Meet the Male Sex Worker Upending the Nevada Brothel Scene
In remote northern Nevada, a truck-stop brothel advertises “Ladies 24 Hours.” Inside, one 49-year-old grandfather is betting there’s a market for a different kind of courtesan.
This past weekend, I had the honor of being on an editor’s panel at Open Secrets Live, a wonderfully inspiring all-day literary event hosted by OS founder Rachel Kramer Bussel. When I was asked to share a story I didn’t edit but that I admire, there was no other answer but Hallie Lieberman’s recent story about the only legal cis male sex worker in the U.S., edited by my colleague Brendan. My first thought when I read it prior to publication was, Wow, what a truly moving and unexpected story! My second: Damn, I wish I had worked on this piece! So, if you missed it the first time around or you aren’t yet a paying subscriber, we are making the story free for a week so you can enjoy it and see the kinds of in-depth, truly one-of-a-kind stories we publish all the time. With that, please read, share, post about and relish. And if you like what you read and feel so inclined, please consider supporting us by becoming a paid subscriber here. —Jesse Sposato, executive editor
Meet the Male Sex Worker Upending the Nevada Brothel Scene
Christopher Metzgar heard the bell ring and began scrambling. The sound meant customers had pushed the front door’s metal button to announce their arrival, starting the egg timer ticking. If he wanted work, he needed to bolt from his small room down three hallways to the entrance in three minutes, looking his very best. Metzgar, a 5-foot-6 Daniel Craig doppelganger, sat up from the bed, straightened his vest, and strode to line up next to the other sex workers at Bella’s Hacienda Ranch in Wells, Nevada.
The three male customers who had just arrived weren’t expecting to see him. The rural, one-story brothel in the tiny town of 1,244 people announces itself via a large neon sign that declares “Ladies 24 Hours,” catering to truck drivers motoring down I-80 and I-93 across northern Nevada.
There absolutely is a market for straight male sex workers. I ought to know. I like to sugar my side pieces when I can afford it