"Sticky Fingers: Profiling the Modern Hustler"

[bcohen7719]

That's the odd title for a new article in "Edge," the

NYC online magazine, for the "new escort scene." However, the article seems to be upbeat, and has some hunky photos of real-life escorts (I think). A link is below. If you have time to look--any reactions?

 

Best wishes,

 

BC

 

http://www.edgenewyork.com/index.php?ch=nightlife&sc=&sc2=&sc3=&id=116999

[dfw2sfo]

What the website?

 

What website in LA are they talking about?

[Michael Wayne]

I hate the term hustler. I have never hustled anyone. I mean the clients come to me willingly. They seek me out. i don't seek them out. Otherwise it is a good article and accurate.

[bcohen7719]

I hate the term hustler. I have never hustled anyone. I mean the clients come to me willingly. They seek me out. i don't seek them out. Otherwise it is a good article and accurate.

 

You are so very right. I don't think people use the term "hustler" very much more except for "Pool Hall Hustler" or (bleh) "Hustler Magazine."

 

BC

[Guest Ace]

I agree with Mikey about the "hustler" reference....I enjoyed the piece.

Here is my favorite part:

In other words, it’s all in a days work. Whereas the rest of us grab a briefcase or portfolio on our way out the door to work, these boys grab condoms and lube. They are not streetwalkers; on the contrary, they are online businessmen who deliver their services via touch. Disguised as male companions for the evening - and, I guess, in many ways they are - they suck and fuck their way all the way to the bank as they pay for school, nice clothes, and rent on luxury condos. It would seem that the male hustler has come a long way, claiming his rightful spot in 2011 as a legitimate opportunist - sticky fingers and all.

Sent as I sit naked in bed at The W in San Diego, gearing up for another "day at the office!"

[+ Charlie]

If you check today's thread warning about "Master Brian" in NYC, you will see that the photo he is using in Next magazine is the same one that is used in the article, and that it is actually of a non-escort.

[+ glutes]

What would it be if an escort asks for the money upfront, and then does not show up for said weekend appointment?

 

a. To obtain something by deceitful or illicit means; practice theft or swindling.

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/hustler

[+ David-SF]

Ugh!

 

its basically a plug for escort websites and the hookies

did not like the article AT ALL!.

[Diverdan]

I'm with David, I did not like the article, and to me it smacked of a promotional piece for a particular site. I didn't like the title or the content or anything about it.

[bcohen7719]

If you check today's thread warning about "Master Brian" in NYC, you will see that the photo he is using in Next magazine is the same one that is used in the article, and that it is actually of a non-escort.

 

Charlie:

 

I added a "Response" to one already posted to those below the online article explaining the scam.

 

BC

[rvwnsd]

I don't like the use of "sticky fingers" or "hustler." To me, "sticky fingers" implies stealing and no escort has stolen from me. Nor have I ever been "hustled." The only guy who stole from me was someone I was dating. Other than that, the piece was not bad.

[seeker630]

I'm with David, I did not like the article, and to me it smacked of a promotional piece for a particular site. I didn't like the title or the content or anything about it.

 

DD - which site did you feel was promoted above the others? I see mentions of Adam4Adam and the Hookies (Rentboy?) and a picture of Rentmen. I guess the Rentmen picture is more obvious but it isn't otherwise mentioned.

 

I find the title somewhat confusing - nothing in the article itself suggests 'sticky fingers' to me.

 

I thought the point of the article was that modern escorts aren't the hustlers of stereotype.

[+ David-SF]

clairification (soap box)

 

I realize when I read the article that it was in fact attempting to to say that modern day escorts are not thieves hustler etc.

In the final paragraph of the story it does give a small amount of time in defense of the male sex worker.

It was the sensational gratuitous superficial content that really turned me off.

Poorly written to garner readership of the tabloid ilk.

Much like many a blogger these days like to write opinion pieces made to sound like fact.

This in some way feels the same.

It carelessly reports and utilizes these small factoids from sources that no one has ever heard of but who cares right it makes for good press..... NOT.

In the end it paints a picture of male sex workers living to get by to pay for school rent etc.

It side steps the reality of this work by professional hard working providers and the importance of a profession.

For centuries the Male sex worker has been around

this story skips how extremely gratifying it is to both clients and providers alike.

 

One day (one hopes) I would finally like to see someone write a piece the brings to light what it takes to be a male sex worker

One that provides insight to a legitimate profession and highlights the talent and skills one possesses to do this work.

 

There are times even here in the MC there are lots of references to escorting being illegal, that we dont pay taxes, that we dont really have a bonified accepted profession in the real world.

or that we need look at this work as any other business when instead we could be honing a craft of unique proportions.

If escorting was like hertz rental car or a small business then providers would just assume opening a 711 store rather than loving and embracing their work in ways many of the escorts do these days.

 

The reference to rentboy hookies and rentmen adam4adam were not any one plug but a plug to all of them.

Those banners cost money and if I were Edge I would have written to rentmen A4A

and said hey were are writing a piece on male escorts want to buy some space on the story.

We can make a nice banner ad for you a drive business to your site. (hypothetical of course)

We can help get the word out about the Hookies etc etc etc.

Maybe they did, maybe not.Rentmen has a great banner there maybe A4a did not but its all apart of the business.

I have no real problem with that.

Imagine if the story was well written and made guys think about hiring and felt it was a awesome thing to do.

The benefit for the banners/plugs would have been a great investment. for anyone shoot I would have bought a space too.

 

My expectations are high when it comes to stories about this work.

I will say there is some sense of reality to it.

I would venture to guess a more in depth less TMZ style story would have been better for the the male sex worker and its readers.

 

steps down off soap box

[leigh.bess.toad]

steps down off soap box

 

David -- you'd better step back up on that soapbox to take a bow. You encapsulated my feelings beautifully.

[Bart]

I have always referred to the working guy as a gentleman in almost every post. On this website that would be the level to be at. Most of the members or contributors look for something more than just the sex hook up. It would be great if that were the industry norm. I think we insulate ourselves at times here at the article although very thinly written and covering way too many subjects, is how I believe a lot of the industry is.

You have the low end hustler scam, most of us have been handled that way at least once, me twice.

A huge portion of the industry is in fact sex quick in and out.

That is how many of the gentlemen I have talked to were approached.

You can add civility to the process, add companionship, conselor and so many other titles but I believe that is a far fewer % of the participants.

To be honest I think a majority of the gentlemen hiring are looking for that one hour or less anonymous sex.

I think we here are a minority. I like this world, but is the article that far fetched from reality.

I agree it would be great to have a series of articles about the professional gentleman and all the work that goes into it.

Then maybe a movie and a Julia Roberts ending too, but sometimes we cant forget that there are a lot of drug users and guys who are barely scraping by and this is their last resort. I think that is more than norm than we think.

I have nothing but respect for the gentlemen who work their butts off to try and give me a great time and get know me but we have to know that the other side is their and right in our face.

[+ deej]

I would venture to guess a more in depth less TMZ style story would have been better for the the male sex worker and its readers.

 

That's true, but it's unlikely we'll ever see it.

 

Part of the problem is that the cub reporters generally assigned to this kind of story have never hired an escort (or been one), have no overall concept of the business or the people in it, and draw all their conclusions from 20 minutes surfing the web. Another part of the problem is that editors will shy away from presenting the "seamy" side of life (and that IS the way most of society sees it) in ANY way that is positive.

 

About 7-8 years ago The Advocate ran a story where the author, a newbie, went as far as actually hiring an escort and experiencing a session. He described his process from the first phone call, describing every mistake he made along the way but clearly not understanding that he was making mistakes. (Money up front? Okey Dokey!) At the end, having NOT gotten what he actually wanted, he concluded "it was OK, but I probably wouldn't do it again".

 

As you can imagine, the article was met with general catcalls around here. HooBoy was tempted to buy the guy a session with a *good* escort.

 

While I wasn't overly happy with this article, at least it doesn't paint all escorts as homeless drug addicts screwing for their next fix, which is a step up in the world in general.

[rickp]

I liked that the article mentioned "paying for school," which is much more than just getting by. A college education, especially with graduate school can cost upwards of 100,000$ and I'm very happy to be one of the few people I know in my profession not paying a student loan note every month.

 

I though the reference sort of implied that most escorts are educated and worldly.

[seeker630]

I realize when I read the article that it was in fact attempting to to say that modern day escorts are not thieves hustler etc.

In the final paragraph of the story it does give a small amount of time in defense of the male sex worker.

It was the sensational gratuitous superficial content that really turned me off.

Poorly written to garner readership of the tabloid ilk.

Much like many a blogger these days like to write opinion pieces made to sound like fact.

This in some way feels the same.

It carelessly reports and utilizes these small factoids from sources that no one has ever heard of but who cares right it makes for good press..... NOT.

In the end it paints a picture of male sex workers living to get by to pay for school rent etc.

It side steps the reality of this work by professional hard working providers and the importance of a profession.

For centuries the Male sex worker has been around

this story skips how extremely gratifying it is to both clients and providers alike.

 

One day (one hopes) I would finally like to see someone write a piece the brings to light what it takes to be a male sex worker

One that provides insight to a legitimate profession and highlights the talent and skills one possesses to do this work.

 

There are times even here in the MC there are lots of references to escorting being illegal, that we dont pay taxes, that we dont really have a bonified accepted profession in the real world.

or that we need look at this work as any other business when instead we could be honing a craft of unique proportions.

If escorting was like hertz rental car or a small business then providers would just assume opening a 711 store rather than loving and embracing their work in ways many of the escorts do these days.

 

The reference to rentboy hookies and rentmen adam4adam were not any one plug but a plug to all of them.

Those banners cost money and if I were Edge I would have written to rentmen A4A

and said hey were are writing a piece on male escorts want to buy some space on the story.

We can make a nice banner ad for you a drive business to your site. (hypothetical of course)

We can help get the word out about the Hookies etc etc etc.

Maybe they did, maybe not.Rentmen has a great banner there maybe A4a did not but its all apart of the business.

I have no real problem with that.

Imagine if the story was well written and made guys think about hiring and felt it was a awesome thing to do.

The benefit for the banners/plugs would have been a great investment. for anyone shoot I would have bought a space too.

 

My expectations are high when it comes to stories about this work.

I will say there is some sense of reality to it.

I would venture to guess a more in depth less TMZ style story would have been better for the the male sex worker and its readers.

 

steps down off soap box

 

David,

Thanks for taking the time to express your feelings & thoughts. I suspect that if I were an escort, I'd be more critical of the piece than I was. I agree that it was pretty superficial and as you & others have noted, limited time & research went into it.

It's a fluff piece, not a serious examination of the 'male sex worker'.

 

But I also think that you & most of the other escorts who post here are a minority in the world of escorts. If you look at the ads on most sites and places like the former Craigslist, I don't think you'll get the sense that they view themselves as 'professional sex workers'. I believe that the majority of those escorting are doing it for the money as an adjunct to another job or a short-term financial solution. Of course I have no way to verify this opinion.

 

And to be clear, I am in no way diminishing the value of either those professionals like yourself or the short-term guys (as long as they deliver the agreed services.) Not everyone can afford to (or wants to) hire for weekends and travels. And some clients want the BFE while others want rough sex. There's a market for various flavors and levels of service, and thankfully there's a range of providers.

[+ David-SF]

Agreed !

 

David,

Thanks for taking the time to express your feelings & thoughts. I suspect that if I were an escort, I'd be more critical of the piece than I was. I agree that it was pretty superficial and as you & others have noted, limited time & research went into it.

It's a fluff piece, not a serious examination of the 'male sex worker'.

 

But I also think that you & most of the other escorts who post here are a minority in the world of escorts. If you look at the ads on most sites and places like the former Craigslist, I don't think you'll get the sense that they view themselves as 'professional sex workers'. I believe that the majority of those escorting are doing it for the money as an adjunct to another job or a short-term financial solution. Of course I have no way to verify this opinion.

 

And to be clear, I am in no way diminishing the value of either those professionals like yourself or the short-term guys (as long as they deliver the agreed services.) Not everyone can afford to (or wants to) hire for weekends and travels. And some clients want the BFE while others want rough sex. There's a market for various flavors and levels of service, and thankfully there's a range of providers.

 

Yes I too must agree with bart and seeker and everyone else its true the escort world is filled with one hit wonders and one hour wham bam hour appts (which BTW i happen to like very much too) there is a lid for every pot. I just get bored with the same old formula story of get the story and make it sound good bend it reshape it and cater to the readers with little interest in quality and be sure its simple to understand and exciting POW BOOM WHACK !! . when its over is there anything thing left. makes one read thats all there is to it besides, undress have sex dress get out get paid and get it over with OTOH I also agree with Rick that paying for school and rent is very important. does open my mind to another view point (thanks)

I'm just one opinion in a world of many its def a step up as Deej said from being called a WHo RE and a thief or worse and anything is better than nothing ...... I suppose

[nate_sf]

I just get bored with the same old formula story of get the story and make it sound good bend it reshape it and cater to the readers with little interest in quality and be sure its simple to understand and exciting POW BOOM WHACK !! . when its over is there anything thing left. makes one read thats all there is to it besides, undress have sex dress get out get paid and get it over with OTOH I also agree with Rick that paying for school and rent is very important. does open my mind to another view point (thanks)

 

This was my sense of the story too, that it was following a familiar formula. These types of stories seem to pop up regularly, and always written with a naughty-naughty/titillation tone. All it needed was the trite photo of someone putting their finger in front of their lips to indicate "shushh! secret!" And like Deej mentions, the way it's written it seems like the writer doesn't really know much about the topic and is themselves fascinated. But maybe that's what the reader is looking for too, who knows.

 

What I did like was the angle on paying for school, particularly since this was how I got into escorting myself. Also that the stereotype of drug use is challenged. So it had some positive qualities at least, despite the hyped tone.

[bcohen7719]

I have always referred to the working guy as a gentleman in almost every post. On this website that would be the level to be at. Most of the members or contributors look for something more than just the sex hook up. It would be great if that were the industry norm. I think we insulate ourselves at times here at the article although very thinly written and covering way too many subjects, is how I believe a lot of the industry is.

You have the low end hustler scam, most of us have been handled that way at least once, me twice.

A huge portion of the industry is in fact sex quick in and out.

That is how many of the gentlemen I have talked to were approached.

You can add civility to the process, add companionship, conselor and so many other titles but I believe that is a far fewer % of the participants.

To be honest I think a majority of the gentlemen hiring are looking for that one hour or less anonymous sex.

I think we here are a minority. I like this world, but is the article that far fetched from reality.

I agree it would be great to have a series of articles about the professional gentleman and all the work that goes into it.

Then maybe a movie and a Julia Roberts ending too, but sometimes we cant forget that there are a lot of drug users and guys who are barely scraping by and this is their last resort. I think that is more than norm than we think.

I have nothing but respect for the gentlemen who work their butts off to try and give me a great time and get know me but we have to know that the other side is their and right in our face.

 

Bart:

 

To go further with your excellent points, what kind of writing/publication would you find most gratifying or useful? Do you mean a website or a printed book?

 

BC