The Princess of 42nd Street

Surviving My Childhood as the Daughter of Times Square’s King of Porn

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Pub Date 06 Sep 2018 | Archive Date 23 Jun 2022

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Description

The eldest daughter of the Times Square “King of Porn,” Romola Hodas recounts her chaotic childhood amid the turmoil of publicly growing up as the daughter of the man who almost single-handedly built New York City’s pornography and adult entertainment empire from the 1960s to the 1980s before his spectacular and public fall from grace.

Behind the salacious headlines, Marty’s family paid a terrible price. In her shockingly honest, no-holds-barred memoir, Romola describes hanging out as a child in her father’s porn shops on 42nd Street and meeting the eclectic clientele who frequented the stores, making friends with the girls who performed live sex acts on stage, and spying on her parents’ sex orgies and crazy all-night swinger parties. Romola relates, in moving detail, how she cared for her three younger siblings when her brilliant, bipolar mother broke with reality, and how she survived verbal, physical, and emotional abuse; a year in reform school; her father’s three stints in prison; two kidnapping attempts by the mob (one while at summer fat camp); and how her baby brother, Jarrett, actually was briefly kidnapped by mobsters wanting to send Marty Hodas a clear, unambiguous message.

For all its darkness, The Princess of 42nd Street is, at its heart, an uplifting and inspirational story of how one young woman overcame incredible odds to become a successful businesswoman who now devotes her life to helping others. Raw, unflinching, and devoid of self-pity, The Princess of 42nd Street is a one-of-a-kind story.


The eldest daughter of the Times Square “King of Porn,” Romola Hodas recounts her chaotic childhood amid the turmoil of publicly growing up as the daughter of the man who almost single-handedly built...


A Note From the Publisher

Paperback $19.99
Audio to come
Interview with the author in NY Daily News
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/ny-news-porn-hodas-princess-20180731-story.html

Paperback $19.99
Audio to come
Interview with the author in NY Daily News
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/ny-news-porn-hodas-princess-20180731-story.html


Advance Praise

"A testament to the awakening and redemption of self, Romola Hodas [is} such a courageous voice and blessed to be given the opportunity to live and learn. [The Princess of 42nd Street] is a much welcome book."

Saul Stein

the actor who plays Marty Hodas

 on HBO's The Deuce



"A testament to the awakening and redemption of self, Romola Hodas [is} such a courageous voice and blessed to be given the opportunity to live and learn. [The Princess of 42nd Street] is a much...


Marketing Plan

Pub party at the Museum of Sex, 233 5th Ave., NYC, September 13, 6:30 - 9:30, FREE




Pub party at the Museum of Sex, 233 5th Ave., NYC, September 13, 6:30 - 9:30, FREE





Available Editions

EDITION Ebook
ISBN 9781626014725
PRICE $9.99 (USD)

Available on NetGalley

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Average rating from 8 members


Featured Reviews

The Princess of 42nd Street: Surviving My Childhood as the Daughter of Times Square's King of Porn
by Romolda Hodas
2018
Riverdale Avenue Books
4.0 / 5.0

Straight-forward and hard hitting, this is a deep memoir that packs a punch of just how cold and hard the reality of Romoldas childhood and adolescence was. It's hard for most to grasp such abuse, deprivation and abandonment so young.
Her father began with gumball machines, jukeboxes and vending machines and eventually became extremely wealthy as the Times Square King of Porn, in the late 60s-early 70's. His sex and drug partying went on all night. Her mother was bi-polar and could spend days and months in bed, leaving Romolda with little supervision from a young age, and she did her best to guide her siblings.
Amazingly she was able to take the harsh and negative realities of her upbringing and use them as a motivator and catalyst to overcome and she has started the group Moderation to help people deal with their drinking problems and also Creating Harmony, which helps people find a new beginning after devastation and abuse.
Gut wrenching and unforgettable.
Thank you to Riverdale Avenue Books and Romolda Hodas for the ebook for review.
#netgalley. #ThePrincessOf42ndStreet
Find out more at:
www.creatingharmony.com
www.moderation.org

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The King of Porn's daughter leads you on an incredible journey of her life with her strange family. So very interesting and repulsive at the same time. A very captivating saga. Not for the faint-hearted.

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Romola Hodas’ father began his business career by servicing cigarette vending machines and juke boxes. He grew that into porn shorts and finally porn stores and other shady businesses.
Romola discloses painful and tragic memories of her childhood. Her father was verbally abusive and his questionable business dealings affected the home life. Her mother was schizophrenic and bipolar. Romola is left to care for her siblings while trying to have a normal childhood. What results is openly described in this biography. She tells of the good and bad things that took place in her home and in her personal life.

I enjoyed reading this biography. It was open and searing. The reader will be aghast at the violence and casual drug use and smile at Romola successes. It is clearly the memories of Romola and how she perceived events that took place in her life. Isn’t that all any of us have to give? I credit her for allowing perfect strangers to feel the sting of being called fat and the hurt of being screamed at and told she was the cause of the family’s problems.

A good read. I can’t say it is a joy to read but it is important to see how Romola handled being in a family that is in the public eye negatively and the results of her father’s actions.


I received an eBook ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This in no way affects my opinion or ratings of this book.

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Wow - all I can say is WOW! For a former NY’er, this book providedso much color and additional information about a time and culture that I was too young to know. Great writing, and kept the pages turning!

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