Libido doesn't like hypocrisy. Thus, strict Victorian morality and American prudishness are accompanied by an army of several hundred thousand prostitutes and tens of thousands of brothels. And among them the most famous - Everleigh Club in Chicago. If you are feeling adventurous, we invite you to the most expensive brothel at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries!
At the beginning, the entrance fee is 50 dollars. Yes, I know it's more than the average monthly salary, but you won't regret a single cent. There are 30 ladies to choose from, but be warned that most have pre-registration. Emma? That's $ 250, of course, if it's for God's sake, you have to pay twice as much for French fantasies. Something else? A bottle of champagne in the room? $ 700 in total. Payment by check only! Yes, on the Utopia Novelty Company, that surely won't bother your wife.
To humiliate us, not us
In the real life stories of the sisters Ada and Minna Everleigh, absolutely nothing agrees with what they like to tell about themselves. They do not come from wealthy homes, they are not educated, they have never married, so they were also not beaten by their husbands and could not run away from them, since the alleged spouses did not exist at all.
They are 10 years older than they admit, and of course have never been Everleigh - they were inspired by their grandmother to adopt the pretentious "aristocratic" name, ending her letters to the sisters with "Everly Yours." The only thing that is certain is that they perfectly guess what men dream about. And they have a firm resolve:to make a great profit on this knowledge. And this certainly cannot be achieved in the provinces. As Diane Ducret writes in her book Mafia Women :
They won't play for pennies. Either they make a fortune and take advantage of the men crawling at their feet, or they get nothing. They have to look for a metropolis. Dynamically developing cities.
This was the facade of the most famous brothel in Chicago. The Everleigh sisters chose this town because of the little competition. The mafia capital of the US has never seen such luxurious brothels as this one.
The savings they have accumulated over the years, earned with their own body, invest in the purchase of a building at 2131–2133 South Dearborn Street in Chicago's The Levee red light district. But this tryst house will be completely different from anything that a shady neighborhood has to offer.
After many months of terribly expensive renovation, the interior is intimidating with its splendor:Persian carpets, mahogany carvings, golden spittoons, and in the main living room a huge fountain and a gilded piano for 15,000 dollars (at today's prices, about a million zlotys). Before (or after - at their discretion) the sensations of the body, guests can relax in an excellent restaurant, decorated in a style reminiscent of the famous Pullman carriages, in a carefully stocked bookcase or in a small art gallery. Only on the first floor, discreet, soundproofed, themed apartments await exclusive guests - a choice of Chinese, Persian, Egyptian, Japanese, Turkish rooms, 1000 mirrors and dozens of others.
Be proud and happy in what you do!
But the most important lure are thirty carefully selected "butterflies". All girls in the industry dream of being auditioned at "Empress of Evil". Ada and Minna break up with shame pedagogy - "girls are to be proud to belong to the Everleigh Club."
In addition to a beautiful face and a great figure, they have their own, well-thought-out opinion on all current topics, they know literature very well and recite their favorite poems by heart. "Contemplating pleasure means more than pleasure itself" - is the sister motto that they stick in the heads of their employees.
The article was inspired by Diane Ducret's book entitled " Women of the Mafia ”(Horizon 2017 sign).
Girls are always dressed in evening dresses, expensive jewelry and use the best perfumes. All of them are also encouraged to epilate, as at home men are usually deprived of this pleasure. "A man only acts like a gentleman when he is properly treated," instructs Minna's "butterflies", teaching them patience and respect for customers. It is not just anyone who gets here, the wealth of the wallet is a barrier that eliminates brutes and simpleton, and, as he brutally adds the brothel:"Whatever happens in the rooms, there is no place for tears" . The best girls are paid really great money by the Everleigh sisters - $ 400 a week, which is ten times more than they could earn on the streets and dozens of times more than the income of women working in the store.
Do you value good journalism?
A new haven of pleasure requires intense and ingenious promotion. Rides around Chicago in a special open carriage are a real sensation, during which one of the "butterflies" presents its charms to random passers-by with a discreet but unambiguous movement.
The real bull's eye, however, are the free tickets for journalists. "Minna and Ada Everleigh are to the senses what Christ was to Christianity," excited Chicago journalist Jack Lait. Meanwhile, the chief executive of the Chicago Tribune is desperately looking for a reporter to report on the great fire for the newspaper. After unsuccessful attempts to track down anyone in the newsroom and at home, he makes a phone call to the Everleigh Club asking dramatically if any of his journalists are there. Ada Everleigh responds matter-of-factly, "Which one should I ask?" No wonder that the press reports are full of admiration for the club's cultural life.
Even in the black and white photo you can see the dazzling splendor of the "Club" founded by the sisters. No wonder he was visited by equally exclusive guests.
Politicians try to avoid an exclusive brothel - a presence in such a place could completely ruin your reputation! Of course, this does not prevent them from taking lavish bribes for turning a blind eye to shameful practice - just one John Coughlin, a local councilor, costs the sisters $ 20,000 a year. The huge income allows you to balance the budget without any problems, and famous guests of the club add prestige to it.
When the brother of the German emperor, Henry Hohenzollern, comes to visit the United States, he disregards all the official points of the program and orders us to go to the Everleigh sisters from Chicago right away. It is a vivid proof that the club's fame has already crossed the Atlantic! The prince will be particularly delighted with the opportunity to drink champagne from a woman's slipper - girls see this gesture as a manifestation of European haberdashery.
Another famous guest of the club is the first black boxing world champion, Jack Johnson, who, however, for racial reasons, the sisters must refuse the service of "butterflies". By savoring alcohol in the lounge, however, he manages to seduce as many as five girls, who then start seeing him outside the club. For which they will pay a job anyway.
The Everleigh sisters liked to portray themselves. They wanted to look dignified in every painting. They did not consider themselves ordinary "brothels", but ladies and mothers of a thriving business. Illustrated by Minna Everleigh circa 1895.
Protests by day, fun by night
Of course, the club does not lack influential enemies, especially in the circle of clergy and moralizers. There are raids by defenders of female honor. As he writes in Women of the Mafia Diane Ducret:
A preacher of the good news falls on his knees in front of one of the girls' satin skirt and calls the Almighty to abandon the vice, which makes her friends amused .
The situation is saved by Minna, who politely explains to a group of protesters that girls may be a bit vulgar, but at least they are not hypocrites. The shot is on target! A rebel of prudishness gets up from his knees as quickly as possible, he probably belongs to a large group of men - defenders of female worship during the day and sexual predators at night.
Ada Simms aka Everleigh outlived her sister by twelve years. However, when Minna was gone, she no longer had the strength to run any business. She sold almost all of her belongings and moved to Virginia, where she lived to be ninety-something.
Soon the Everleigh Club is targeting Rodney "Gipsy" Smith - " a messenger of God "from the Gypsy tent . A charismatic religious leader gathers 1,200 believers who gather at the door of a luxurious tryst house. It may not be a lynching threat yet, but the atmosphere is very tense.
Incidents are escalating. The mayor of Chicago, skeptical at first about the fight against prostitution, is forced to take a clear stand, especially with whispers in town about a murder near a club whose perpetrators were the Everleigh sisters' charges. So Mayor Harrison issues a decision to close the flagship of the sex business. Over the next two years, he will close down another several hundred brothels and prostitution will be punished with imprisonment.
We had a lot of fun, didn't we?
Of course, the problem will not go away. Lovers of carnal pleasures will soon find themselves in the underworld, controlled by the growing Chicago gangs. In this reality, however, there is no longer any place for professional female artists. Minna and Ada Everleigh say goodbye to Chicago without regret - in ten years they have made a real fortune, estimated at eight million dollars.
Although the preserved photos of the Everleigh Club are not very clear, it is impossible not to notice the ingenuity in its device. For example, the Japanese room shown in the picture was very popular - not only among lovers of local culture.
On the last night, the most expensive alcohols are pouring in streams, every now and then more pairs disappear on the floor, and everyone's brakes are released. Dressed in the most exquisite gown, Minna climbs up to a chair and gives an occasional toast:"My dear, we had a good time here, right? I close this brothel and leave with a smile on my face, ”he adds, hearing that the policemen are pounding on the door.
The Everleigh Club is no more, but the sisters continue their odyssey. As Diane Ducret writes:
The evil empresses, richer than their best customers, head to the East Coast with their suitcases stuffed with cash. They reach New York, where they will - once again - start over.
This time, however, it will not be a brothel, but ... Readers' Club. With human respect, lovers of literature will live to a healthy and rich old age:Minna eighty-two and Ada ninety-six.