Viswa Vanapalli
Netflix’s three-part docuseries’ Crime Scene: The Times Square Killer’ looks into the crime spree of Richard Cottingham. The notorious serial killer murdered several women, primarily sex workers, between 1967 and 1980. Apart from Richard’s crimes, the show also delves into the sex-positive community in Times Square, New York, during the 1970s. One of the people featured is Veronica Vera, a sexuality writer and actress. So, if you’re curious to know more about her, we’ve got you covered.
Who is Veronica Vera?
Veronica Vera moved to New York City, New York, during the 1970s. As someone brought up in a strict Catholic household, she noticed a seismic shift in how the community lived in Times Square. Veronica’s interest then led her to pursue journalism, and she wrote about sex workers in New York, drag queens, and other things. Veronica said of her time, “I came to sex-positivity from female liberation. I was going through my own liberation process through sex — freeing myself from taboos and from shame.”
Veronica also worked as a pornographic actress, something that she had many of the men didn’t like her career choices. She added, “Porn saved me from a lot of bad relationships.” In the 1990s, Veronica set up Miss Vera’s Finishing School for Boys Who Want to Be Girls in her apartment in New York City, New York. It started as a place for men to explore and learn to live out their feminine side. Veronica said she realized she could become a gender coach when a friend visited New York City.
The friend wanted to “go out” as a woman, with Veronica adding, “In the beginning, it was a lot of guys like that — guys from the ‘straight world’ who just wanted to spend a weekend indulging in something they couldn’t do in their normal lives.” The academy helps men find their right look using wigs, makeup, dresses and teaches them to walk in high heels. Over the years, even couples have enrolled at the academy.
Where is Veronica Vera Now?
In the past, Veronica had also worked as a Wall Street trader before foraying into journalism and acting. Apart from her academy, she has written three books on crossdressing. Today, Veronica lives in New York City, New York, and continues to run the finishing school. Regarding how the school has been helpful, she said, “For a lot of these men, being a woman, even just for a little while, meant accessing a part of their inner emotional life that they couldn’t express otherwise.” Veronica wanted to make that more accessible by providing the resources and teaching the basics.
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