Escrow Agent

The otherwise unnamed protagonist of the 1970s TV show Agent of E.S.C.R.O.W. David Cassidy played the lead role. (Canceled after one season.)

The term also applies to a person involved in the escrow process.

You're buying antique salt shakers from your Aunt Millie. She lives across the country, so you can't pick up the salt shakers right away. But you don't want her to ship them, because you don't want to risk them getting broken. Meanwhile, Millie only works with cash. She doesn't use Paypal, doesn't trust your checks, won't touch a money order (don't get her started on banks), and certainly doesn't take credit cards. Only cash.

To untangle all the logistical problems, you use an ad hoc escrow system. You Paypal some money to your Cousin Arthur. Meanwhile, Aunt Millie lets him take the salt shakers for safe keeping. When everyone's satisfied, he drops off the cash to Aunt Millie. Next time you're in town, you stop by Cousin Arthur's house to pick up the salt shakers.

In this scenario, Cousin Arthur is the escrow agent. He acted as a third party (someone not involved in the transaction) who can hold an asset or property while the deal is being closed. Basically, it's someone everyone trusts to sit on valuable stuff while the deal is closing.

Escrow comes up a lot in real estate. When you're buying a house, you'll sign the deal. Then everything will sit in escrow for awhile. You make sure the house is up to snuff and all the legal mumbo-jumbo gets worked out. Meanwhile, you know the seller won't just skip town with the money, because they don't have it. It's in escrow, safely held by a trusted third party, our hero...David Cassidy, E.S.C.R.O.W. Agent.