âThanks, kid,â and I didnât see her for a while after that.
She went back to Kittyâs place, Kittyâs Mom and Momâs Gigolo, and things went south.
Heroin and cocaine had been replacing opium for some time because they were easier to handle and more profitable, and people got a bigger kick out of them. There were only a few old holdouts like Mother Moon who stuck with the pill and the pipe. Kitty started shooting heroin.
Pearl was looking for a way out when she met a bootlegger named Scoodles Jerome at one of Kittyâs parties. He told Pearl that he was having a fling with a society dame who was married. They were looking for someplace nice where they could while away an afternoon. He said heâd pay the rent if Pearl could find the right apartment and make herself scarce for a few hours from time to time.
It turned out to be two bedrooms furnished on Riverside Drive. Pearl moved in, and for a few months everything was terrific. Maybe Pearl caught a few more movie matinees than she might have, but that was okay. She still thought it was a sweet deal. Then Scoodles and his squeeze called it quits. He asked Pearl if she might know of a new squeeze. Just doing a favor for a friend, you understand, nothing more than that. She asked around and, sure enough, a cute girl named Fran, from back in her first days at Kittyâs, said she was interested in a little hubba-hubba.
Things worked out so well that some of Pearlâs other friends asked if they might help to entertain Mr. Scoodles. She said yes, and pretty soon he was spending two or three nights a week at her place. Pearl told me later that it was the best time she ever had in the business.
Scoodles was a nice-enough guy. I knew him because he worked with Lansky and Charlie every now and again. He thought Pearlâs setup was so great that heâd show up most evenings about six with bags of chicken from the rotisserie down the street, and jugs of dago red, and they all had a fine old time. Eating chicken, drinking red, screwing, eating chicken. Since it was so informal, Pearl could still convince herself that she wasnât involved in selling sex. And, she kept telling herself, this was only temporary, anyway, a way to earn enough to go into some kind of legitimate business.
Then Scoodles invited some of his pals over. More girls told her they were interested. Before she really knew what she was doing, she was pocketing a hundred dollars a week, big money in those days, and she was looking for a larger place. Two bedrooms just wasnât getting the job done.
Now, the truth is that Pearl wasnât doing anything that hundreds of other guys and girls werenât doing all over the city. The difference was that through Scoodles, she met Charlie and a lot of other guys in the booze business, both the guys like us who sold it and the politicians and cops who got their cut to let us sell it. They had wallets full of cash and they were ready to spend a little extra or a lot extra, if the girl was pretty enough and energetic. And Pearl, as they say, had a good eye for young talent.
It didnât take long for word to get about that Pearl had the best girls and the highest prices. Sure, she was busted from time to time, but the charges were always dismissed and it didnât hurt her business. She got taken up by the literary and show business crowd, too. Thatâs when she changed her name to Polly Adler, and the phrase âGoing to Pollyâsâ came to mean more than ripping off a quick slice. A lot of guys went to Pollyâs to play cards and backgammon, and to be seen and to talk about who they saw there. I visited once or twice myself, in my younger days, when I was flush with dough and the sap was rising. She served good booze and good food, and she charged top dollar for everything. She was fond of saying that her place was a combination of a gentlemenâs club, a speak, and a harem.
Whenever there was a
She went back to Kittyâs place, Kittyâs Mom and Momâs Gigolo, and things went south.
Heroin and cocaine had been replacing opium for some time because they were easier to handle and more profitable, and people got a bigger kick out of them. There were only a few old holdouts like Mother Moon who stuck with the pill and the pipe. Kitty started shooting heroin.
Pearl was looking for a way out when she met a bootlegger named Scoodles Jerome at one of Kittyâs parties. He told Pearl that he was having a fling with a society dame who was married. They were looking for someplace nice where they could while away an afternoon. He said heâd pay the rent if Pearl could find the right apartment and make herself scarce for a few hours from time to time.
It turned out to be two bedrooms furnished on Riverside Drive. Pearl moved in, and for a few months everything was terrific. Maybe Pearl caught a few more movie matinees than she might have, but that was okay. She still thought it was a sweet deal. Then Scoodles and his squeeze called it quits. He asked Pearl if she might know of a new squeeze. Just doing a favor for a friend, you understand, nothing more than that. She asked around and, sure enough, a cute girl named Fran, from back in her first days at Kittyâs, said she was interested in a little hubba-hubba.
Things worked out so well that some of Pearlâs other friends asked if they might help to entertain Mr. Scoodles. She said yes, and pretty soon he was spending two or three nights a week at her place. Pearl told me later that it was the best time she ever had in the business.
Scoodles was a nice-enough guy. I knew him because he worked with Lansky and Charlie every now and again. He thought Pearlâs setup was so great that heâd show up most evenings about six with bags of chicken from the rotisserie down the street, and jugs of dago red, and they all had a fine old time. Eating chicken, drinking red, screwing, eating chicken. Since it was so informal, Pearl could still convince herself that she wasnât involved in selling sex. And, she kept telling herself, this was only temporary, anyway, a way to earn enough to go into some kind of legitimate business.
Then Scoodles invited some of his pals over. More girls told her they were interested. Before she really knew what she was doing, she was pocketing a hundred dollars a week, big money in those days, and she was looking for a larger place. Two bedrooms just wasnât getting the job done.
Now, the truth is that Pearl wasnât doing anything that hundreds of other guys and girls werenât doing all over the city. The difference was that through Scoodles, she met Charlie and a lot of other guys in the booze business, both the guys like us who sold it and the politicians and cops who got their cut to let us sell it. They had wallets full of cash and they were ready to spend a little extra or a lot extra, if the girl was pretty enough and energetic. And Pearl, as they say, had a good eye for young talent.
It didnât take long for word to get about that Pearl had the best girls and the highest prices. Sure, she was busted from time to time, but the charges were always dismissed and it didnât hurt her business. She got taken up by the literary and show business crowd, too. Thatâs when she changed her name to Polly Adler, and the phrase âGoing to Pollyâsâ came to mean more than ripping off a quick slice. A lot of guys went to Pollyâs to play cards and backgammon, and to be seen and to talk about who they saw there. I visited once or twice myself, in my younger days, when I was flush with dough and the sap was rising. She served good booze and good food, and she charged top dollar for everything. She was fond of saying that her place was a combination of a gentlemenâs club, a speak, and a harem.
Whenever there was a
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