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Boston: 26 year old girl killed at the Copley Plaza Marriott after placing an ad for private massages on Craigslist............
Friends remembered Julissa Brisman today as an aspiring actress and model, a sweet, energetic young woman who battled alcoholism and was trying to leave her old life behind.
Videographer Mark Pines worked with Brisman at Near Ear Logo, a New York group that promotes safe cellphone use. Brisman modeled there and was featured as the "Cell Phone Girl" in a short public service video, which can be found here. Pines described Brisman today as an alcoholic who had been sober for well over a year.
"She was in recovery, and she had done just an amazing job," said Pines, who convinced Brisman she needed help and occasionally accompanied her to Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. "I was so proud of her. She had turned her life around, and had an amazing future. She had left her old life behind."
Brisman was shot and killed on the 20th floor of the Marriott Copley on Tuesday night by a man who police believe she may have met through an ad for massage services she posted on Craigslist. Authorities found a massage table in her hotel room.
Pines said today that he thought Brisman had given up meeting men in hotels, even although she was struggling financially. Brisman gave massages that did not involve sex, Pines said, stressing that she was not a prostitute.
"That's the tragedy of this," he said. "It's like escaping from Alcatraz and going back for your hat. She had given up all that."
Brisman had recently "qualified" in Alcoholics Anonymous, Pines said, explaining that she had been sober long enough to lead a meeting.
Edith Meeks, executive director of HB Studio, a theater studio in Greenwich Village, said Brisman had taken several acting classes there, most recently a technique and scene course two summers ago.
Pines, who met Brisman six years ago and said they had become "the best of friends," learned of Brisman's death from her mother, Carmen Guzman. Brisman also has a sister, Melissa, he said.
"We just cried for 15 minutes," she said. "She probably thought, just one more time and that's it."
Matthew Terhune, a 34-year-old photographer from Queens, photographed Brisman in November and January. He described her as a sweet, energetic personality who gulped Red Bulls and "wouldn't hurt a fly."
Brisman was often vague about details in her life, Terhune said, but she often traveled. When asked about how she was making money, Brisman told him that she earned up to $1,000 a night working bachelor parties, but insisted all she had to do was walk around in a bikini.
"She would say, 'I get paid just to look pretty,' " Terhune said. "We said, "That's all?" But she always said, "Ooh, I would never touch them, that's gross."
Terhune said the revelations about Brisman's occupation meshed with her mysterious existence.
"Her stories never really made sense," he said. "I guess it was clear she was an escort."
Friends remembered Julissa Brisman today as an aspiring actress and model, a sweet, energetic young woman who battled alcoholism and was trying to leave her old life behind.
Videographer Mark Pines worked with Brisman at Near Ear Logo, a New York group that promotes safe cellphone use. Brisman modeled there and was featured as the "Cell Phone Girl" in a short public service video, which can be found here. Pines described Brisman today as an alcoholic who had been sober for well over a year.
"She was in recovery, and she had done just an amazing job," said Pines, who convinced Brisman she needed help and occasionally accompanied her to Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. "I was so proud of her. She had turned her life around, and had an amazing future. She had left her old life behind."
Brisman was shot and killed on the 20th floor of the Marriott Copley on Tuesday night by a man who police believe she may have met through an ad for massage services she posted on Craigslist. Authorities found a massage table in her hotel room.
Pines said today that he thought Brisman had given up meeting men in hotels, even although she was struggling financially. Brisman gave massages that did not involve sex, Pines said, stressing that she was not a prostitute.
"That's the tragedy of this," he said. "It's like escaping from Alcatraz and going back for your hat. She had given up all that."
Brisman had recently "qualified" in Alcoholics Anonymous, Pines said, explaining that she had been sober long enough to lead a meeting.
Edith Meeks, executive director of HB Studio, a theater studio in Greenwich Village, said Brisman had taken several acting classes there, most recently a technique and scene course two summers ago.
Pines, who met Brisman six years ago and said they had become "the best of friends," learned of Brisman's death from her mother, Carmen Guzman. Brisman also has a sister, Melissa, he said.
"We just cried for 15 minutes," she said. "She probably thought, just one more time and that's it."
Matthew Terhune, a 34-year-old photographer from Queens, photographed Brisman in November and January. He described her as a sweet, energetic personality who gulped Red Bulls and "wouldn't hurt a fly."
Brisman was often vague about details in her life, Terhune said, but she often traveled. When asked about how she was making money, Brisman told him that she earned up to $1,000 a night working bachelor parties, but insisted all she had to do was walk around in a bikini.
"She would say, 'I get paid just to look pretty,' " Terhune said. "We said, "That's all?" But she always said, "Ooh, I would never touch them, that's gross."
Terhune said the revelations about Brisman's occupation meshed with her mysterious existence.
"Her stories never really made sense," he said. "I guess it was clear she was an escort."
