A woman of questionable virtue, especially from the
Prohibitionist flapper era.
From
hootch (alcohol) and cooter (vagina). People who visited speakeasies were considered to be of low class and even lower morals, and prostitutes were often seen in and around speakeasies, particularly in large cities.
Made popular in America by
Cab Calloway's song "Minnie the Moocher", in which Minnie is a compassionate prostitute who becomes very rich, and revived in Britain through its appearance on an episode of "Jeeves & Wooster" featuring Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie respectively.
a)Folks, now here's the story 'bout Minnie the Moocher / She was a red-hot hootchie cootchie
b)
Wooster: I mean, all this ho de ho de ho stuff is pretty clear, but what do you suppose a hootchie cootchie is exactly?
Jeeves: It's hard to say, sir, unless it's in connection with one of the
demotic American words for ardent spirits. I'm thinking of
hootch, a word of Eskimo origin , I'm informed.
Wooster (amazed): You bloody well are informed, Jeeves. Do you know everything?
Jeeves (
dryly): I really don't know, sir.
