Cheetah's Topless Club is a "gentleman's club" or topless bar located in San Diego, and Las Vegas, best known for being featured in the 1995 movie Showgirls, and also for having been owned by Mike Galardi, a nightclub owner who was investigated by the FBI with a controversial invocation of the Patriot Act. A secondary club called Cheetah's in San Diego also achieved notoriety for having been frequented by some of the September 11th hijackers.

The Las Vegas club was founded in 1991 by Michael Galardi, and employs about 150 dancers at any given time. In 2004, Galardi admitted in a San Diego federal trial that he bribed Las Vegas officials in an attempt to influence strip club regulations. In a Las Vegas federal court, he stated that he paid between $200,000 and $400,000.[1]

The club is currently managed by Charles Wright, a retired professional wrestler best known for his stints in World Wrestling Entertainment as a voodoo witch doctor ("Papa Shango") and as a pimp ("The Godfather"), and was also part of the Nation of Domination under the name Kama Mustafa.

Copa Room

The Copa Room was an entertainment nightclub showroom at the now-defunct Sands Hotel on The Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada.

It was noteworthy for the large numbers of popular entertainers who performed there, including members of The Rat Pack, Count Basie, Judy Garland, Lena Horne, Jimmy Durante, Tony Bennett, Bobby Darin and others.

It was also the recording venue for several live albums, including Frank Sinatra's Sinatra at the Sands, Sammy Davis, Jr.'s That's All! and The Sounds of '66, and Dean Martin's Live at the Sands Hotel - An Evening of Music, Laughter and Hard Liquor.

The Copa Room's showgirls were known as "The Copa Girls."

The musical director during the Copa Room's 1950s and 1960s heyday was Antonio Morelli.

The showroom took its name from the famed Copacabana in New York City.

Crazy Horse Too

Crazy Horse Too is a strip club located inLas Vegas, Nevada on Industrial Road a few blocks west of the Las Vegas Strip. The club was patterned after the original Crazy Horse Saloon club on Paradise Road,[citation needed] which was owned by Jack Galardi (father of Mike Galardi, who opened Cheetah's).The club was owned by convicted racketeer Rick Rizzolo.[1]Before becoming mayor, Oscar Goodman was one of Rizzolo's lawyers.

From 1984 until 2006, Rick Rizzolo was involved in an ongoing dispute over parking with "Buffalo" Jim Barrier, a well-known Las Vegas personality and a commercial tenant of Mr. Rizzolo. According to numerous newspaper and television reports, for 22 years Mr. Rizzolo engaged in an unsuccessful pattern of harassment in attempts to drive Buffalo Jim and his automotive repair business off the Crazy Horse Too property so the club could expand.[2]

On February 20, 2003, 80 FBI, DEA and IRS agents removed files, video surveillance equipment, computers, cash registers, and other materials and documents as part of a lengthy criminal investigation. One of the items under investigation was the $20,000 monthly consulting fee from the Crazy Horse Too bar in Chicago that was being paid to Rizzo. The investigation reportedly was under way for 10 years. As part of that investigation George Clooney, Robert De Niro, and Joe Pesci were interviewed. The case ended in 2006 when 17 defendants pleaded guilty to various offenses. As a part of the plea bargain Rizzolo was ordered to sell the Crazy Horse within one year.

On January 19, 2005, Robert D'Apice was arrested for alleged activities he participated in at the club including federal racketeering charges, assault from a 2001 crime, aided and abetted in prostitution or illegal sexual activity, and distribution of narcotics.

On September 6, 2006, the Crazy Horse lost its liquor license following Rick Rizzolo's guilty plea for tax evasion[1]. The Crazy Horse closed its doors on September 7. Another local business owner unsuccessfully appled for a new license that October.[3] The club remains closed.

Palomino Club (Las Vegas)

This article is about the nude strip club in Nevada. For the Los Angeles club, see Palomino Club (North Hollywood).

The Palomino Club is a landmark North Las Vegas strip club with a series of infamous owners, ranging from accused and convicted murderers to a prominent cardiologist. Since 2006 the club is owned by Adam Gentile.

It was built in North Las Vegas in 1969 by the Paul Perry family. One of the notable differences between the Palomino and other Las Vegas strip clubs, is that it is allowed to have both a liquor license, and totally nude dancers. Other clubs with liquor licenses are restricted to topless dancers. This difference, according to 2003-2006 owner Luis Hidalgo Jr., is because the club was grandfathered until approximately 2025 with the different rules.[1]

In 2000, a high-profile murder trial involved the Palomino Club owner's son, Jack Perry, who had shot and killed one of the employees he thought was trying to buy the club. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to "14 years to life" in prison.

In November 2001, the Palomino, along with two other nearby topless clubs, was bought by Dr. Simon Stertzer, a Stanford University interventional cardiologist who performed one of the first coronary angioplasties in the United States. Dr. Stertzer said he bought the club through a holding company, as an investment to fund his research: "Whatever will provide cash flow will do... It was a real estate investment."[2]. (Two years earlier Stertzer, who was a founder and major shareholder of stent manufacturer Arterial Vascular Engineering, sold that company to Medtronic for $3.7 billion.) Stertzer hired a "longtime friend", Luis Hidalgo, to manage the club. [3] Hidalgo previously had run an auto body shop in San Bruno, California and met Stertzer who had brought his Mercedes in for repair. After immediate uproar by the medical and academic communities, and articles in newspapers all over the United States, Dr. Stertzer decided it was better to sell the club.[4][5][6]

In 2002, the owner of the "Olympic Garden" club sued the owners of the Palomino, claiming they conspired with cabdrivers to divert customers. It was evidently a common practice for some clubs, such as Palomino and Cheetah's, to offer $5-$25 per customer to cab drivers, to encourage the drivers to bring customers to their club instead of someone else's. This put "non-kickback" clubs such as the Olympic Garden at a disadvantage. The case was eventually dropped. (Jordan, 2004)[7]

Luis Hidalgo, Jr., took over the club in 2003. One of the changes that he instituted was to start an all-male nude act, known as the "Palomino Stallions", in order to try and attract female customers.

In 2005, Luis Hidalgo Jr's son, Luis Hidalgo III. and Anabel Espindola, were charged as co-conspirators in a contract murder case, with the accusation that they had hired someone to kill a former employee, who was found shot to death on a road near Lake Mead in May 2005.[8]

In 2006, Hidalgo sold the club to his lawyer's firm, in order to cover legal fees.[9] The mortgage on the property at the time was worth $13 million. Two years later new owner, Adam Gentile, let cameras into the club to film King Of Clubs, a new reality series slated to premiere in Fall 2009 on Playboy

Rain Nightclub

Rain Nightclub at The Palms, open in the 2000s. It has been a popular attraction for celebrities including local Jerry Bruckheimer,[1] Nicky Hilton and David Katzenberg.[2]

Rumjungle

Rumjungle is a popular Las Vegas restaurant and nightclub built as a part of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino original construction. It has consistently made the Nightclub & Bar Magazine list of the Top 100 nightclubs [1] in the United States, and has consistently been in the Top 20 of Restaurant & Institutions Top 100 Grossing Restaurants[2] in the United States.

It is the largest Brazilian (Churrascaria style) restaurant in the world, and has the largest rum list in the world; its rum bar is 144 feet long and 19 feet high.[3]

Sapphire Gentlemen's Club

Sapphire Gentlemen's Club is chain of strip clubs.

SAPPHIRE Las Vegas

The Las Vegas club is located in Winchester, Nevada, United States, a part of the Las Vegas metropolitan area. The 71,000 sq ft (6,600 m2) enterprise includes 10 VIP skyboxes and three lounges, and is billed as the world's largest nightclub. It was sold in 2006 for US$80 million in an auction to one of the two former part-owners.[1]

New York City

The New York City club is on West 23rd Street and another strip club at East 60th Street, the site of the former Scores gentlemen's club. On March 26, 2009 it was reported that the club had invited Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and his wife, Thérèse Rein, to attend a private dinner whilst on his visit to the US. The Prime Minister's office declined to comment on the invitation.[2] This followed the report that the he had visited Scores in September 2003 with New York Post editor Col Allan and Labor backbencher Warren Snowdon. At the time, Rudd was the Opposition Foreign Affairs spokesman and did not have a "completely clear recollection" of the visit, stating he had "drunk a fair bit". The revelation did not have an adverse effect on his standing in the opinion polls but he distanced himself from the event none-the-less.[3]

Studio 54 (Las Vegas)

Studio 54 opened in Las Vegas in December 1997 at the MGM Grand. Designed to be a replica of the original club, it has most of the original elements and equipment, including the "Man in the Moon" and the spoon - however the two are never displayed together.

The club was visited on opening night by Elton John, one of the most frequent guests at the original location.

It has since become one of Las Vegas' most popular dance clubs, with a reputation for a strict door policy, but not as strict as the originals.[citation needed] However, the newer site is cause for contention amongst fans of the original location, who have charged that the Las Vegas venue is nothing more than Studio 54 in name only.[citation needed]

The venue is mentioned in the song Vegas Two Times by the Stereophonics.

Strip club

.A strip club is a nightclub or bar where striptease is regularly performed, and possibly other related acts such as lap dancing. While usually considered much less objectionable than more explicit adult entertainment such as sex shows, they are often the focus of morality campaigns and restrictive legislation.

High-end establishments tend to be known as "Gentlemen's Clubs". More down-market competitors may be referred to as titty/tittie bars, rippers, nipple derbies, skin bars, girly bars, nudie bars, or go-go bars. Sometimes, they are referred to as men's clubs (not to be confused with working men's clubs). In a bikini bar, dancers typically do not disrobe completely.

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Clubs

Gentlemen's and strip clubs are a $5-billion industry in the US, and generate approximately 22% of the gross revenue in US adult entertainment.[citation needed] In the U.S. more money is spent in strip clubs than is spent on theatre, opera, ballet, jazz and classical music concerts combined.[1] Some clubs have hundreds of entertainers appear on stage within a single year.[2]

[edit] Specific clubs

Sapphire Gentlemen's Club in Las Vegas has been billed as the world's largest strip club; in 2006 it was sold at auction for $80 million. Tampa, Florida is well known for its strip clubs including the famous Mons Venus. Howard Stern, a radio host and television personality, makes frequent mention of 'Rick's Cabaret' which operates in several cities.

Bangkok and Pattaya are world famous for their go go bars offering a variety of extra services (but no legal strip-tease). Amsterdam is famous for its live sex shows in De Wallen.

One of the most famous clubs is on Route 17 in Lodi, New Jersey featured on the television show The Sopranos. The club is actually a go go bar, serving alcohol with dancers but does not offer nudity. It is called "Satin Dolls" in real life, but is known more universally around the world and in the show as "The Bada Bing".

The Gold Club was an Atlanta adult entertainment club receiving national attention for the indictment of several of its owners, managers, and employees. The Gold Club trial also received significant attention because numerous significant professional athletes were called to testify.[3] The club was closed after the convictions of its owner, managers, and employees.Top clubs

Based on a 2008 article by the AskMen.com portal, the top 10 strip clubs in the world [4] are:

1. Hot Lap Dance Club, New York City

2. Night Flight, Moscow, Russia

3. Larry Flynt's Hustler Club, New York, New York

4. 4 Play Gentlemen's Club, Los Angeles, California

5. Spearmint Rhino, Las Vegas, Nevada

6. Le Crazy Horse, Paris, France

7. Seventh Heaven, Tokyo, Japan

8. Mons Venus, Tampa, Florida

9. Wanda's, Montreal Quebec

10. K5 Relax, Prague, Czech Republic

Champagne room

A champagne room (also called a champagne lounge, or champagne court) is a specialized service offered by gentleman's clubs where a customer can purchase time (usually in half-hour increments) with an exotic dancer in a private room on the premises. Depending on the quality of the club, the room, which is away from the hustle and bustle of the main club, is well decorated and usually has its own bar. Clubs sell champagne by the glass or by the bottle for both the dancer and the customer. Some clubs also offer a food and/or cigar service.

Comedian Chris Rock pokes fun at the champagne room in his hit single, "No Sex (In the Champagne Room)." Wyclef Jean later noted Rock's comment in his own reflection on exotic dancers, Perfect Gentleman.

[edit] Performers

Performers are called strippers, exotic dancers or just dancers, or entertainers. House dancers work for a particular club or franchise. Feature dancers tend to have their own celebrity, touring a club circuit making appearances. Porn stars will often become feature dancers to earn extra income and build their fan base.

Dancers collect tips from customers either while on stage or after the dancer has finished a stage show and is mingling with the audience. A typical tip is a dollar bill folded lengthwise and placed in the dancer's garter. Where legal (or legal restrictions are ignored), dancers may offer additional services such as lap dances or a trip to the champagne room, for a set fee rather than a tip. This fee will typically include a set fee for the room, for a set amount of time.