fyi
City of Eros: New York City, Prostitution, and the Commercialization of
Sex, 1790-1920, by Timothy Gilfoyle. New York, 1992.
Study of the changing patterns of prostitution in the ninetennth-century
city including descriptions and
maps of the neighborhoods as well as some discussion of specific
prostitutes and their clientele.
http://r2.gsa.gov/fivept/fphome.htm
http://r2.gsa.gov/fivept/readlist.htm
Daniel N. Pagano, Ph.D.
Urban Archeologist
The City of New York
Landmarks Preservation Commission
Municipal Building
One Centre Street, 9th Floor North
New York, NY 10007
Ph. 212 669 7826
Fax 212 669 7818
Email: [log in to unmask]
http://www.nyc.gov/landmarks
-----Original Message-----
From: A LISTSERV list for discussions pertaining to New York State
history. [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Annmarie
Lanesey
Sent: Thursday, May 31, 2007 10:10 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [NYHIST-L] Red Light Districts / Mame Faye
Greetings All!
I am a filmmaker working on a documentary video project about Mame Faye,
a madame who lived in Troy, NY and ran a brothel on Troy's 'line' (red
light district) at the turn of the century up until around 1943.
For the project we are interviewing and collecting oral histories from
people who have stories about times on 'the line' as well as from people
who have heard stories as passed down through the generations.
If anyone has any information on written documentation on red light
districts in and around NYS at the turn of the century or any
information on Troy's thriving red light district, or Mame Faye herself,
or other Madames from troy, and that time, I would greatly appreciate
anything offered!
More info on project:
-----------------
Mame Faye did not exist. At least that's what the history books would
have you believe. Prostitutes and madams, no matter how well-known or
successful, are not part of legitimate history. But the oldtimers of
Troy, New York insist that Mame Faye did exist. It would seem everyone
past the age of retirement in Troy has a story - funny, sordid,
unbelievable, apocryphal - about Mame. Together, these previously
unrecorded oral histories tell a rich tale of a booming industrial
city's complex relationship to its own seedy side at the end of the
Victorian era that was Troy's heyday.
Sitting on a Million is an experimental documentary (digital video;
estimated length 30:00) centered around this colorful lady from Troy's
past. With nods to unlikely influences such as Howard Zinn, Xaviera
Hollander (the "Happy Hooker") and Miranda July, Sitting on a Million is
a blend of oral history, wild speculation, unreliable narrators and
reenactments bringing to life the spirit of this forgotten woman. In
the realm of Mame's story, tall tales, rumors and urban myths vie with
newspaper records for legitimacy. Accounts contradict one another.
Two pictures identified as Mame Faye do not appear to be of the same
person. People shed tears at the memory of events that likely never
occurred. In this way the video actively deconstructs the received
wisdom of history textbooks and asks the viewer to consider the role of
memory and imagination in creating history.
This work is a collaboration between myself (Annmarie Lanesey) and Penny
Lane (both CV's attached). Thus far we have collected videotaped
personal remembrances of Mame from over 30 of Troy's elder citizens. We
have commissioned the Uncle Sam Chorus, a local barbershop quartet to
record songs in Mame's honor, mostly Irish love songs and funeral dirges
(our lady was a devout Irish Catholic). Bits of Mame's estate have
turned up around town: an outrageously huge ruby ring, an armoire, her
hand-carved oak bed. We are working with her sole remaining relatives,
who were not aware of their family connection until we contacted them,
to photograph clothes, paintings and other relics long lost in the
attic. Most recently, her gravestone, unmarked for 63 years (since her
death) was finally engraved with the name of the legendary woman who
lies beneath it.
Sitting on a Million asks the viewer to think beyond pre-conceived
notions about what a 'documentary' about prostitution would be like. We
are neither dwelling on the salacious details of who did what to whom
behind which doors nor are we attempting a
simplified-sex-positive-revisionist-history that paints prostitution as
an empowering act (though Mame was by all accounts a strong woman in a
time when the words 'strong' and 'woman' didn't go hand in hand).
Because of these characteristics, we see a very broad audience for this
piece made up of folks in both local and international contexts,
comprised of folks with feminist leanings, history buffs, postmodern
theorists, and senior citizens who will be pleased to see some
respectful representation of their generation.
--
---------------------------------
ANNMARIE LANESEY
http://www.mamefaye.com <http://www.mamefaye.com/>
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