Sex, drugs, and glamour in LA: the rise and fall of a Hollywood madam in ‘HeidiWorld: The Heidi Fleiss Story’
In her heyday, Heidi Fleiss was a prominent Hollywood madam in her 20s. This podcast presents her saga as one of the greatest hustler stories of all time by daring to broker sex work in the 1990s and managing a high-class escort business until her downfall.
In the series, host Molly Lambert simultaneously walks listeners through the secret history of LA and takes a “kaleidoscopic look” at the city’s sex, drugs, glamour, and corruption.
Start “HeidiWorld: The Heidi Fleiss Story” from the beginning to learn Heidi’s backstory, what led to her first million dollars, a media frenzy, and her arrest. Her life story is shared across 10 episodes that run less than an hour each.
The first episode goes back to Heidi’s Jewish upbringing in Los Feliz, California, and her father was a pediatrician-to-the-stars with keen business sensibilities. In high school, Heidi ran a successful babysitting ring and later partied her way through the Sunset Strip. She waitressed in the 1980s, and in episode 2, hear about Heidi’s connection to millionaire Bernie Cornfeld.
We’ll also learn about Madam Alex, Heidi’s former boss, who reigned in Beverly Hills with an elite prostitution operation. She taught Heidi everything she knew about the ‘biz before Heidi cut ties and struck out on her own.
When Madam Alex got busted, she turned around and blamed Heidi for leading the operation, then accused her of stealing her high-profile clientele, a turbulent time called the “whore wars.” This series will also dig into abusive boyfriends, corrupt police, the A-list “Black Book” of clients Heidi’s business catered to, the media’s narrative on sex work, and more.
Heidi was embroiled in scandal when movie executives allegedly hired her girls and used the studios’ checks for payment. Molly shared that many factors led to Heidi’s nosedive, including American sexual hypocrisy and a bit of bad luck.
Heidi’s trial brought moral hypocrisy to the forefront, as Molly explains in the podcast. She suffered legal action and consequences, whereas the men who bought her services returned to work at their high-profile jobs, and some were even promoted.
Heidi’s state conviction (for a number of charges) was overturned, but she was federally charged and convicted with tax evasion. In the 2010s, Heidi appeared on Celebrity Big Brother.
In this podcast, a cast brings “HeidiWorld” to life and recreates events with actress Annie Hamilton voicing Heidi. Guests like Karina Longworth (“You Must Remember This“), Lindsey Weber (“Who? Weekly”, and SNL’s Sarah Squirm join Molly throughout the podcast.
If you like hearing about Hollywood, true crime, and enjoy shows like “DISGRACELAND” or “You Must Remember This,” tune in weekly for new episodes of “HeidiWorld: The Heidi Fleiss Story.”
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