Sydney Biddle Barrows ("Mayflower Madam")

Sydney Biddle Barrows (born January 14, 1952), known as the Mayflower Madam, was an American madam. After her escort service was exposed and disbanded, she gained worldwide notoriety, in part because she was part of the upper-class Biddle family of Philadelphia and is a Mayflower descendant.

Notes

• from The "Mayflower Madam"

I ran the wrong kind of business, but I did it with integrity.
-- Sydney Biddle Barrows, to Marian Christy, Mayflower Madam' Tells All,' Boston Globe, 1986

There is a reason why they call prostitution the oldest profession. Its been around since probably man first walked upright, and the debate on whether or not to legalize it as raged almost as long.

There was a time when the idea of high class call girl rings or escort services was still something of a shocker.

Recognize the woman in the photo? If you don't, then you weren't around or old enough in 1984 when Sidney Biddle Barrows was once of the biggest stories in the news.

Recently she was back in the news, giving her comments on the Eliott Spitzer debacle. "These people have nothing better to do?" Ms. Barrows asked. "We have terrorists out there. We have murderers, we have rapists, child molesters. And they're worried about somebody getting [sex]?"

Links

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayflower_Madam
• http://scandalouswoman.blogspot.com/2008/04/notorious-new-york-wome...

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sydney_Biddle_Barrows

Sydney Biddle Barrows (born January 14, 1952) is an American businesswoman who became known as an escort-service owner while using the stage name Sheila Devin and later became known as the Mayflower Madam. She has since become a management consultant and writer.

Early life, education and career

After her escort service was exposed and disbanded, she gained worldwide notoriety, in part because she is part of the Biddle family of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her father is Donald Byers Barrows, Jr. (born 1926) and mother is Jeannette Ballantine. Her grandfather Donald Byers Barrows (1898–1991) married Sydney Biddle (born July 1901), daughter of Alexander Mercer Biddle (born 1865), son of Charles John Biddle (1819–1873).

Her cousin twice removed Charles John Biddle was an aviator in World War I, and great-great-granduncle Edward Biddle (1851–1933) married the daughter of banker Anthony Joseph Drexel. She claimed to be a Mayflower descendant on her mother's side.

After graduating from the Fashion Institute of Technology, located in New York City, New York, followed by a short career in the fashion industry, she was introduced to the world of high-class prostitution and started her own escort service named Cachet, which existed in New York City from 1979 to 1984. Cachet offered superior service for its time, focusing on delivering a classy and elegant experience to the wealthy and powerful who either visited or lived in New York City. Some of its clients included industrialists, high-powered business executives and lawyers, foreign diplomats and Arabian oil sheiks.

In October 1984, her escort service was shut down and she was charged with promoting prostitution by the New York City District Attorney's Office. After her guilty plea, she published a best-selling autobiography, Mayflower Madam – The Secret Life of Sydney Biddle Barrows (1986), in which she imparted the advice that made her service so exclusive and successful: "Hire good people and pay them what they are worth". A television film, Mayflower Madam (1987) – based on the book – stars Candice Bergen. Barrows has also written two subsequent books on modern sexual etiquette.

In late 2008, Barrows finished Uncensored Sales Strategies – A Radical New Approach to Selling Your Customers What They Really Want – No Matter What Business You're In, co-authored with marketing expert Dan Kennedy. Since the mid-late 1990s, Barrows ran a consulting business with a focus on customer service and experience.

An expert on luxury lifestyle, high-end retail and exclusive service delivery in restaurants and professional services environments, Barrows consults with owners and managers and trains staff to improve brand experiences.

Personal life

She married to "attorney of last resort" Darnay Hoffman, whose clients include Joel Steinberg, on May 14, 1994. She lived in New York City.

Works

Mayflower Madam – The Secret Life of Sydney Biddle Barrows (1986). With William Novak. New York City: Arbor House. ISBN 0877957223, ISBN 0804101507.

Mayflower Manners – Etiquette for Consenting Adults (1990). With Ellis Weiner. New York City: Doubleday. ISBN 0385262450.

Just Between Us Girls – Secrets About Men From the Mayflower Madam (1996). With Judith Newman. New York City: St. Martin's Press. ISBN 0312139934, ISBN 0312960476.

Uncensored Sales Strategies – A Radical New Approach to Selling Your Customers What They Really Want – No Matter What Business You're In (2009). With Dan Kennedy. Entrepreneur Press. ISBN 1599181932, ISBN 978-1599181936.