Polly Adler

Polly Adler was one of the most well-known Madams in NYC during the 1920s; a ruckus era of speakeasies, brothels, the mob, and sexual expression. Polly rose from a shtetl in the Russian Pale of Settlement to become “The Queen Madam”. Not only was she known to supply girls to wealthy men, but her nightclubs that dotted the city were a favorite haunt for some of the most famous names of 1920s New York. Polly Adler’s profession was not a new one by the 1920s. Brothels, which provide the services of sex workers, have been woven within the fabric of civilization since its inception. The first record of the trade was temple-brothels operating in the region of Canaan in 2400 BCE. For many cities throughout history, an area is dedicated to the sex trade, often known as the Red Light District. It was considered a necessary, albeit shameful, element of any urban society. Polly and her profession are glorified or villainized depending on what you read. She can be depicted as a brilliant businesswoman and an open-minded feminist or as a high-end pimp and a woman betraying her own sex by seducing some of its most vulnerable into the sex trade. In the end, the true Polly Adler might be somewhere in between.

Guest Speaker: Debby Applegate, a historian and the author of Madam: The Biography of Polly Adler Icon of the Jazz Age.

Voice of Polly: Sally Bieterman

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