantasy, Music, Mystery, Romance); from novel by
Lilian Lee
Gigi (
Leslie Caron ) in
Gigi (1958) by
Vincente Minnelli (USA) (English, French) (); from novella by
Colette
Gloria Wandrous (
Elizabeth Taylor ) in
BUtterfield 8 (1960) by
Daniel Mann (USA) (English) (Drama); from novel by
John O'Hara
Hattie (
Susan Sarandon ) in
Pretty Baby (1978) by
Louis Malle (USA) (English) (Drama)
Ilya (
Melina Mercouri ) in
Never on Sunday (1960) by
Jules Dassin (Greece, USA) (English, Greek, Russian) (Comedy, Drama, Romance)
Iris (
Jodie Foster ) in
Taxi Driver (1976) by
Martin Scorsese (USA) (English, Spanish) (Crime, Drama)
Irma La Douce (
Shirley MacLaine ) in
Irma la Douce (1963) by
Billy Wilder (USA) (English) (Comedy, Romance); from play by
Alexandre Breffort
Isabelle (
Marine Vacth ) in
Young & Beautiful (2013) by
François Ozon (France) (French, German) (Drama, Romance)
Juxian (
Gong Li ), courtesan and prostitute at an upscale brothel before marrying Duan Xiaolou in the book and film
Farewell My Concubine
Liz (
Theresa Russell ) in
Whore (1991) by
Ken Russell (USA) (USA, UK) (Drama); from play by
David Hines
Lorena Wood (
Diane Lane ) in
Lonesome Dove (1989) by
Simon Wincer (USA) (English) (Adventure, Drama, Western); from novel by
Larry McMurtry
Lynn Bracken (
Kim Basinger ) in
L.A. Confidential (1997) by
Curtis Hanson (USA) (English) (Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller); from novel by
James Ellroy
Marguerite Gautier (
Greta Garbo ) in
Camille (1936) by
George Cukor (USA) (English) (Drama, Romance); from novel & play by
Alexandre Dumas
Maya (
Indira Varma ) in
Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love (1997) by
Mira Nair (USA, India, UK, Japan, Germany) (English, Italian) (Crime, Drama, History, Romance)
Nana (
Catherine Hessling ) in
Nana (1926) by
Jean Renoir (France) (French) (Drama, Romance); from novel by
Émile Zola
Ophelia (
Jamie Lee Curtis ) in the comedy film
Trading Places (1983)
Otsuya (
Ayako Wakao ) in
Irezumi (1966) by
Yasuzō Masumura (Japan) (Japanese) (Drama); from novel by
Jun'ichirō Tanizaki
Sahibjaan (
Meena Kumari ) in
Pakeezah (1972) by
Kamal Amrohi (India) (Urdu) (Musical, Romance, Drama)
Satine (
Nicole Kidman ) in
Moulin Rouge! (2001) by
Baz Luhrmann (Australia, USA) (English, French, Spanish) (Drama, Musical, Romance)
Satsu Sakamoto (
Samantha Futerman ), sister of Chiyo, who was not allowed to join the Geisha house and ended up in a brothel, instead. From the book and movie
Memoirs of a Geisha .
Seol-ji (
Kim Ok-bin ) in
The Accidental Gangster and the Mistaken Courtesan (2008) by Yeo Kyun-dong (South Korea) (Korean) (Action, Adventure, Comedy)
Séverine Serizy (
Catherine Deneuve ) in
Belle de Jour (1967) by
Luis Buñuel (France, Italy) (French, Spanish) (Drama); from novel by
Joseph Kessel
Suzie Wong (
Nancy Kwan ) in
The World of Suzie Wong (1960) by
Richard Quine (UK, USA) (English, Cantonese) (Drama, Romance); from novel by
Richard Mason
Tereza Batista (
Patrícia França ) in
Tereza Batista: Home from the Wars (1992) by Paulo Afonso Grisolli (Brazil) (Portuguese) (Drama); from novel by
Jorge Amado
Umrao Jaan (
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan ) in
Umrao Jaan (2006) by
J.P. Dutta (India) (Urdu, Hindi) (Drama, Romance); from novel by Mirza Haadi Ruswa
Veronica Franco (
Catherine McCormack ) in
Dangerous Beauty (1998) by
Marshall Herskovitz (USA) (English) (Biography, Drama, Romance); from biography by Margaret Rosenthal
Violet (
Brooke Shields ) in
Pretty Baby (1978) by
Louis Malle (USA) (English) (Drama)
Vivian Ward (
Julia Roberts ) in
Pretty Woman (1990) by
Garry Marshall (USA) (English) (Comedy, Romance)
Zoe (
Julie Delpy ) in
Killing Zoe (1993) by
Roger Avary (France, USA) (English, French) (Crime, Thriller)
Blanche Simmons (Louise Jameson), Dorothy Bennett (Veronica Roberts) and Maggie Thorpe (Lizzie Mickery) in Tenko are all to some degree prostitutes. Maggie is intended to be a replacement for Blanche as by the 3rd series of Tenko, Blanche dies offscreen as a result of beri-beri.
Symbolic or allegorical prostitutes
Myth and legend
Agatha - English prostitute, mother of
Mother Shipton
Basileia (Ancient Greece) - in Pandemos, this goddess was mainly a goddess for prostitutes or courtesans
[5]
Bebhinn (Celts of the British Isles) - the goddess of pleasure
Gomer , a prostitute whom God commanded
Hosea to marry in the biblical
Book of Hosea
Mary Magdalene was supposed to have been a prostitute by those who identified her with the sinful woman in
Luke 7:36–50 , an identification now generally abandoned
[6]
Naamah (Hebrews) - an angel of prostitution, one of the succubus mates of the demon
Samael in Zoharistic Qabalah
Rahab , Biblical prostitute who assisted the Hebrews in capturing Jericho (
Joshua 2:1–7 )
Shamhat (Sumer/Babylon)
[7]
Xochiquetzal (Aztecs) - the goddess of prostitutes, pregnant women, & dancing
Alexandra Dé Broussehan (Irish Celts) - a woman turned spirit of prostitution, caused a war between the Callahan and Lawlor Clans, and often associated with Korrigan whose worship involved sacred prostitution
[8]
See also
References
^
Commire, Anne , ed. (2002). "Jeanne Brécourt".
Women in World History : A biographical encyclopedia .
^
Suzy Favor Hamilton
^
Welcome to the World of Scarlot Harlot , her own web site, accessed 28 August 2006; Carol Leigh, Unrepentant Whore: Collected Works Of Scarlot Harlot , Last Gasp, 2004.
^ O'Dowd, John.
"Hollywood Bad Girl Barbara Payton" .
^ McNeill, Maggie (23 December 2010).
"Whore Goddesses" . The Honest Courtesan . Retrieved 31 March 2018 .
^ Filteau, Jerry "Scholars seek to correct Christian tradition on Mary Magdalene," Catholic News Service May 1, 2006.
[1]
^ Ditmore, Melissa Hope (ed), Encyclopedia of Prostitution and Sex Work, Volume 1 , Greenwood Publishing Group, 2006, pp.34-5.
^ Charles Squire Celtic Myth and Legend
Bibliography
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