Words And Photos By Rick Ryan

The Seventieth Annual Gentlemen's Club Expo invaded Las Vegas and the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in August of 2009 as the adult nightclub industry gathered for workshops, panels, featured speakers, a trade show, parties, and the all-important awards show. The Expo is a once-a-year chance for club owners and managers to find everything they might need in a one-stop, shop-till-you-drop, three-day extravaganza of girls, gadgets, booze, agencies and more. Even for those looking to jump into an industry that has more than 2,500 adult nightclubs in North America, which employs more than 500,000 dancers, and support staff, this is the place to be.

This year's theme was "Working as a Team," building a winning team in a gentlemen’s for owners and managers. The first day of the expo consists of registration, meeting up with old friends, and walking around the exhibit hall learning and gathering information on ATMs to carpeting, furniture to security, feature entertainers to liquor, lighting to web design and more.

Later that night an opening party was held at Rok Vegas at New York New York. This was a night to party, run into old friends and socialize, and just plain drink. Of course, I was too busy to drink shooting photographs to drink or anything else.

The second day of the expo included more panels and the keynote speaker Ed “Too Tall” Jones, the former Dallas Cowboy who played 15 seasons with a winning team that included 16 playoff games and no less than three Super Bowls. He is now a nationally recognized motivational speaker who shared secrets on building a winning team.

During my stroll through the exhibit hall I spoke with various vendors from DCW & Associates, Quik n’ Crisry, Spray Tan Las Vegas, Class Act, Continental Agency, Omega Pattern Works, KG Furniture, Rick’s Cabaret, Bad Girlz Fashions and many more.

Some of the notables running around this year included Chelsea Charms, Ron Jeremy, Randy West, Schevelle, Ronnie the Limo Driver, Jade Simone St. Clair, Naomi Knight, and many more.

That night was the awards show at the Hard Rock Casino. The winners of the night were:

Entertainer of the Year

Rachelle Laree

Adult Movie Feature of the Year

Teagan Presley

Newcomer Feature of the Year

Ashlynn Brooke

Club Favorite Feature of the Year

Jesse Jane

Club of the Year/Northeast

Cheerleaders, Philadelphia, PA

Club of the Year/Southeast

Tootsie’s, Miami, FL

Club of the Year/Mideast

Penthouse Club, E. St. Louis, IL

Club of the Year/Central

Hustler Club, Shreveport, LA

Club of the Year/Northwest

The Crazy Horse, San Francisco, CA

Club of the Year/Southwest

Fantasy Castle, Long Beach, CA

“Feature” Club of the Year

Red Parrot, El Paso, TX

Overall Gentlemen’s Club of the Year

The Men’s Club, Charlotte, NC

Club Chain of the Year

Deja Vu Showgirls

General Manager of the Year

Ken Sistrunk, Rick’s Cabaret, New York, NY

House Mom of the Year

Shari Nevis, Rachel’s, West Palm Beach, FL

Hall of Fame

Greta Shamy

Hall of Fame

Albert Bortz

Day three of the expo included more workshops, strolling around the exhibit hall, and a party at Rick’s Cabaret. I was too worn out to attend the party at Rick’s. I chilled out inside the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino enjoying some solitude time.

The Qlimax Times, Night Shift and I would like to thank Exotic Dancer Magazine www.exoticdancer.com for allowing us to take part of this great event in Las Vegas. See you next year!