Xaviera Hollander, Author, The Happy Hooker
Xaviera Hollander, a former call girl and once the most powerful madam in New York City, became an international phenomenon with the publication in 1972 of her book, The Happy Hooker.
Podcast
Overview
This episode of The Brand Called You starts with our host, Lisa Lipkin sharing her story of the time she was living in New York City and how a phone call with Xaviera Hollander changed her life. Well, our guest for today is none other than Xaviera.
Xaviera Hollander is pretty bold and straightforward. She doesn’t care about being politically correct or what others think about her. She speaks what she finds right without the fear of being judged. Not only her vocals are carefree, but her actions too are quite bold. Xaviera Hollander was in the prostitution business for many years. She did it because she felt it was the right thing to do.
She has authored many books and has also co-authored a book with Robin Moore called ‘The Happy Hooker’ which became the best-selling book of its time. The book is centered around the life of Xavier Hollander. In the book, she talks about the twists and turns her life looks at different stages.
The Happy Booker
Xaviera tells us that she used to go to the Edinburgh Theatre Festival. There she saw a Polish show. It was a one-man show about his trip from Moscow to Petuskey. She liked the show and approached the artist to do a show in Holland as well. She booked a theatre for that show in Holland and this is how her journey as a theatre booker started.
Getting to Robin Moore
Xaviera tells us that she was in connection with Arthur Moore, Robin Moore’s brother. One day she called Arthur when Robin picked up. Then Robin visited Xaviera and talked to her for an hour. He paid the money to Xaviera just after talking to her. He used to visit her every two-three weeks, talk to her, listen to her stories but never touched her. At this, Xaviera grew suspicious and talked to her lawyer about it. She then got to know that Robin Moore was taping her without her knowledge. Later Robin Moore and Xaviera Hollander signed a contract of co-authorship of the book.
She also tells us that when Robin Moore came up with the name, ‘The Happy Hooker’, she wanted to change it to ‘Come and Go’ but they finally decided to go with the former.
The MeToo business
In Xaviera’s opinion, the #metoo has poisoned the country. She believes that even if the man is not guilty, he is being talked bad about and facing me too charges for something that happened 40 years ago with the consent of both parties. She talks about a woman who married seven times and sucked her husband financially. She says this is also hooking in her opinion. She further talks about film actresses who started as prostitutes and offered their bodies to film directors in exchange for roles in the film. She says that many physical relationships that were consensual are being charged as torture now.
How did the life at the Japanese internment camp affect Xaviera’s life?
Xaviera spent three years of her life at a Japanese Internment Camp. As our host Lisa Lipkin asks her about how her life changed after it she tells us that she could not cry for a long time after she got out of it so she was on a psychiatrist treatment. The psychiatrist told her that either a woman could be very powerful or she could be nebbish for the rest of her life. She understood this and stopped looking at herself as a victim.
Things Xaviera wants to focus on now
Xaviera tells us that she wants to focus on good health now. She has various health issues and she just wishes to have good health.
Profile
Xaviera Hollander, a former call girl and once the most powerful madam in New York City, became an international phenomenon with the publication in 1972 of her book, The Happy Hooker. A racy account of her life behind the brothel door, The Happy Hooker became an instant classic that marked the intersection between the Playboy generation and the sexual revolution of the feminist era. For 35 years she doled out sexual advice in her column for Penthouse titled Call me Madam, and authored numerous books including, Child No More, a poignant story about losing her mother. She became The Happy Booker, producing cutting edge theater plays in her native Netherlands, before establishing a successful bed and breakfast In Amsterdam, where she currently resides.
