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Harem Theatre in NYC?
posted by
Greenpoint
on
December 26, 2005 at 6:23 am
Up until the revitalization on West 42nd Street between Broadway and 8th Avenue, there was a porno theater called The Harem, located at what looks like where the BB King now stands.
I need some assistance finding out what The Harem was known as before its life as a porno theater.
I know it must have had a life before porn.
Thanks again,
Greenpoint
Comments (429)
Sorry, i don’t have the answer – but a question!
Do you know when the Harem was demolished?
Thanks!
Hello Researcher,
I was in the Harem in 1994 and almost had a very bad experience in the downstairs mens room, luckily i ran out in time.
I remember actually passing by the Harem years after (cautiously as you could imagine)-Therefore I am going to give you a demolition estimate of between 1998 and 2000.
Feliz anos nuevas
Greenpoint
The Harem was four shopfronts along from the current entrance to BB Kings (which is where the back entrance to the Hotel Carter stood).
The Harem is now where the entrance doors to the Loews Ewalk currently stand.
If you want to know about 42nd st during the era of the Harem (70’s, 80’s) is told in full sleazy detail in the book Sleazoid express by Bill Landis and Michelle Clifford.
The Harem was created from retail space, it was not a theatre beforehand.
Thanks, Woody! I’ll check out that book. I mainly want to know specifically when the Harem went out of business.
Thanks again,
Kelly
Greenpoint… I posed this very question on the Loew’s 42nd Street E-Walk page but didn’t get a response. I’m glad you asked it again here. If you go to the E-walk page, and scroll to a comment from Septmeber 10th, there is a photo of the storefronts (including the ex-Harem) just before they were demolished to make way for the new multiplex.
Thankyou Everybody,
I am off to Amazon to get this “Sleazeoid Express” book.
Sincerely,
Greenpoint
Happy Holidays
That’s an excellent idea. I couldn’t figure out how to post my question – only how to respond to someone else.
Its debatable whether or not it counts as a real “theatre” or not. Many of the 42nd st grindhouses ran underground movies in the 70’s, blacksploitation, sexsploitation, horror, russ meyer etc. This applied to some of the small theatres carved into the ground floors of buildings on 42nd st, that had not previously been movie theatres, like the Roxy and Cine 42. I dont know if the Harem played movies other than XXX porn, anyone know?
Hi Everyone – I have another question, although I know this isn’t the right spot for it – has to do with another defunct Times Square theatre – OK to post here? Or should i take it elsewhere? Thanks, Kelly
which one?
A place called The Melody, which later changed to The Harmony. Wonder if anyone knows when it opened (as the Melody), when it changed to The Harmony, and when it closed for good. Thanks!, Kelly
The HAREM was a crackhouse in its last days! A Transexual named “TABU” would sit in the front row and sell crack to the patrons! Poor TABU is now dead! A victim of AIDS!
There was an all nude burlesque house called The Harmony, but it was in lower manhattan, near church street, it closed in 1999 amd is now a nightclub
The Melody theatre was on w.48st. It was owned by Al Kornish and Bob Anthony. It’s claim to fame was “mardi Gras” which was an early form of Lap Dancing. It had theatre seats and a t-shaped runway.
It later moved to 17th st.and even later settled in two locations w.22 st. and the Church st. location.I beleieve it was run by a woman named Domminique, who I understand was a former dancer who made a ton of money in real estate.
The Harmony/Melody was more of a “clubhouse” than
a “titty-bar”. No hassles or trouble in the place and
most of the guys there were regular customers.
It was a wild, great place, one of the forgotten gems of a NY that has disappeared into a faceless corporate shopping mall.
I remember the old Melody and Bob Anthony and Pie and dancers like Fannie Annie,Suzaye London, Tiffany Clark . and Dominique got her cash from Bob Anthony, remember Roger the big D*ck and a bouncer named MARK AND George Gibson)who was stabbed at another joint )?
Harmony Burlesk changed its name to Melody, just after a police raid in 1982 or 83. The place was in the second floor, and the Dancers were quite friendly. Mardy Grass was a blast.
I still have a Video of several of the shows. Ill post the names of some of the Dancers
Ah, memories of a NYC that is no more! The Melody Burlesk, which opened in 1979/1980, was the birthplace of what is now known as lap dancing. Back then, it was called Mardi Gras or smoochie-camoochie. Jim and Artie Mitchell got the idea of lap dancing after visiting the Melody and being floored at the wild action was going on. Porn legends such as Seka, Bambi Woods, Candida Royalle, Desiree Couseteau all headlined there as feature dancers. Bob Anthony and his wife, Dominique ran the place. It moved from West 48th to 17th St. then to 22nd St. and finally settled at Church Street, under its new name the Harmony Theatre. Dominique haad to shut the place down sometime in the late 1990s thanks to Mayor Rudy’s anti-smut campaign. Some of the dancers that worked the place ranged from Susan Nero (porn actress) to Maria Krupa (daughter of the late, great jazz legend). When it was the Melody, there was a guy named Frenchy who was its greatest patron and was there every single day. And I’ll never forget once when there was a sign above the men’s bathroom sink threatening bodily harm to whoever was swiping the hand soap! In all of its incarnations, the place remained friendly — with a club house feel. Everyone behaved themselves. It was fun, nutty, with a range of women for all tastes— from young and beautiful to fat and old. I went there as a teenager and stopped going in my early 30s, when its doors shut for good. Ah, I miss the old NYC!
I am just sitting here in shock!
Not only did I work there
I see my name in a couple of the above posts.
Does anyone remember what was happening at the stage with
lines of gentlemen patiently waiting their turn on a Saturday??
The place was so packed there was only standing room along the walls.
As us girls paused each gentleman
collecting our dollar tips!
Justine-AnnieSprinkles-
Trish-BobbyRocksAnn-
AnnetteHeinz
I still love them all!!!!
Well, guys have I ever told you how fun you were too:)
“Introducing The Wonderful -The Beautiful
( shut up George:)
FANNIE ANNIE!!!!!!!!!"
Da Da Da………..Da Da Da Da
Thanks Google:)
Is this really Fannie Annie. As a young man I went there with Big Roger and Steve . This is TONY . I remember them all, George the Bouncer who got stabbed. Bob Anthony and Pie were gentlemen . Domonique ruined it .
Annie: I hope u r doing well and opened that little dress shop that u always wanted. U R A GOOD PERSON .
Hey guys, I eventually created a Harem Theatre page here on CT after this thread started to develop. It would be great if some of you would go there to post any memories or factual information you may have about the theatre. Thanks!
I am doing well, thank you!
Yep, it’s me , heartshaped butt and cut the hair!:)
After fighting my demons , I married and have a small car
dealership now.My daughter is in her second year of college,
math major and my youngest is in high school playing football.
I think you have a couple of the names mixed up though, George was the older soundman that sat in the booth to the left of the stage
Jerry was the bouncer that was in the box at the top of the stairs
and was in control of the money.
Yes, Dominique changed the entire atmosphere of the joint and most of the girls felt she was only with Booby for the dollars and cents.
I met some very famous people in Bobby’s office…
I never met him but I heard through the grapevine that
Old Blue Eyes was a neighbor of Bobby’s in Jershey and stopped by.
Architecturally, the theater itself had a back door through Bobby’s office.It ran out onto Broadway about two doors up at street level.
There was also a kitchen somewhere handy through that tunnel.Rumor had it that the theater itself was a speakeasy back in the day.with exits for the patrons to get out while the police where on the stairs in the front.There was a man that photographed every dancer and kept our portfolios in order. Wish I could remember his name…was it Nate???
OMG!!
I just thought of something that will make you all laugh.
There was this scruffy looking gentleman that used to come in and sit every lunch hour.He didn’t have much money but was so fun. Take a guess, I dare ya! It was Howard Stern, he was working at a radio station around the corner in his early days and has talked about the theater on his show every now and again! Tony it was folks like you that made that place a one of a kind. I even remember where I was standing the day we got raided, funny Bobby made all our charges just go away! Much Love Fannie Annie
Fannie,
There was another George, a young body builder black man and he got stabbed working at another club. Big Mark was a bouncer too if I remember . Howard came there ? Too funny. Do u remember tall Roger ? Pie ? I was young and shy when I first went there .
Bernards was the hangout. There was Susan Nero, Tiffany Clark, Fred Lincoln, Margo and her “pilot” customer /friend Lloyd who instead of giving her dollars was giving her twenties and then just gave her 500 a day until his parents realized he wa raiding his trust fund !
“Lunch” was served daily and only Melody goers will understand that .
They had 2 girl shows . You might be sitting next to a Doctor or a homeless man usng panhandled money or the Assistant Chief, NYPD in charge of Patrol Borough Manhattan South but it didn’t matter.
Melody / Harmony was really an exceptional club. It did start to decline after reopening as the Harmony in 1982, but it managed to survive in the final venue at 279 Church St until 1999. I would love to find out what became of some of the dancers—Kitty Hawk, Dana Dharma, Shannon Ireland, Long Jean Silver, Patty Cake, Karen Wells.
Does anyone know if there are any of the video tapes still available?
I know that the Museum of Sex had an exhibit devoted to the Harmony this past fall.
Re the Melody Theatre I wonder if anyone remembers the shrine to Chantal “ the french doll” who overdosed in the the President Hotel. I remember a very moving tribute to her from Bob Antony.
I was introduced to Harmony / Melody as a gift back in 1990 just before the gulf war, i was 20 then, and a bouncer in NJ at the time, I had never met such nice bouncers in my life at the time, i went up the stairs and This beautiful black girl with a French accent introduced me in and my friend told her why i was there and the girls was so gracious it was such a friendly place, one of my then porn idols was right in front of me Sue Nero.
I asked this sexy black goddess if that was really her and she said yes and ask sue to come to where i was sitting i spent a good portion of my paycheck that night on that it was awsom!!!
Anyone remember her name, I never got a chance to thank her. oh the memorys
It was big mark that was at the door that night thanks Tony6894, holy crap! to make a correction it was 89, i just cant forget riding home on NJ transit with soggie undies the girls were so very hot!
Oh Hi Fanny Annie!!
YW Magik .
I know who u mean . I myself went there at 17 , in 1980 . Suzaye London was a hottie , one of my favs was “Star” but I hate to think what may have happened to her ny now . If Lloyd is around – Hey pal : Margo invested your trust fund and made a mint ! Anyone remember Holly ?
Does anyone remember a chinese girl named Anya from the Melody in Times Square, would have been 78 or so? Someone posted above that it opened in 79 or 80 but I thought it was open a few years earlier. Can anyone confirm?
my name is chrysanthe. I used to work at the harmony. I know where a lot of the girls are and yes they are still working. I was also wondering is anybody knew where to get the video cos I am in it and never got a chance to see it.
Chrs : What was your name over there and what video ?
This is AnnetteHeinz. Hello to Tony and my beloved FannieAnnie. Al Kronish was the co-owners name. I was the only girl with a steady dancing job. The contract was offered after I completed my road obligations.
Chry is Annette Heinz ? Holy sh*t I know u , how r u ? U will remember Big Mark was also a bouncer as was George who got stabbed and Old man Pie was a regular .
Chry is NOT AnnetteHeinz! Irving was the name of the elderly man w a cane. Do you remember Barbarella? Please update your profile. They emailed me that there was a response. Do you know where any of the girls are?
I remember Holly. Her daughter was abducted. Do you hear from anyone? I hope Chrysanthe responds. I have many photos of me and my wardrobe.
I knew Holly , knew her daughter was abducted , what was the outcome ? I didnt know Irv but knew Pie. I saw a lady at the mall who used to work there didnt know her name but saw Tiff Clark in AC , was friends with Star for a while but last I heard she was in jail and her cousin was good . Margo is living the rich life as is Dominique .
profile updated . Annette please feel free to email me .
I am going in a loop here on this site. Sometimes it lets me post and sometimes it tells me I am not logged in. Grrrr. Holly Ann Hughes was on a milk carton.
Domique was hated by all. Bob was married, but not to her…do da! If you guys picked up on he reptilian personna, imagine what a nasty soul she was/is. Brandy Lawrence…Zeda…Manny Rosen…
Danielle…Monique…Bianca…Babette…Baby Doe…Samantha Fox…
Thats right about Holly Ann but I didnt connect the dots . Never found but Rand the sc*mbag was charged .
As soon as Bob died (I have his record by the way) , it was never the same ,48 street was the place .Remember Bernards ?
I actually despised Dominique from day one .
I hope this will let me post. There is a worm somewhere. I remember Bob’s recording of “Angela” please email me. I tried you, but I am in a *** loop. I am tired of typing. It won’t even click on the link..help.
test
Sorry about the “test” {not wasting My time if the post wasn’t going to go through}
I’m an x dancer of The Melody and of The Harmony. It’s great to see people holding fond memories of the place. It was Home for many of the girls; odd to say.. but true.
I went by the name of Jaguar Darlin. Manny Rosen was My best friend there, him and the old man George who also worked as the announcer inbetween Bob announcing the girls on stage. He use to give me swigs of his liquor that he carried in his pocket faithfully. I worked there for nearly a ten yr. stretch. I also worked The Follie’s Burlesk which was right down the street, next to Howard Johnsons.
My closest girlfriends there were, Lady Jane {Suki}, Animal X, Annie Sprinkle, Sharon Mitchell, Electra Blue, Crystal Blue, Monique, Roxan {Rose}
In fact Rose and I also worked Show World together in a Fetish Show.
Remember the photo on the steps of Dominique sitting on a bananna?
Yes she was a bi*ch..but looking back, not all so bad. She coaxed me into doing a video..which I still have today!
If anyone would like to reminisce, write to me at:
http://www.myspace.com/baybiday
The original owners of the Melody were three guys who were Steve, Seymour and Freddie Cincotti who was a NY assistant DA. There was a big scandal when the Melody was busted and freddie was arrested, tried and jailed. His son is the singer, Peter Cincotti. Al Kronish was the accountant who might have owned a piece of the Harmony along with Bob Anthony & Jerry. It was a great place with alot of real characters. Professor and Izzy who worked the box office. The guy with the camara was Nat who also did the audio on Sat/Sun nights. I did see one of the girls last year working for a major Int'l airline at a NYC airport. She remembered who I was and gave me a big hug and kiss. My good buddy Dennis R.I.P.) who was always up there. Louie the porter and his son Andy. Seymour my other buddy who could ever forget him. R.I.P. Seymour. Lloyd, the phony Eastern pilot who ended up working the door of the Mardi Gras around the corner. The girls: Fannie Aiie, Anette Heinz, Rose, Kiki, Jaguar, Shawn, Victoria, Jeannie, Cary, Bianka B., Taurus Rising, Meecha, Donna S'more, Lisette Gwynn (she was arrested for murdering a customer),Desiree DuSoir, Vanessa, Terri Swan, Michelle,Margot, Joy Silkie, Lady Jane. The list goes on and on. It really was a clubhouse and all the regulars knew each other. We would close the place down on friday and Saturday nights. I was up there the day of the raid and was able to escape out the side door. I remember seeing big Mark and the girls taken out in handcuffs. Those were truly the old days. Anette, if you’re reading this post, Dennis passed away in 2006 from a massive heart attack in a massage parlor in NJ. I had talked with him on the phone the night before. He was my best friend and not a day goes by that i don’t miss him. Do you still talk with Harold? I used to see him around but no more. I hope that he didn’t pass away. To all my Melody/Harmony friends, those were the days. I wish we could roll back time!
Alex
The original
I remember the Harmony very well and was sad to see it closed. My favorite was a girl named Claudia who worked at the church st location until it closed. What happened to her?
Hey HarmonyMan! You have put a smile on my face
Ah, the memories of The Melody Burlesk and The Harmony — my home away from home when NYC was still NYC! I wonder what ever became of my favorites such as porn star Susan Nero, Heather (from Florida), Tabu (a Russian girl), and the owner that made all of this possible, the fabulous and funny, Dominique Anthony.
Can anyone provide a simple list of THE opening/closing dates (at least years) for each of the Melody/Harmony locations. I have some great coming of age memories of the Harmony from around 1979/1980, and later on 22nd street and Church street. There was also a similar place called Club 22- anyone remember that?
The Melody must have opened in the early seventies. I started going in 1976. The oldtimers I met like “Fish”, and “Freddy” had been going there for quite awhile before me. I was witness to the first lapdance given by Margie Villa. There were so many beautiful women.My favorite was Joey Karson. She died of heart failure in 1998. I also was crazy about Calico she helped close down the Melody dancing to a Whitney Houston song “I want to dance with somebody.” I remember Annette Heinz very well. She was a tall,blonde with a southern accent. A very sexy woman. I watched her dance at the Melody and the Follies. A shout out to you Annette.I hope life is treating you well. There was Franchine, Silka, Nicky Knight, Asia, only to name a few. Does anyone remember the hot show put on by Leslie Bo and Phadera Grant in September of 1979. You all must remember Eddie and the three photograhers Nat, Bob and George. The Melody is long gone, but as long as we live it lives through us. Its really nice to know so many people remember. posted by melharfol on March 2, 2010 at 12:52pm
I remember Nikki Knight well. A more decent lady you will not find. In 1980 I was in Canada with a fellow Melody fan and we were walking down rue Ste. Catherine in Montreal and went into a strip club called Filles d'Eve because Nikki was the feature dancer that week. After her set she came over and sat with us and told us that in a couple of days she was going to feature at a club in Toronto. Coincidence, we were going to Toronto too. We met up there and went out for a drink. At the end of our trip we walked to our gate at Toronto airport and who was waiting for the same flight as we were…thats right, Nikki Knight. We all started laughing! Even freakier her seat was right next to our seats. It was a great flight indeed! The 3 of us shared a cab into Manhattan where we dropped her off at her building before heading downtown to our neighborhood. These days Nikki is married with kids, unfortunately not to me. Melharfol, it is quite possible that we know eachother from 48th street. We used to close the place down on Friday and Saturday nights! Nat was the photographer and George was the audio guy at night. There were so many colorful characters, both girls and customers as well as employees at 48th St. Sadly some of them are no longer with us but until the last one of us kicks the proverbial bucket the wonderful memories of the Melody/Harmony will live on!
There were so many great headliners at the Melody. One of my favorites was Kristina Fox. She had all these beautiful costumes. Once she was undressed she would get into a tub filled with water and bathe to songs like “Tiny Bubbles,” and “Splish Splash.” So much good music. I remember Chantal dancing to Otis Redding’s “Try a little Tenderness.” She was so beautiful to watch. Joey Karson dancing to Donna Summer’s “Love to Love you Baby.” She was so heavenly with her movements. The Melody was the place to be.
Joey Karson used to “date” customers from the Melody. She would get a room at the Markwell on 49th St. Many of the girls turned tricks with the customers. The most notorious were Shawn, Cary, Bianka B, Alexandra, Victoria and Roxy. Treasure Chest also worked at a whorehouse on 34th St and 3rd Ave. There were some very nice sweet girls at Mel/Har, among them Nikki Knight, Annette Heinz, Sue Nero and Francesca. Francesca didn’t work often but when she did the guys went nuts. She was gorgeous! It was cool that the Melody used to book porn stars from time to time. They would put them up at the Consulate Hotel which was right next door to the Markwell. One Saturday night Nellie Gold was featuring and wanted someone to make sure she got back to her hotel room safely. My friend volunteered for the job. We didn’t see him for a couple of days after that! I should start a page on Facebook dedicated to the Melody/Harmony where guys and girls can post their memories. It was awful when the Harmony was forced to leave Times Square to make way for the Holiday Inn. That place was a true NYC landmark!
Bob Anthony once told the lounge five that “If you think any of these ladies are sugar and spice and everything nice there’s this bridge in Brooklyn I want to sell you. We all laughed. Bob Anthony was the heart and soul of the Melody. He’d always come out of his office telling us a story about him and Frank Sinatra. He was always singing on the mike. It was usually a Sintara song. Jerry T the bouncer was his right hand man. We called Jerry "the enforcer.” He was a nice enough guy as long as you stayed on his good side. They are two of the people that made the Melody the Nelody.
Calico one of the most popular woman toward the end od the Melody run. She wasn’t the greatest dancer, but she knew how to move to the music. She also knew how to get tips. Lapdances back in the seventies were a dollar a minute. Calico use to have cutomers that would give her sixty dollars for an hour of her time. She would sit on their lap facing them and just talk for an hour. One time I came to the Melody to see Calico. I saw her sitting on this guys lap. When she saw me she held up three fingers. That let me know besides the lap she was sitting on she had two more customers waiting. I found Chantal and had a good time with her. Just another day in the life of the Melody. It was the place to be.
During the intermissions between dancers the audio guy would sometimes play a tune of Bob’s. I remember it well….Angela, You’re an angel to me….! When the original Melody owners had to close the theatre down because Freddie Cincotti who was also a big shot attorney for NYS was busted, they sold it to Bob & Jerry T. Eventually Dominique became the 3rd partner in the Harmony. I never liked her at all. I moved away from NYC in ‘85 but still kept in touch with my friends who kept me up to speed on what was going on at the Harmony. When Bob was sick with prostate cancer a few of us went up to see him in the VA Hospital. He was so out of it and I remember thinking that he wasn’t going to make it. When he passed away Dominique gained control of the Har. I assume that she bought Jerry out. It was a crazy, fun place especially on Friday nights and all day until closing on Saturday. The stories I could tell about that place would fill a book!
Bacala time had to be seen to be believed. I think it started before lapdancing. Women would come onstage, move to one of the four corners of the stage remove all their clothes. The men would begin lines next to the girl they wanted sometimes the lines would grow to ten deep. Each guy would go down on the woman. Lick and lap for a dollar a minute usually until he ran out of dollars or he grew tired of licking. The next guy would wipe the woman off with a baby wipe and then begin the whole process over. Just another day in the life of the Melody. It was the place to be.
I was part of a group of guys at the at the Melody. We called ourselves the “lounge five.” Because we took our breaks between lapdances and bacala sessions by hanging in the lounge area. Some of the best stuff happen out there. The lounge five consisted of myself(king massage),Bob(the photographer),Ray(the old timer),Doug(ebony lover),and Eddie(butt lover). Sometimes Howard would come hang out with us. Sometimes before a woman would go on she’d come to the lounge to let us know she was going on next. One time Rose Marie was on stage. She wasn’t making many tips. She came off the stage with nothing on, marched out to the lounge and said “I’m on stage guys.” We all went inside and gave her tips. Just another day in the life of the Melody. The Melody was the place to be.
After a guy would finish with his bacala session he’d go to the men’s room to clean up. Most guys had these little bottles of mouth wash. “King Fish” one of the oldtimers would tell the guys how each woman smelled and tasted. He told us once that one woman smelled like a dead bear. We all knew to stay away from her. I was more into the lapdance than bacala. However, once on my twenty-ninth birthday I decided to participate. I was the first one that day in Francine’s line. So I didn’t need a baby wipe. I was down there doing my thing when Seymour yells over the mike and says “Happy Birthday.” I was so embarassed at the time. Looking back now it was just another day in the life of the Melody. The Melody was the place to be. By the way Francine smelled and tasted real good!
My favorite porno star was Seka. There were so many great stars on the Melody stage. Stars like Vanessa Del Rio, Raven De La Croix, Venus Del Haven, Desiree Cousteau, Leslie Bovee, Phadera Grant, Annette Heinz, Annie Sprinkle, Tina Russel, Joey Karson, Kandi Barbour, Susan Nero, Samantha Fox, Tiffany Clark, Kristina Fox, Candy Staton, and Long Jean Silver. They are just the tip of the iceberg. Over the years I’ve forgotten more than I remember. They were all part of the Melody. They made the Melody and Harmony and the Follies the places to be.
I remember bacala well! My first was with French Vanessa who later ended up marrying my buddy Dennis so she could get a green card. I still keep in touch with her all these years later. I know some of the guys you mentioned. Was Bob (the photographer) tall, skinny with black hair who loved pro wrestling? The Ray I knew was in love with Crystal Blue and Eddie (butt lover) was always getting kicked out for jerking off in the front row. He was also a pervert. Once I was walking with him on 3rd Ave and all of a sudden a lady with her 2 young daughters started screaming at us. I was like WTF and looked at Eddie and he had his junk in his hand waving it around. I think I know who Doug was too. Tall guy, balding. I was always up there with my friends Tommy & Seymour. Izzy (the night box office guy) used to call us the burger boys because at the time we were both managers for McDonald’s. I saw Tommy last April when I visited NYC for 3 weeks. We both miss the good old days. I’m pretty sure that all of the old timers have passed away. There used to be this really old guy named Pie who lived in the Edison Hotel and claimed to be a former mlb umpire. Also Freddie Nixon, The Professor, Max (old dude with a flashight who always sat in the same seat), Charles (another old guy in his late 80’s I think) who was in love with Sitiva. So many memories, all good.
Bob Anthony had to walk through the lounge area, and pass the lounge five to get to his office. Al Kronish and the other owners came and went, in and out of Bob’s office all the time. One time I was playing pinball. Judy V walks in the lounge and says she has to use the pinball machine. I thought she wanted to play a game so I back away. She gets up on the machine, tilts my game starts a bacala session right on the pinball machine. The room gets crowded quickly. Everyone is going bonkers. I can tell by her face Judy V is trying to reach the big O right on the machine. While all this is going on here comes Bob, Al and the other owners making their way by the box office and toward the lounge. The lounge five guys pick Judy V off the machine and rush her into the women’s bathroom. Bob, Al and the other owners are none the wiser as to what had just taken place. Judy V thanked each one of us later with a kiss. Just another day in the life of the Melody. It was the place to be.
For me it all began back in the seventies. I had just finish watching a porno movie called “Peach Fuzz” starring Jean Dalton. I’m walking up Broadway crossing 48th Street when I look to my left and see the Melody for the first. The marquee says “Live Jean Dalton star of Peach Fuzz onstage.” I’m thinking “Wow I get to see her in person.” As soon as I open the door I get this fishy aroma up my nose. I walk up the stairs pay three dollars admission, walk inside and my life was never the same again. “PURE PANDEMONIUM! I’d never since anything like it before. I’ve never seen anything like it since. About two hundred guys in the audience going crazy. About ten girls on stage. Some were dancing. Some were in the middle of bacala sessions. Loud music, horns honking, sirens going off, and women screaming. It was like how I figured Sodam and Gomorah would have been. It was my intoduction to the Melody. I was awestruck. I took a seat in the back row and just sat there in disbelief at what I was watching. I actually closed and open my eyes a few times. It seemed like some type of erotic nightmare that I didn’t want to wake up from. It was my first day of many, days, months, and years at the Melody. I’ll never forget it. The Melody became my place to be. Oh yeah I did see Jean Dalton in person too!
My friend Tom took me up to the Melody in 1978 for the first time. It was amazing, my jaw just dropped! I went for the bacala right away with Vanessa. I also enjoyed the action along the walls. It was a sad day when the NYFD put a stop to it. Jean Dalton was freakin' hot! I remember that she shared an apartment with desiree du Soir in the west village off of 6th Ave around 13th St. I wonder what she’s up to these days or even if she is still alive. Lots of the dancers lead very fast lives and I imagine that not all are still with us. I know that Teri Swan & Sydney McClain have passed away from cancer and Bianka B met a violent death up in RI, I think. I did end up seeing one of the dancers (Rose) a nice Jewish girl from Bayside in ‘85. She moved into my apartment and we lived together for about 6 months. We went up to Toronto one weekend and we were in a video arcade on Yonge Street and some guy came up to me and asked how much to date my girlfriend! I didn’t bite as the thought of under cover vice cop ran through my mind.
Eddie, Eddie, Eddie! Everyone loved Eddie. Especially all the girls. We called Eddie the butt lover, but he was so much more than that. He was a pervert, but back in the seventies at the Melody we all had some type of fetish. Eddie loved the butt. He cherished women’s behinds. I’d never seen anything like it. The women loved Eddie for loving their behinds. I’ll give you the perfect example. One time I’m sitting next to Eddie at the Melody. Eddie calls Calico over for what I think is a lapdance. Well Eddie turns Calico around so that her butt is in his face. He gives her butt this long massage. You can tell Calico is liking this. He gives her ten dollars for ten minutes of her time. He starts rubbing harder. Each cheek in a circular motion. It almosst looks like he’s making a pizza pie. Calico starts leaning forward making moaning sounds. I’m just watching in amazement. I can tell the two of them have done this before. Eddie spreads Calico cheeks wide and this his head directly in there. He’s so far in it seems like all I see is his ears. Calico says “Oh Eddie don’t stop.” She reaaly looks serious. Like she’s reaching some kind of climax. Eddie continues his massage of each cheek even though I can’t see his face. Calico continues to moan and groan. She begins to shake, and shake still calling out Eddie’s name. If she’s faking it she’s better than Meg Ryan was in “When Harry met Sally.” Finally she let’s out these heavy sighs that have some of the other woman turning around looking at her. She lets out a final sigh and Eddie face finally emerges again. He kisses each cheek. Then he pats each cheek. Calico thanks Eddie. Eddie thanks Calico and its over. After Calico leaves I ask Eddie what did it taste like. He says “At first you taste the lotions and perfumes, but once you go deep enough it taste like crap.” That was Eddie. You just had to love him. He was a marvel of the Melody. The Melody was the place to be.
Speaking of fetishes, I remember Frenchy who had the girls pee on him. You didn’t want to be in proximity to Frenchy thats for sure! I remember Andy (son of Louie the porter) when he turned 18 and first started hanging out at the Harmony. The girls loved him. I know he was banging Jackie Blaine and Cary with no cash involved. I heard through the grapevine about 10 years ago that Cary died of aids. She turned lots of tricks out of the Mel/Harm and supposedly slept with drug dealers so she could get coke from them. Eddie used to go for the younger looking girls such as Jeannie and Bianka B. We used to see the odd celebrity up there. Lots of WWF wrestlers and a band leader from a very long and still running “late night” tv show. Yes, the Melody was the place to be!
Suzaye London was a Melody favorite. She was hot to trot. She was a decent dancer. She had the ability to squirt milk from her breast even though she wasn’t pregnant. One time her buddy Danielle was on stage doing her twenty minute dance routine. Danielle was hot too! Well Suzaye was suppose to follow Danielle on, but about ten minutes into Danielle’s show here comes Suzaye on stage. Danielle seems to enjoy Suzaye being there. Suzaye starts taking off her clothes. Once undressed shes starts squirting the guys in the front row saying they aren’t tipping enough. Well the guys start giving more tips. Suzaye and Danielle start dancing hotter. They start touching and kissing each other. The audience goes wild. More tips onstage. They dance for about a half hour together. When they finish dancing the stage is filled with one and five dollar bills. Suzaye goes backstage and gets a big trash bag. They fill the bag with their tips and walk off. Just another day in the life of the Melody. It was the place to be.
Jerry T (the enforcer) was the Melody bouncer and Bob Anthony’s right hand man. He worked the box office most of the time. One Saint Paddy’s day Jerry’s standing by the box office shadow boxing. Jerry was a boxer back in his hey day. The crowd inside is drunk and rowdy. Alot of the guys just came from the parade. One customer comes staggering down the steps from inside complaining to Jerry about something. Before you can say “Ali” the guy takes a swing at Jerry. Jerry ducks under the guys swing and throws an uppercut that connects with the guys jaw. The guy goes down like a ton of bricks. He’s out like a light. When the guy falls his sport coat opens up to reveal a gun in a holster. All the lounge five guys are just standing there in amazement. We help Jerry get the guy on his feet and take him into Bob Anthony’s office. Bob and Al Kronish are already in there. Jerry explains what happen. We all agree. Bob ask the lounge five guys to leave. We found out later that the guy was a NYPD detective. Behind closed doors Bob and Al staightened out the whole situation. They got the guy a cab. Jerry was back in front of the box office shadow boxing. Just another day in the life of Melody. It was the place to be.
Lapdances and bacala were just a few of the things I loved Melody and Harmony ladies for. Tongue kissing was another. The Melody/Harmony had some of the best tongue kisser ever. Francine was a great tongue kisser. Chantal was another. So was Rose Marie. However the best tongue kissing experience I ever had was from a Melody lady, but we were at the follies when it happen. We had a whole session in the Follies burlesque closet. I’m not going to reveal her name. I just respect that private moment with her too much for that. It was a raunchy, sloppy, nasty, but senuous tongue kiss. Its thirty years later and I can still remember the wonderful scent of the woman. I can still remember the taste of her tongue in my mouth. All I can say to her is thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! That day the Follies was the place to be,and she was the lady to be with. Thanks again.
Lena Tyler was a hot, HOT Melody lady. She had a rear end to die for. Her caboose had this perpetual motion to it that drove me crazy. I could never get her. It went on for weeks. She was always busy lapdancing with another customer. When she’d be leaving for the day she come by me in the lounge and smack her rear. She told me that if I came early the next day she would let me be first. The next day I was there before the Melody opened. I was the first guy there, but she didn’t show up for about two hours. When she comes in she nods to me to let me know I’ll be the first one she sees. After she dresses into her skimpy outfit she comes straight over to me. I’m standing against the wall. A wall dance is the best thing when your confronted with a rear end like Lena’s. I give her ten bucks for ten minutes she backs into my crotch. Instant BOING! She turns her head and smiles. She says “I can feel you.” I just smile. She says “Are you ready.” I nod my head up and down. Yes, yes, yes Lena I’m ready for you. Lena Tyler you sexy,sexy lady. She begins rubbing up and down against my legs and crotch area. I’m ready to explode. I’m about to shoot my “Freeze don’t anybody move.” Huh! What? The Melody was busted. A raid right in the middle of my wass session with Lena. Lena runs to the dressing room like a bat out of hell. All the other ladies start running to the dressing rooms. I’m standing there with my hard on. the under cover police women run right behind the ladies to the back. The male cops tell all the customers to leave. We are all standing across from the Melody on 48th Street when the paddy wagon pulls up. All the Melody ladies, including Lena come out handcuffed together they are still wearing their skimpy stage outfits. I felt so bad for all of them. Later we found out that one of the owners didn’t pay off the police. So they raided the place. I never saw Lena again after that. Just another day in the life of the Melody. It was the place to be even if I only had Lena for a moment. Lena Tyler I still love you!
When the Melody was reincarnated as the Harmony Bob and Jerry were the owners. I’m sure that there were silent partners as well. I remember Susaye London well. She really enjoyed her time at the Mel/Har. Danielle was something else, totally hot! I have seen recent pics of her and even though she is in her 50’s she is still just as hot as she was 25-30 years ago. She is another rare story of a Melody girl who went on to lead a successful life with a great legit job. The wall dances were the best. One time one of the girls whose name I don’t remember, but she was Roxy’s cousin was giving me a wall dance and she unzipped my pants and pulled out my junk and discreetly slid it inside for a few seconds. Then she told me that if I wanted more we could go to the Markwell. All I remember about the rest of that night was that I didn’t end up at the Markwell with her. Yup the Melody was the place to be. I wish it was still around!
Leslie Bovee and Phaedra Grant put on the hottest show I ever saw at the Melody. It was so hot that the women that work there stayed to see their show. It was so hot that Bob Anthony, Al Kronish, and the other owners came there to watch their show. It was September 1979. First they both did separate acts on stage. However, it was when they came onstage together that they really sizzled, and they drove the audience crazy. They did this lesbian act that was like something right out of a porno movie. They were lying down onstage kissing each other. Then Leslie went down on Phaedra. Then Phaedra would go down on Leslie. Each simulating climaxes that really got the crowd rocking. Maybe they were really climaxing it looked so real. All the moaning and groaning. They had this huge dual dildo with a handle in the middle. The thing was at least four feet long. Half went inside Leslie. The other half inside Phaedra. They start moving like their having sex with each other while the loud music is playing “Hot Stuff” by Donna Summer. It was so hot. Things got even hotter when “Love to Love You” comes on. They start moving faster and faster to the music, moaning and groaning louder and louder like their reaching this ultimate climax. The crowd is going wild. All the Melody ladies are screaming. Leslie and Phaedra both fall onstage exhausted and hug each other as the crowd goes wild. The guys just couldn’t stop clapping once they got their hands out of their pants. It was the hottest show ever. The fun continued when thet came off the stage into the lounge area to take three dollar keepsake polaroid photos with the guys. They must have taken over a thousand photos that week. Big J.J a four hundred pound mandingo of a man and myself must have taken over a hundred photos between us. Its nothing like getting to hold, hug, and kiss them in person. I took off a week from work for their shows. I only missed the two late shows on Friday and Saturday night. I was the biggest fan that week. Both of them knew it. I was rewarded by being taken backstage after the last show on Sunday night. It was the first and only time that I was backstage at the Melody. They were both still sweating from their last performance. They thanked me for coming I received hugs and kisses from both Leslie and Phaedra. I was smiling all the way home. I still had their musk perfume smell on my clothes. I didn’t wash those clothes for weeks. Just another day,but a very special day,No! week in the life of the Melody. The Melody for me that week was most definitely the place to be. Leslie and Phaedra you were so hot! Thanks for everything!
I remember that week in September of 1979 well. I had my pic taken with Leslie Bovee as well. I don’t remember the particular show that you described but I can just imagine how hot it was at the Melody that day. J.J. was a great guy. We used to close the theatre down on Fri & Sat nights. I wonder what happened to him? Do you remember Elke Winter? She was nice. One of the best looking girls at the Melody was Linta Young, a Portugese girl from Newark. The problem with her was that she was a bitch. She was married at the time to an asian guy, who we all thought was a lucky sob. One day a few of us went up to one of the incall apartments on 48th St just west of 8th Ave and who was up there waiting to be serviced….Linta’s husband. When we asked him why the hell he had to go up to a place like that he told us that she doesn’t give him any at home! Poor guy. Like you say, the Melody was the place to be!
Bob, Nat, and George were as much a part of the Melody as any performer om the Melody stage. They were the Melody photographers. Besides taking photos of all the stars when they came they took hundreds of photos of the regular Melody ladies. Bob and Nat reminded me of ‘Mutt and Jeff.“ Bob was tall, and Nat was short. George was the "old man” of the group. When he wasn’t taking photos Bob hung out alot with the lounge five. He loved wrestling, Dolly Parton, and the Melody. Maybe not in that order. Nat was a college professor in New York somewhere. He was very secretive about that. One could understand why. George kept mostly to himself when he wasn’t taking photos, but the ladies loved him. Besides my polaroids with the porno stars I had many photos with the regular Melody ladies that were taken by Bob, Nat and George. I had photos with Joey Karson, Francine, Silka, Crystal Blue, and Lisa Wilson just to name a few. I lost most of these photos years ago when the house I was living in burned down to the ground. I have just two polaroid photos left. One of Calico and one with Leslie Bovee and Phaedra Grant. I’d like to thank Bob, Nat, and George for all the photos they took of the Melody ladies for me. The photos I had have burned away. However, the memories of those years, those Melody memories are burned into my brain and will always remain. You guys help make the Melody the place to be for me.
Nat was a math professor at Brooklyn College. I remember Bob well. He was a good friend of my buddy Dennis, who also took lots of photos of the girls as well as the wrestlers at the hotel ( was it a Ramada or a Days Inn) on 8th Ave & 48th St. The only Georges that I remember from the theatre were George the bouncer, George the audio man and a Japanese customer named George who was at the theatre every weekend. Dennis had thousands of photos of the Melody/Harmony girls in his house. When he passed away his cousin Jane who was his only survivor rented a driveway dumpster and threw everything out. After I got married my wife threw out all my pics from the theatre. I still haven’t forgiven her for that. I remember one week when Crystal Blue had worked the burlesk shows during the week. As she was leaving the Melody on a Sunday night she was dragging her suitcase through the lobby and she put it down to give Izzy a peck on the cheek and her luggage tag was staring me in the face with her name and address. I never told a sole about it until just now. She and Jerry had a semi serious thing going on so I knew she was off limits.
At the Melody Once you lapdanced and bacalaed yourself into a frenzy,there was a perfect way to release some of that energy. Especially if you hadn’t already done so in your lapdance session. Right next to the Melody through a side door was a place called Sophisticated Ladies. It was a massage palor owned by one of the Melody owners. He also owned a massage palor called Lucky Lady on 45th street, and Happy Place on 43rd Street. All of these places had above average looking women. Some were actually hot to trot. It was ten dollars for half and half. You couldn’t go wrong for that price. When I first met Joey Karson she was working at the Melody. However, she also worked at Lucky Lady. She had a good friend named Lisa Wilson who worked both places. After Sophisticated Ladies shut down a few months before the Melody closed I had one session with Joey there. We snuck into the vacant building through that side door. The electricity was already off. We had to use the blinking lights from the neon signs outside to see what we were doing. Joey always did what she did well. I was appreciative that she saw me for that last time. That was the last time I saw Joey. After a breast enlargement she went on to headline at more upscale places like Flashdancers, and she made a few porno movies. She died in 1998 of heart failure. I became good friends with her friend Lisa Wilson. After she stop working and moved back to upstate New York we still remained good friends. When I went to visit her and her family last October we talked alot about Joey, but we couldn’t stop talking about the Melody. We both agreed that in the seventies the Melody was the place to be.
There was this one headliner at the Melody who could play a plastic instrument with her private part. Does anyone remember her name? She would also smoke cigarettes and blow out smoke the same way. Then there was Veri Knotty. She could actually tie her private parts into a knot. They were just two of the acts that made the Melody so unique. The Melody was the place to be.
Bob Anthony was walking through the lounge area once singing “When I was seventeen that was a very good year” when Eddie runs over to him and tells him he’d better come look at the toilet in the men’s bathroom. We couldn’t figure out what Eddie was talking about. So all of the lounge five get up to see what Eddie is talking about. The toilet is filled with about fifty used condoms. It was totally gross. Bob Anthony just starts laughing and tells us he’ll take care of it. All those condoms. A result of many happy lapdancers. Only at the Melody. It was the place to be.
All those happy lapdance customers at the Melody that would leave all those condoms in the toilet were afraid to flush it according to Ray. Ray was part of the lounge five. He was the oldtimer of the group. He would tell stories about the “old days.” When certain streets had fifty hookers within a one block area. Ray and alot of the other Melody oldtimers would talk about a place called the Empire Room that was located in Newark, New Jersey back in the sixties. His favorite lady was Crystal Blue. Ray had hundreds of photos with her. Dispite Jerry T and his involvement with Crystal Ray was intimate with her for many years. The funny thing about it Ray and Jerry T were good friends. Ray had a stroke a few years ago. He recovered partially. Whenever I run into him and mention the Melody he can’t stop smiling. Ray was a fixture of the Melody. He was one of the reasons the Melody was the place to be.
Glad to hear that Ray is still around. Most of the old timers have moved on to the Melody in the sky. Everyone always liked Ray. He is one heck of a good guy. Tell him that Alex says hello next time you see him for me.
I have a Veri Knotty story for you. This happened at the McDonald’s on Canal Street next door to Diamond Lil’s. My friend Tom was working a rare closing shift at McD’s and I had nothing better to do so I went to Diamond Lils where I was waiting for Tom to close the restaurant and meet me next door. Veri Knotty was working there that night and recognized me from the Melody so she came over to say hi. One thing led to another and I ended up sneaking her into McD’s basement stockroom and let the fun began! A good time was had by all. This one night where Diamond Lil’s was the place to be.
I’ve written about many things in this column. One thing I haven’t talked about too much are the GUYS. So to those who have passed on, and to those who rock on. To Seymour, Freddy, Eddie, Subway John, Ray, Bob, Nat, George, Big J.J, Howard, Greg, Alex and any of you guys that I may have come in contact with that I failed to mention it really was a stone cold blast. All you guys along with the Melody ladies help to make the Melody the place to be for me.
Subway John, now there was a character. He was in love with Roxy and became enraged when she started seeing Tom. Tom had a way with the ladies and they all seemed to like him. He and Roxy saw each other for many years and still keep in touch. Sadly he told me last year that she is suffering from lung cancer.
There was another customer named John who worked with Seymour as a messenger downtown. He was head over heels for Jeannie. Lots of guys loved Jeannie and she was also one of Eddie’s favorite girls. She had a perfect ass. She would pretend to get upset whenever Eddie would whip it out! Jeannie and her husband Carlos also did a live sex show at one of the theatres on 7th Ave. Another girl who worked the shows with her b/f was Jillian Morehead and I always used to tease her that if her boyfriend couldn’t make it to the show then I would be happy to fill in for him. She always used to laugh but one Friday afternoon she came up to the Harmony looking for me. She needed me to fill in and all the guys were egging me on. I had to go and do the show with her or I’d loose face. A couple of the guys even came over and bought tickets to the show! I was da man that day!! Without the Melody/Harmony that afternoon never would have happened. This is conclusive proof that the Melody was the place to be!
This is great stuff guys. We ought to have a reunion with the ladies,lol. I started going there with fake ID at 16 , used to cut school then only on weekends when I was in college and working . George the Black Bouncer died when he was stabbed at another club he worked at . There was Roger Big Dck, Steve , and Tommy . I knew Star and her cousin very well . I loved Fannie Annie and Suzaye London . I always thought Pie was rich,lol and I thought Bobby owned it from Day one . Did Dominique have her Church Street place up until 9-11 or was it gone before that. I remember when she first came in smelling of cheap perfume . I always knew Lloyd was BS , that he did one round trip a day to Boston and back and then spent his cash on Margo but the boy must have been spending his trust fund and is probably homeless now . Margo wasnt bad looking but her pssy smelled like rotten eggs .
I see Vanessa every now and then when I visit NYC. She was married to Dennis (RIP) for about 5 years so she could get a green card. She is doing very well and still looks good. She has a great job and really straightened her life out. The closest thing in NY to the Harmony was Tina’s place on 6th Ave which is long gone. There was another club that Dennis told me about that was owned by Mason reese the former child actor where some of the Harmony girls worked at. Sadly that place is closed. Dennis and I used to go to Montreal alot because the strip club scene up there rocks. I still try to get up there once every year and take in a Canadiens game too. The best club is the Cafe Cleopatra. It is the closest thing to the Melody that I have ever seen. The girls do lap dances for $10 a song and you get pretty ngood mileage. I have been propositioned there all the time. But back to the Melody. That place was the best! So many colorful characters there, both customers and girls. Tommy and I used to share on of Seymours tickets to the Ranger games at the Garden. So many memories. I think that I could write a book about the place. From 84 til 86 I was up there more than I was at my own house! I gotta go for now but I’ll be back on later to post more stuff.
Tiffany Clark and Fred ? . They treated us like family . I never cared for the Follies but liked Show World .
Calico was one of my favorite Melody ladies. She help to close down the Melody . Her husband was killed while she was working. She got out of the business and moved back to Michigan. She reminded me so much of Heather Locklear. Does anyone remember June. She was Margo’s friend. She use to whisper the nastiest things into my ear while giving me a lapdance. It would really help to get me going. Just two of the ladies that made the Melody/Harmony the place to be. I miss them so much.
I remember Eddie. Short guy and he used to wear this cap like the STOOGES wore.
There was a blonde with short hair that I liked, a friend of Annette Heinz . I forgot her name but she was great at the ear whispering and tongue kissing. One night I didnt feel like going home to Bklyn and the next day was Sunday and the place opened at noon so I took a room at a sleaze bag hotel on 8th Avenue and did a back to back open to close at the Melody.
Does anyone remember a headliner named Toni Rose. She was heavy into S&M. However, when she was on the Melody stage she was a pleasure for the eyes to behold. She put most of the Melody regulars to shame. She wasn’t into giving lapdances or indulging in bacala sessions, but once you saw her dance you didn’t care. Every move was mesmerizing. The way she use to glide across the stage was hypnotizing. She was like a “swan among a pond of toads.” She wouldn’t take photos either. She just did her show and left me in a daze. She made the Melody a place to be, and her act, the performace to see. More about Toni later.
After getting to the Melody at about 10:00 am on Saturday sometimes the lounge five wouldn’t leave until about 10:00pm. Inbetween doing our lapdance sessions, and our bacala sessions, we were allowed to leave the Melody(by Bob Anthony), and come back without paying another admission. I saw more movies and plays inbetween Melody visits. One moment I’d be sitting among the theater goers watching Angela Lansbury in “Sweeny Todd.” An hour later I’d have magic on my lap getting me off. All in a day in the life of the Melody. Most definitely the place to be.
Bob let some regulars in for free once in a while . I used to save my dollars and come with $80-100 on a Saturday night.
I remember a dancer named Toni who was a favorite of George the audio guy. She would spend a lot of time in the lounge talking with the guys. Anyone remember a blond named Flame? She was a friend of Jocelyn & Alexandra. Dennis told me that after her Melody career ended she became a school teacher. She also stole Dominique’s husband from her and had a kid with him. Needless to say there was alot of bad blood between those two. Lots of girls used the theatre as a place to turn tricks. One of those girls was Gypsy. One day Jerry decided to do a sting operation on her. He arranged to have Seymour proposition her during a lap dance so he could fire her when she accepted his offer. I managed to get Rose to go and mention this to Gypsy so she wouldn’t lose her job. What happened was funny. Gypsy started screaming at Seymour and runs out to the box office to tell Jerry that she was propositioned by Seymour demanding that he get thrown out of the theatre. I think Tommy and I only paid admission a couple of times before Bob started letting us in for free. He knew that if there was ever any trouble we would help out. All in all the Melody was a great place. Many many memories. Someone should make a movie about it!
Tiffany Clark was a sweetheart. There was a bunch of guys who used to close the place down on weekends that really dug her. I remember the faces but the only name I remember is Roger. A tall thin blond guy. I think Roger liked Vanessa too. Good guys that group was. I used to see Tiffany & Fred on 86th street all the time. Usually in Grand Union late in the evening where I would occasionally stop after work and pick up a few groceries before heading home. Does anyone know what she’s up to these days?
I was friends with Roger and Steve and Tommy and Dave . They kept in touch with Tiff and Fred London? . I remember Flame . Describe Vanessa .
TONI ROSE
She spins in rythmic Harmony.
A gift on stage at the Melody.
She glides into a senuous pose.
Everybody wants, but no one holds Miss Toni Rose.
The mesmerizing Miss Toni Rose.
A swan among a pond of toads.
A dancing phenom in stripper clothes.
Everyone loves, but nobody knows Miss Toni Rose.
Just one reason, in one day at the Melody,
that Miss Toni Rose made it the place to be.
There is a place in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma called “Sugars.” Its by a army base. On occasion they still have dollar a minute lapdances. Anybody ready to jet to Oklahoma?
I’m in . There are places in NJ, theatres and peep shows that draw alot of queers but certain times couples come in and the woman do us str8 guys for free ofcourse but I dont go that often . Wish I could bring an ex Melody girl in with me,lol. Any volunteers ?
Mardi Gras made WIKIPEDIA . They mention the Melody.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lap_dance
Type in Lapdance and go to wikipedia. They mention the Melody also. I was there for that first Lapdance ever back in the seventies. I wrote about that in an earlier article.
Type in Lapdance and go to wikipedia. They mention the Melody also. I was there for that first Lapdance ever back in the seventies. I wrote about that in an earlier article.
Type in Lapdance and go to wikipedia. They mention the Melody also. I was there for that first Lapdance ever back in the seventies. I wrote about that in an earlier article.
Type in Lapdance and go to wikipedia. They mention the Melody also. I was there for that first Lapdance ever back in the seventies. I wrote about that in an earlier article.
Type in Lapdance and go to wikipedia. They mention the Melody also. I was there for that first Lapdance ever back in the seventies. I wrote about that in an earlier article.
If I ever hit the Mega or Powerball for about a hundred million I’d use some of the money to make a film about the Melody/Harmony experience. I’d use the lounge five as my consultants. I’d have open auditions for lapdancers and bacala participants If possible I’d make it in 3-D Imax so I could get the best special effects on all the T&A shots. I’ll have to wait until I hit the lottery. Unless someone out there knows Bill Gates or Warren Buffet or Steven Speilberg. It could happen. A dollar and a dream right? You gotta be in it to win it. One big lotto hit and the Melody/Harmony goes Hollywood. Lights, Action, bring out the lapdancers! It would take
Mega type of money to do justice to a Melody/Harmony flick. Hey it
was the place to be. It would be the film to see. Soon coming to a
theater near you. If all the guys in the country that ever had a
lapdance came to see it, it would be bigger than Avatar!
Casting for my Melody/Harmony Mega movie. Bob Anthony would be played by Richard Gere. Jerry T would be played by John Turturro. Al Kronish would be played by Pierce Brosnan. Dominique would be played by Annette Heinz. Since she knew her so well she could bring out the character. If she was unavailable to play the part we’d put a blonde wig on Marcia Gay Harden(Mystic River-The Mist). Megan Fox would play Crystal Blue or Tiffany Clark. Scarlett Johannsen would play Rose Marie or Joey Karson. Kim Kardasian would play Susan Nero. Jennifer Lopez would play Margie Villa. As a matter of fact Megan, Scarlett, Kim and Jennifer could play who ever they wanted as long as they played with me first. Hey this is my Melody/Harmony Fantasy Mega movie remember! So I’m going totally off the hook with it OK! Time for a reality check.
Sorry my comment about lapdance on wikipedia was printed so many times. I only wanted it there once. Thank you Internet Explorer.
I said the Melody was mentioned. Read my post,lol. If I hit it nig I will pay for that movie .
I meant big, typo. Can someone just name every lady that they can think of whoever worked there .
Vanessa was a tall slim French girl w/blonde hair. Her best friends were Teri Swan, Sydney Mclaine, Nikki Knight and Danielle. She married my friend Dennis so she could get a green card. She used to come up from Bernards late in the evening just to see Roger! Teri & Sydney have passed away, both from cancer. Vanessa still keeps in touch with Danielle & Nikki Knight. I wish there was a way we could reach out to former Melody/Harmony girls and guys and have a reunion some place. Any ideas?
I will start : Fannie Annie, Bobbi Roxxane, Tiffany Clark, Susan Nero, Holly, Long Jeanne Silver, Dominique, Susaye London, Star, Margo, Joey Karson, Annette Heinz, Flame , Calico, Crystal Blue, Vanessa, Kandi , Gypsy Rose, Danielle, Jackie , Jill Munroe , etc
I will start : Fannie Annie, Bobbi Roxxane, Tiffany Clark, Susan Nero, Holly, Long Jeanne Silver, Dominique, Susaye London, Star, Margo, Joey Karson, Annette Heinz, Flame , Calico, Crystal Blue, Vanessa, Kandi , Gypsy Rose, Danielle, Jackie , Jill Munroe , etc
Lets start a website . We already have reached Chrs, Annie, and Annette .
Kandi was a African American lady whose lipstick and body smelled so good . It still bothers me that this tall lady with short blonde hairs name esapes me .
Alot of these girls used drugs and had no money. I know one is homeless and was living in Central Park a few years ago but others used our money and socked it away like Margo (with Lloyds trust fund) . In 1980 one girl told me she was making $6000 a week , all cash,tax free .
Glad to hear Margo did so well for herself. I always liked her. I especially liked her friend June. They say Silka made it big on wall street. For every one that made it there’s a sad story about one who didn’t. Remember Chantal? Such a pretty thing from Jersey. She overdosed and died in a hotel. Her folks had to come from Wallington NJ to claim her body. The Melody was the place to be for alot of us. However for alot of the women it wasn’t
Melharfol : Please name all the girls that u can recall.
I will name all the Melody ladies that I can recall, but not right now. Probably tomorrow. Right now I have information that I think all you Melody fans might appreciate. THE MELODY OPENED IN 1973! If anyone is looking for a really good book about the Melody and other burlesque halls read Josh Alan Friedman’s “Tales of Times Square.” On page twenty in the last paragraph Al Kronish says “ When this location came along in 1973, it just happened to be on 48th street. The real estate was good, so we took it.” This book gives you loads of information about the Melody and other places. I didn’t know this but before the Melody Bob Anthony was manager of the Follies. They even had a three piece orchestra. If you can’t find it in a bookstore look online. I’ve had my copy for over thirty years. Josh even autographed it for me. He wrote “ to one of the Harmony’s most distinguished gentlemen.” There’s alot of good stuff in this book. Once you read it you’ll really understand if you already didn’t know that the Melody/Harmony was the place to be.
Most of the headliners that I remember are Annette Heinz,Seka Vanessa Del Rio, Leslie Bovee, Phadera Grant, Venus Del Haven, Kristina Fox, Samantha Fox, Veri Knotty, Desiree Cousteau, Kandi Barbour, Tina Russel, Raven Del la Croix, Long Jean Silver, Toni Rose,Candida Royale, Susan Nero, Margie Villa, Jean Dalton ,and Bambi Woods. If I think of any more headliners I’ll list them later. I’ll give by list of the regulars tomorrow. Looking at the list of ladies above makes me realize the Melody/Harmony was the place to be.
I had Tales of Times Square but after the wife & I split up it disappeared. Looks like I need to buy another copy. About 5 years ago on a trip to NYC I went to the Colony record store and bought Mike Cassone’s cd that had Bob Anthony singing Angela on it. The manager said that it was the last one they had so of course after I got back home it was a defective cd so I was screwed.
1973! The Melody had a good run before it was busted and was reincarnated as the Harmony. Just think that if B.A. was thinking with his big head instead of the little head just maybe he never would’ve made Dominique a partner in the theatre. Jerry would have kept it as is until they had to move. Jerry was into real estate and owned some apartment buildings in upper Manhattan. What they should have done was move to a more industrial area then maybe they could have gone under the radar. When Guiliani became mayor and decided that we all should all be subservient to his morals and started his crusade against adult entertainment it surprised me that he wasn’t shot by an angry Harmony customer! NYC just isn’t the same as it was in the good old days. I remember Bob always saying that Lindsay was the greatest mayor because he left places like the Melody alone.
Some of the girls I remember aside from those already posted above are: Annie Sprinkle, Little Oral Annie, Veronica Hart, Hillary Summers, Nelly Gold, Elkie Winter, Taurus Rising, Bonnie Tass, Shannon Ireland, Barbarella, China White, Diana Lee, Carol, Carol K., Bianca B., Tina, Jeannie, Cary, Magic, Lily, Francesca, Elaina, Michelle, Joy Silkie, Vanessa, Meecha, Star, Lissette Gwynn, Danae Darma, Kitty Hawk, Danielle, Monique, Shawn, Kiki, Rose, Teri swan, Nikki Knight, desiree du Soir, Candy staton, Liz Scott, Donna S'more, Red Snapper, Honey Midnight, Inga, Candy Starr, Leah, Jaguar, Champagne aka Bijou, Roxy, Jill Barry, Jessica, Justine, Victoria, Melinda, Sydney Mclaine, Dutch Maria, Gina Harlow, Lady Jane, Ginger, Linta Young, Christina Young, Mimi Young, Gypsy. There are so many more that I can’t remember names right now. Didn’t Lissette Gwynn take a chinese customer from the theatre and kill him with her boyfriends help and chop him into pieces put them in plastic trash bags and then put them in a shopping cart with blood dripping all over the street?
Some more names just hit me…Angela, Mai Lin, Jennifer Valentine,Alexandra, Jocelyn. Whew. But the nicest, classiest lady of them all was the beautiful Annette Heinz. I still have one of her movies somewhere. I would give anything to spend some time with Annette, so if you read this Annette…….
I also remember Lucky Lady, Her Place, Sophisticated Lady and the Passion International Room and of course the Luxor Baths where $10.40 would get you anything! That was one wild and crazy place. The lounge was downstairs and after you paid the manager would give you a ticket and you’d give it to the girl. Then she’d take you up in the elevator to the 6th floor where the rooms were. One weekends there were always dozens of guys there all waiting to get laid. I digress now to Lucky Lady, they had the best looking girls there. I remember one named Kelly who was a slim brunette. Had lots of fun with her.
A couple of more Melody girls were Sitiva and Pansy. Pansy would stick her tongue in you ear and drive you nuts!
One night Jaguar asked me if I wanted to spend the night at her house. Of course I did! We cabbed it to Astoria after we dropped Seymour of on 98th St. Her son, Trevor who was about 5 at the time was with a baby sitter when we got there. Of course this was the night that the Mets decide to play a marathon extra inning game and trevor wouldn’t go to his room and go to sleep. So although I slept in the same bed with Jaguar that was it, nothing carnal at all. Grrr.
I just remembered another Melody girl, Tina Petite. Another was Jackie who was real close to Manny Rosen. After she died from a drug overdose Manny left his entire estate to her kid. Now thats all for tonight cause I have work to do. Take care fellas. Later.
Some more names that I remember: Destiny Duvall, Brandy Lawrence, Crystal Cox, Lauren, Natasha, Inga, Rose. There were 2 Natashas. One was a light skined black girl and the other was a petite blond.
Rose moved in with me in ‘85 and we were together for 5 months. I really liked her and was trying to get her out of the business but she was only 19 and thought she could make $1000 by working as an escort or in an apartment. I used to go to a place on 34th & 3rd Ave. They had business cards that said Robert Stein, entertainment consultant. I went up there one afternoon with Eddie and Rose opened the door and I was shocked to see her there. I just turned away and we went back to the Harmony, which was the place to be.
Please excuse me for rambling on here. I had to take a pain pill (morphine) in the middle of the night and I feel so high right now!
Later guys!
Another Melody girl was Venus Berlin. I never liked her as she was nasty to the guys.
THE MELODY OPENED IN 1973. Calico, Crystal Blue, Susaye London, Danielle, Magic, Bianca, Beverly, Silka, Flame, Sparkle, Star, Asis, Joey Karson, Chantal, Rose Marie, Lisa Wilson, Lena Tyler, Tiffany Clark, Tina Marie, Anna Turner, Misty, Francine, Anya, Holly, Margo, June, Fannie Annie, Claudia, Roxanne, Electra Blue, Monique, Kitty Hawk and Patty Cake were the regular ladies that I can remember. For every regular name I listed there are at least five or more that I’ve forgotten. Two headliners that I failed to mention yesterday were Sharon Mitchell and Aunt Peg. Sharon Mitchell became a doctor amd she works in California with aids patients. She has also worked with alot of ex-porn stars that came down with aids years later.
The reason my nickname was “king massage” was that over the years I went with hundreds of women. Mostly out of the three massage palors I previously mentioned. I went with Melody ladies. I’ve gone with Follies ladies. I’ve gone with porno stars. I’ve gone with some of the ladies mentioned by myself and others in these articles. I’d like to thank each and every one of these ladies at this time. Especially the Melody/Harnony ladies. To see you on stage and then to have the pleasure of intimate moments with you will always be treasured even so many years later. The most memorable moment I spoke of in an earlier article. It happen in the Follies closet. Once again I like to say thank you very much to her. On that particular day the Follies was the place to be and she was the one for me.
Went with hundreds of ladies and probably spent at least a hundred thousand dollars over a ten year period back then. However, if I could do it all again I would. Why? Because for me, “THE MELODY WAS THE PLACE TO BE.” Any experience that came because of that such as the massage palors and all those ladies only enhanced my Melody/Harmony/Follies experience.
melharfol, you could be my twin! I to experienced what you just talked about above. The first Melody girl I was with was Alexandra. She was something else, totally hot. There were times that she would call me and come over and spend the night. Without the Melody none of these adventures would’ve happened. So you are right, the Melody and Times Square were awesome in the old days. Absolutely the place to be!
The blonde with the short hair I meant was Anya . Thanks. Jaquar postedon here . Anyone email her ? The house I went to with Tall Roger was Renee’s aka the Episode , the price used to be 10 bucks , she moved uptown, downtown etc through the years and ofcourse the prices rocketed . I have not been there for years but she still has the same phone number and was recently arrested and is still in jail . She had a minor with fake ID working there. Renee aka Noreen will reopen ofcourse but the Melody will not . RIP to Bob Anthony , all the ladies who have died and all the customers. A couple of u also knew Star whom I spent some time with as a young man . She was a short Pureto Rican girl from NJ , nothing fancy . Same Star ?
My Melody All Star Team of Regulars (no Porn Stars) :
Anya , Fannie Annie, Holly, Shannon Ireland,Susaye London,Jaquar, Candy Stanton, Jill Barry.
Have any of you guys ever had a celebrity moment. I’m sure you all have. Back in the seventies I use to have them all the time. Every Saturday morning when I was coming to the Melody right around 44th Street and Broadway I use to see Mary Tyler Moore getting out of a limo and going to the rehersal hall to rehearse for “Whose life is it anyway.” I went to so many plays back then that I always see the actors coming to work. My more recent experience was in March of last year I had the opportunity to have my photo taken with Jessica Gomes and Esti Ginzburg at a Macy’s promotion at the Herald Square store. Last month at the same store I had my biggest celebrity moment ever. I was at the promotion of the launching of her new perfume. February 3rd, 2010 at about six in the afternoon I had fifteen seconds with Miss Beyonce Knowles. I had my photo taken with her. She was such a nice person. She shook my hand and hugged me, and ask how I would like for her to pose. She’s lucky there wasn’t a chair around. I told her I’d be sending a copy to my ninety year old mother so I wanted her to wave. She did as I asked. Its probably the best photo I’ve ever taken. I’ll eventually put it on Facebook. When I do I’ll let all of you know. Imagine Beyonce as a Melody lady back in the day. She would have been spectacular. However, I don’t think Jay-Z would have liked it very much.
Does anyone remember Tamika or Asia?
I’ve had my share of celebrity moments. Back in the early ‘80s I knew one of the owners of Oren & Aretsky’s on the upper east side. The place was a celebrity hangout. I met many Yankees, Mets & Rangers players there. My biggest moment was coming back to NYC from Montreal on Eastern where I had seen the Rangers play the Canadiens the night before. I got to the gate early and then the entire Rangers team showed up. But the best part was deplaning at LGA. Carol Alt was waiting at the gate for her hubby Ron Greshner. Celebrites used to come up to the Melody from time to time. I used to see Paul Schaffer from Letterman almost every Saturday night. One afternoon 2 WWF wrestlers (Nikolai Volkoff & Renee Goulet came up for Mardi Gras. They went back in the audio room and Volkoff got on the mike and asked the audience to stand and remove their hats for the Russian national anthem! You had to be there. Dennis who was a huge wrestling fan had his camera out taking pictures. Does anyone remember the transexual Joy Silkie? She must have been about 60 years old then. Another girl I remembered was Silky Summers. She was very sweet but didn’t work very often. Tamika and Asia don’t ring any bells for me but I remember a really cute Asian girl who IIRC was named Kim or Kimmy. Tony your description of Star sounds right to me. She used to be high most of the time.
The art of the lapdance and wall dance when done right is a thing of beauty. It’s like a work of art. However, when done wrong it could lead to a double hernia operation. Sometimes the wrong lady would sit on me and start moving too wild, too crazy, too rough and heavy. Hurting my balls. I’d give her a few dollars and say “thank you see you later.” However, when I’d get that right Melody or Harmony lady, that right connection of movement and timing it was almost like dancing in ryhtmn. Everything was in unison. Her rocking her rolling, her movements were so fluid. I could just sit back relax and put my arms around her to feel her breast as her big rear end just kept thrusting into my pelvis, into my groin. She’s moving faster and faster to the music. She’s starting to rock and roll. I’m starting to shake and quake, shake and bake until I just shiver and quiver into that climatic happy ending. When it was right there was nothing quite like it. Well maybe a good BJ or lay tops it, but you Melody alumni know what I mean. That’s why the Melody/Harmony was the place for me to be.
Some of the Melody/harmony ladies really knew how to get the job done. Thanks to all of you ladies from the bottom of my heart to the bottom of my lower extemities. I enjoyed each and every lap and wall dance and wish I could have each one back to do it all over again. Thank you all so very much!
Magic was very pretty. Halle Berry kind of pretty. For me Magic was like the Mona Lisa of lapdancing. She was the first lady at the Melody to give me that happy ending. I had constantly been hitting the massage palor circuit to find fulfillment when one day Magic comes over and sits on my lap. I give her five dollars for five minutes, and she starts working. She had this slow methodic movement to the music until she could feel my rise. Then her movements became alot faster quickly. I wasn’t even wearing a condom. So when my happy ending came she could feel my wetness. She turned around looked at me smiled and said “I thought you said you never came.” I smiled and said “You were the first.” She just smiled again got up and said “See you next time.” I saw her again and again. I had many happy endings with Magic. She made the Melody/Harmony the place to be for me. Magic thank you so much!
Harmony Man : I was pretty sure that there was only one Star. I hope she turned her life around . She was a nice person.
I hope Star turned her life around too, although most of the time she was high.
Who was the homeless girl living in Central Park? Could it have been Shawn? Dennis told me before he passed away that he saw Shawn somewhere in Manhattan and that she looked homeless. He gave he a few bucks because he felt sorry for her. Once I caught her smoking pot in the back and she followed me to the office begging me not to tell Bob, Jerry or Dominique. I had no intention of ratting her out. She offered to perform a Billy Joel on me and of course as a hot blooded young guy in my 20’s there was no way I could say no to a Billy Joel! It turned out to be the best Billy Joel I ever had! When we walked out of the office Rose who was living with me at the time saw us leaving the office and she knew that I had just experienced a Billy Joel and stormed to the back. She was upset with me. But I have always been a big Frank Sinatra fan and wished that I could’ve experienced that with Shawn. Yup, the Melody was the place to be.
It was indeed Shawn . I too gave her some money thpugh more than a few bucks .
Does anyone remember Rosie from the Follies.
Tamika was a very sexy lady she made the hottest video on the Melody stage for Dominique. She was so afraid that her friends and family would see her. Before making the video she put on all this heavy make-up, and changed her hair style. It worked you couldn’t tell that it was her. She was only about five feet tall, but she had this huge round butt. When she gave you a lapdance she could really get in between your legs just right with that butt. She’d start grinding away to the music at a very fast pace. That rapid friction against my groin area resulted in a quick happy ending for me. Tamika just another reason that for me the Melody was the place to be.
For me the Melody was the place to be most of the time. Once and awhile the Melody would get too crazy and zany. I’d need a break from the madness. I’d head down the street to the Follies. The Follies didn’t have lapdancing or bacala or tongue kissing. What it did have were some good performers. I loved watching Annette Heinz. It was always a pleasure to watch Nikki Knight. However, the one I could always depend on to help me unwind from the frenetic pace of the Melody was Rosie. Especially when she danced to “I go crazy.” “ When I look in your eyes I go crazy.” She had such beautiful movements with the music. Rosie was to the Follies what Toni Rose was to the Melody. Her performance would take my breath away. When I sat and watched her dance I’d go crazy. Sometimes I’d tip her five dollars to that one song. Rosie thank you!
Asia was a tall brown skin beauty. She had this whole wall dance routine that always left me weak in the knees. I’d start by giving her ten dollars for ten minutes. She’d start off my facing me and sticking one of her long legs in between my legs. She’d slow grind to whatever music was playing. Then she’d unbutton my shirt and squeeze my nipples with her fingers. All this while her thigh was rubbing vigorously against my crotch. She then move her hand down to my dip stick to see if it was hard as a rock. She then begin hand-jobbing me real fast while still sucking my nipples. When she feel me start to shake she’d stop. She’d put her hand down there once more to make sure it was still hard then she’d turn around and back into me with her big butt. She’d start rubbing fast and furious.It didn’t take long for me to reach that happy ending. Off to the men’s room to throw away the condom and clean up. Asia another reason the Melody for me was the place to be.
Does anyone remember Lisa Wilson?
What did Lisa Wilson look like ?
I am bad with dates and such. Did Holly quit working after her daughter went missing ? I never knew till recently that Holly Ann was her kid . I do recall the week Dominique first came in. She tried to get two or three dollars a minute, there were accusations that she was picking pockets (there were several who did ) .
What did Lisa Wilson look like ?
I am bad with dates and such. Did Holly quit working after her daughter went missing ? I never knew till recently that Holly Ann was her kid . I do recall the week Dominique first came in. She tried to get two or three dollars a minute, there were accusations that she was picking pockets (there were several who did ) .
The girls couldnt be there at Rands trial for the murder of Holly Ann but if I had known I would have organized some of the guys to go.
That’s awful to hear about Shawn. But honestly I half expected it. She was a big druggie. I remember her falling asleep during lap dances. IIRC, Shawn came from a well to do jewish family and that her dad was a doctor. Purely conjecture here but possibly her family found out about her porno career and disowned her. I guess she could never get herself clean. I wonder if she knows anything about Sharon Mitchell and the program she runs in L.A.? Tony I’m surprized that you only recently found out Holly and her daughter. That was all over the theatre at the time. I think she stopped working for a time but came back after the publicity died down. It wouldn’t have looked good if the press found out where she worked. I don’t remember Lisa Wilson at all. The only Lisa I remember was Lisa Be. MelHarFol, you have to tell us more about Lisa Wilson. Magic I do remember well. She said that she was from Baltimore but was part Hawaiian. She was hot as hell with one fine ass. I remember seeing her get dropped off out side the theatre by a car full of guys. I always thought that one of them was her boyfriend/pimp.
I remember Lisa Be .
Remember I am bad at dates but I was 16 when I started going there . About the time that Holly Ann was abducted I was graduating High School that year and I had got caught cutting to go to the Mel . I buckled down and was working part time as well and then went to JJC and worked part time also and had a girlfriend so Melody visits were few for a while so by the time I really started going again, it must have died down . Also I was not part of the lounge five and couldnt figure how they could afford to be there day and night without working,lol. I used to go on Saturday nights for a while then a trip to White Castle,lol.
I just remembered Star’s cousins name and she has not been mentioned on here till now :
DUSTY
Sometimes I feel like I have more stories than the Bible to tell about the Melody/Harmony. So many stories. So many ladies. So many good times. So many memories. For me the place to be was the Melody/Harmony.
Just saw a movie that made me think about my Melody/Harmony days. “ She’s out of my League.” The chick(Alice Eve)is so hot. There’s a scene in the middle of the movie that will have any Melody alumni laughing. Its like old times all over again. Check it out or wait for the DVD.
sometimes it was like a cat and mouse game between me and the lapdancer. First I’d control the situation when I gave her so many dollars for so many minutes. Then she’d position herself and start working it. Once she started humping and grinding, moving and grooving soon she had control. Then all I could do is sit back relax and enjoy the ride. When it was time to release the load I’d let it rip. Ahhhhhhh! Another happy ending! Just another day at the Melody/Harmony. For me the place to be was the Melody/Harmony.
Beverly and Bianca were two sisters from Brazil. They were both at least six feet tall and built like Amazonian brickhouses. Misty was their best friend. One time I was about to enter the theater when a crowd was blocking one of the entrance ways. As I eased my way through I noticed a young yup/prep looking individual coming out from underneath Misty’s dress. He wipes his mouth as if he just finish drinking a bottle of apple juice. Except I suspect what he finish drinking had a more tangy taste to it. He tries to kiss Misty, but she just smiles, straigtens up her underwear, takes the guys money and backs away as she puts the money in her purse. Beverly and Bianca are laughing. I’m just standing there in amazement as to what I just witnessed. Just another day in the life of the Melody. Urine breath customers and all. For me the place to be was the Melody/Harmony.
Lisa Wilson and Joey Karson were good friends. However, they were as different as day and night. They both worked at the Melody. Joey loved dancing there. She could dance her but off to any type of music. Lisa just thought of it as a job. They both worked at the Lucky Lady. Joey was an alright BJ and lay. Lisa was exceptional at both. She was small, about five four, but she had these perfect breast, and this perfect butt. She had these great lips and she knew how to use them. When she finished giving me a BJ or lay I was finished for the day. The only thing I wanted to do was go to sleep. Thank you Lisa! Thank you Joey! Two friends that both made the Melody and Lucky Lady for me the places to be. Thank you ladies. Thank you very much. For me the place to be was the Melody/Harmony andf sometimes the Lucky Lady.
THE MELODY OPENED IN 1973.
The best thing about Lisa Wilson is that I still know her. Twenty five years later we are still good friends. We aren’t intimate anymore. Shucks! She’s too much like family now. I know her whole family. They know about our past together and everything. We all love each other. It’s really nice. Lisa is still a great kisser and hugger. When we want to remember the Melody we have so much to talk about. When I look deep into her eyes I still see that fire. We are both in our fifties now, but that Melody/Harmony flame still burns strong as does our friendship. For Lisa and me, it will always be the Melody/Harmony!
Sometimes the Melody would be so crowded that I’d be sitting down getting a lapdance, and ladies would be passing me by to give the next guy a lapdance. Sometimes I couldn’t even see the ladies face. I’d have to identify them from their rear ends. I’d be sitting with a Melody lady who really wasn’t that good at lapdancing. I gave her a few bucks just to pass time until a better lapdancer came along. Well the better lapdancer would be passing in front of us. I couldn’t see her face, but I recognized her back side and yelled for her to stop. The not so good lapdancer understood the situation and she would leave. Sometimes with the coaxing of a few more bucks. I’d get the better lapdancer and get my happy ending. Just another day in the life of the Melody. For me the place to be was the Melody/Harmony.
Sometimes at the Melody/Harmony you’d run into a lady like Sparkle. She was pretty enough, but not a good lapdancer. She’d have a nice enough personality and would love to talk. When she comes over to me I give her a few bucks for a few minutes. One day she trying to give me a wall dance. Right in the middle of the wall dance her belt/pouch thing breaks off. All her money falls on the floor. The Melody is pretty dark in the wall area. So we are both bending down trying to pick up her money. Rule to the wise try not to let anything you have ever fall on the Melody/Harmony floor. It’s worst than those movie theaters that use to be on 42nd street. Wet and sticky dollar bills aren’t good trade offs for twenty dollar bills later on. All in a day in the life of the Melody. For me the place to be was the Melody/Harmony.
Melhar : Tell me how u soent day and bight there when u where in your 30"s . U must a millionaire .
I meant night .
I can safely say this: If I had never knew the pleasures of the Melody, I would no doubt be a millionaire today!
I remember picking Joey Karson at Lucky Lady. LL used to have some fine ladies working there. I remember one Asian girl from up there. She didn’t seem to work very often, but when she was I always used to take her. A couple of other Melody girls I remember are Diana Onassis and an older spanish woman named Melai Melai.
Sitting at the Melody in the back row just watching the action. I’d have already had a couple of happy endings. I’d just be watching all the craziness around. Guys to the left of me shooting their loads into condoms as unnamed Melody ladies hump and grind away on them. Guys to my right heads sticking inside a Melody ladies behind. Guys leaning on the stage their face buried in between a Melody lady’s legs as they were in “bacala heaven.” Other guys heading to the bathroom to clean up. Melody ladies just coming in rushing to the back to change to join the action. Bob Anthony on the mike singing a Frank Sinatra song. It eas fascinating. It was crazy. It was the Melody/Harmony. I loved it. Every single moment. I JUST LOVED IT ALL!
Faces were such interesting things to observe at the Melody. Especially the face of a Melody customer when he was reaching his happy ending. Sometimes I’d be standing in the back of the Melody watching certain Melody ladies work their lapdance magic on customers. I’d see the guy start shaking. I’d ease down that way soo I could get a look at his face. It was some of the funniest stuff I’ve ever seen. The distorted look was hilarious. Sometimes I just couldn’t stop laughing. I’d have to leave and go to the lounge area to recover and regroup. Eddie had hip me to this awhile before. It wasn’t until I was in the mirrored room at the Lucky Lady massage palor that I realize how strange a face can be. Big Mary my number one BJ lady of all time was working her lips on my dip stick. She was getting me off for the first time. The room had a mirror on the ceiling. I’m lying on my back. Big Mary is draining me dry. I’m shooting my whole load. I’m straining to look at myself in the ceiling mirror. I looked like one of those monsters in the Michael Jackson video “Thriller.” I looked horrible. My eyes were bulging out, my mouth was twisted. I never looked so bad, and felt so good all at the same time. After that experience I never bothered to look at anyone at the Melody anymore. I learned my lesson well. As funny as those guys looked I felt I should give each guy his moment of privacy with the lapdance lady of his choice. So to all you guys I may have looked upon, SORRY! That was your Melody moment. Sorry for my invsion of your privacy. It was funny, but it wasn’t my money, and I should have kept my distance. Your place to be was the Melody/Harmony. My place to be was out of your way!
Margie Villa was the first lady I ever witness giving a lapdance. A very good performer. She had all these elaborate costumes. She had a very nice show to watch on stage. Good music, good dancing, and she knew how to work the audience. Once she stripped she had this body that made you want to go onstage and hump her. I guess she usally made around ten to twenty dollars in tips on stage. One day when she had completed her show she was walking around the stage picking up her tips. She started complaining about the lack of money. She abruptly jumps off stage sits on this guys laps rubs her big tush a few times and sticks out her hand for a tip. The guy rushes into his pocket and gives her what she wants. Some guys started looking at each other in amazement. Many guys started moving down jockeying for position so they could be next in line. I just stayed where I was at watching the whole spectacle in awe. Many times after that I had Margie. She never gave me the happy ending. However, it was always nice just molesting and massaging her massive hind parts. However, that first day I didn’t realize it, but I was witnessing the beginning of lapdancing as I came to know it. The rest is Melody history. For me the place to be was the Melody/Harmony.
Funny how u dont answer the question, U either were not a full time louge guy because they were all in their 60’s or 70’s at that time or u r that age . I never cared for the lounge lizards to be honest. Harmony man u sound cool. I was a kid and when a newbie came in no matter his age and asked questions , I would help hin out. The lounge lizards were an arrogant group and were probably on welfare, SSI , SS, SSD, OR some were inherited rich .
Donna Summore was a pretty brown sugar of a lady that I had at the Melody, and at her flat on Avenue A or C. So long ago I can’t remember. I do remember once I asked her “Why do you call yourself Donna Summore.” She said “Every time I finish with a guy he wants to know when he can come back again for some more.” She was right when she finished getting me off I always wanted to know when I could come back for some more. I came back again and again and again. Thank you Donna! For me the place to be was the Melody/Harmony and Avenue A or C.
Weren’t u the guy who went to eat some pussy and came up with a cock in your mouth from a Pre OP TS and just kept sucking .
I used to see Donna Summore turning tricks on 45th (i think it was) Street standing outside one of those smackdown hotels. Anyone remember Treasure Chest? She used to work incall at a place on 34th st & 3rd Ave. Lots of ladies used to turn tricks up at the Melody. Some were discreet about it while others weren’t. One of my friends had seen Alexandra over at the Markwell on 49th St. They left the Melody separately. Afterwards when he came back up to the theatre and he told me it was the best he ever had. Naturally I had to experience Alexandra too. She was dammed good. Eventually we exchanged phone numbers and she would come over to my apartment in Queens and stay the entire night. In the morning she would drive me to work in Manhattan. All this was made possible by the Melody. What a great place it was!
No sway, into the fray, I’m about the lay, the ladies, those beautiful Melody/Harmony/Follies ladies. So many ladies. So many names I can’t remember anymore. So many great performances on stage. So many lapdances. So many wall dances. So many happy endings. To all you ladies I can’t remember I salute each and every one of you. I thank you all for some really good times. You help to make for me the place to be the Melody/Harmony/Follies.
I was just thinking the other day about the evolution of the lapdance. When Margie Villa gave her lapdance in the 1970’s it was more just sit and rub and feel my tush. A few years later it had become more of a precision type of lapdance. The lapdancer knew what had to be done. She’d give you time for your money, and she would get you off. By the time the Melody had closed and the Harmony moved from 22nd to 17th to Church street the lapdance had become more about speed and money. There was this one lady who would actually spread the customers legs apart on the wall dance. She’d move inside both legs and do a “speedy gonzalez.” She got most guys off very quickly. I never went with her. Too fast! I always had Magic. From the Melody on 48th street to the Harmony on Church street. I was happy to let Magic work her magic on me. It was a win-win situation. She got what she wanted and I got what I wanted. The happy ending. For me the place to be was the Melody/Harmony/Follies. Magic thank you very much.
Does anyone remember a big blonde named Bridgett. She was at the Harmony on 22nd and 17th. However, I never saw her at Church Street.
One time I was rushing to get to the Follies to see Annette Heinz’s show. When I got there she had just finished. This three piece suit wall street looking individual was leaving. I was just about to sit in his seat when I see a neatly folded copy of the Wall Street Journal on the seat. I figure I just missed Annette well I might as well read the paper until the next lady comes on. I open the paper. Big Mistake. It’s jism city. That wall street guy had really shot a load in the business section. I just started laughing. Well at least he had enjoyed himself while watching Annette Heinz. She had that affect on a whole lot of guys! I moved to another section to sit down. Way to go Annette. Another satisfied customer. For that guy the Follies was the place to be, and Annette Heinz the lady to see.
Francine eas my first tongue kiss at the Melody. Rose Marie was my first kiss at the Melody. She had just finish performing. She was walking around the stage collecting her tips off the stage floor. I was sitting toward the back right area right next to the stage. As she came over my way I get out of my seat and hand her a five dollar bill. She bends down grabs my face and lays this big wet one on my lips. I could smell her musk and perfume. A wonderful scent. I could taste her lipstick, but I was just awestruck by the moment. She said thanks and walked off the stage. I learned from that experience that it was always good to sit in that end seat toward the back of the stage. I was the last one the lady saw as she was leaving. Do her right she’d do you right. Rose Marie, for me, was the lady at the Melody/Harmony. At least for that moment.
DUSTY smelt good and wore gloves all the time. I had a threesome with her and Star .
Rose was my first tongue kiss at the Harmony. Also was my first BJ up there too. One afternoon I was in the lobby/lounge playing the baseball video game and Rose came out after she finished her show to hang with me and Seymour. All of a sudden she reaches around my waist and unbuckles my belt and pulled it off. She starts to head back into the theatre and she coyly tells me that if I want my belt back I need to come and get it. She walked to the back to the first room to the left of the stage. I followed her and asked for my belt back. I ended up with 5 minutes of Rose dropping to her knees and pulling my jeans down just like in the movies. Two days later she moved in with me and stayed for about 6 months. For me back in ‘85 the Harmony was the best place to be.
Little did I know that after the honeymoon was over and Rose moved out how she would come back and literally screw me over. Maybe someday I’ll write about what she did to mess me up. I’ll just say for now that it ended up being the worst time of my life.
Does anyone remember a big blonde named Bridgett fron the Harmony on 22nd and 17th street. I don’t remember her being on Church street. Well anyway she was a blonde brickhouse. Big legs, big thighs, and a big laugh. She wore her hair in this round over the top braided circular look. It seemed liked she was just off the boat from Sweden or Norway or some European country. Well I give her ten dollars. She straddles me like shes about to ride a bull. Instant erection. I mean super hard. Her hard body is right up against ny hard part. She begins grinding hard and fast to the music. I didn’t last five minutes. Her hard rubbing got me off quickly, hard and intense. I was totally drained. I left the Harmony to find a store to replenish myself. These were the years before we heard of Viagra. I found a deli a few blocks away. I ate a small jar of peanut butter, banana pudding, and I took a couple of vitamin E that I always carried with me. I drank them down with a pint of orange juice and found me a bench to sit and rest up on. I couldn’t get Bridgett out of my mind. After about an hour of resting I went back to the Harmony. Bridgett saw me as I came in. She says something like “Back for more.” I nod as if to say yes. Quicker than I could give her my ten we were back at it again. Same result all over again. It seem even faster the second time. Very quick, very hard, very intense. However, this time I finished with a huge headache. This time when I left I just headed for the bus. I slept all the way home. I was lucky the last stop on the bus was my stop or I would have overslept for sure. That was the first and only time I ever saw Bridgett. Thank you Bridgett where ever you are. For me that day the place to be was the Harmony.
Does anyone remember the Hell’s Fire Club on 14th Street in the meat packing district. Eddie introduced me to this place in the early eighties. It made the Melody/Harmony/Follies seem like a Sunday school. This place was"total raunch."
Hellfire and the Vault I discovered in the 90’s and most thougt it was S * M or gay but u had couples and single woman playing with us guys in the open areas and the booths (no video just booths ) . Both places moved several times .
One time I was suppose to meet Eddie at the Melody. We were going to hang out and see “The Buddy Holly Story.” First before I met up with him I was going to make a quick stop at the Lucky Lady to see one of the ladies. Charo was available. She was a huge, pretty, spainsh senorita with this long brown hair. She weighed at least two hundred and fifty pounds, amd like to get on top. Back in the day I was about two-seventy so it was a heavy duty session. As I laying on my back she gets on top. She slips my dip stick inside of her and says “Are you ready.” She always asked ne that question, and I was never ready for her, but I nervously said “yes.” She’d start out real slow. It reminded me of the Cyclone roller coaster ride at Coney Island. At first she’d go real slow then “Wham Bam!” She starts moving like a sal in heat. Bam,Bam,Bam, WHAM! For soneone so big she really moved fast. I’m just trying to hold on for dear life and stay inside of her. She digs her fingers into my back and starts moaning “AY AY PAPI, AY DIOS MIO, AY DIOS MIO AY DIOS MIO! She starts shaking like shes about to hit the big O. I start shaking because I’m heading the big O. I shoot my wad. I’m wasted. I’m sweating. She’s sweating with this big satisfied lookon her face. Her look of satisfaction may be because she got me off. However, I think it comes from the fact that she sees I brought her tip with me. A bag of one dozen glazed donuts. As for Eddie I was so late I met him at the movie. Pitch black movie theater. He spots me in the dark "Is that you.” Yes Eddie its me. That Eddie you just had to love him. I loved Charo too. About a week later I come back to see her and she’s gone. Her husband came by Lucky Lady and pulled her out. I can understand it. I can imagine the kind of good loving she must have been giving him at home. How good a lover she must have been. I never saw her again after that. As for the dozen donuts I shared them with the guys at the Melody Eddie included. Lucky Lady amd the Melody perfect together. I wish they were both still around.
Melhar : I have to aplogize to u. As I said I didnt care for the arrogant attitude of the lounge old guys besides Pie . I never sat out there and palyed the machines etc and I still wonder if u were there so often how did u ever work but u r not who I thought u were by yojr description so I was wrong . Whats your first name guy ?
As far as the old guys in the lounge went, I thought Manny Rosen to be a tad arrogant at times. Basically the only ones I liked were Seymour, (he had season tickets to the Rangers) and I used to buy his extra tickets to alot of the games. I also liked the Professor who used to work the box office weekday afternoons. He had a pompadour and no teeth. We used to have to protect him from Augie and old guy who Bob had banned from the theatre. He would always threaten Professor when he would walk to the subway station after work. MelHarFol there used to be a pretty brunette that worked days at Lucky Lady, her name was Kelly. Do you remember her? She was really sweet and had the looks and personality of the girl you wish lived next door to you! As far as the Melody ladies one of my favorites was Anette Heinz. I don’t think I ever saw her without a smile on her face. Annette I know you read this board from time to time and I have to tell you that you were always classy and you still have me swooning all these years later. It would be great to catch up on the old days with you via this board so join in on the conversation with us!
Went with Kelly, Karen, Julie Red, Big Red, Big Mary, Carlotta, Isabella, Joey Karson, Lisa Wilson, Susan, Patty Big Boobs, Nicole, Charo, Sandra, Yvoone, Becky,and Fuzzy. Caught the clap from Fuzzy. I went with a hundred woman or more back in the late sevemties and early eighties. I use to keep a list with all their names. It was burned up in a fire along with my Melody photo albums, and by Broadway playbill/ticket albums. Between massage palors, go-go bars and street corners I’ve gone with more women, and most of their names I can’t remember. Kelly that I went with was white and she had a nice lean body. She reminded me alot of Jaclyn Smith from “Charlie’s Angels.” My first name is Vincent, but that won’t do you any good. My friends, and most of the lounge five called me by my last name,or they called me “king massage” because I hung out so much at the palors. Annette Heinz I knew her well. She was a beautiful person. If God created anything more beautiful he’s keepig mor beautiful he’s keeping it for himself.
If God created anything more beautiful than Annette Heinz he’s keeping it for himself.
Did anyone hear anything about a burlesque coming to New York next week?
Turning at 50th street by Broadway the other day I went by where the Pussy Cat Cinema use to be. I thought about Marilyn Chambers getting out of that stretch limo for the opening of her movie"BEHIND THE GREEN DOOR.“ As I walked down to the corner of 48th and Broadway I thought about the time I saw Phaedra Grant getting out of the taxi. Such a tall beauty, her long red hair blowing in the wind. As I start walking on 48th I remember the time Judy Vernon tried to kiss me and I moved away from her. Wish I could do that over again. Then as I walked in front of where the Melody use to be I was sad and happy at the same time. Sad that its not there anymore. Happy for all the good times I had when it was there. I closed by eyes for a second smiled and thought for me the Melody/Harmony/Follies was the place to be.
Saw a movie called “Chole” the other day had some good nude scenes with Julianne Moore and Amanda Seyfried. Amanda’s the same one that had the hot kissing scene with Megan Fox in Jennifer’s Body. As hot as all that was none of it can touch Leslie Bovee and Phaedra Grant when they did their thing at the Melody. “Ain’t nothing like the real thing baby even if it was long ago.
A burlesgue coming to NY where ? Melhar I am starting to like u . Remember besides the weekdays I cut out of school in the late 70’s I used to go there Friday or Sat nite only . I do recall a guy that was just as tall and big as Big Mark , maybe that was u Vincent. I am still laughing about the peanut butter, OJ story but I dont get the Vitamin E thing , I mean a multi vitamin yes by why Vitamin E ? LOL . Headed to a place in SI tonight, I hope a m/f couple shows .
U cant mention the MELODY without mentioning Annette Heinz (who was cool enough to email me with pics about a year and a half ago when this thread first started ) and Fannie Annie (who seemed surprised that her name was mentioned, did she go to the Dominique places on 23rd and Church ? I went a few times but didnt like it, more of a hustle for the lap dances and I think rather than trade the stage shows for the opportunity to do lap dnaces like Bob did with some girls or pay the girls to dance, Dominique was a pig and charged the girls to work there ) and Bobbi Rocks Ann . I refuse to call it the Harmony to me its the Melody always will be . More on Margo and Lloyd later , Harmony man would like to hear what that bitch Rose did to u .
There is a page on Facebook dedicated to the Melody. It’s called Melody/Harmony Theatre NYC fan page. Put the word out to all the guys/girls who were regulars up there.
Tony, I agree with you saying Dominique was a pig. IIRC she was the first strip club owner to charge the girls to work and then other strip clubs started doing it. Dominique had an apartment very close to the Melody on 49th streetbetween 6th & 7th Ave. Bob would go to her place in the afternoons. I don’t know what he saw in her. She was a wildebeast. Bob must have been out of his frikken mind to have made her a partner. I know for a fact that Jerry hated her. One of these days I’ll post how Rose fucked me over.
I am the only fan on Facebook but I posted .Do i have the right one ?
There is a website called “Website under construction” that’s trying to change the orgins of the lapdance from the Melody to the Harmony. They are trying to say that Dominique stared it after seeing it on Broadway in “Cats.”. Sorry “WUC” I saw “Cats” the first month it came out. Lapdancing had already been thriving at the Melody under Bob Anthony. If your going to start a website at least get your facts straight. Hey guys check out this website for yourselves to see what other things they’re trying to take credit for in the name of the Melody and Harmony. The Melody/Harmony/Follies rules.
there has to be a name “ wbesite under construction ” just means its not completed.Please copy and paste the link. I hope they have a contact email for Dominique. I would tell her a thing or two .
there has to be a name “ wbesite under construction ” just means its not completed.Please copy and paste the link. I hope they have a contact email for Dominique. I would tell her a thing or two .
there has to be a name “ wbesite under construction ” just means its not completed.Please copy and paste the link. I hope they have a contact email for Dominique. I would tell her a thing or two .
Tony, You have the right page. I am a fan too but my pic isn’t posted. Maybe Dominique is behind that under construction website. There are ways to find out who the webmaster/mistess is. Put the link up here so I can check it out. Whoever is behind this site is showing no respect for Bob Anthony IMHO.
SO Harmony where u the person who posted right after me >|?
SO Harmony where u the person who posted right after me >|?
Yeah
Has anyone ever seen a movie called “Burlesk Queen?” I’m a movie buff and this movie sounds like something special. Did anyone find out about that burlesgue show this week? If so, where is it at?
what burlesque show ? A permanent thing, a theatre show ? Private party ?
Many times before I’d come gto the Melody I’d make a quick stop at Lucky Lady. That was a mistake most of the time. There was Yvonne. She had this incredible tongue, and an uncommon knowing of the nerve endings of the penis. The first time I ever went with her she starts this rapid flicking motion with her tongue on my dip stick I start shaking like crazy. Its a real funny vibrating shake that I never experience before. Before I can get to the big O she stops and ask me how big a tip she’s going to get. I tell her five dollars. She starts up again with this snake-like tongue flicking. I’m about to explode again and she stops. Again she ask me how big a tip she’ll get. This time I just say whatever amount she wants. She starts back up again, but this time she’s even faster with her tongue. I start shooting like somebody turned on the hot water. I’m spent. After I left I tried to make it to the Melody, but I had these weird shakes all the way home. Sorry Melody/Harmony/Follies you were always the place to be. Except after Yvoone, she always left me wasted.
STARSHINE BURLESQUE
Little Brooklyn and Creamy Stevens bring you Starshine Burlesque.
The cutting edge in burlesque takes it off every Thursday night at Rififi. Enjoy a cocktail before the show as go-go sensations bump and grind to the irresistible sounds of the Meat Mistress' turntable. On stage, in the Backroom Starshine turns up the heat with a variety show of eye-popping striptease, magic, acrobatics, and vaudevillian antics. A different show every week of comedy, music, dance and good old fashioned burly-Q!
RiFiFi (Cinema Classics)
332 East 11th Street at 1st Avenue
Every Thursday- 10:15ish pm $5
Found this on Yahoo tonight. brooklyngirl.com for different shows/performers all over NYC.
Sounds like another Topless Bar .
Evelyn West aka Evelyn “$50,000 Treasure Chest” West aka Hubba-Hubba Girl was a burllesque legend of the forties,fifties,and sixties. I remember the Melody old timers talking about her being over at the Empire Room in Newark back in the sixties. They also used to talk about Tempest Storm, Lil St Cyr and Blaze Starr among others. I think Tempest Storm was at the Melody before I started coming there. I wish I could have seen all the old burlesque queens that I missed. However, I’m happy with the Melody/Harmony/Follies ladies I did get to see.
Still ticked off that another website would try to give Dominique credit for lapdancing when it was Bob Anthony and the Melody that started it. Well it was actually Margie Villa that sat on the first lap. It was under Bob Anthony’s management. If anything the producers of “Cats” came down the street from the Winter Garden theater saw what was happening on the Melody stage and decided to throw it into their show. It was at the Melody first. Melody/Harmony/Follies rules forever!
Please copy and paste that website link. Ty.
Maybe Dominique is behind that other website. If you can post the url we can check to see who the registered owner is. Could also be someone too young to know about Bob Anthony and the Melody’s history who didn’t fact check.
EXACTLY, I will know who owns it, under construction is not the site name
EXACTLY, I will know who owns it, under construction is not the site name
I found the “under construction” web site about The Harmony. From what I read I think that Dominique is behind this.
http://www.brsaa.com/index.php
I checked the web domain and it is registered in Madiera which is in Portugal. The website claims that the owner of the Harmony was a woman who previously owner of the Paris Theatre ( Formerly The Follies). It says she danced like a cat. Now Dominique was anything but a cat and the girls hated her. I wonder who put this bullshit on the internet? There is a topless pic of a girl on the site who I do not recognize as well as a pic of a turnstyle. IIRC there was no turnstyle at the Melody/Harmony between 1978 & 1985. The website itself sells Christmas wreaths and has a number to place an order which is 1-800-555-1212 and that is a number for directory assistance for toll free listings. Perhaps this is someone’s idea of an April Fool’s Joke.
What do you guys think?
Ty Harmony man . I dont know why our bud Vincent didnt cut and paste it for us. I emailed them and set them str8, its not a joke, they r trying to get people on a mailing list to make money on unrelated objects but if its not Dominique why would they use the Harmony name ?
Its all phoney emails and numbers , I copied and pasted the email so I could send it from an anonymous email I have. I just saw the email address, its ourcompany.com, the phone numbers are all 555-1212 , something is crazy here, maybe they are trying to sell the name and website and Dominique hired a bouncer who tried to fuck the girls ? Who George Gibson, he was hired by Bobby . The girls huddled and made business decisions , this sounds crazy.
I never saw George trying to fuck the girls. His brother Ray however did fuck some of the girls. There was a fire exit door in the lobby that led to nice clean bathrooms and a room with a mattress. I remember one night on a Fri or Sat, Ray took Inga ( an older blonde) who must’ve been in her late 30’s then into that room and fucked her. Do you remember Sapphire? She was I think Puerto Rican, a bit heavy but she was cute. She wanted me to take her to a hotel and George Gibson took me aside and warned me not to go because she had a veneral disease. He probably had done her and caught something from her. Needless to say I took his advice.
Back when Church Street was open Dominique had a website harmonytheatre.com and the domain was a local address in NYC on First Ave somewhere near 14th street. I recognized where it was because I grew up in that neighborhood. It’s where I spent the first half of my life. The website IIRC had pics of the girls and Dominique sold her videos there. I wanted to buy some but I wasn’t about to put money in her pocket because you know she wasn’t giving the girls any money from the sales. I remember her asking Kiki to make a video and when she refused she fired her. I know there is a way to find old websites and see them as they were. I’m going to figure this out and if I can do it I’ll copy and paste here. BTW, the old harmony website is now some sort of jewish conspiracy site. Go figure!
George was cool, as I said he got stabbed at a night club he was bouncing at . Dominique should be around 400 lbs by now . George fucked Sue Nero btw
I went with Susan Nero at the Markwell hotel back in the seventies. Very bad experience. Nice person, but not very good at what she was suppose to be good at. After going with her I learned that alot of what we see in those porno movies is not always what it is. Alot is illusion, or slight of hand. Will explain more later.
MELHAR : Do we have the site u were talking about and Harmony man did u run a domain history to se who owned it prior to these people ?
SUSAN USED TO TALK IN THIS BABY VOICE AND IT ANNOYED ME .
A friend of mine sses Susan Nero every now and then riding a bike around First Ave & E. 21st Street. He’s talked with her and see has a straight job and put her past behind her. Next time I’m in NYC I’ll ask him more about it.
sees, sry.
I hope he is not stalking Sue . LOL. She’s a big girl anyway .
Oh no, he isn’t a stalker. They say hello and what not when their paths cross. He lives in the neighborhood and at 58 he is still good looking and all the Melody girls liked him.
Had quite a time on Saturday night. I found “The Ultimate Burlesque Showdown.” It took quite a bit of searching, but I found it while I was on the computer in the Port Authority Bus Terminal before I went to see “Clash of the Titans.” Enjoyed it. The Schlep sisters and hirsty Productions presented “The Burning BUSH vs The Second Coming.” It was the best burlesque show I’d ever seen. Its actually the only burlesque show of that maginitude that I’ve ever seen. Admission was twenty bucks. The host Lady Rizzo was an excellent host and an excellent singer. Tigger the comic was very funny. The ladies were so-so to excellent. The Schelp sisters looked like Joey Karson with a Shirley Temple hairdo. They were adequate. However, Saphire Jones very, very, good. A good body, agood dancer, and she put on a good show. The same goes for Nasty Canasta, and Dirty Martini. I didn"t stay for the entire show. I was getting tired. On Saturday I’m use to going to bed around eight. It was after ten when I left the Le Poisson Rouge on 158 Bleeker street in the Village. The ladies only strip down to their pasties and panties. To tell you the truth I didn’t even care. I was having such a good time. The place was in sort of a basement. It was packed. Standing room only. I guess about a hundred people. I thought there would be alot of guys my age. Boy was I fooled. I doubt there was anybody there over thirty. Alot of hot, hot, hot, women. Dressed to kill, and smelling so good. Alot of lesbian couples. Alot making out while the show was going on. Alot of straight couples. Some threesomes. Thet were making out also. There was a stage for the performers. However the floor was laid out like a restaurant. Alot of food being served. I sat in the back at the bar. When I first arrived it was empty, but by eight showtime the place was jam packed and jumping. A very rowdy audience. Like they’ve done this many trimes before. I just totally enjoyed myself.
More to tell about this place later.
I left there shaking my head about the whole experience. It was like getting laid without getting laid. I was satisfied, and I was drained and tired, and I didn’t even shoot my load. I don’t think this takes place every week, but I’ll be finding out about the next time. Their website is lepoissionrouge.com. I felt like hollering out “GET A ROOM.” This place was like a combination of the Melody, Plato’s Retreat, and Rishue’s of London’s restaurant all combined. It was a blast! I’m surprised I never heard of this place. So many ladies. So much making out. It was utterly crazy! It was like when all these people left there they’d were going to hang out somewhere else. Unless things may have gotten alot hotter after I left. Because I only stayed until around ten. I can only imagine what it would be like around midnight. Maybe it turned into something like “Caligula.” I wouldn’t be surprised. It was wild enough while I was there. OUT OF THIS WORLD! I loved it!
Sounds good . I wonder if more did go on later. I want to try it out , maybe the girls played with some single guys .
I think alot of those hot chicks at Le Poisson Rouge came from New Jersey. I over heard one woman talking on her cell phone say that she had just come from Hoboken. When I was on the Path train it made a stop in Hoboken on my return trip. Alot of hot chicks were getting up the other train going into New York. Some probably on their way to Le Poisson Rouge
Ahhhhhhhh HOT CHICKS! I just love hot chicks.
I think we are all in agreement when I say the Melody/Harmony/Follies had alot of hot ladies that made us a bunch of hot and horny and crazy guys. Here’s to all those ladies. Here’s to the Melody/Harmony/Follies. For me the place to be was the Melody/Harmony/Follies.
Under Cover
‘Anything goes'
The old Harmony Theater burlesque club in Tribeca could be staging a comeback.
Madeline Droege, who ran the Harmony and still owns its 279 Church St. building, posted an online ad soliciting renters for the ground floor and basement space.
“‘Anything goes’ uses include bar/night spot/party space/restaurant/live theater/store,” she wrote in the ad. She is asking $10,000 a month for the 3,750 square feet.
Separately, Droege, a k a Madeline D'Anthony, also has a Web site advertising the space as the Fig Leaf Theater and Pink Fig juice and raw food snack bar. The site offers the theater space for rent for themed parties and events, and promises, “Coming soon.”
Droege did not return calls for comment, but one source said she had approached at least one burlesque group about performing in the space. Another source said costumed people turned up at the building on a recent night looking for an S&M party, and a sign posted on the front door told them to go to a different location.
The city closed down the original Harmony Theater in 1998, but burlesque dancing crept back in. From 2006 to 2008, during nonprofit Collective:Unconscious’s lease of the space, a group called Pinchbottom held monthly shows, said a Pinch performer and producer who goes by the name Jonny Porkpie.
A burst sewer pipe forced Collective:Unconscious to leave in the middle of last summer, and the space appears to have been empty since then. Local residents, who long objected to the stripping, likely prefer it that way, but they recently got wind of Droege’s plans, and they are not happy. Several people from the area turned up at a Community Board 1 meeting last week to urge the board to reject a liquor license for the space, should Droege choose to seek one.
I found this today while surfing the internet. It’s from last summer and talks about Dominique’s plan for the “Harmony” as she still owns the building on Church Street.
I would like to see what DOMINIQUE LOOKS LIKE TODAY. IS HER NAME MADELINE ?
Yes Madeline Droege is her real name. I’ve known that for at least 25 years. She has a houses in Brooklyn and in Orient which is way out in Suffolk Co. Droege is a Dutch name.
We should call her for an appointment to see the Property . She is too cheap to get a Real Estate .
It just dawned on me after finding Le Poisson Rouge just how many places must be out there. Especially in a place like New York. So many places to be discovered yet. So many places kept secret. I’m going to start more serious web searches until I find more. It would be nice to see a Harmony like place re-open. However, it just wouldn’t be the same. What would be nice is to get into a “Hot Tub Time Machine” and go back to 1980. Lapdances for a dollar a minute. Bacala sessions. The best tongue kissers alive. Time travel back to the Melody/Harmony/Follies of yesterday. Well its a nice thought anyway. Hey, I can dream can’t I because for me the Melody/Harmony/Follies was the place to be.
I left Dominique a message “thanking ” her for ruining the Melody. In order for her to survive with that property remaining vacant for so long she must have some serious bucks put away because SS aint allowing her to survive in NYC especially the way she eats ,lol. Did she own that property on 23rd street too and is it true that Bobby left her big bucks as did several regulars like Pie ?
While I was in the know about alot of what went on behind the scenes of the Melody I don’t know how Dominique made her money. I’m pretty sure that Bob didn’t leave her money because he had a wife and kids living in NJ. Its always possible that some of the regulars left her money, Pie included. I had heard that Dominique invested in real estate but also don’t know for sure.
There are some yahoo groups that hold mardi gras type parties in NYC and the parties are usually held in areas that even the cops are too afraid to go into. Check out these two yahoo groups: FunInNYC and apartmentnyc.
Can find it, one match refers to apartment rentals, can u post a link ?Ty
Tony, try these yahoo groups: bigpooh_playhouse & NYC Strip Clubs.
I just found out that the place where I went last Saturday night was a gay and lesbian club. So you guys might want to think twice about it. As for me there is no shame in my game. I was all abouthe show. I didn’t mingle. I watched the show and left. I totally enjoyed myself, and I got to watch alot of hot chicks making out with each other. It must have been about five guys in this place. The women out numbered the men twenty to one. If they put on another burlesque show I’m goin back again.
nothing can u copy and paste the links .
I never was so happy that I stumbled on the Le Poisson Rouge. It has opened up this whole world of burlesque to me. ANGIE PONTANI is the reigning queen of burlesque. I looked at a few of her videos on youtube. I can’t wait to see her live. Go to her website. Its like opening up Pandora’s box. Good luck guys. She’s just the tip of the iceberg. There’s oceans of information out there on her and the hottest ladies in burlesque. Melody/Harmony/Follies I’ll always love you, but its back to the future with this new forum.
Wow but no lap dances unless u Vincent get it started
Try utopiaguide.com
I can’t wait to see another burlesque show. Those ladies put so much energy into their performance. I’ve got to get to know Brooklyn better. There are alot of live shows there. The only bad thing is that most are so late at night.
headed to the Staten Island peep place looking for ladies and couples where the lady plays
Desiree and Dave showed, I banged her once and she blew me and I came like that too later after I ate a candy bar .
Haven’t been to a peep show in twenty-five years. My favorite was the Black Jack on 42nd street. I can still remember Linda a twenty year old hot spainish senorita giving me a happy ending through this hole in the glass. I remember one lady giving a guy a hand job with one hand and eating a sandwich with the other. It was a real raunchy place. The Black Jack like all other sex places in the area are long gone.
Has anyone ever been to the Bell House in Brooklyn?
Where and what is Bell House.
King Massage : U r talking about paid girls in the peeps , I am talking about women who go because they want to and for free .
I was with a free woman for nineteen years. Had two sons with her. Broke up last August. Still paying once a month. I did get my freedom, and my peace of mind back.
No such thing as a free woman. One way or another we end up paying for it. I too broke up last year after 20 years. I will be paying once a month until my kids turn 21.
I’ve given more than enough stories about the Melody/Harmony/Follies experience. One final word about the Melody/Harmony/Follies. To forget everything around you, inside or outside. I was doing what I loved to do most. Sitting there with my favorite lapdancer grinding away on my lap. The joy of the moment. The beauty of the lapdancer’s performance in my lap. The poetry of her body in motion. The shooting of my load. The ultimate happy ending. Everything was right in my world. For me the Melody/Harmony/Follies was the place to be. Now I’ve found a new venue burlesque as it was meant to be. Harmony Man best of luck as the undercover brother of Harmony’s past. Tony6894 good luck with those “free woman.” As for me I’ll only be reporting in with news about my new search, and conquest. Now back to my “Burlesque Quest.” Later guys!
I was not suggesting that u guys had no life or couldnt get “regular” women . These free woman are not for long term or dating but for the moment . They come with their husbands as customers like I do and play like at a swingers club, etc . I wont be taking them out or having kids with them , I have my own kids as well . I too loved the Melody and am a Melody purist , not the Follies not the Harmony under Dominique just the Melody under Bob Anthony . I may see u at the village place .
Harmony Man I ran into Ray at Penn Station in Newark. I said Alex said to say hi. He says hi back. He’s doing quite well since he had his heart attack. He’s hard to understand sometimes. He says he goes to Atlantic city about once a month. He’s also been to Boston, and Baltimore recently. I told him about my “quest for burlesque.” He seemed tickled, but interested. I told him about a show at the Bell House in Brooklyn on the 25th of April. He didn’t want to go to Brooklyn. However, I mentioned on closer on 16th street in Manhattan. He was more intersted. He didn’t say weather he would or wouldn’t attend, but I gave him all the information. There’s a place called the Highline Ballroom on 431 West 16th Street. They are having a Mother’s Day Brunch show on May 9th. Most of the ladies I saw on Bleeker Street will be there. Plus some headliners that I haven’t heard of. I tried to go to a show there a few months ago and they were sold out. If your going to go good to get your ticket at the box office in advance, or online. Alot of young people attend these shows. Alot of couples. I serious doubt if this place will get as wild as Le Poisson Rouge was. This place is a ballroom, where the other was more like a nightclub. The show starts at 1:30pm. Well I’ve given you guys the info. Decide what your going to do. Back to my quest to find more burlesque. Later!
melharfol, Glad to hear that Ray is doing well. Has he seen Crystal Blue recently? I don’t know when I’ll be back to NYC for a visit. Got some health issues going on now and until I can get them resolved I have to stay close to home. Hopefully sometime this summer I can come in for a few days.
Back again from my quest for burlesque. There’s a movie coming out Friday,23th about he story of burlesque in America. It’s called “Behind the Burly Q.” Its suppose to feature Burlesque Greatest Stars. It will be playing at the Quad Cinema on West 13th street between 5th and 6th Avenue. The movie times are 1,3,5:05,7:05,9:45. I probably won’t be able to check it out until next week, but hey guys there it is if you want to check it out. Now back to my quest for burlesque! One more thing the director of the movie Leslie Zemeckis will be there for the 7:05 shows on Friday and Saturday nights. I’m guessing to answer questions. Back to the quest! Later fellas!
Back again from my quest for burlesque. The 8th annual New York Burlesque Festival Sept 30th-Oct 3rd 2010. More details coming soon.
Maybe I’ll come to NYC for the Burlesque Festival. Sounds like it’ll be alot of fun. Maybe some of our Melody faves will be there.
Back again from my quest for burlesque. Go to http:www.njcom/entertainment/movies/index.ssf/2010/04/behind_the_burly_q_movie_re… You’ll see this photo of Tempest Storm in all her glory. I’m planning to go see that movie this weekend along eith the remake of “Nightmare on Elm street.” I’m a big Freddy Kruger fan too! Back to the quest!
Harmony News! Check out the website Broadway Theater news in Midtown. I missed it the first time. I won’t miss it this time.
Can you post a link for the Harmony News? Thanks.
Harmony exibition is back. Go check it out on 5th Avenue. There is only one place on 5th Aveune.
I have no clue what he means by this last msg do u Harmony man ? And these shows he is going to , any lap dances ? Can u touch ?
I think he is talking about the Museum of Sex on 5th Ave.
Back from my quest for burlesque. Last Saturday I saw the film “Behind the Burly Q” and I loved it. Its the story of burlesque in America. It is more like a documentary than a movie. Most of it is in black and white. It has some of burlesque greatest stars. It was a pleasure for me just to sit and listen to these women tell their stories. I came along a little too late to see them in their prime. It was fun to watch alot of them perform in their hey day. There was Lili St Cyr, Margie Hart, Dixie Evans, Kitty West, Sherry Britton, Rita Grable, Alexandra the Great 48, and many more. Tempest Storm was probably my favorite to listen to. She was so beautiful on stage with her flaming red hair and costumes. Blaze Starr also gave alot of information about the burlesque era. They even had Alan Alda, and Lou Costello of Abbot and Costello. I can’t wait until I get the DVD so I can watch it again. A real bummer was when I went to the Museum of Sex afterwards. I thought I was going to finally get to see the Harmony exhibition that I had missed years ago. However, I had been misinformed by the website. Sorry guys! I hope none of you went down there. Well it didn’t dampen my spirits too much. Because I had just seen “Behind the Burly Q”, and that made my weekend. I’m still on a high from that. Well that’s all for now. Back to my quest for more burlesque. Later guys!
any lap dances or touching on the agenda ?
Took break from quest for burlesque for lap dances and touches at West Side Gentlemen’s Club with a young thing named Cameroon. Was ready when her lap hit my crotch. It only costed me twenty bucks because I shot my load and hit the road. Now its back to the quest for burlesque this weekend at the Highline Ballroom. Back to the quest for more burlesque. Cameroon was outstanding. She smelled really good too!
Back from my quest for more burlesque. Just can’t wait for tomorrow to get here. There probably will be no touches, no lapdances and no tongue kissing. Just pure performance. A bulesque show in its purest form. Just like they did it fifty years ago. Old school for this old fool. I’ll report back on how it was next week. Back to my quest for burlesque. Later guys!
Back from my quest for more burlesque. Had a great time at the Highline Ballroom on Sunday May 9th at the Mother’s Day salute to the Mother’s of burlesque. The event honored the legendary women of burlesque from the fifties. Best burlesque show I’ve ever seen. Even better than the one I saw about a month ago. This time I was able to stay and watch most of the show. The doors didn’t open until 12:30pm. I was there at 11:00am. I was able to sneak upstairs and hung out outside the doors with the consession people. I saw all the performers as they came in and did their rehersal numbers. Before the show started they showed film clips of burlesque dancers from the fifties. Dancers like Helen Rene, Vanya,and Rita Ravell. I was sitting right next to the stage. When the show started the co-host “The World Famous Bob” came on for about five minutes of comedy. Bob is short for Bobbie. She’s a woman that stacked. Then the first act Perle Noire comes out and does this Josewphine Baker tribute number that was outstanding. Perle dips and she flips into a somersault and into a split. She was incredible. Next was Ms Tickle. She does this Sally Rand tribute fan dance number with these huge fan like feathers that the audience loved. Jo boobs the co-host comes out next and does a tribute to Sherry Britton she also was very good. Then there was a ten mintue intermisson. After the intermission Angie Pontani comes out and brings down the house. The woman was fantastic. In all my years of watching dancers dance and perform I’d nevr seen anyone quite like her. She was a ball of fire-energy. She was like a muscular verision of Crystal Blue only finer, faster, and more athlectic. She had this incredible ass. When she turns around and starts shaking it the audience went wild. I went wild. She finishes her act by dropping to her knees putting this bongo in between her legs and playing with the beat of the music. There was great music throughout. A combination of rythmn and blues and jazz. Did I mention Angie Pontani great ass? An ass to die for. I remember the Melody had a lady nameds Tamika that could move her ass like Angie’s when she was giving a lapdance. Angie had more movement and a bigger ass. Back to the burlesque show. After Angie the show slowed so the lengendary dancers could go on. Toni Elling and Dee milo were about seventy or eighty years old. They did their thing ,but all I can say is Ewwwwwww! After the legends finished Lukki, Ruby Valentine, and The World Famous Bob performed. After watching Angie Pontani performance everthing else seemed so-so. The Highline Ballroom was about making money. They served dinners while the show was going on. Fifteen bucks, but I didn’t eat. Each table had a ten dollat minnimum per person which I paid, but I only drank ginger ale sodas. I was all about watching the show. All things considered I had a very good time. I can’t wait for the next show. Have to try to figure out how I can get a lapdance or wall dance from Angie Pontani. I’d probably have to hit the mega for that one, or come up with the right price. Oh yeah there was no touches or lapdances. Just great performances. Well back to my quest for more burlesque. Later guys!
Sounds like it was alot of fun. What were the age ranges of the performers?
Excellent detail, I like that. U shoudl write a blog on it .
They put new pics up on the harmony theatre page. One looks like Bobbiroxanne on the pay phone.
Back from my quest for more burlesque. Most of these ladies from the Mother’s Day show have a homepage on Facebook. You can check them out, and find out more about them. Back to my quest for more burlesque. Later guys!
Back from my quest for more burlesque. You guys really need to check out these ladies on Facebook. Alot of freaky friends. Back to my quest for more burlesque.
Back from my quest for more burlesque. Facebook is so cool. I have so many friends and relatives there. I’ve also become friends with some of my burlesque ladies. Angie Pontani is so hot! Jo “boobs” Weldon is so fresh! I can’t get enough of either one. Perle Noire is so nice to me! They are all out in Vegas at a burlesque extravaganza! I can’t wait for them to come back and do another show. I’m hooked on these women. I’m hooked on burlesque! Back to my quest for more burlesque.
Just be careful because your relatives can see your burlesque friends in the list.
Yeah, be careful with Fb.
Back from my quest for burlesque! All I can say about my relatives is they no I’m no saint, and it could be worse. These are just burlesque ladies. Imagine if I had the Melody/Harmony/Follies ladies on Facebook! Guys it is what it is! Que sera, sera! Back to my quest for more burlesque!
I know of a couple of old Melody girls who have Fb pages. They still look good.
which ones Harmonyman ?
Danielle & Vanessa.
Back from my quest for more burlesque. Check out Angie Pontani on Facebook and go to her photos. Some HOT stuff! Back to my quest for more burlesque!
Back from my quest for more burlesque. Sorry that I’m not around as much as before guys. I’ve become a Facebook junkie. I have two homepages. One for my relatives and one for the ladies of burlesque. I’ve become totally obsessed with Angie Pontani. I think she’s so hot. Especially when she’s performing. There’s also a black performer named Perle Noire. She has this hot video you can watch on her homepage. There is a Big Burlesque Festival coming to New York at the end of September. I just can’t wait! Well back to my questr for more burlesque. Later guys!
Maybe we can all meet at the festival. Lunch is on me. I have to see her FB page this Angie .
Back from my quest for more burlesque. Perle Noire is another one you might want to check out. She has this body to die for,and she can dance her butt off! She’s going to be at the empire room on July 4th at about eight. Haven’t decided yet if I’m going. Back to my quest for more burlesque!
I gotta make a trip to NYC soon cause I have a craving for burlesque. I’m hoping fpr sometime in the fall after my divorce is final. I’m going to want to celebrate my emancipation!
Back from my quest for more burlesque. If you guys go to Perle Noire Facebook Homepage and become her friend you get to see some of her videos of her performing. I think she is awesome. Back in the day she would have gave a dynamite lap dance. Check her out! Back to my quest for more burlesque!
Hey guys. I hope that everyone is enjoying their summer and their quests for burlesque. Remember Tanqueray from the Meloday & the Follies? She is a costume designer and has a page on the Burlesk forum. http://burlesquecommunity.com/Dressed2ThrillNYC/
She looks better now than she did back in the day!
Back from my quest for more burlesque! In today’s Wall Street Journal Monday August 2, 2010 Page 22 there’s an article called “Risque Business!” It talks about burlesque and how its moving uptown to some really nice locations. Check out the article even if you have to go to the library to get that particular issue of the Journal! “ For women the quality of the performance is what makes burlesque different from stripping.” For information on upcoming shows check out slipperoom.com, and oakroomny.com, and coneyisland.com. Be flexible on start times and double check “information” with venues when possible. Things change. Good luck guys!
Back to my quest for more burlesque!!
Back from my quest for more burlesque! The Slipper room has been a hub for burlesque since 1999. The Orchard space closed in June for renovations and the exhiled performers are now popping up at venues around town. There’s a monthly show at The Players on Grammercy Park and regular shows at the Parkside Lounge and Le Poisson Rouge. Rouge was a little bit too wild for my taste. It seem to have a gay and lesbian atmosphere! Well back to my quest for more burlesque!
Back from my quest for more burlesque! I will be at Coney Island on Saturday! Not to ride the Cyclone, but to witness The Mr. Cyclone finals. I’m actually going to see if I can get a photo taken with Angie Pontani. She’s Miss Cyclone 2010! Wish me luck guys! Back to my quest for more burlesque!
Have a great time!
Back from my quest for more burlesque! Did not make Coney Island! Back to my quest for more burlesque!
What’s next on the agenda?
Back from my quest for more Burlesque! Most of the woman I see seem to be working out of town now. I just keep up with them on Facebook. Will keep you guys informed Back to my quest for more burlesque.
I’ve just now finished reading this thread. And it brought back memories of the Harmony clubs on Church and 22nd streets.(Mostly Church street).
But I don’t remember most of the names mentioned here because I was “late to the party”. I used to hang out in Times Square in the mid to late 80s at places like LES Gals, 7-11, and Peepland, as well as a lot of other nude, topless and underground clubs throughout Manhattan, but first found the Harmony around ‘89 or '90.
I certainly missed out on a lot. Even when I use to frequent the Harmony, because I really didn’t know what was available. (I did however managed to get full mileage at underground places like Club 90).
I stopped going to the Harmony club the last year of it’s existence because they jacked up the prices and the quality and number of girls fell. But my favorite ladies at the Harmony were Tiffany(Selina), Este, Angel, Strawberry, Contessa(Zairie), Sativa(Savida), May, Dolores, Desiree, Roxanne. (Those are only the names I can remember at the moment). Susan Nero did have a crush on me according to a dancer named May, but unfortunately I was more into the slender ladies and I didn’t know anything about who she was until I researched her on the internet many years later.(I’m crazy about her now). :–)
Funny thing though. She came into the bank vestibule where I use to do security on the midnight shift over on 1st avenue and 23rd on two separate occasions. The first time I thought she looked familiar, but couldn’t place her face until after she left. The second time I couldn’t work up the courage to say something. :–(
Susan Nero lives by JHS 104 on 21st street and First Ave. My friend who still lives in Stuyvesant Town sees her around the neighborhood all the time. From what I understand (this info is a couple of years old) she works in Macys Herald Square.
You missed out on so many great times at the 48th street Harmony and it’s predessor (<spelling) the Melody Burlesk. After Bob Anthony died and Dominique bought Jerry out to become the sole owner the Harmony started going downhill. The girls hated her with a passion as well as all the regular customers. TimesSquareGuy, welcome to this messageboard!
It does seem like there is a consensus about Dominique. I just figured she needed to be strict for survival reasons. Though I can’t comment on whether or not she was “greedy”.
I only actually remember seeing her once. At Church street I used to visit a slim girl from Puerto Rico that worked there named Tiffany, who was fired for fighting with another girl, but then re-hired again under the name Selina, because a different girl started using that name.
One night, after a hot and heavy session with Tiffany/Selina she went to the back to change at closing time, and Dominique came out and told me that she didn’t allow the girls to date the customers and that if Tiffany/Selina was to keep her job Dominique said that she’d better not catch us leaving together, and that we’d best meet up down the block where we wouldn’t been seen. I said “yes ma'am”, and left.
Has anyone confirmed that she is still around?
I remember that in an interview with Dominique I read she mentioned she was selling videos of the girls, but I could never find out how to order them.
I really missed those ladies. A few years later I did see Tiffany/Selina in Hunts Point. She was obviously working the street. :–( I gave her my number, but never heard from her or saw her again.
Back from my quest for more burlesque to tell a Melody story. Back in the seventies I had the pleasure of going with four woman who were in porno movies at the time. The best was Phadera Grant. She did everything well. The worse I will not name,but she gave me some valuable information. I use to go see her in her porno movies and she give these guys the greatest head sometimes she even seemed better than Linda Lovelace. Well after one of her shows we sat down and made arrangements to meet at her room at the hotel around the corner from the Melody. All I wanted was for her to get me off like she did those guys in the movies. Well she gave the worse blow job ever. She looked good while she was sucking, but no real pull at all. She explained to me that in the movies alot of the time the gut would masturbate himself to just before the point where he would cum. He’d stop she’d jump in start sucking, the director would holler action. He’d cum shooting his load all over the place, and we’d think she gave such a great blow job. Sometimes with women like Phadera Grant it was the real deal. However, with others it was smoke and mirrors. It caused me alot of cash to get that bit of information. Well thought I’d just share that with you guys. Now back to my quest for more burlesque
Back from my quest for more burlesque. The sad thing about all the Melody/Harmony/Follies ladies is that “Mother Time” changed them all. Just like we’ve grown old, they’ve grown old. I stil keep in touch with one in upstate New York. She looks nothing like she did back in the seventies. However, like all of you guys I will always have my memories! Back to my quest for more burlesque.
Grown old? Speak for your self. :–)
I just entered my mid 40s and I still look great. Most of the girls were younger than I was then,but it is true that women(and men) tend to let themselves go.(Though Suzy Nero still looked relatively good the last time I saw here).
I knew some women who like me were into the whole physical fitness lifestyle, but for the most part only a small minority would now have bodies that looked anything close to the way they did back then.(That is late 80s to mid 90s).
As for those “camera tricks” in getting the money shot on film. I thought it was common knowledge that many male performers had to use an alternate form of stimulation to get to the edge so filming could catch the ending.
Back from my quest for more burlesque! TimesSquareGuy I really do wish you well? You are from a whole different generation. Best of luck out there. All the ladies from my era are in their late fifties now. In their day they were all something else. When they were Melody/Harmony/Follies ladies thirty years ago there were none better. You came along just a tad too late. I wish you could have experienced just one Saturday afternoon at the Melody when it was going full blast! There was nothing like it. Sixty ladies on and off that stage. Over two hundred guys. Standing room only. Lap dancing everywhere. Bacala everywhere. Masturbation everywhere. Loud music blasting. It really was mind blowing. I haven’t seen anyplace around here that even comes close to it since then. I loved every minute, every moment with the guys, and the ladies. The Melody/Harmony/Follies was indeed the place to be! Good Luck TimesSquareGuy!! Now back to my quest for more burlesque! Later!
TimesSquareGuy I’m not wondering if the Tiffany you’re talking about is the Tiffany who appeared on a few episodes of the HBO show Tales From Hunts Point (or a similar name). Check it out and let us know.
Melharfol Judging the old porno stars from their attitudes when they appeared at the Melody I could guess who gave you the horrible bj.
I think that Suzy Nero will always look good no matter what. She was always nice to me up there.
Dominique is still around. She owns a house in Brooklyn and another way out on the Island. AFAIK she still owns the building on Church Street. Would love to see her reincarnate the Harmony in some way, shape or form. Then she could hold a Legends night once a month when all the old timers (guys & girls) could get together lol! Just some wishful thinking on my part.
Back from my quest for more burlesque! Harmony man that’s very “WISHFUL THINKING! However, its the thought that counts! ” Back to my quest for more burlesque!
I assume you are referring to “Hookers at the Point”. I have that DVD, and believe me if she was in it I would have noticed. :–)
(If anyone does get a hold of Dominique please ask about the videos). :–)
If you go to pipl.com and type Madeline Droege, Orient, NY in the search box you should get a lead on her address/phone info. Then you could ask her your self!
Back from my quest for more burlesque! New York Burlesque Festival coming!! When Friday October 1st 5pm-October 2nd 1 am For more info go to thenewyorkburlesquefestival.com Back to my quest for more burlesque!!
Back to my quest for more Burlesque!! Angie Pontani is so HOT yet so wholesome! You guys should check her out on her Facebook page! Check out some of her friends too! She has alot of HOT friends!! Back to my quest for more burlesque!!
Back from my quest for more Burlesque! If you guys checked out the web site I gave you then you’ll know that this New York Burlesque Festival is a huge event over a number of days. I’ll probably only make the one at BB Kings place on Saturday if its not sold out! Hope to see some of you guys there. You’ll recognize me by all the drool that will be hanging from my mouth! Back to my quest for more burlesque!
Back from my quest for more burlesque! Sorry guys I wasn’t able to get tickets to any of the events on the New York Burlesque Festival. Everything ws sold out. Alot of die hard burleque people out there. I did see a preview to a new film called “Burlesque” that stars Cher and Christina Aquilera. It looks really HOT!! I don’t know exactly when its coming out, but I’ll let you know! Back to my quest for more burlesque!
Back from my quest for burlesque! Happen to go to a place in Paterson, NJ last week with this friend from my job. Seems we got there in the middle of some type of party. There was a back room that was quite crowded! The ladies about ten of them were giving lapdances to anyone sitting or standing who had a spot. I finally got a spot against the wall. A woman comes over she just backs into me with her butt and starts going at it. She never gave me her name. Never asked for any money. I lasted like all of five minutes. I shot my load and hit the road. I met my friend at work the next day, and he said the place usally isn’t that wild. He said they were celebrating a soldier’s coming back from Iraq! He said the drinks, the girls, the lapdances had all been paid for. For once I happen to be in the right place at the right time!! I’m going back there next week to see what’s up with this place! I’ll let you guys know the name and address if its still as wild and crazy the second go round. Back to my quest for more burlesque!
I guess it brought back memories of the Melody. Glad that you had a great time. I’d like to check the place out on my next trip to NYC.
Back from my quest for more burlesque! I went back to Roxie’s in Paterson on Friday. The place was like a morgue. Nothing like last weekend when they had the party. Some nice looking Russian girls dancing on stage, but too busy trying to hustle my money. Its like night and day the difference. Oh well, what the heck! Last weekend was like something out of the Melody/Harmony/Follies heyday! Friday it was back to business 2010 style!! I seriously doubt I’ll be going back there again unless they have another one of those type of parties. That’s highly unlikely, but I say NEVER SAY NEVER!! Back to my quest for more burlesque!! Roxie’s is on Crooks Avenue in Paterson, NJ! Down from Main street. By these rail road tracks!
Back from my quest for more burlesque! If you guys haven’t already checked it out, check out “Burlesque” with Cher and Christina Aguilera! I enjoyed it! Especially Christina’s voice! It was awesome! Alot of hot bodies to look at too! There is a place called Rhinestone Follies Burlesque at 218 Bowery! They are suppose to have two shows there in December! On the 3rd and 17th! I have to get more information on this! When I do I’ll relay it to the rest of you! Most of the women I go to see are over in Europe now! Go figure! Well back to my quest for more burlesque!!
Anyone remember Lea from Italy, Monique from France, Justine from the UK and Dutch Maria from the Melody? One of my friends dated Maria for a while. Not for money but he took her nice places (he could afford it) I’m sitting here watching the damned snow come down and I just got to thinking about the Melody. I miss that place!
Back from my quest for more burlesque! I missed the show at the Rhinestone Follies Burlesque on December 3rd! Did anyone make it? I’ll have to try to catch the one on the 17th of this month! Well back to my quest for more burlesque!
Back from my quest for more burlesque! There’s a new book out about burlesque called “Pretty Things: The Last Generation of American Burlesque Queens,” now out in paperback-reveals all on the women who never exposed too much. Buy it and check it out, or get a copy from the library. Even better just read about it online,or in the December issue of mymetro on page 10 December 7, 2010! Back to my quest for more burlesque!
Back from my quest for more Burlesque! Calamity Chang will perform at Macao Trading Co.’s “Last Night of Burlesque in 2010.” Enjoy a decadent Macanese feast(as well as a signature cocktail and a champagne toast for the countdown) while performer Clamity Chang and her sultry guest performers showcase their stuff throughout the entire night(311 Church St.,$100,212-431-8642,). I seriously doubt I’ll be there. It’s a little two expensive for my taste. However, I thought I’d relay the information to any of you high rollers out there. Hey to all my Melody/Harmony/Follies friends or foes, guys and gals I’d like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! The best of luck, love, success and happiness in 2011! Who knows maybe we’ll run into each other next year. Take care and stay safe! Back to my quest for more burlesque!
I got a Christmas card from one of my favorite Melody girls the other day.
Merry Christmas to all!
Hey, I hope someone in here can help me out, I’ve been all over the net tryin' to get info on the old Harmony Theatre on 48th and B'way. My search has finally led me here. You all seem to be fellow patrons of the world famous or infamous Harmony/Melody Theatre, So maybe you
can help me out. About 25 years ago I was country hick fresh off the farm and a week out of high school and just starting my basic training at Fort Dix, New Jersey. On our first week-end pass, my new army buddies and I found ourselves at the Harmony Theatre and after hearing so much about it, keeping in mind we were all pretty wasted from consuming various substances some not so legal. What I vaguely remember is this very statuesque and gorgeous black dancer standing in front of me with a body that had to be blessed by god. Oh yes, did I forget to mention that I was virgin before this moment and the only other naked female that I had ever seen was between the pages of Hustler magazine, this dancer put them all to shame. And the thought that she was ‘Butt-Nekked’ and giving the best ‘Table Dance’ I ever had..This dancer was truly skilled at her job or maybe it was just combination substances in my system and my inexperience.I judge every other ‘Table Dance’ since then they just don’t compare. Sadly, I was only able to get to the club on two more occasions before our Company Commander banned military peronel from that club due to some
pick-pocket incidents involving some of the girls at the club. Fast- Forward 25 years later, I’m cleaning out the attic, I come across a box full of old Stroke-mags, while brousing through one, I ran across an old article with a photo that editor was doing on old the burlesque clubs in New York. The photo is of a very statuesque and beautiful black woman standing beside the ‘Harmony Theatre’ sign and I believe it’s same dancer that gave me my 1st ‘Table Dance’. It’s
ashame that I can’t remember the name of the woman that De-flowered
me 25 years ago. Since you patronized the club far more frequent then I did back then, Maybe you know of the dancer in question. I know there were only a few black dancers in the club at the time, so it can’t be too hard to narrow it down. And if you know where I can find photos and DVDs of the girls from the Harmony/Melody Theatre let me know.
Sounds to me like it could be Candy Staton.
You know the only candy staton I can find on the net is the 70s dance and disco diva…cant possibly be the same person…that bitch is in her s 60s…
‘cuse my french I mean that grand old gal…lol
Reading your comments about the good olds days of burlesque in NYC in the 70s and 80s at Harmony/Melody theatre..Reminded me of the many nights pleasure that I’ve spent in cathouses and stripjoints around the world while in the military..Places like The Philippines, Bangkok, Holland, Germany, France, Beligum, Prague, Switzerland and Italy.In all my travels, I’ve found that one thing remains the same.
Stripjoints and cathouses worldwide all smell the same, the girls all act the same, the only differencee is the language. But as long you got a pocket full of american dollars you don’t even have to speak just point to what you want. Now that I have retired from the military and reide southern region of the United States where laws regulatimg strip clubs are more relaxed. I have great memories from 2000 to 2009 of places like The Gold Club, Platinum Rose, Cabaret, The Plnk Pony and Magic City.
of
Candy Staton was a tall statuesque, beautiful black stripper who had a body to die for. I know for a fact that she used to “date” the customers:). She ended up marrying an NYPD cop. Not sure how long that lasted. I have been to the red light district in Amsterdam and am planning to also go to Brussels on my next vacation. You are right that they all smell the same, lol!
Did candy do any porno work or nude modeling that you know of. Maybe she took some photos or video at the club I’d like to see if she is the same dancer that polished my knob back in the day. I credit her with turning me into the ‘Deviant’ I am today, Bless her heart. I’m going back Phillippines my next vacation…One of the few places left where they don’t despise americans.
HarmonyMan, I found a pic of the dancer in question, and if you got an email address, I could send you and your fellow Harmony/Melody Theatre crew the pic to see if you remember who she is or atleast the name she performed under back in the day. Sorry, It’s such a poor quality pic but I found it in an old box of Stroke Magazines in my attic.
1stSarge, You can send me the pic at and I’ll let you know if it’s Candy Staton. I think she did some porn work. Magazines for sure.
I sent you the pic as you requested to the email you gave but it was returned as undeliverable. so send me an email at my aol address ‘’ and I will return with a pic attachment.
Harmonyman thanx for the comformation on the Candy ID. If you run across any of her old photos email me. I haven’t had any luck on the net. I know allow of the old performers back then were shooting up drugs and sharing needles so maybe she is no longer amongst the living…if that’s the case what a waste. Because she was GREAT..
Glad I was able to confirm that it was Candy in the pic. She was beautiful way back when. I wonder if she ever did a video for Dominique?
If she did video back in early 80’s it’s probably on the old beta max tapes. You guys should have a 30 year reunion for all the old dancers that worked harmony/melody club to see if they still got..But then again who the hell would want it…they got pushing 60 by now…lol
nothin' sadder than a senior citizen still tryin' to ‘HO’ herself out
after 25 or 30 years in the business, no retirement plan, no health benefits..they just hope they snag some rich guy. That shyt only happens in the movies. Around here the old washed-up strippers hang out at the nursing homes around 1st of the month and turn tricks.
I know of 4 Harmony girls who have gone on to better things in life. Two work for major airlines, one is a school teacher and the last one is an artist.
One of my friends saw Shawn about 5 years ago up near Central Park and said she looked like she was homeless. I also heard that Bianka B. was murdered up in Rhode Island some years back. Sadly, most of these girls were so messed up on drugs and alcohol that there was no future for them beyond the Harmony.
You can blame all those tragedies on the corrupt politicians back then, they didn’t care about any of those women or what would happen to them when the harmony was closed down. They knew that area was prime real estate for developers so they shut down the so-called undesirable businesses in the area which put a financial squeeze on the proberty owners and made them sell or the city just took it by declaring it a public nuisance or under some imminent domain clause. The crooked politicians and their devoper cronies made billions on that deal.
developer(typo)
I have nothing against progress, but I think having an area designated for adult entertainment (Blue Light District) is vital for the community, Disneyland is not everybody’s idea of a good time. The state of Nevada legalized the sex trade 30 years ago and its regulated by the gov’t who get a cut like street pimps and everything runs smooth. There is no citizen outrage because taxes generated from legal gambling and prostitution keeps alot of state workers employed. The rest of the country should follow Nevada’s example.
Hello My name is Juan.
I worked for Dominique as a carpenter/computer specialist and the DJ/bouncer at Angels. Me and her nephew john, Built and sound proofed Angels on 44 walker st. The Club was open till 2am all the girls from the Harmony on church st would come over for and hour of dances and cash. December 2006 X-mas time their was a fight in the club a group of guys throwing bottles and chairs at a girl on stage, an easy 250 people where room for 90 is allowed. I by myself decided to close the club @ 1 instead of 2 am. I got fired for that. but I stopped a riot, more injury to the girls and myself from getting my ass kicked or killed by a group of drunk college kids(priceless!)
Juan, do you know anybody that might have photos or video of the harmony girls during the late 80’s or early 90’s. I’m especially interested in a Black dancer named Candy Staton. She was really hot back in the day. If she is still around, she’s probably a grandmother by now. I heard Dominique used to sells videos of the girls from the harmony/melody theatre back then.
Juan, Dominique was the ultimate man hating bitch. All she cared about was making $$$$ and God help anyone who got in her way! I saw the writing on the wall after Bob Anthony passed away. She had Bob wrapped around her pinky. One of the most disgusting things I ever saw at the Harmony (48th St) was Dominique sitting on an old dude’s lap on Saturday Mardi Gras and Gramps was sucking on her titties. I almost puked. She separated him from his money fast.
Why would anything the dancers at the harmony do make you puke. Most were moonlighting as part-hookers and pornstars. The bacala sessions with 100 different drunk strangers would have been enough to make me toss my lunch and not come back. I Know it was all about the money back then but I hear alot of bums, drunks, addicts and drug dealers used it as a hangout. I bet alot of the dancers and some of the customers probably had STD’s that they passed around during those bacala sessions. Thank god, I always practiced safe activity when I was there. The Army’s directive to soldiers on leave back then was, Don’t bring anything back to the base that Penicilin couldn’t cure.
Does anyone remember a short blond on 22 St called Jenice? I always enjoyed sitting with her. She was pretty, smart and had real nice butt. I wonder whatever became of her?
Well if she is not dead, she’s probably packed on 75 pounds, had 9 or 10 rugrats by 9 or 10 different tricks from the club, and that once cute little butt of hers is now is as wide as the state of Texas. It’s been my experience that these chicks lived life not it the fast lane but in the oncoming lane, and they do not age gracefully. I have seen some real scare- crow ex-dancers. I guess, a lot of their customers can have the last laugh. I have over heard dancers talk about how they hated lapdancing for the older and overweight guys.
1stSarge: What you say is mostly true. But there are exceptions like Sharon Mitchell. She still looks great and made something of herself. Jenice, the girl that I inquired about did not have any vices and probably doesn’t have any kids today. She was well educated and could work a legitimate job if she so desired. But, like she told me once, girls that work in a place like the Harmony usually have drug problems or serious psychological issues that can be traced to a bad experience or event in their lives. They usually are emotionally fragile. The latter describes Jenice.
Tony, sorry if I hit a sore spot.. That was not my intention. I did know this Jenice person as well as you did apparently. But then again I didn’t go to the Harmony to bond with those women on an emotional level. And you say Sharon and Jenice still look like a couple of 10s or MILFs at near sixty years old send me a few photos. I was only there a few times and I never talked about their personal issues and sorry to say I could have cared less at that time. I was a horny young soldier on a weekend pass with no desire to know a stripper on any deeper level than a WHAM-BAM-THANK-YOU-MAAM. But if these dancers were such an important part of your lives back than that you had to spend much of your free time as regular customers and thousands of dollars over the years. Think about the time wasted on a fantasy woman when you could have had quality relationships with ‘REAL’ women. The only good advice my old man gave me before he departed from this world was ‘Never Look For Love in a Whore House’. Words to live by.
Back from my quest for more burlesque! Hey its good to see you guys are still at it! Sorry I haven’t been around. If you guys are interested there is a “Sparkle & Spice Burlesque. A Valentine’s Extrevaganza at Rhinestone Follies on February 11th at 8:00pm for $15! The R Bar is located at 218 Bowery (Between Spring and Prince) Good luck if you make it. Sorry for such short notice! Back to my quest for more Burlesque! Hey guys "Keep on Keeping it ON!
1stSarge: No offense taken and I agree with almost everything that you posted. Your father gave you good advice. That’s why I stopped frequenting the Harmony and any other place like that since early 1996. I had to get on with my life and stop wasting time and money on a fantasy. But I must say, I enjoyed myself during the 4 years that I spent going to that place.
Didn’t We all…If a man can’t have the time of his life in a place like that he must be Gay. The last time I was at a strip club 2 years ago. I had my cousin’s bachelor party in the champaine room of The Platinum Rose before the Feds closed it down on a truck load of obscenity charges.
Hey Melharfol, Why don’t you take a break from your Quest for more Burlesque. I think you might need a Intervention or a Six-month Rehab to curb your obsession to Burlesque houses. Porn is like a drug and should only be done in moderation. Never mainlined like you doing..LOL
1stSarge; You are just too funny ^^. I haven’t been to a strip club for 2 years now. It was in Montreal where they had backrooms that the dancers would take you to and you could have anything you wanted. There was one girl there that was a perfect ten! The name of the club was Sexpert in Laval, Quebec. They only have this kind of mardi gras during the day though.
I’m going to Alaska next month with some friends for a private moose hunt. I’ll make a point of checking it out on my way back. I think the guys and I might be up for some XXX-Rated fun after 3 days of tracking down, killing, butchering, cooking and devouring defenseless critters. Damn, It feels good to be at the top of the food chain. You Gotta Love This Country…LOL
Hello my darlings! I have read through your posts again. Mel, Kristina Fox and I came to the Melody through the same agency. We toured the country. Love, as always to you, tony, and harmonyman. Yes, tony, I would love to play the widebeastm..but would need a fat suit. lol xoxox
That is soooo funny. The post shoulda read “wildebeast” instead of wildbeastm..as in fat madeline. LMAO
Hey Annette, I’m glad to see you on this board once again. You rock!
Thanks harmonyman. Been talking to Annie Sprinkle off and on all day. I’ll see if she can give us a post. She has a site, http://anniesprinkle.org Tell her I sent ya. We do need to make a fbook page….think I shall. :D
I see a question I can answer! Yes, Candi did porn. She asked me to help her get in. I did. What a sweet lady she was and of course the obvious, beautiful. She did make movies.
Hi Annie, I agree she was one beautiful dancer back in the day. I was fortunate to see her a few times in all her glory while I was stationed at Fort Dix. Do you know remember any of movies she made back then, I have searched the porn archives and can’t find anything under her name (Candi Staton). Do you know if she is even still around. It is my understanding, that alot of the dancers at club were heavy drug users and went down hill after the harmony was shut down.
Back from my quest for more burlesque! First of all Annette Heinz its good to see you are back! Loved watching you at the Melody, Harmony, and Follies! So long ago, but it seems like yesterday! All you guys this is late notice,but there is a burlesque show TONIGHT! “The Pink Room: David Lynch Burlesque” Featured performers include Amelia Bareparts, Calamity Chang, Franny Fluffer, Gemini Rising, Grace Gotham, Tansy Tan Dora-and go-go dancing by Foxy Vermouth! It’s TONIGHT 9:30pm at the Parkside Lounge (317 E. Houston St. btw. Aves B & C) Cover: $10! Sorry I’m giving you guys such short notice! Hope some of you get to attend! Annette Heinz you keep on keeping on! Alot of nice memories because of you! You GO GIRL!
Back from my quest for more burlesque! Before I get back to my quest I’d like to pay tribute to you Ms ANNETTE HEINZ! It’s been over thirty years since I’ve seen you,but it only seems like yesterday. I’d like to THANK YOU for some really nice memories! One of my favorite moments, as a matter of fact MY MOST FAVORITE MOMENT back in the Melody/Harmony/Follies days is because of you. It’s really special and private to me so I not going to get into it. I just wanted to say THANK YOU! Thank you for being so long, tall, sexy and senuous! Thank you for your dancing! Thank you for being you! How I wish I could turn back the hands of time and see you on the stage again! You ARE a beautiful person! Thanks once again for the MEMORIES! The best of love, success and happiness to you ALWAYS and FOREVER! Miss you wish I could kiss you,but since I can’t this will have to do! Now back to my quest for more burlesque!
Will somebody please pass a roll of toilet paper to Melharfol so he can wipe the brown of his nose after that tribute to Annette Heinz. Dude, she was a former burlesque dancer not the Pope. Turn it down a few levels, Okay? Were you that creepy with other dancers back then, I seen bouncers throw guys who fixated on one particular dancer out and ban them from the club because they made the girls feel very uncomfortable. I think they call it stalking these days. Get a girlfriend and a different hobby, LOL.
Back from my quest for more burlesque! 1st Sarge or who ever you are that was over thirty years ago! I fave grown kids that I have since then! I never really got a chance to thank Annette Heinz for that moment! So I did! I was around thiry back then! I’m sixty now! That was my HOBBY at that time! Since I don’t know you and never will have a NICE life! Annette Heinz THANK YOU again! Back to my quest for more burlesque! Hope some of you guys made that show last week!
Hey, Melharfol chill out, like you said this was 30 years ago, If you haven’t figured it out by now man i’m just yankin' your chain fella. I’m the comic relief in this burlesque lovefest room. the voice of reason you might say. It is apparent that my relationship with those women did not run as deep as yours. I was only there three times back then. I mean, I never really got the tease part of the stripping, especially when they doing the mardi gras and bacala sessions.. But, I guess they had to do a certain amount of dancing or it would just be a glorified cathouse. That’s why I like the Bunny Ranch in Nevada, You just cut through all the BS do your thing and be home in time dinner with the old ball and chain.
I can understand melharfol’s kind words about Annette Heinz. She was always nice to everyone and was always smiling! Just a decent person is how I would describe Annette.
Decent people? Guys, we are talkin' about strippers, crackwhores and prostitutes…You telling me you wouldn’t mind if your 18 year old son brought one home to meet the family.. or your daughter decided she wanted to be a stripper instead of going to college. I mean if it’s your idea of a them being decent people. I liked Candi Staton back then, But I never forgot what she was. I knew back that a strippers job is to feel like you someone special so you spend more money. Those women were looking for sugardaddys not long lasting friendships…Listening to Melharfol drop all those praises on that dancer (Annette Heinz) reminded me of a song I heard on the radio the other day. “I’m Love With A Stripper”,… LOL
Back from my quest to find more burlesque. Hey guys from back in the days of the Melody,Harmony and Follies I’ve got some news. Remember Eddie? Everybody remembers Eddie. Well I heard from a fairly reliable source that Eddie’s retired and moved to Florida. If I get more information I’ll let you guys know. I first met Eddie at the Roxy that use to be on 42nd Street back in the seventies years before I even heard of the Melody. The Roxy in it’s hey day was known for its World Premiere’s of movies such as “The House of Wax” with Vincent Price in the fifities. By the time I met Eddie it was a strip joint. When I was talking about Annette Heinz last week I realized that WOW its been thirty years ago that I use to watch her at the Follies! On that same block was Howard Johnson’s at the corner of 45th. Around the corner was this Gayety where I think Bette Midler got her start singing on stage. Up from the Follies was this arcade and the original Pac-Man machine that I got hooked on in 1980. Across on Broadway was the Palace Theater where I once saw Diana Ross perform. Down the street on Broadway was the Loew’s State 1 and 2 movie theaters. Then came Virgin Mega Store. Now they are all gone. However the Follies was where I use to go see Annette Heinz, Nikki Knight, Vanessa, and Rosie. The STAGE! I use to love that stage. Because you were alot closer to the performer than at the Melody. Those were the days. The women were so close you could smell their perfume, and you didn’t even have to get out of your seat to tip them. Even though I liked going to the Melody more the Follies had a more intimate atmosphere to it. I loved sitting there listening to the music, and watching Rosie dance to “I go Crazy!” Nikki Knight’s music was faster and more upbeat. Vanessa had that “Frenchness” about herself and her music. Then there was Annette. I’ve already said enough about her, but let me say this. On stage she knew how to work it, and her audience loved her for it. Her personality, her long, tall lean body, and that HAIR! That blonde hair! I hope I never get a memory loss. Because as long as I live I want to keep the memories of those ladies. I always said the Melody was the place to be. However, when I couldn’t be there the Follies was just fine with me. Now back to my quest for MORE burlesque!
Yes indeed, Annette knew how to work it. I always try to see Vanessa when I pass through Newark Airport. Got a Christmas card from her last Xmas. So Eddie is still around albeit in Florida now. One time Eddie and I were walking on the east side and there was this mother with her two teenage daughters coming towards us. All of a sudden they start screaming so I look over at Eddie and he has his pants unzipped and he’s got his junk in his hand. Told him not to do that when he’s with me.
Back from my quest for more burlesque! As I’ve been on my so-called quest to find more burlesque I’ve come across a dedicated group of young women that are really serious about their craft. They don’t have the elaborate costumes of performers back in the day. However, what they lack in costumes they make up for in enthusiasm and performance. My favorite of these “NEW” burlesque perfomers Angie Pontani. She’s young, pretty very athlectic and a great performer. She reminds me a little of Destiny from back in the day only she has more movement. If you go to her site on Facebook she has hundreds of photos. So you’ll get a good idea of what she’s all about. Another is Perle Noire. She’s a black performer from Louisiana, but works alot in New York. Think of a more muscular version of Josephine Baker, but with all the senuousness of a Josephine Baker. I saw her do this one show where she paid tribute to Josephine Baker that had to be seen to be believe. Then there is Jo Weldon. She is the head of The New York School of Burlesque. She’s a little older than the others. I guess around mid-thirties. She has a gracefulness in her show that reminds you of the burlesque performers from the late fifties and and early sixties. The last time I saw all of them together was on Mother’s Day of last year. Hopefully they will get together again soon. Well back to my quest for MORE burlesque!
Well I’m about to set out on my quest for big game in Alaska, so I’ll leave you Pervs to wallow in your on misery reminising about the great times you had with a bunch of strippers 30 years ago. Live in the now guys, I’m here to tell you that, there is life after the Melody/harmony burlesque harlots.
There was life after the Melody/Harmony. Sadly it was marriage. Now that I am divorced I should start my own quest for strippers. I think I’ll go to Montreal. They have the finest looking females on the planet! There is one club in Laval that rocks. It takes Mardi Gras a step further!
Not all the ladies fell into the drug abuser’s catagory. Really don’t believe drugs to be more common amongst dancers than say, musicians or Hollywood celebs. Yes, I am happy to reminise and reconnect with the patrons/friends of NYC! Yay! P.S. graduated on the dean’s list.
Annette: When the Melody was located on 48th St., I wasn’t a regular. But, the few times that I did go there I remember you and you were gorgeous and polite. Back then most customers were lined up against the wall and the girls would rotate from one customer to the next until they circled the room. I remember that I would hold off giving tips to the other girls until you made it back to my spot. The one thing I remember about you is that you were not a New York girl. If I’m not mistaken, you had a trace of a southern accent. What part of the country did you originate from?
Back from my quest for more burlesque! Congratulations to you Annette for graduating and making the dean’s list! You GO girl! I have some exciting news for you gals and guys! It’s the “Premiere of the Empire Burlesque Revue!” This monthly burlesque show-influenced by vintage Broadway reviews, MGM Technicolor musicals and golden age of burlesque-kicks off this weekend. Performed in a supper-club enviorment. The show will take place the first Saturday of every month(Drom, 8pm, $15-$30! For more information go to thirstygirlproductions.com)!! I really don’t like the whole eating while I’m watching burlesque, but that’s a sign of the times. So I’ll deal with it just as long as I can see my favorite performers on stage each month. Hope some of you guys and gals can make it. Well back to my quest to find MORE burlesque!
Back from my quest for MORE burlesque! More information on Saturday night’s burlesque show. NYC’s best in burlesque is at the intimate and classy supper club Drom. It’s a 90 mintue revue. Drom Bar and Restaurant is located at 85 Avenue A (b/t 5th and 6th street) NY,NY I don’t really know that area well, but I will be there early tomorrow to make sure I know where I’m going tomorrow night. The March 5th line up includes Albert Cadabra, Kinichi, Broadway Brassy,my favorite of today’s performers Angie Pontani, Helen Pontani, The Maine Attraction and Bianca Dagga. Good luck to all of you guys and gals attending. Unless it’s SOLD OUT I will BE THERE! Back to my quest to find MORE burlesque!
Back from my quest for MORE burlesque! I found Drom Bar and Restaurant azt 85 Avenue A in Alphabet City! It’s a basement type of dwelling that was closed when I was by there eight o'clock this morning. Hopefully it will be open when I come back by tonight. The #M14A bus off of 14th street goes right by it. The regular #14 keeps straight on 14th street. You’d have to get off at Avenue A and walk down. If in doubt just ask the bus driver! It’s not that long of a walk, and the area seems very safe in the daylight. I’ll find out more tonight. A nice quaint area. Alot of HOT women jogging around! So now I’ll be going back tonight to see the show. Hope to see some of you there. I’ll be in the brown leather coat sitting at the bar. I decided I really don’t want to sit and eat while I watch burlesque! Back to my quest for MORE burlesque!
Back from my quest for MORE burlesque. I had an excellent time at the burlesque show at the Drom on Saturday night. Sometimes I surprise myself. This was one of those times. The Drom Bar and Reataurant opened at 7:oopm an hour before the show starts. I was there at 6:30pm waiting for them to open. I just hung out enjoying the neighborhood. It was a nice night. Alot of young yuppity uppitytypes eating out at all these reataurants in the area. When I finally get inside Drom all te tables are reserved so I have to stand at the bar. I get myself a ginger ale and position myself at the end of the bar so I have a good view of the stage. The place gets crowded quickly. Alot of HOT young women! Fashion model types! Because of the way I’m dressed and where I’m standing alot of them think I’m the bouncer. They are asking me questions. Good smelling, hair flinging, sexy, Hot women and I’m soaking it all in! Eating it all up! I loved it! Well when the show starts the place is packed. Alot of bumping and rubbing going on as these HOT young women jockey for position to see who is coming out on stage. Angie Pontani is first. Her show is excellent. She’s so HOT! HOTTER THAN HOT! Her sister Helen follows her with a tap dancing act which was very good. After those two I was tired and drained. It had been a long day. I went home and went to sleep with a smile on my face. I can’t wait to go again next month! Well back to my quest for MORE burlesque!
Backfrom my quest for MORE buelesque! I was telling so much about HOT young women that I didn’t tell you gals and guys enough about the burlesque show! It was a burlesque show like those from another era. Probably fifties and early sixties burlesque shows came close to the way this burlesque show was presented. Albert Cadabra was the host. He came out telling jokes and getting everybody ready for the performers. However, the crowd was already in a frenzy so it didn’t really matter what he said. When Angie Pontani came out the crowd was already going crazy. Alot of these HOT women were yelling, screaming, dancing and putting on a show of their own. Angie was dressed in this black and lavender dress with all these big bows. It was really pretty and sexy the way it clung to her body. When she bumped and grinded her way out of this dress she had a tight black corset type of thing on. It didn’t stay on for long. When she came out of that she was down to her pasties and G-string, and that’s as far as it goes in burlesque. The audience loved it. I LOVED it! When Angie finished and left the stage her sister Helen Pontani came out in the pink feathered fluffy bikini type of outfit. She did this tap dancing like I hadn’t seen the likes of before. Very fast and very eroctic! Fast tapping that kept the audience clapping. All and all I enjoyed what I saw. I liked the show more that I saw last Mother’s Day. I guess because I was closer to the stage and there were more performers. However if they have it on the first Saturday next month I’ll be there AGAIN! It was a FUN and EXCITING night out for me. I’m usually in bed by eight o'clock on Saturday. My days start very early. So for me to be hanging out with all these young HOT women half my age, and seeing my favorite burleque performer in Angie it was like HEAVEN on EARTH! No lap dances! No bacala! No sex,but what the heck! It was some good BURLESQUE! That’s just what I was there for! Back to my quest for MORE burlesque!
Back from my quest for MORE burlesque! Last Sunday I was heading over to KYoto dessert restaurant on 705 Ninth Avenue from Sixth Avenue to get some sweet potato cake, and sweet potato chips. I walked down 48th street by where the Melody use to be, and I felt like actually crying. Progress has taken all the memories away! At one corner there’s this Hershey’s chocolate candy store. On the other side of the street there’s this M&M store. They’ve turned the area into “Candyland”!?! Where the Melody was is 1601 Crown Plaza. I was standing where Bernard’s bar was and there’s a newstand there now. Around the corner where the PussyCat theater was is a SportsClub. Sometimes I wish I could turn back the hands of time to 1979! “Candyland”! Un-Friggin-believable! Back to my quest for MORE burlesque!
Does anyone remember the Japanese beauty, Jade East? She has been on my mind since the earthquakes. God bless that nation..and us all. The beauty of N.Y.C. is the coming together of all nations.
Back from my quest for MORE burlesque! I don’t remember Jade East, but Japan has been on my mind too, and what those people are going through. The worse is yet to come if they can’t find a way to prevent a MELTDOWN! Prayers go out to that entire country! Back to my quest for MORE burlesque!
Back from my quest for MORE burlesque! Harmony Man I haven’t seen Raymond in quite awhile now. Last time I saw him he didn’t look in such great shape. I hope I’ve just been missing him, and nothing is really wrong! I’ll keep you informed. Guys like Ray, Eddie, Alex, Izzy, Doug, Fish, Howard, Greg, Howard, Subway John, and Big Mark are just some of the guys that made those places FUN to come to every weekend or when ever I had a chance. I’m always talking about the ladies, but witout the guys the Melody, Harmony or Follies wouldn’t have been the same. So to all of the guys I mentioned, and to all the ones I forgot to mention THANKS! Thanks for being there way back then! You helped to make all of it SPECIAL! Its good to see people from that period that are still alive and kicking! So many men and women have passed on. It’s good to know some of us are still ALIVE and KICKING it! Thanks again to all you guys, AND GALS who help to make the Melody, Harmony and Follies the places to be! Back to my quest for MORE burlesque!
Back from my quest for MORE burlesque! More than 25 burlesque performers disrobed for charity at the Wild Project 195 3rd street in the East Village in a benifit for the AIDS WALK New York City! Audience members paid $50 to enter and were each given a take-home pair of handmade muticolored pasties with tassels attached for twirling. A dazzling array of performers with names like Veruca Honeyscotch, Bambi Galore, Creamy Stevens and Go Go Harder. The host was the World Famous Bob! I’m sorry I missed it, but I thought I’d tell you guys about it through this article anyway. I guess while looking for MORE burlesque, sometimes I get LESS burlesque! This show took place on Saint Patrick’s Day! At least now I know about this place in the East Village, and to keep my eyes open for upcoming events there. Well back to my quest for MORE burlesque!
Back from my quest for MORE burlesque! Dirty Martini will be appearing at the Highline Ballroom on April 16th. I will give you more details as they become available. Also “Gotham Burlesque” Featuring Bunny Love and Tigger Saturday April 2nd @ 9:30pm at the Triad NYC 158 W 72nd ST> 212-362-2590-www.TRIADNYC.COM I don’t know if I’ll be attending either one of these shows. I may end up going to both, but I thought I’d put the information out there for you guys and gals to see just in case! Back to my quest for MORE burlesque!
Back from my quest for MORE burlesque! I was at work the other day trying to explain the dollar a minute lapdance to a group of guys half my age. Dollar a minute for bacala seemed even more strange. They thought I was making all this up. To all the Johnny-come lately’s who might read this you can’t really understand or appreciate the women or the history of the Melody, Harmony, or the Follies! Sorry! You really had to BE THERE! Things today are so different. Women are so different! People are so different. We were all there to have a good time, and we had a blast! Sure it was all fantasy,and we all had to leave go back to our own realities. However for a few hours in the Melody, Harmony or Follies it was MAGIC! So I will again and again and again thank the ladies and gents that help to make this MAGIC possible! THANKS FOR THE MEMORIES! Is it living in the past! YES! It’s been over thirty years ago, but it still seems like yesterday. Even though yesterday is NOW so far away! Back to my quest for MORE burlesque!
Back from my quest for MORE burlesque! On Wednesday March 30, 9:30pm at Parkside Lounge (317 E. Houston St there’s a burlesque show. “David Lynch Burlesque.” Performances by Amelia Bareparts, Foxy Vermouth, Franny Fluffer, Gemini Rising, Madame Rosebud, Miss Rose (from Philadelphia) and go-go dancing Doctor Flux PhD. There’s a $10 cover two drink minimum. For more information visit frannyfluffer.com or Twitter: twitter.com/frannyfluffer. or Facebook: facebook.com/frannyfluffer. I work doing those hours so I may not go. Then again I may leave work early. Those are alot of performers. It’s just that it’s also so late, and I’m not one wholikes to be out that late. I hope some of you guys and gals are able to make it even if I don’t! Good luck if you do, and have FUN! Back to my quest for MORE burlesque!
Back from my quest for MORE burlesque! I wasn’t able to attend the Wednesday night show on E. Houston because of work,but I hope some of you made it. I have more upcoming burlesque to tell you about. The Rhinestone Folloies Burlesque has three shows coming up in the month of April(1st,15th,29th), two in May(13th,27th), and one on June 17th. All on Friday at 8pm. It’s located at 218 Bowery in New York and its $15 admission. At the Highline Ballroom on W.16th street Dirty Martini& The New Burlesque have a show on April 16th. Since that is a Saturday and I’m not working I may try to attend that one. I just don’t like being out too late at night. I’ll give you more information on that show as it gets closer to that date. If that’s not enough burlesque information for you I have MORE! The Museum of Sex at 233 Fith Avenue at 27th Street has an exhibition “The Nudie Artist Burlesque Revived” showing right now! You can even get a $3 off the admission price coupon in today’s amny and metro newspapers! So there it is guys! MORE burlesque! I hope all of you are able to make these shows! Back to my quest for MORE burlesque
Back from my quest for more burlesque! I didn’t make any of the burlesque shows over the weekend. However, I did get down to The Museum of Sex to see their burlesque exhibition. It’s rather expensive at $18,but I had a $3 dollar off coupon so I only paid $15! There were alot of SEX exhibits to see, but I was there only for the burlesque one. They had videos of alot of present day performers. My favorite was the large photo of Perle Noire. There was this one photo of Julia Atlas Muz! She was a pretty blonde who reminded me of a combinaton of Nikki Knight and Annette Heinz from back in the seventies. They had somed real old time photos of Betty Page and Tempest Storm. Some like Maya Gaye I had never even heard of, but she was big back in the 1950s and 1960s! They even had old footage of Fatima “The Muscle Dancer” from 1890! The showed the entire film “Burly Q” and had a big screen set up so I could see performances by alot of burlesque dancers past and present. All and all I had a good time. I don’t know exactly how long it’s going to be there, but if you guys like burlesque the way I do I don’t think you should miss it! Well back to my quest for MORE burlesque!
Back from my quest for MORE burlesque! Lately I’ve given you quite a bit of information on different venues of burlesque. Here is another. Her name is Jo Weldon aka Jo Boobs. She is the Headmistress of the award-winning New York School of Burlesque. Last time I saw her perform was on Mother’s Day last year at the Highline Ballroom. One of her web site is http//burlesquedaily.blogspot/2010/04 That will give you all the information you need on Jo Weldon! Well back to my quest for MORE burlesque!
Hi mel! Burlesque was always alive. That’s why Kristina Fox and me traveled the circuit. Geez, that was tiring with all the traveling, sometimes no sleep. I never heard of Mayra either. I was great friends with Rose la Rose’s nephew. I got to see Tempest Storm. I once saw a “ho house” was using Blaze Star’s photo in an advertisement…made a phone call to the agency. Fixed that! After I left NYC, I danced bout 8 more years. Had a mermaid show with a bathtub. Was quite nice ti get paid to take a bubble bath. Much love, Annette
Annette, did you ever work the Canadian circuit? I remember seeing Nikki knight in Montreal & Toronto all the time. One summer Tommy (memba him?) and I went to Montreal & Toronto for vacation and saw Nikki in both of those cities. The three of us were on the same flight back to LaGuardia! Small world, isn’t it?
I just stumbled upon this discussion thread and have spent the last two hours taking a wonderful trip down Memory Lane!
Does anyone remember Screw magazine, Al Goldstein’s rag? That’s where I heard about the Melody Theater. I visited for the first time on my 18th birthday, making the trip from my parents' house in Jersey. I remember the feeling of nervous excitement as I entered for the first time. I stood at the back and took it all in —– the layout, the music, and of course the women. Sure, I had looked through my share of Playboy magazines, but nothing could have prepared me for the sight of all those beautiful women of every size, shape, and color, wearing bras and panties….or less.
After standing in the back for a while, getting my bearings and gathering my courage, I finally took a seat. A few minutes later, I was approached by a stunning brunette who asked if I wanted company. A dollar a minute was a lot of money to an 18-year-old kid back then, but half an hour flew by before I knew it. I was really enjoying her company, but my money was running low. But before I left, my new friend introduced herself as Choo-Choo, and told me to come back and see her sometime, adding that we would both find the experience more pleasurable if I wore shorts instead of jeans. Well, I made the 90-minute drive home that night thinking that I had found heaven on earth.
The next Saturday night, armed with much more money thanks to the second summer job I found, I went back. I couldn’t leave the house wearing gym shorts, so I wore them under my jeans! When I got to the theater and paid my entrance fee, I went to the bathroom, took off the jeans, and put them in my gym bag. Now I was ready! It only took a few minutes to find my beautiful Choo-Choo. I was thrilled that she actually remembered me, and before I knew it, she had straddled me, buried her face in my neck, and proceeded to work her magic on me. After a few minutes, I was more aroused than I had ever been in my life, and she started murmuring in (and tonguing) my ear. I didn’t understand the words —– she wasn’t speaking English —– but some things are universal. She was clearly enjoying her work, and I was very much enjoying her work as well.
And then the moment that changed my life: she stuck her tongue down my throat, reached down with her hand to massage me, and I exploded as never before. There are no words to describe how good that felt! Afterwards, she laid her head against my chest, I wrapped my arms around her, and we stayed like that for many minutes. I learned that the language she had been speaking was German, and that she had recently come to New York from her native land. Finally, my wallet said it was time for me to go.
After that, of course, I was hooked. I spent every Saturday night for the rest of the summer locked in Choo-Choo’s arms, being French-kissed until I couldn’t take any more. I had to work damn hard to earn enough money to pay for Choo-Choo on top of my other expenses, but it was worth it. Too soon, it was time for me to go to an out-of-state school, and I didn’t visit New York at all —– not even once —– for an entire year…
What great memories!
When I finally returned, two things had changed: it was now called the Harmony Theater, and it was no longer up on Broadway. But some things hadn’t changed: Choo-Choo was still there. But one night, she wasn’t there, so I ended up sampling several different women until I found one who took me over the edge. It was of course highly pleasurable, but without the kissing it wasn’t quite the same. Still, I found myself at the Harmony 2-3 times a week, whenever my work schedule permitted. Sometimes I focused on Choo-Choo; other times I played the field. I loved every minute of it.
Time passed. I went to school in California for a couple of years, and although San Francisco’s Market Street Cinema and Mitchell Bros. O'Farrell Theater were no match for the Harmony, they did get me through. I had the great good fortune to land a summer job in New York City, and the first thing I did was find myself a very cheap summer sublet. I wanted not only to live in the city, but also to have as much money to spend at the Harmony as possible!
It goes without saying that that was the best summer of my life. I still spent a lot of time with my darling Choo-Choo, but I also discovered another very well-endowed brunette. She called herself Susie, and I had no idea how much she would change my life…
Where Choo-Choo was elegant and sensual, Susie was much more aggressively sexual —– unbuttoning my shirt so she could press her huge breasts against my bare chest, growling some very explicit suggestions into my ear…and licking her palm every so often so that her hand would…glide. Every once in a while, she’d say “damn, we oughta make a movie together”, but I didn’t take her seriously —– I just figured that was her way of flattering me, stroking my ego (no pun intended!).
As time went by, I got to know both Choo-Choo and Susie a little bit outside the club. I remember taking Choo-Choo to a Thai place. She showed up dressed in an exotic green robe and a matching turban! The garment flowed around her, hinting at the spectacular figure underneath but leaving quite a lot to the imagination. She was incredibly good company, very intelligent, able to talk about many different things. After dessert, she handed me a little flyer across the table and said she was about to leave the Harmony and open her own little burlesque place called The Blue Angel. She explained that the name was taken from the title of the movie that made a star of her favorite actress, countrywoman Marlene Dietrich. A few weeks later, I went to opening night, and was warmly greeted by Choo-Choo, who asked me to start calling her by her real name, Ute. She sat with me for a while and explained how she was trying to “bring real burlesque back to New York”. I dropped by the club once or twice a week for the next few years —– those were really great times!
An unexpected benefit to Choo-Choo, er, Ute owning her own place was that I no longer had to decide between her and Susie when I went to the Harmony! I loved the contrast between the two clubs —– I would start by going to the Blue Angel for some good striptease and end —– happily — at the Harmony.
At some point over the years, I guess Susie and I made Dominique mad somehow — once when I called the Harmony directly, Dominique told me Susie wasn’t at the club that night. I didn’t think she was telling the truth, so I went anyway, and sure enough Susie was there. She was pretty steamed when I told her what had happened. Susie gave me her number, and I would often call her to see when her shift was. And sometimes I would call her just to talk.
Susie began to introduce me to some of her friends at the club. One of my favorites was Staxx, a blonde with a body straight out of a magazine. Although I was generally not a fan of implants, I ended up making an exception in this case! Staxx was even more aggressive than Susie, if that’s possible, and more than once I found myself doing a wall dance with Staxx —– these standing dances were rapidly becoming my favorite. Once, she reached down between us and guided me to her opening — I could feel the heat and moisture radiating from her. But these were the early days of AIDS, and I had to stop her because I was just too afraid to go through with it…
Susie sometimes asked her friends to “stand guard” when she was in the mood to do a particularly…frisky dance for me. One night, she and I were joined by a pretty young brunette called Cheyenne. I knew Cheyenne pretty well, and had been invited to a party at her house one night to meet some of her “non-dancer friends”. For a while, both girls were cuddled on my lap, kissing me and each other, hands wandering everywhere. Needless to say, I was in heaven! Then Susie got that look in her eye, and asked Cheyenne to stand up and shield us from view…
A few days later, I went back to the Harmony and was quickly joined by a very upset Cheyenne.
Back from my quest for “More” burlesque! Nothing to report guys. Its just that when I saw the name Kristina Fox it sent me on a trip down memory lane. I remember a bathtub, and all these bubbles flying around. I think that was Bing Crosby singing “Tiny Bubbles” and Bobby Darin singing “Splish, Splash!” Man I hadn’t thought about that in awhile. I’m a big movie buff! I go to about a hundred movies a year besides what I see on DVDs! I like all movies. I’ve seen alot of Chinese, Japanese, South Korean, Indian, besides everything that comes out of this country. In a fewe hours I’m be on my way to see “THOR!” Then tomorrow “Jumping the Broom!” My favorite movie recently was a South Korean movie called “ I Saw the Devil!” The best thing about sereing so many movies in New York is that it takes me to so many different neighborhoods, and so many different theaters. I’ve totally gotten away from burlesque! Annette thank you for that jolt about Kristina Fox! Even though I go see all this “OTHER” burlesque I wish I could turn back the hands of time and you’d be coming out on stage! Well back to my quest for more burlesque!
Back from my quest for more burlesque! The last time I was in Atlantic City they had one casino The Resorts. Now sometime within the next month I will make my first trip there in close to twenty five years I guess. There’s something called iCandy Burlesque-Three shows a night Thursdays, Fridays & Saturdays 8pm-2am. through June 18 in the Blue Martini Lounge. Like I said I haven’t been down there in quite some time, but I will be going to see what this is all about before it closes. Hopefully some of you guys and gals who frequent Atlantic City more than I have will also check it out. If you go before I do let me know how it is. Thanks! Well back to my quest for MORE burlesque!
Back from my quest for MORE burlesque! Just finish reading a great article on burlesque in the free newpaper “Downtown Express” May 11-17! “New Burlesque: Old enough for a look back.” There’s a photo of Julie Atlas Muz the pretty blond I said looked like a combination of Nikki Knight and Annette Heinz! Check it out, and let me know if you did read it. Otherwise I’ll put it on here in a few days for ALL to read! I’ll probably do that anyway! It’s really a great article! Well back to my quest for MORE burlesque!
Hello all! I am new here but I am happy to report that I have a striptease video of Sue Nero from the theatre. I will upload to youtube when i get the chance.
Sterling Theaterchurch: Please post a link to the video when u post it on youtube. Do you have any other videos of Harmony Girls? I’d be interested in Jeannie and Shawn.
TonyJohnson, Was “Susie” actually Sue Nero? (I mentioned her in a previous post.(August 19th 2010).
279church, I’d buy any copies of those videos if anyone with them would sell.
Hi guys! Love always, Annette
wow, what a find! So many familiar names. From 1978 to 1983 I lived across the street from The Melody. I lived right above The Club International where a lot of the girls and workers would hang out between sets. I remember Danielle and George where a fixture there.
Does anyone remember “Patty Hurts”? She was a Patty Hearst look a like from Boston. Tara was her real name. She was on circuit and would stay with me when she had NY gigs. What great days!
Hey it’s great to know so many of the regulars from the Melody are still around. I’m Michael Lawrence, Brandy Lawrence’s ex husband and boy do I remember the Melody. Yes Candy Staton did films and yes she was great in the bed. Joey Karson was a total sweetheart and will be missed. Desiree was arrested for selling to a fed but I lost track of her. Tish Ambrose performed there once I think but she was a regular at Bernard’s. She has disappeared as did her husband dave, they moved to Hawaii for a while then broke up and that was the last I heard of them. Susaye London started a catering business with her girlfriend and was doing quite well the last time I saw her and she was still a hottie.
I remember Crystal Blue well from those days! I was a young inexperienced kid and used to go see her a lot. Annette, you said that you knew her. Any idea whatever happened to her later on?
Also, Annette, are you on Facebook?
Hey, if you don’t know, there’s a Facebook group called “Fans of Harmony Burlesque.” Check it out!
Hey, if you don’t know, there’s a Facebook group called “Fans of Harmony Burlesque.” Check it out!
Bob Anthony was NEVER married to Dominique. She told people they were married after he died: (19NOV1986 RIP). His widow is stll alive. Dominique added the last name of “D'Anthony” to her own name in an attempt to perpetuate the lie.
What would be the logic in doing so?
I remember the Melody so well. I traveled to NY in the late 1970s on business and looked forward to going to the Melody. I remember Kitty Hawk the petite blonde, Margo the sweet Cuban girl and a tall Russian I think Irena? Of course, Frenchy and also the girls exchanging bills 9-for-10, 8-for-10 in the lobby depending on demand.
I’ll need to read this entire thread – a cool trip down Memory Lane!
Back from my quest! Hey guys! I haven’t been to this sie in over a year. Good to see alot of you are still here. I guess you thought I had kick the bucket. Harmony Man I ran into Ray the other day. He’s still hard to understand since he had his stroke. We talked about you, The Melody, The Harmony, The Follies, and “Back in the Day! Annette we talked about you too! If you guys want to contact me I'on Facebook as Godfrey Vincent. You see me in my profile photo standing between Leslie Bovee and Phadera Grant. The photo is about thirty years old. I love that photo. It was in the Melody. My favorite place back then. Take care for now guys. I’ll try to keep more in touch. I’ve given up the burlesque quest for now! TTYL!
There is a site on Facebook called “Fans of Harmony Burlesque.” They are looking for members. Especially those who remember the Harmony from “back in the day.” Check it out it’s interesting. TTYL!
When I see laces like the V.I.P Club, Cheetahs, and Lace it makes me realize how special places like the Melody, Hamony and Follies really were. The new places have fine dining and sushi bars. I didn’t need sushi with watching women stripping. It’s not even close to being the same. I’m glad I came along in time to enjoy the Melody, Harmony, and Follies. I’m glad I was able to know alot of the ladies that worked there. It’s so long ago now, but sometimes it still seems like “YESTEDAY!”
In my teens, I used to go to the Melody and the Harmony in the 70s, usually on Saturday. I remember seeing Francine Walker, Helen Bedd, Patty Wayne (“The Girl Who Rocked Wall Street”), Brandy Stevens and Monica Kennedy. I had a massive for Francine. Now and then I wonder what happened to them. Does anyone here remember those names?
I remember a Francine, white, brunette, good kisser, she tasted good too. The only woman I ever had the opportunity to “Bacala” with on stage. Wish I had gone more than once now. Have many of you guys tried “Fans Ofr Harmony Burlesque” on Facebook. If not check it out. Some of the ladies that use to perform at the Melody/Harmony are there.
Hi Godfrey, I hadn’t checked the site in a few months. Thanks for your recollections. I’ll try Facebook.
Aww, I’ve come back, to say hello.
http://www.burlesquebabesshop.com/ This site looks interesting. I never saw it before. Godrey, I couldn’t find the Harmony page on Facebook.
I started going there in the late 70s .I was about 19 or 20. The most beautiful woman i have ever seen in my life worked there under the name of Jaguar.Lots of memories.
This is Francine Walker from the Melody in the 1970s. Anyone remember her? This is the first photo I’ve seen of her since those years. I don’t know why I can’t activate the link so copy and paste it into another tab.
http://thelingerieaddict.tumblr.com/post/59123748361/burlyqnell-francine-walker-vintage-8x10
Has anyone run into or know the whereabouts of Jenice who worked at the Harmony on 22nd St. between 1990 and when it was shut down in 1998?
What was the name of that little strip club/ burlesque theater on W 49th St. Bet. Broadway and 7th Ave in the 70s and a good part of the 80s ?
The place I’m referring to was a near beer “ private sessions” brothel type joint. Speaking of Melody who remembers Bobby the huge older guy ( sometimes wearing a pith helmet – he did actually go on a trip to Africa ) who went to the store on errands for all the girls at The Melody and Sophisticated Lady the massage parlor around the corner and Her Place on 45th St bet 6/7 Ave – the sister joint to Sophisticated Lady. Bob looked like he was in the ring with 5 guys beating him to a pulp – he smelled of perspiration but worked like 16 hours day in day out running errands.
Broadway Burlesk was at 204 W 49 Street.
Does anyone remember the Follies Cabaret Theatre on Broadway ?