This is Part One of a larger, ongoing exploration of the world's oldest profession and the quiet, complicated ways it intersected with the history of Sheridan, Wyoming. Rather than attempting to tell the full, sweeping story at once, this series focuses on the lives behind the records—individual women whose names appear in city directories, court dockets, council minutes, and whispered local memory.
Please look for the other future parts that will include other famous madams and girls, including Pearl Logan, Missoula Jane, Lizzie Lane, and Etta Feely.
My deepest thanks to Judy Armstrong, who has walked this road with me from the very beginning of Angie's story. Judy and I started this journey together years ago, trading clippings, documents, and late-night theories as new pieces of Angie's life surfaced. We still update each other whenever one of us uncovers something new, and our shared curiosity—and shared fascination with Angie—has kept this research alive and evolving. This piece would not exist in its present form without Judy's generosity, persistence, and friendship.
So, who remembers Angie, the notorious madam of the Ideal Hotel?
You may have heard the long-circulating rumor that baseball legend Joe DiMaggio once visited his "Aunt Angie" while passing through Sheridan. In truth, Angie was not his aunt at all—Joe was nearly three years older than she was. What they did share was a common hometown: Martinez, California, a coincidence that likely gave the story just enough plausibility to endure for decades. It is entirely possible that the two never even met. Angie's documented connection, in fact, runs instead through Joe's cousin—a far more complex and verifiable tie that continues deeper into her story.
Angelina Jean Colacurcio, also later spelled Calicura, was born on July 21, 1917, in Martinez, California. Her parents were Saverio "Sam" Calicura and Angiolina "Angelina" Rodia Calicura, Italian immigrants raising seventeen children in one of Contra Costa County's largest families.
From an early age, her life was intertwined with creativity and persistence. She was the niece of Sam "Simon" Rodia, the Italian immigrant artist who created the world-famous Watts Towers in Los Angeles. Construction on the Towers began in 1921, when Angelina was only four years old. While Rodia represents just one thread in Angie's extraordinary life, his story of obsessive dedication, isolation, public ridicule, and ultimate cultural recognition mirrors many of the themes that would later define her own journey. He is an important piece in understanding the wider world that shaped her.
One of the first records Angie appears in is the 1920 US Census, listing her as age 1 (Her age was recorded wrong - as often happened) and living in Martinez, California.
Angelina's presence in the public record begins early in Martinez's society columns. In 1926, the Martinez Daily Standard listed her among the children attending a seventh birthday party for a local friend. In 1929, she again appeared at a fifth birthday celebration, confirming the family's long-term roots in the community.
On June 11, 1930, the Martinez Daily Standard reported that Angelina Calicura had advanced from grammar school into junior high, documenting her formal education.
Later that same year, tragedy and mystery entered her young life. On December 8, 1930, the Martinez News-Gazette reported:
"Miss Angelina Calicura underwent a major operation at the Martinez Community Hospital today."
The nature of the surgery was never disclosed. She was only thirteen years old.
By 1937, Angie's independence was already evident. The Honolulu Star-Bulletin arrivals column (September 20, 1937) lists "Miss Angie Calicura", confirming that by age twenty she was traveling independently across the Pacific.
On July 5, 1938, the Los Angeles Daily News announced:
"Edna Lee's Beauty Salon No. 2 announces its new owner — Angie Calicura, 1309½ W. 6th St., expert hair stylist."
This marks Angie's earliest confirmed business ownership. The 1939 Los Angeles City Directory also lists Angie at this location.
On April 5, 1940, Angie is listed under the name Jean Calicura on a manifest showing she is traveling from Honolulu, Hawaii, to California, where she arrived by ship on April 12, 1940. The Honolulu Star-Bulletin, April 5, 1940, listed her departure.
The 1940 U.S. Census which was taken on April 30, 1940 shows her residence at 596 South Normandie Avenue, Los Angeles, and lists that she was the owner of a beauty shop employing one assistant. At just 23 years old, Angie was already a self-made businesswoman.
Also in 1940 the Los Angeles City directory lists Jean Calicura at this address, again going by her middle name, at least for what is reported in the directory. But by 1942 she disappears and does not show up again until the 1950s.
Despite extensive searching, no 1950 US Census record has yet been found for Angie, creating a curious silence in an otherwise well-documented life. It makes you wonder where she was, or what name she was going by for the last 8 years.