The Secret Lives Of Male Prostitutes

If you haven’t heard, HBO has a new dramedy, “Hung,” that’s about—well, the title should tell you something. The series focuses on a divorced father in Detroit who loses his wife, his kids (custody, that is), and his manhood. Also? He has a big penis. In order to get by, he decides to become a male prostitute. I know, I know. That happens all the time. But the show begs the question: What are the real lives of male prostitutes like?

A former call girl, Tracy Quan set out to find out. In “The Sex Lives of Male Hookers,” Quan talks to the men who make their living having sex. The guys cover a spectrum of types—Caucasian, African-American, gay, straight, bi. One says shows like “Hung” give guys like him a bad name. “I’m sick of people with no experience of sex work recreating their own fantasies of that world. It would be like me fantasizing about Iraq,” he asserts.

For men who sell sex, sexual identity can depend on the price. One male prostitute operated two web sites: one for men and one for women. Opening the door to men and women expands the entrepreneurial sex worker’s client base. Without his male customers, he’d have a part-time job. Generally, male escorts make a third to half of what their female counterparts make.

Many sex workers end up with complicated romantic lives, and male prostitutes are no different. One had a girlfriend who prohibited him from having sex with other women for money—but men were fine.

Of course, some found their customers were into some freaky business. To find out more, read the rest at The Daily Beast.