''American Pimp'' is a 1999

documentary A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

that examines the

pimp Procuring, pimping, or pandering is the facilitation or provision of a prostitute or other sex worker in the arrangement of a sex act with a customer. A procurer, colloquially called a pimp (if male) or a madam (if female, though the term "pimp" ...

subculture A subculture is a group of people within a culture, cultural society that differentiates itself from the values of the conservative, standard or dominant culture to which it belongs, often maintaining some of its founding principles. Subcultures ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. It was directed by the

Hughes Brothers Albert Hughes and Allen Hughes (born April 1, 1972), known together professionally as the Hughes Brothers, are American twin brother filmmakers. They are known for visceral and often violent films, including ''Menace II Society'' (1993), ''De ...

, the filmmakers behind ''

Menace II Society ''Menace II Society'' (pronounced ''Menace to Society'') is a 1993 American teen crime drama film directed by the Hughes Brothers in their directorial debut. Set in the Watts and Crenshaw neighborhoods of Los Angeles, the film follows the l ...

'' and ''

Dead Presidents ''Dead Presidents'' is a 1995 American crime film co-written, produced and directed by the Hughes brothers, Hughes Brothers. The film chronicles the life of Anthony Curtis (Larenz Tate), focusing on his teenage years as a high school graduate a ...

''. The documentary consists of first person interviews of people involved in the pimping lifestyle ("the game"). The interviews are separated by short clips from 1970s

blaxploitation In American cinema, Blaxploitation is the film subgenre of action movie derived from the exploitation film genre in the early 1970s, consequent to the combined cultural momentum of the black civil rights movement, the black power movement, ...

films such as '' Willie Dynamite'', ''

The Mack ''The Mack'' is a 1973 American blaxploitation crime drama film directed by California native Michael Campus and starring Max Julien and Richard Pryor. The film also stars Oscar-nominee Juanita Moore and Tony-nominated actor Dick Anthony ...

'', and ''

Dolemite ''Dolemite'' is a 1975 American blaxploitation crime comedy film and is also the name of its principal character, played by Rudy Ray Moore, who co-wrote the film and its soundtrack. Moore, who started his career as a stand-up comedy, stand-u ...

''. The first portion of the documentary focuses on pimps working illegally. The illegal pimps that are interviewed are from all over the

, e.g., Charm from

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

, Fillmore Slim from

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

, and Payroll from

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

. These pimps, and many others, discuss their theories on the history of prostitution. The pimps go on to talk about their philosophy on pimping, and how they live their daily lives. The film also discusses the legal sector of

prostitution Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, no ...

. The film also interviewed Dennis Hof, the owner of the Bunny Ranch in

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

. He feels that Nevada is much smarter than the other states because they have imposed the proper health and background checks on prostitution, instead of trying to suppress prostitution by making it illegal. The majority of the documentary glorifies the pimping lifestyle. The pimps and prostitutes interviewed mainly discuss the perks of the lifestyle. They talk about the money they have made and the expensive suits and cars they were able to buy. However, near the end of the film, the interviews involve prostitutes that have died from the lifestyle as well as pimps who have retired and hold straight jobs or those who are now in jail.

Interviews

*Rosebudd (real name: John S. Dickson) * Fillmore Slim (real name: Clarence Sims) * Gorgeous Dre (real name: Andre Taylor) *Mel Taylor *Danny Brown *Ken Red (real name: Louis Kenneth Wright) *Payroll *Schauntté Parker *Charm *Latrice *Jade *Sir Captain *Bradley *Payroll (Lorence Hammond) *

Too Short Todd Anthony Shaw (born April 28, 1966), better known by his stage name Too Short (stylized as Too $hort), is an American rapper. A pioneer of West Coast hip-hop, Shaw was among the first acts to receive recognition in the genre during the late ...

*Mr. Ivy (also known as Pimpin' Ken) *Bishop Don Magic Juan *R.P. * Dennis Hof *C-Note *Caleb Devine (real name: Caleb Benn)

TV adaptation

In a 2009 HBO drama series called ''Gentlemen of Leisure'', The Hughes brothers planned to revisit the themes of ''American Pimp. Gentlemen of Leisure'' was to investigate the world of prostitution in

Oakland, California Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...

, with an emphasis on a 35-year-old notorious pimp and his attempts to leave the business. However, before filming began, the show was slammed by then-Oakland Mayor

Ron Dellums Ronald Vernie Dellums (November 24, 1935 – July 30, 2018) was an American politician who served as Mayor of Oakland from 2007 to 2011. He had previously served thirteen terms as a Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California ...

and other city leaders who were concerned about the show's impact on Oakland's image. Dellums'

Chief of Staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supportin ...

, David Chai, said, "It is the mayor's view that this project goes against our vision of Oakland as a 'model city' and does a disservice to residents and visitors alike", and "while the mayor understands that there are certain benefits to having a major film project in our city, he is not willing to support this project at this time. The people of Oakland have come too far to have our city's name trampled upon in the name of entertainment."

References

External links

*
''American Pimp''
at MGM Movie Database
Sfgate:"Pimps Strut in Documentary/Hookers they exploit get less say" by Edward Guthmann; June 16, 2000
{{Prostitution in the United States, state=collapsed 1999 films 1999 documentary films American documentary films Documentary films about prostitution in the United States 1990s English-language films Films directed by the Hughes brothers 1990s American films English-language documentary films

Interviews

TV adaptation

See also

References

External links