[The Wisconsin State Journal] begins the interview by observing that SFH's book could be the new "50 Shades of Grey" and later asks if people are saying "there is too much sex in the book."...The book is "Fast Girl: A Life Spent Running from Madness." So is it a "50 Shades of Grey"-type thing — titillating, or porn with deniability— or is it the saga of mental heath suffering and healing that the authors/publisher seems to want us to think it is? Well, it turns out it's neither! There are many descriptions of sexual encounters, but they are not written in an erotic style. The reader is not, I don't think, drawn in to feel the excitement of the sexual behavior itself, and you can't really identify with SFH. She's a very unusual person! She's someone who loved intense athletic competition and then felt completely dissatisfied living a normal life — in Madison, Wisconsin of all places — with a handsome, loving husband and a nice daughter. She repurposed her strongly physical, competitive spirit in the game of prostitution, in the place that — like the Olympics for an athlete — was the center of the world — Las Vegas.
We watched her hour-long interview on Dr. Phil's show, which was quite bizarre... Phil never got around to asking SFH what treatment she's had or is having, and she looks so strange, that we had to wonder whether she's on any treatment at all... I had the feeling Dr. Phil was also purveying sex for daytime-TV-watching women who want porn with deniability.... Why is SFH, if she wants to come across as reformed and relatable, wearing her hair like that and why do her eyes glint so lasciviously every time she talks about sex?
From such a young age, I’d been told I was special, a prodigy, destined for greatness, and I had spent my whole life chasing that dream on the track. Now, in Vegas, I was looking to be number one, too. At first, it had been enough to have the men I slept with tell me how amazing I was. And then, when I’d needed to take it up a notch, having sex for money had been enough. Then my need to compete turned into wanting more and better gifts from my clients. Now, chasing the high, I became obsessed with the rankings that clients gave escorts on the go-to website for information about escorts all over the world, the Erotic Review. The rankings were the thrill for me, and they fed my insatiable desire to compete. Vegas was no different than the track. If I was going to compete, I had to win.
Formulating a plan of attack to climb through the rankings, I thought of regulars I could surely receive 10s from, and prepared myself to go the extra mile for new clients who, in turn, I trusted would write me a positive review. I wouldn’t rest until I was number one in Vegas.When I first heard that SFH was writing a book with a mental health angle, I wrote:
This is the standard approach famous people use to explain sexual misbehavior when they get caught. But here's a person who worked for an escort service that scheduled $600 an hour dates for her in Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Houston and Chicago. It's a business venture that seems organized and deliberate, not some sad symptom of mental illness. Too bad she can't own it.Having read the book, I think she does own it! The mental health observations are dotted around in there, and there's an epilogue that tells us she's had a diagnosis and treatment, but it's a very short epilogue and what propels her into the health-care phase is not that she, on her own, decided the life she was living was bad or wrong or unsustainable. It's that she got outed. But I think the book makes it clear that she loved what she was doing, that she wasn't debasing herself or denying her humanity. She loved the sex, as she tells it. She wasn't just pretending. She massively enjoyed it, and it was a bonus that she also got paid a lot to do it.
"I was doing something I loved and getting paid for it."
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54 comments:
ummmm....Yogi Berra has passed on, but we have a some whore with mental health issues.
So, as a feminist, am I supposed to hate the objectification for money of a woman -OR- celebrate her owning it. As a feminist I know I must hate something.
Bicycles. Fish. Some assembly required.
Clearly, she is going to be the best mental health patient, ever, bar none.
SFH media-storm has been one of the more interesting social structures I've observed.
I think she got outted and they came up with a rationale for this behavior: mental health issues compounded by hypersexuality caused by anti-depressants.
But when you dive into it at the end of the day, you've got a woman with enormous personal willpower. She chose to manifest her "hypersexuality" not in random encounters when her willpower failed, but in an organized and deliberate fashion that made alot of money and went on for years.
In the background, you have a long-time husband who was not walking out on her either. He had to have scheduled his child care - and life - around her travel and work schedule. For years.
This is not a story of mental health, or drug side effects. And those who support that angle (i.e Dr. Phil, etc.) are pretty obviously deliberately embracing a mis-leading story to make it palatable to promote.
Even without the book, the situation tells the story. She does own it. She chose a path. Her husband walked the path with her, without significant signs of trying to leave it.
Lastly, the whole idea that this is a drug issue is laughable. This went on FOR YEARS. If you identify a drug issue, you raise it to your physician and psychiatrist. They dose-adjust, change meds, etc.
Her actions over time show she embraced this lifestyle and did not see it as something she should not be doing. And, to Ann's point, she only changed when she was outted.
And now she's promoting herself again.
"Clearly, she is going to be the best mental health patient, ever, bar none."
That's a completely apt statement.
She's now competing in the field of selling a book (and doing public speaking related to that). But I don't think she can quite come out and say: Prostitution is great and I am the greatest prostitute! I suspect that's what she'd like to say... though maybe she'd use the word "escort." That's always the word she uses for herself in the book.
I plan to read the book. The weird part is I think she is still married to her husband. I don't understand that one at all, at least from his point of view. Who would want to be married to a prostitute, and have everyone know you are married to a prostitute?
I don't care much that she was a prostitute, particularly since she had other options and wasn't pressured into it. But I do feel sorry for her family. Even if the husband accepted this (although she denied it on his behalf this was a public relations requirement so the underlying question remains unresolved) it seems highly unlikely he would have supported it becoming public, and I find it impossible to believe her daughter isn't traumatized by it. I can't help but see her actions as incredibly selfish and hurtful to those around her.
It's not quite as bad as your mom sleeping with one of your underage school friends, but it's pretty bad.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/bs-md-shattuck-case-20150616-story.html
The husband thing is what threw me.
I could believe that she was doing this for years and that it was driven in large part by the drugs, except that if that was the case a truly loving husband would have stepped in and demanded that she get help and stop it, or he would have left her.
The fact that he didn't makes me think that he approved of her behavior. My guess is that they're swingers, in an open relationship, or whatever, and that he's a cuckold who get's off on hearing her sexual exploits. She couldn't do porn because of the attention that it would draw, so they went with the next best thing.
Here's to the winners - lift up the glasses.
Here's to the glory still to be.
Here's to the battle, whatever it's for,
To ask the best of ourselves, then give much more.
Here's to the heroes - those who move mountains.
Here's to the miracles they make us see.
Here's to all sisters - here's to all people
Here's to the winners all of us can be.
Okay, so you read her book. That's great. I hope you learned a lot, Althouse. No need to "confess."
The weird part is I think she is still married to her husband
Maybe For Better or for Worse actually means something to him/them.
She sounds like a lovable woman being best she an be. That is one erotic lady who will never turn to a sex change operation to be the center of attention.
Fits my previous comment on her interview appearance, a tell that serves potential marketing by someone keeping her options open. Won't be easy to get back in the business though. Maybe she should move to Canada or the Netherlands.
Fits my previous comment on her interview appearance, a tell that serves potential marketing by someone keeping her options open. Won't be easy to get back in the business though. Maybe she should move to Canada or the Netherlands.
I wouldn't be surprised if she ends up doing porn after this.
MadisonMan,
Maybe forsaking all others is important and failing to do would break the marital contract.
The reality of life is that no one knows what goes on in the married life of a couple, and what they do/want/believe.
So did she get to number 1 in Vegas? Not for lack of trying. But she keeps picking endeavors where sooner or later age will diminish your abilities and appeal. Is there any other kind?
Wilt Chamberlin, by the way, became something of a folk hero for something like this. (Did women ever pay him?) He also had a long term female friend (name escapes me but an athlete like Suzy) who shared his appetites. They were fuck buddies in the truest sense.
I would've hoped that Althouse would've excerpted a "hot" part.
I mean, throw Laslo a bone.
As it were.
I am Laslo.
The book M.A.S.H. (though not the movie or the TV show) tells of an "epileptic whore" that the guys seek out. It's a great yarn, possibly grounded in some degree of fact about the way prostitution was marketed in those parts in those days.
Dunno why I'm pointing that out. Another loose neuron.
Madison Man said:
"The weird part is I think she is still married to her husband
Maybe For Better or for Worse actually means something to him/them."
I had to read that twice. I thought it was written "For Better or for Whores."
Agree that the husband is a puzzle. And what the daughter thinks (and feels; and how she will live with it), likewise a big puzzle.
Very sad, and clear evidence of End Times.
Don't date actresses.
The weird part is I think she is still married to her husband
Let's see...
...his wife wants sex at least as often as he does...
...and she is driven to make that sex as pleasurable as possible for her partner...
Now, why would he possibly want to stay married to her...
...I guess we'll never know.
She repurposed her strongly physical, competitive spirit in the game of prostitution
Most athletes these days turn to CrossFit ™.
Wow, Sexing it up for gold stars on Yelp! She is competitive.
The weird part is I think she is still married to her husband. I don't understand that one at all
A daughter together? I can't decide if that would make her more normal or more freakish.
"Who would want to be married to a prostitute, and have everyone know you are married to a prostitute?"
ask him why she was so highly rated..and what the book advance was...
But yeah..she doesn't seem to have a good mom sense about all this.
It is impossible to understand someone who is bi-polar--they do sad and crazy things that make perfect sense to themselves but not to healthy people. Doing the book and the book tour doesn't make sense to me while her daughter is young, but then SFH is bi-polar and can't be expected to do rational things. My son had a bi-polar friend who committed suicide. I have read that 70% of persons who are bi-polar attempt suicide and that 30% of them are ultimately successful at committing suicide. At least SFH has learned to live with her illness. Since SFH is bi-polar, there is a high probability that her daughter will be bi-polar too, which is sad.
Her problem is her narcissism - her complete disregard for her husband and kid. If she were single, this would just be a remake of The Happy Hooker.
There's no such thing as sexual misconduct
Only sexual conduct not yet normalized
A slut gotta slut, why is this so hard to understand, that sluts come from all classes in our society. Most times they just find one sugar daddy. The hard part to understand is why is anyone fascinated with her, much less waste time and money on a book.
I don't know what to think about him, if it turns out he stays for a while to collect on the royalties then leaves. Well then, he's a scumbag just like her, for not protecting that child.
Per the preceding post: shall we ask Suzy her opinion on the Ten-Inch Amendment?
I am Laslo.
"So did she get to number 1 in Vegas?"
At one point she gets to #2 in Vegas (which is #9 in the world). She doubts that she can beat the "girl" who's #1. I don't think there's a later mention of the ranking.
"A slut gotta slut, why is this so hard to understand, that sluts come from all classes in our society. Most times they just find one sugar daddy..."
You're slut-shaming!
It's a shame she couldn't figure out a way to apply that competitive spirit to find a cure for cancer.
"That was that light bulb moment in my head, 'Wow, why shouldn't I get paid for sex?' "
Kinda rapey...
"At one point she gets to #2 in Vegas (which is #9 in the world). She doubts that she can beat the "girl" who's #1."
It's OK: I think she beat the spread.
I am Laslo.
From such a young age, I’d been told I was special, a prodigy, destined for greatness, and I had spent my whole life chasing that dream on the track. Now, in Vegas, I was looking to be number one, too. At first, it had been enough to have the men I slept with tell me how amazing I was. And then, when I’d needed to take it up a notch, having sex for money had been enough. Then my need to compete turned into wanting more and better gifts from my clients. Now, chasing the high, I became obsessed with the rankings that clients gave escorts on the go-to website for information about escorts all over the world, the Erotic Review.
I wish more hot chicks would choose this route to greatness--much more rewarding in every way than stupid shit like trying to run fastest.
"I was doing something I loved and getting paid for it."
Isn't that the career advice that idealists give everyone?
My advice would be, "Find something that pays you very well and that doesn't make you throw up and use the money to do what you like in your free time."
The escort bit is naturally getting most of the attention. But the bit about faking the fall is disturbing as well...is that really a "bipolar" thing or something else?
Not that I know anything about TER at all for any reason, but to get a 10 for the "Services Provided" ratings, you have to be doing some risky things.
I guess she was a pretty bright spark when she figured out she didn't have to give out her Favors for free. A Happy Hooker, no doubt. Paging Mr. Lazlo for expert commentary please.
The Anna Karenina syndrome. When a woman slips the bonds of propriety, we don't like to see her prosper. If Marilyn Monroe had got married and settled down, she wouldn't be a legend. And it's not just women. I venture to say that John Holmes is the name of the only male porn star that people can name. He died of AIDS, destitute and impotent. At the end he worried that the funeral director would cut off his penis and pickle it. All in all, his life and death was an edifying moral tale for those who object to the commercialization of sex. There have been several movies made about his life, though not so many as of Marilyn Monroe.......People who engage in extreme behaviors live high risk lives. There's still time for Suzy to come to a bad end. I would advise the moralists not to despair.
I would be interested to know if and how she escaped all of this without some sort of vd.
It's considered more of a sin to exploit your own sexuality than that of someone else. A pimp like Hugh Heffner doesn't get as much bad publicity as this woman. And Larry Flynt got lionized as a free speech hero.
"A slut gotta slut, why is this so hard to understand, that sluts come from all classes in our society. Most times they just find one sugar daddy..."
You're slut-shaming!
She should be slut-shamed. I could give a shit about her or her husband. Her daughter will live her whole life with this and for that she should be shamed. Can you imagine what the girl will tell her future husband and then her children about her mother?
I am judgemental here and have no problem with being judgemental.
Prostitution is not about sex, it is about money. Prostitutes would rather get the money without having to have nave sex with the Johns.
Most of the book is probably a lie.
To six: I tend to believe her. I've had more than one girl in my little black book that would visit me directly from a previous "date" and after an hour or so, leave to meet another "date." No money was exchanged, at least on my end, but some women just want it alot, and some that want it alot can get paid for it as well.
I am not Laslo.
If no money changed hands, the women were not prostitutes. So, not a relevant experience.
Also, $600 for an hour is not that impressive, at most $300 per hour to her and $300 to the Agent, if not more.
https://medium.com/matter/sex-is-sex-but-money-is-money-e7c10091713f
"Also, $600 for an hour is not that impressive."
Indeed. Certainly not compared to Hillary!'s all-talk escort service.
Crazy 47-year old woman trying to sell books.
I wonder how her daughter has viewed all this exciting drama.
I read the excerpt published in Sports Illustrated. Two things jumped out at me:
If I can believe what she wrote, she had no discussions with her coaches about how to handle the finals of the Olympic 1500 when she was starting from an unfavorable lane position. Her "strategy" was to get in front and stay there, which she couldn't do -- I'd like to meet the runner who could effectively sprint a 1500.
Hence my remark on the previous post regarding the lack of coaching that our Olympic middle distance runners get after watching the great Alan Webb also lose in the Olympic finals due to not having been coached on how to handle a tactical race.
Also I was struck by the self-destructive risk-taking behavior that Suzy got into. Not just prostituting herself, but after one client, a farmer, deduced her real identity she took to letting slip her real name to other johns. Something was going on with her mentally, whether due to her meds or the original scrambling of her brain cells I don't know.
I have no plans to buy the book or even to check it out of the library if they get it.
"Big Mike said...
If I can believe what she wrote, she had no discussions with her coaches about how to handle the finals of the Olympic 1500 when she was starting from an unfavorable lane position. Her "strategy" was to get in front and stay there, which she couldn't do -- I'd like to meet the runner who could effectively sprint a 1500."
Just because she decided to get out front and stay there, it doesn't mean....or require....that she sprint the whole 1500 m. I'll bet there are many runners that have gone out and created a fast pace, and won.
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