The men circle the surrounding blocks and thread through parking lots, their faces obscured by the tinted windows of luxury SUVs and the grimy windshields of tired station wagons. The women are of every size and race, conspicuous in their tight jeans and short, body-hugging dresses.
A black Hummer rounds the same corner dozens of times. Suddenly the thwack-thwack of high heels hitting the pavement echoes against the empty buildings. Minutes later, another woman does the same. Behind them follow swaggering, well-groomed young men, most of them African American. Sometimes they jeer at the women. Rugby Shirt nowhere, he resorts to physical intimidation. First he lopes after a busty blonde, chasing her down the sidewalk.
Then he blocks the path of another young woman in tight jeans until she raises an elbow to clear the way. For the most part, the women ignore the attentions. To understand the running, the chasing, and the aloof behavior, I sought out an expert on the street-based sex scene.
Daddy Cool is a convicted pimp with an epic rap sheet. He is smart and charismatic and speaks with a soft Louisiana accent. A faint dimple below his left eye sets off a shy smile.
Tall and muscular, he stays fit by running in place in his tiny cell. His gift for gab served him well. Ultimately those last measures led to his imprisonment. The women working the street are permitted to speak only to customers, explains Daddy Cool through the visiting-booth glass at the King County Jail. The numbers of wannabes began to swell in , when pimp chic swept movies and television. For Daddy Cool, the wannabe invasion poses a threat to the trade of established pimps. More and more, customers are turning to the Internet to vent their frustrations.
