Chicken Ranch (Texas)

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The Chicken Ranch (dt. About chicken farm or chicken ) was an American brothel in Texas Fayette County , outside the city limits of La Grange .

history

The brothel was operated illegally, but largely tolerated by the sheriff and the citizens. The first owner and puff mother was Miss Jessie Williams, who had come from Waco . During the Great Depression of the 1930s, the brothel came to be known by the ambiguous name of Chicken Ranch , due to the frequent acceptance of chickens as payment.

In the early 1950s, Miss Edna Milton became the manager of the cathouse, who continued the business after Williams' death. Although prostitution was prohibited by law, Miss Milton developed a kind of collaboration with the authorities. A prerequisite for the work of the prostitutes was an examination of the women's history to make sure they were not criminals. A doctor examined the women weekly. In addition, they were not allowed to contact the people in the area. The brothel bought food and other items exclusively from local shops and dealers. The deal was mutually beneficial and most residents did not object to it.

In 1973 a lengthy exposé about the brothel by Marvin Zindler, a Houston reporter, was broadcast on television. The sudden hype forced the owner to close the brothel. People in the county collected 3,000 signatures on a petition against the closure. The sheriff presented the application to the Texas governor, Dolph Brisco , who categorically declined the appeal.

The 1973 song La Grange by the US blues rock band ZZ Top pays homage to the brothel.

The story of the brothel was processed by Larry L. King and Peter Masterson, with the music and lyrics from Carol Hall, the musical The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas premiered in 1977 in Actors Studio New York . At the Richard Rodgers Theater , the musical was four years to find more. The musical was filmed in 1982 under the title The Most Beautiful Whorehouse in Texas with Burt Reynolds , Dolly Parton and Dom DeLuise in the lead roles.

See also

literature

  • Jan Hutson: The Chicken Ranch: The True Story of the Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. Authors Choice Press, San Jose 1980/2000, ISBN 0-595-12848-3
  • Larry L. King: The Whorehouse Papers . Viking Press, New York 1982, ISBN 0-670-15919-0
  • Jayme Lynn Blascke: Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch: The Definitive Account of the Best Little Whorehouse . Arcadia Publishing, 2016, ISBN 978-1-4396-5704-1

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas - Broadway Musical - Original in the Internet Broadway Database , accessed June 13, 2017.