Women may
complain they can't find the ideal summer sandal or that it's a mission
impossible to unearth the perfect pair of jeans, but according to FRED GORSKI,
a cross-dresser from New York, it's a lot harder to find a size 17 JIMMY CHOO
pump!
On
ET, Gorski, owner of Fairplay Male Image Consultants -- a business he owns
helping men transform into women -- took us inside his fascinating world.
"We turn
the he-you into the she-you!" The former female impersonator says. "We
do everything to turn the masculine parts of you into the feminine parts of
you."
Gorski, who
also likes to go by the name Rain, works out of his 22-room home and treats
clients to anything from a 1-hour makeover (at $150 a pop), which includes
makeup, wig work, and clothing, to a night out on the town at the rate of $30 an
hour for his chaperoning services.
But who are
these clients? "Most cross-dressers like to step away from reality,"
he says. "Especially when they were in the Marines or are still in the
Marines or are street cops. They're like, 'I'm in this macho, macho world and I
want to get out of it. So when I step in I want to be called Suzy and I really
want to be called she.'"
Which isn't
that unusual, according to Gorski, who says he actually only cross-dresses about
twice a week. "Many people, when they come in, want to be called she from
the minute they walk through that door. So they're 'she' -- end of story."
One client, who
is married, says he visits Fairplay about 10 times a year and claims there's a
shift in personality when the makeup, clothes and shoes come together. "It
does change, because you have to act the role, you just can't dress the
part," he says.
Gorski says
that many first-time clients prefer to just have the makeover with no desire of
stepping out into the public eye -- just yet. "They'll soon get the nerve
and say, 'Let's go out Saturday night.' So we dress them up and take them
out!"
The client who
goes by "Samantha" when he dresses up says his wife found out about
his double life when she discovered a skirt of his. "The jig was up,"
he says. Although the pair is comfortable enough to share clothes now, he says
she wasn't always so open. "She was a little apprehensive at first, but
she's learned to accept it, which is good."
But "Samantha" says that as much fun as it is to get gussied up every once in a while, he gives credit to women who put on 4-inch heels day in and day out. "I would never want to be a woman full-time," he says. "It's too much work and I don't have the time!"