The 30th Anniversary of the adult nightclub industry’s only convention — the Gentlemen’s Club EXPO — was celebrated in grand style at the Paris Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, August 20-23. Despite a rare west-coast hurricane, club owners, operators, club staff, entertainers and industry pros converged on Sin City for four days of seminars, networking events, exclusive evening parties and a 100-booth business-to-business tradeshow. As the EXPO’s tagline proudly proclaims, “It’s the most fun you’ll ever have doing business,” and the convention’s 30th edition certainly lived up to that reputation.
This year also marked the 25th Anniversary of the industry’s only national awards show: The Annual Adult Nightclub & Exotic Dancer Awards Show, also known as the ED’s Awards Show (the EXPO and Awards Show are both produced by ED Publications). The show, held August 22 at the Paris Theater, featured guest comedian host Joe DeVito and guest performers Little Miss Nasty, and included national awards for clubs, club staff and entertainers. The Penthouse Club Tampa and Leather & Lace Southend in Charlotte took home the Overall Club of the Year and Overall “Small” Club of the Year respectively (please see the complete list of ED Award winners at the end of this release). Michelle Lynn became the 2023 EDI Finals Champion, while Ms. Parker took home the ED’s Entertainer of the Year Award. ED Publications’ and EXPO Founder, Don Waitt, was inducted into the ED Hall of Fame, an honor befitting of the 30th EXPO and 25th Awards Show.
“The 30th Anniversary EXPO was everything we could have hoped for and more,” says ED Publications’ Publisher, Dave Manack. “The first EXPO was in Las Vegas back in 1993 at the old Stardust, so it made perfect sense to celebrate the 30th EXPO in the city where it all began. Though we may not always have the EXPO in Vegas (it was announced during this year’s show that EXPO 2024 will be held in Dallas), I’m sure we’ll always return. It’s ‘home’ for the EXPO, and it will continue to call us back!”
The very first seminar of this year’s EXPO, the “Founders Panel,” was an appropriate start to the event (see photo below). For the first time in the history of the EXPO, Deja Vu Founder Harry Mohney, Thee Dollhouse/Pure Platinum/Solid Gold Founder Michael J. Peter, MAL Entertainment Founder David “Slim” Baucom and ED Publications Founder Don Waitt all appeared on a panel together, while the group was joined by ED Hall of Fame attorney Brad Shafer. Each of these panelists have been featured (or will be featured) in Waitt’s “Founders Interview” series. (Note: Due to the west-coast hurricane, Spearmint Rhino Founder John Gray was unable to attend the EXPO and this seminar.)
Other EXPO 2023 highlights included the Finals of the EDI contest, as the top two finishers from the EDI East & West contests — Michelle Lynn, Hayla Faye, Justice and Autumn Knights — were invited to compete to win the title of EDI Champion (unfortunately, Autumn sustained an injury which prevented her from competing). Michelle, Hayla and Justice all put on competition-level shows on Sunday, August 20, at the Peppermint Hippo club in front of a capacity crowd. Ultimately, Michelle and Hayla would be the top two scorers and moved on to perform on Tuesday at the ED’s Awards Show.
The Opening Night “Masquerade” Party, held at the Larry Flynt’s Hustler Club on Monday, August 21, was a menagerie of sights, sounds and tastes, as Mediterranean cuisine was available to party guests, as were elegant masks to add an “Eyes Wide Shut” flavor to the festivities. The EXPO also closed out with a red-hot $10,000 Topless Bikini Contest at the famous Sapphire Pool and Dayclub on Wednesday, August 23. Canadian entertainer and alt-model Rachel Rampage took the top prize, as she wowed the judges and the crowd with her stunning looks.
For more information on the Annual EXPO or ED Publications, please visit www.theEDexpo.com, call (727) 726-3592 or email dave@edpublications.com. Stay tuned for much more EXPO 2023 coverage!
Here is the complete list of 2023 ED Award Winners:
Overall Club of the Year
The Penthouse Club, Tampa
Overall “Small” Club of the Year
Leather & Lace Southend, Charlotte, NC
Club of the Year East
Rick’s Cabaret, Pittsburgh
Small Club of the Year East
Bucks Platinum, Toledo, OH
Club of the Year South
Rachel’s, West Palm Beach, FL
Small Club of the Year South
Lido Cabaret, Cocoa Beach, FL
Club of the Year Midwest
Deja Vu Showgirls, Lansing, MI
Small Club of the Year Midwest
The Pony, Indianapolis, IN
Club of the Year West
Peppermint Hippo, Las Vegas
Small Club of the Year West
Lucky Devil Lounge, Portland
“Feature” Club of the Year
Expose, San Diego
Urban Club of the Year
Club Onyx, Houston
EDI 2023 Overall Champion: Michelle Lynn
Feature Entertainer of the Year
Ms. Parker
Club Favorite Entertainer of the Year
Angel Beau
Newcomer Entertainer of the Year
Raychel Revolver
International Entertainer of the Year
Nia Nebula
Miss ExoticDancer.com of the Year
Phoenix Phires
General Manager of the Year
Renee Cipolla, Big Al’s, Peoria, IL
Businesswoman of the Year
Jennifer Cartwright, Monroe’s of Palm Beach, WPB, FL
Employee of the Year
Manny Resto, Mons Venus, Tampa
DJ of the Year
Anthony “Binger” Bellao, Tootsie’s Cabaret, Miami
EXOTIC DANCER Hall of Fame
Don Waitt
