The Art of the Pimp: One Man's Search for Love, Sex, and Money (14 page)

• • •

A lot of the girls aren’t very good with their money because they’ve never had this kind of money before. Dennis brings in financial advisers from the local bank or a realtor so the girls learn about saving and investing and home ownership. It seems almost counterproductive. If they make good money and they blow it, they have to come back for more, and that’s good for business. But Dennis isn’t just about business. He really is a father figure to these girls. Dennis is
out on the floor every day reminding the girls that they can make their dreams come true. People think he’s a certain type of person because he owns several brothels, but he’s really a sensitive, generous man.

• • •

Dennis loves to do for others, but the idea has to come from him. If one of the girls goes to him to borrow money or something, it’s not going to happen. But Dennis will help her. He will show her how to get the money she needs. But he doesn’t believe in handouts. I can’t even begin to explain how much Dennis has helped me over the years and the way he’s been there for me. He drops everything if I call. And even if I’m having a bad day, it’s like he waves a magic wand and everything is okay.

• • •

I have been working for Dennis for over twenty years, and he’s a complete micromanager, which drives me crazy sometimes. He loves to come in and talk sales. Did we beat last night’s sales? That’s great, but then he’ll look at my desk and say, “I don’t like the way that pen is over by the edge there. It should be moved here, next to the phone.”

• • •

The women in his life, that’s more complicated. Dennis loves women, but his girlfriends always seem to forget that he owns seven brothels. Remember that basketball player, Wilt Chamberlain, who said he slept with twenty thousand women? I believe Dennis has him beat.

Dennis loves to have that one special woman by his side. And he tells all of them the same thing, right up front: We’re going to be together, but I’m going to see other
women. He tells them that sex has nothing to do with the way he feels about those other women and they think they can handle it, but they can’t. They smile and nod and say they’re fine with it, but they’re not fine with it at all. They think they’re going to change Dennis, but Dennis isn’t going to change for anyone. If anything, he changes them. And it’s always the same: How about we make you blond and give you red nails and red lipstick and polish you up to look like Marilyn Monroe?

• • •

Loyalty is everything to Dennis. If someone makes a mistake, that’s all right; everyone makes mistakes. But if you betray him, or if you’re disloyal, Dennis is done with you. And a lot of times it’s even more painful for him. I know he has been hurt in the past by his family. He probably won’t admit it, but that bothers him more than anything.

You know who Dennis loves with all his heart? His dog, Domino. He will do anything for that dog. Now, that’s a real love story. And I love Dennis on a very deep level. He’s everything to me. I don’t know what I would do without him. He’s my soulmate.

NOT LONG AFTER STACY LEFT,
Al Goldstein came out to visit the ranch to do a story about the place. One of the first things I showed him — after he’d admired my beautiful girls, of course —was the big pink binder we kept behind the front desk. We call it “The Bunny Bible” and when a new girl arrives she is expected to take the time to read it.

The Bunny Bible lays out the house rules. I wanted the girls to know that I stood behind my promises, so I set them down on paper.
They really didn’t have to party with anyone they weren’t comfortable with, but they had to be respectful when they turned down a client. They really were responsible for setting their own prices because I didn’t want them doing anything for less money than they thought they were worth. And they could leave the ranch whenever they wanted, but they had to respect the printed schedules, courtesy of Suzette, and give us fair warning.

I wanted my girls to be independent, which is why I gave them choices. But I also wanted them to work in a harmonious atmosphere, which is why I gave them rules. There would be no “dirty hustling,” for example. If another girl was sitting at the bar talking to a man, that man was considered unapproachable unless he left the bar of his own volition.

THE BUNNY BIBLE

THE BUNNY BIBLE
is required reading for new girls at the BunnyRanch. It runs more than 100 pages. Much of it is confidential, but I’ll share a few excerpts:

You will only use the “panic button” in case of emergencies. FYI, no one has ever used the panic button for an emergency since it was installed in 1996.

Remember: Your room is your stage. Keep your room neat and clean.

Never go into another girl’s room uninvited or without knocking.

There will be no T-shirts, Levis, or Levi shorts worn by the ladies while they are working.

You are on notice that the BunnyRanch uses shoppers. If you do not use condoms, your contract will be terminated immediately.

Important and mandatory: All girls must do a “DC” (Dick Check) on the customer after the negotiation. Look for any abnormal or unusual bumps, marks, or sores.

In Nevada, it is a felony to give prescription drugs to anyone. When you violate this law you risk going to prison. If you are arrested on drug charges while under contract, we cannot and will not support you.

It is against federal/state law to discuss specific pricing for sexual services across state lines. Consider the following reply: “We are not allowed to discuss prices over the phone/Internet. Each of the ladies here is an independent contractor and our prices differ. However, we wouldn’t be in the business for forty-seven years if our prices weren’t affordable.”

Never never never never get a PIN from a customer for their credit card.

Ladies: We expect you to give good parties and receive good tips. All tips will be turned in immediately after the party. Don’t jeopardize your work contract by not reporting your tips. The first time you don’t turn in a tip, you’re gone.

You may accept casino chips for bookings. They must be local chips only: Reno, Carson City, and Lake Tahoe. Do not take any potato chips.

The Message Board is essential to your success. Use it to build up your clientele and create repeat business. The sky really is the limit!

We now have a personal trainer for your gym needs. He will be here Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. You do not need to make an appointment.

If you have a complaint, take it to management. Do not discuss your complaints with employees!!!!!!

In the course of a negotiation, you don’t have to take no for an answer. You don’t have to accept what is offered or back off from what you deserve. You will learn that you have recourse, that there are ways to turn a NO into a YES, and that you don’t have to settle for table scraps when you deserve a sumptuous meal. . . . To become a better negotiator, you need to start by standing up for yourself.

The ranch does not feel it is a good idea to bring your children to your place of work. The same holds for husbands and boyfriends.

THE BUNNY BIBLE
also walked the girls through client negotiations. When the front bell rang, if a girl wasn’t already engaged with another client, she had to hurry to the front parlor and join the other girls for the lineup. Suzette would welcome the client to the BunnyRanch, hand him a menu with a list of options, and then escort him into the parlor to meet the girls. Once he made his choice, the lucky girl would take him to her room and they would discuss his interests. The menu spelled out many of the
options — girlfriend experience, massage, hand-relief party, vibrator show, blow job, half and half, overnight stay, Jacuzzi fun, around the world, etc. — and the girls were sometimes called upon to explain the terminology. Blow job was self-explanatory, but some men had never heard of around the world (making use of three holes, with the idea being that you finished where you started).

Once they had settled on the kind of party they were going to enjoy, the girls would go back to the front desk with cash or a credit card, and Suzette filled out the paperwork. Each girl had a card — not unlike a library card — that was kept on a rack on the wall and each sale was noted on the card. The girl then got a “party sheet” to put on top of the bed — it’s easier to wash one sheet than a whole set —and went back to the room to take care of business.

If a girl made less than $1,000 a night during the week, or didn’t break $1,500 on weekends, she was charged a nominal fee for her room. That’s because instead of working hard, she was too busy having fun. One of the downsides of having created such a fun, family atmosphere is that some of the girls treat the place like a sorority. That can be a problem for us. We want the girls to enjoy themselves, but sometimes we have to remind them that they’re there to work. If they don’t make money, we don’t make money.

If I believe in a girl, if I see she has real potential, I often take her aside and give her the kind of pep talk that I perfected during my years in sales. Good grooming, eye contact, positive attitude. Or, one of my perennial favorites: “A bright smile is far more valuable than a big pair of tits.”

These girls had the potential to make a quarter of a million dollars a year and more, but they wouldn’t get there unless they were
driven
. I urged them to think strategically about their careers and to plan on being at the ranch for the shortest possible time. I know
this sounds counterintuitive — I’m telling my best workers to make as much as they can, as quickly as they can, then go home — but it actually makes perfect sense. The hardest-working girls give the best parties, and good parties are what keep the customers coming back for more.

Some of the girls weren’t really serious about the business and they seldom lasted. But the good ones often stayed for years. They had homes, they drove luxury cars, they had retirement plans, and many of them actually enjoyed the work. How many women can say they make men happy five or six times a day? The woman at the complaint desk at Macy’s? I don’t think so. Plus the work makes them rich. How many women can say that?