The Girls of Old Town
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The Girls of Old Town are a group of self-governing prostitutes in the fictional universe of Frank Miller's Sin City.
During the days of the Gold Rush, when the town of Basin City had just been settled, the Roark family "imported" a large number of women from across the globe into the open and uncontrolled area, turning a struggling mining camp into a thriving, bustling city and securing themselves a vast fortune and almost uncontested control over the city. These women ended up forming the district that would become Old Town, the prostitute quarter. In addition, the people charged with governing the city, most of them from the Roark line, remained in power for generations, running it as they saw fit. It is suggested by The Big Fat Kill that during this time, Old Town's female residents were subjugated and virtually enslaved under the combined malign influence of politicics, pimps and mobsters, making deaths, beatings, drug addiction and rape an ugly reality to most residents.
However, at an unspecified time, the women formed a truce with the police department, allowing the women to defend their own turf, drive out the pimps and mobsters and administer vigilante justice to those that wronged one of their own. The cops get a slice of the profits and 'free fun' outside of work hours. If a cop tries to enter the boundaries of Old Town while on duty, he is sent back with his tail between his legs, usually after being humiliated by the girls, but he is sent back alive. The Big Fat Kill illustrates the danger of what would happen if a cop were ever discovered to have been murdered on Old Town turf, and the lengths the mob were willing to go to in order to seize control of the neighbourhood.
The girls themselves are portrayed fairly sympathetically in the series, usually as hookers with hearts of gold in a male-dominated metropolis, whilst not averse to issuing their own brand of justice on those that cross them. Many of the characters appear as caricatures of popular female stereotypes and pop culture icons, such as Old Town girls dressed as Wonder Woman, Zorro, Southern belles and cowgirls.
[edit] Leadership
- Goldie and Wendy, the twin prostitutes who are currently in charge of Old Town, taking control of the neighbourhood just prior to the events of A Dame To Kill For. Whilst little is revealed about Goldie initially, and indeed the resemblance between the two is so uncanny that even Marv is fooled upon first meeting Wendy, he surmises that Goldie must have been 'the nice one' after taking several beatings from Wendy, (who had thought him responsible for her sister's murder at the beginning of The Hard Goodbye.) However, once Wendy comes to understand Marv's motives and intentions for his quest, and the lengths he will go to see them through, she softens to him a little, even seeming to empathize with his plight. Following his execution, she is shown on at least one occasion wearing Marv's cross around her neck.
[edit] Enforcers
- Gail, a prostitute, dominatrix and one of the authority figures of Old Town, second only to the Twins. Standing 6 feet tall and wearing an outfit made of a combination of leather, fishnet stockings and metal studs, (and occasionally bondage masks,) she has a love-hate relationship with Dwight McCarthy. Indeed, the reason Dwight is still alive at all is 'that one fiery night when she was mine' and the unrequitable love she feels for him. As of the end of The Big Fat Kill, the status of their relationship is in question, although the ending of The Big Fat Kill in the movie adaptation, and the events of Family Values, don't rule out the possibility that the two are lovers once more. Miller has said on the audio commentary track for the movie that Gail's character is comparable, in many ways, to that of Catwoman.
- Miho, a highly skilled, rollerskate-savvy assassin who trains and protects the women of Old Town. Among her arsenal are twin katana samurai swords, throwing stars in the shape of the Manji symbol, and a Mongolian longbow. Popular belief maintains she is not a prostitute.
[edit] Others
- Sally, an Old Town girl and Joey's mistress, who tries to kill her to cover-up his infidelity. Luckily Dwight, who was photographing him, smashes through a window and saves her.
- Molly, an Old Town girl who is seemingly a doctor and expert surgeon. She saved Dwight's life, at Gail's insistence, when he was repeatedly shot by Ava Lord, and later performs surgery on his face to alter his appearance.
- Kelley, Sandy and Denise, a group of Old Town girls who were victims of a group of white slavers led by a man named Manuel. Though their fate was never revealed, Dwight presumably made sure their imprisoners were dealt with accordingly.
- Becky, a young Old Town prostitute who is instrumental in getting Jackie Boy killed by Miho. She also works for Herr Wallenquist as a spy, mainly because she didn't want her mother to discover that she was a prostitute, partly because he offered her a considerable sum of money and a new life. Killed during 'the big fat kill'. In the epilogue of the movie adaptation, it is implied she is killed by the Salesman while leaving the hospital.
- Dallas, Old Town prostitute and Miho's driver. Gunned down by mercenaries. In the movie she is played by the same actress as Zorro Girl, an Old Town girl who dresses in a similar fashion to Zorro.
- Tammy, an Old Town 'nurse' who Liebowitz uses to taunt and torture Hartigan.
- Carmen, Old Town prostitute with a traumatising past; lesbian lover to Daisy. Unintentionally gunned down in the Magliozzi hit on Bruno.
- Daisy, Carmen's lesbian lover. Avenges her death by killing the remaining Magliozzi family members.
| Sin City | |
|---|---|
| Yarns | The Hard Goodbye | A Dame to Kill For | The Babe Wore Red and Other Stories | Silent Night | The Big Fat Kill | That Yellow Bastard | Daddy's Little Girl | Lost, Lonely, & Lethal | Sex & Violence | Just Another Saturday Night | Family Values | Hell and Back (a Sin City Love Story) | Booze, Broads, & Bullets |
| Films | Sin City | Sin City 2 (in production) | Sin City 3: Hell and Back (in production) |
| Characters | Marv | Jack Rafferty | Nancy Callahan | John Hartigan | Dwight McCarthy | Wallace | Miho | Kevin | Cardinal Roark | Ava Lord | Junior/That Yellow Bastard | Senator Roark | List of characters from Sin City |
| People | Frank Miller | Robert Rodriguez |
