Looking for Some Data Trails

[beckyh2112]

- Solar kings, or other high officials with sun motifs or solar-based mythology for why they're in charge. I know about the Egyptian pharoahs (though, frankly, I could stand to learn more), but I don't know of any other cultures or time-periods to investigate for this type of idea. Are there any?

- Someone who has a broader grasp of modern television than I do: What are good or popular shows (individual episodes work, too) or movies that depict prostitution? Bonus points if it shows prostitutes interacting with police. No particular cares about accuracy or quality of the media. I'm using this to get a handle on what a character would know from mass media representations, so I'm looking more for typical depictions. I'd much appreciate it if any recommendations came from 2006 or earlier, but I can deal if they aren't.

Thank you in advance for any help you can give me!

Comments

[lunatron.livejournal.com]

The Sun King, Louis XIV

[tigerkat24.livejournal.com]

The X-files had an episode with some prostitutes in it, including one who was treated very sympathetically by the police. I think it's called Irresistable, and it's certainly considered one of the better episodes in the series.

Also, the Aztecs associated themselves with a sun god, (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huitzilopochtli) though I'm not sure if he was associated with the kings specifically or just the capital city in general.

[dragoness-e.livejournal.com]

Ahura-mazda (Persia)

O-materasu Omikami - Japanese sun goddess, and mythical progenitor of the Imperial family.

Other than that, most kings & emperors are associated with agricultural & rain/sky deities, not sun gods. Mythically speaking, the king is the guy responsible for making sure the crops grow.

As for prostitutes in media... "Pretty Woman" (the movie, not the song). "Law & Order" ran for 17+ years, so any of the older episodes involving prostitutes. "Hill Street Blues". Assorted other cop shows.

[charles-rb.livejournal.com]

Medical soap opera Casualty had a recurring girlfriend character who was a prostitute (though this wasn't immediately revealed so they could do a Shock Reveal). She was written as a high-end one who was personally glamorous and most of the johns being, in the episodes I saw, rich old guys who genuinely liked her & the job itself was done in expensive hotels & looked in the first instance like a business meeting. They didn't, AFAIK, had her have medical trouble from the job. There was also a scene where she's in hospital (for surgery) and is driven to righteous anger by the staff coming in to (quote) "all have a good look at the PROSTITUTE!" (which did not make much logical sense for the characters I should add).

The ITV adaptations of the DI Rebus books had two I remember with prostitutes - one where he's investigating into ones a dead colleague used, where it's a bit grim and grubby (one in a back alleyway, the others in a cheap diner), and the prostitutes are quite blunt about the work when questioned. Another where he's investigating a new upstart gang involved in sex trafficking, there was a prostitute trafficked in who's been viciously abused to stay compliant & tries to kill herself, though when he later runs into her "on the job" she's acting more confident and sultry (this being an act).

[charles-rb.livejournal.com]

Oh, and there was an episode of Angel that went unmade that involved prostition quite heavily: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corrupt_%28unaired_Angel_episode%29

It's available in some places online, such as: http://www.geocities.com/invisiblegreen/corrupt/corrupt.html

It didn't get picked up as it was felt to be too bleak - and it is a bit.

[earthscorch.livejournal.com]

CSI has prostitutes interacting with the police in a good half of the episodes. :D

[tooth-and-claw.livejournal.com]

Law and Order: SVU is all about sex crimes and invloves lots of prostitution. Also, Dexter has some examples, much but fewer.

[koh4711.livejournal.com]

Aztec mythology did revolve around the sun, but their system was pretty complex. They believed that each world was a new sun, so to speak, and that each sun was associated with a certain god. I could look up the details of the myth, if you want, but one very prideful god was hesitant to make the sacrifice to become a sun, so a lowly one took his place. So impressed by the sacrifice, the proud god served under him, and created the sun and the moon. Been a while since I've looked up Aztec myth, and I could be getting it confused with Inca or Maya beliefs, too. I've got some pretty extensive resources on mythology, especially Mesoamerican stuff, and could get more info if you'd like.

The movie version of Eight Million Ways to Die would be a good one to use, though I've personally never been able to find a copy of the movie and I'm sure it's not as in depth as the book. The basic story is a girl goes to a PI trying to get out of the life, then turns up dead, with her pimp the primary suspect. The book really does a pretty good job of capturing the characters and developing them fairly well. Still, it might be an interesting one to turn up. The book is incredible.

There's also a film noir I feel like I should be knowing the name of that tried to skirt around the Hayes Code, but I can't remember which one it was.

Leaving Las Vegas... I'm not sure if law enforcement is involved, but it was said to be a pretty good movie.

That's all I can think of off hand... I'll see if I can come up with something else.

RE: Solar kings

[ravenclaw-devi.livejournal.com]

There'd be the Incans - IIRC, their rulers were associated with the sun, and the ruler's principal wife with the moon. *fuzzy memory is fuzzy*

Amaterasu's already been mentioned.

Oh, and Ancient India! Some of the royal lines traced their ancestry back to the sun god, others to the mood god (yes, in Hinduism, the deities of both sun and moon are male - it's not sun god and moon goddess as in most cultures, or even sun goddess and moon god. The sun godd/ess does get depicted in half-male, half-female form at times, though.)

On the other subject... Lilja 4-ever (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0300140/), for one.