One time when I was stripping at the State Burlesk Theater in Canton, Ohio my boss, Jim Manos told me that he ad received a letter or a call (I don't remember which)from John Ory saying he was broke and could Jim send him some money. I felt really bad about his being broke. He is the one who, basically, started me stripping on the road with the Al Baker Burlesk Theater Circuit. If it had not ben for him, I might never have pursued stripping for approximately twenty years.
Jim said he was going to send him some money. I think he said, $100.00 or so. I gave Jim $50.00 to send to him. Even though I was taking care of my two children and myself, I felt an obligation. This was a lot of money for me back then. But I did not miss it much; and I still don't.
I had worked in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania at the Liberty Burlesk Theater dancing as a stripper quite a few times. I had decided to stay in Canton, Ohio for awhile; so I tried to book myself in some of the surrounding burlesk theaters - one of them was Pittsburgh.
I told the manager that I would like to work there from time to time. He said there was no problem - I could. He then said that there was only one stipulation. All the girls that worked for him regularly "kept him happy" when he needed it I immediately told him that I would not - that "keeping him happy" when he needd it was not part of my show. He said, "Fine! Go back to Canton and wash dishes!" I said, "O.K.!"
There was a guy that used to come to the burlesk shows in Canton, Ohio that was from Wooster, Ohio. He was a little "slow". I teased him and called him the mayor of Wooster. When I was on the stage, and would see him sitting in the audience, I would holler out, "There's the mayor of Wooster!"
On day I was in the theater lobby eating dried apricots. I asked him if he wanted one. He seemed to like them; so I offered him more. He ate almost the whole bag.
The next time he came to the show he told me that the apricots had had a laxatie effect on him. All of us laughed so much. He said, "On my way home, they made me shit!"
He said it took a week to get the smell out of the car. His mother wanted to go for a ride before the smell had gone away. I said, "What did you tell her?" He said, "I told her OH! Not today, Mom!"
Lori and I were working in Cleveland, Ohio at the New Era Burlesk Theater. It was Christmas vacation. Both of my kids were home from their boarding schools.
We had been booked here for two weeks. We were taking turns watching my kids while the other one did her show.
We were staying at a ratty hotel. There was a man down below us who was always complaining about the kids making too much noise. He came up one time with the manager and told us that if the kids kept making noise, he was going to shoot a hole up in the ceiling. Lori said, "You do and I'll cut your dick off and make you eat it!" He said, "What?" She said, "You heard what I said".
We had just put John on the plane to his military school in Tennessee. I do not remember if it was right after we put him on the plane or not; but he was not therer when the following incident happened. We came back to the room. Someone had robbed us. All the kid's Christmas things and clothes were gone. They had left three coats in the closet - one for each of us girls. The man downstairs had a van. We thought for sure he had the things in his van. No one could get in the front door without a key; so it had to be someone who had access to a key.
I really do not remember what the police said or if they ever questioned the man downstairs. At any rate, when I tok Melissa back to her school in Kentucky we traveled lightly.
There was a man who worked at the State Burlesk Theater in Canton, Ohio - Tom Beemer. He sold candy and the tickets. He had not been to bed with too many women. One of the girls on the show - Misty Knight - took up with him. She would go to bed with him from time to time when she was in town.
He was diabetic; so any little mark bothered him; since diabetics sometimes have trouble healing. One day when I came to work he was relaly worried. He told me that Misty had bit him. He was afraid it would not heal up. You can only guess WHERE she bit him.
He wanted to show it to everyone to see what they thought - even the men. We all had a good laugh about it. We teased the dancer a lot. She thought it was funny, too. He healed up.
My kids and I used to go to the Golden Pheasant Cafe. It was across the street from the State Burlesk Theater. John would order an orange. The waitress would bring him orange juice. What he really wanted was an orange - the fruit. He finally would order it by saying, "I want an orange that you "EAT!"
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There had been a fire at the hotel where the road girls who danced as strippers at the Follie's Burlesk Theater stayed. I was in town permanently for awhile; so I stayed across the street from the Follie's a a rat-hole hotel. But it was cheap and the people working there treated me nice.
I went to the hotel that was on fire. Two of my friends and co-stripper, Lori Lanier and Mon Cherie were there. Lori was from Calgary, Canada. Mon Cherie was a black girl from Detroit, Michigan. They did not have any place to stay; so I told them they could stay with me.
Of course, I only had one bed. But we managed. We were friends - kind fo like a sister relationship. But many "ordinary" people would think the worst because Lori and Mon Cherie were Lovers.
Unlike what most people think, gay people do not try to attack or seduce everyone who is their same sex. All we did was sleep. The only thing that bothered me was the fact that they caked their faces with cucumber cream every night. I hate the smell of cucumbers. I said, "I feel like I'm sleeping with a couple of cucumbers!"
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There was this old grey headed Italian guy named Tony who owned a little grocery store on twelfth street in Kansas City, Missouri. It was lined up and attached to the go-go joints. He was always nice to me.
I remember one funny thing he told me. He said a bum came in to buy something and gave him a dollar that was all folded up and stinking. Tony said he could tell he had just got it out of his shoe. He told the bum, "Just take the damned stuff! You don't have to pay me. I don't want your stinking money!" It was more funny to hear Tony say it.
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The first time I ever had trouble with the vice-squad in Kansas City, Missouri made me realize that just because you are not breaking the law does not mean you cannot get arrested. Us strippers would do our jobs within the boundaries of the law; but when the vice-squad decided to bust us, they would find some stupid reason for it.
I was really green back then. The first time this happened I was hollering in the club about how they should not be able to arrest us because we are not breaking the law. My boss, Doris at the Pink Pussy Cat, told Kansas City Kitty, a stripper who showed me the ropes of stripping, to explain it to me. Doris kept going on about how dumb I was. I did not understand her frustration then; but I do now.
If they wanted to bust us, they would make anything up. They would say we had too much butt cheeks showing or a pubic hair or did not have our nipples covered completely with the pastie.
One time in Cleveland, Ohio they arrested the whole show. The boss knew the police were there; so he told the girls to not take anything off. They arrested them anyway. The police said that even though the girls did not take a stitch of clothes ff they did make sexual, suggestive movements.
One time in New York City, New York they busted the show because the girls were showing pubic hair. One girl was shaven. She said, "You can't bust me! I don't have any hair down there. I am shaven!" To no avail and wasted words, they did anyway.
We were at the mercy of the vice-squad. One time in Chicago, Illinois, I got busted. They were driving the ticket man and me to jail. The policeman looked back and said, "Well, you know we're just doing our job". I wanted to say, "Yeh! I know! So are we". But I knew better than to smart off or they would find something else to charge me with.
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When I was dancing as a sripper on the road, I would have to cut corners in many ways to make sure that my kid's boarding schools received their payments on time. This involved, quite regularly, doing without food or shelter. Luckily, I had my car to sleep in when I could not pay for a room.
I would go to a roadside park and sleep in my car. I did not realize how dangerous this was. Many times the weather would be cold, freezing, and snowy. Sometimes when I was in a big city like Chicago, I would go to a residential area and parallel park on the street. In the cold winters of Chicago, nobody noticed someone sleeping in their car, especially, with the windows fogged up from the cold. I would get in the back seat and cover-up with my rugs that I used in my stage shows. I am surprised I did not freeze to fesath.
One time in Scranton, Pennsylvania, I was sleeping in my car. I would take my rugs with me after work and drive to a roadside park to sleep. It was so cold. The husband of one of the strippers asked me one night if I was sleeping in my car. I asked him - why did he think that. He told me that he sees me carrying my rugs out every night; and I do not have a room at the motel. I admitted that I was because I needed the money for my kids. He and his wife offered to let me stay in their room for no money. I really did appreciate it.
I really did thnk they were nice to do this for me. This kind incident helped to introduce me to the well-known fact that you do not get something for nothing; and if someone does you a kind favor, usually, they have a plan in their head to use you someway. The plan is usually more devistating than the way you were before they did the favor.
After I had stayed there a couple of nihgts, the wife told me in the dressing room that they liked to spice up their sex life with a threesome every so often. She said their sex life gets dull sometimes; and when they have a threesome, it revives it. She asked me if I would do it. Of course, I said, "No".
I was not that cold. Needless to say, the cold car looked pretty good. I went back to it willingly despite their pleasfor me to stay.
It really did make me sad and mad when they tore all the go-go places down on twelfth street in Kansas City, Missouri. There was a whole block of them lined up next to each other from Central to Wyandotte. This is where I got my start as a stripper. It was like they were tearing down my history.
I worked a factory job in a garment factory in Sugar Creek, Missouri in the daytime and a waitress job on the weekends. At night, I would come downtown to twelfth street and go from bar to bar asking if they needed a go-go dancer for the night. I would get paid $10.00 for this if they let me dance.
It was scary to me; but I am glad I did it. I got really scared one time when a man walked up to me on the street where the go-go joints were and said, "Can I eat your pussy?" I got used to those remarks over the years.
They tore the go-go joints down; so they could build a fancy hotel in their place - The Vista. I always said, "I hope it goes broke". I do not know for sure; but I heard it did. I sure to hope so.
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Some strip clubs or burlesk theaters would allow the strippers to have sex on the stage with the customers - orally or otherwise. I worked at these places; but I never did have sex on the stage. The dancers would get a tip of a dollar or two from the guy. This was the cheapest sort of prostitution I have ever encountered. I told them they were nothing but cheap whores selling sexual favors for a dollar. Not all the girls did this. I am happy to say I was one of them who did not. I told them they were no longer strippers but cheap prostitutes.
It really makes me mad for a girl who lap-dances to say she is a stripper. To me, a stripper is one who artfully takes her clothes off, sexually, to music in front of mean. When the men start touching the girl or she starts touching him for sexual stimulation, that is where being a dancer crosses over the line into prostitution. I am not against prostitution. I really do think it should be legalized. But do not hide behind the word - stripper - to be a prostitute. It is a disgrace to a profession that I am proud to say I was a part of.
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I am a very opened minded person - more than most people I know. But I encountered some dancers on the road who would sell their bodies to men to help support their husbands and boyfriends. I am not saying I never did this either; but all my money wnet to my kids. Maybe some would argue that that was my life and the husbands and the boyfriends that some of the strippers gave their trick money to - were their lives. I just feel that selling one's budy is humiliating enough to do it out of necessity let alone giving it to a man, espicially, one who is making no effort to work and is living off the woman.
The first time I ever encountered this type of "arrangement" was when I worked at a club in Kansas City, Missouri. I was really green. The owner's wife was a stripper. Her daughter became one later. His wife would leave the club with men during business hours (between shows). I asked her where she went. She told me she went to bed with these men for money. I asked her if her husband knew. She told me he did. She seemed not really bitter but hard. I did not understand that then; but I do now. I have, myself, became hard over the years in certain aspects, especially, when it comes to men. I used a lot of men back then. That is one thing I am not sorry about.
Another incident really shocked me concerning strippers selling their bodies and having a husband or a boyfriend. A really pretty young stripper who I worked with would take the men to her motel room and turn tricks while her so-called "man" waited in the bathroom. Since then, I have bacome more wiser. Her "man" probably got his thrills from watching.
There was one dancer that I really did feel sorry for. Her "man" would take all her money from dancing. She was broke all the time. To get money, she would trun tricks without her "man" knowing and sew the money in the hemline of her gowns. I felt sorry for her; but, at least, she was smart enough to not give the money to the "jerk" living off her.
It makes me sad to think about the dancer back then who let men use her in such manners as mentioned above. The ones she had sex with were not the worst culprits. They used her but paid her what she asked. It was a business deal. The worst user of her body was the one man who should have been helping her instead of having her sell her body for his benefit. These men were truly worst than the ones who paid the money.
One time when I was working the Wood-Six Burlesk Theater in Detroit, Michigan as a stripper, I experienced an incident that brought out a dark side of me that I did not know I had. My kids and I were walking on the street between the theater and the motel. The traffic was stopped at a stop light. The people from two different vehicles were hollering obscenities at each other. One man got out of his vehicle and pointed a gun at the other guy. Needless to say, the other man shut up and sped away.
What distrubed me then and does even now is the fact that all the people on the sidewalk were watching as spectators. No one, as far as I know, even moved to call the police. And I was one of them.
I have never been ashamed of the fact that I was a stripper for approximately twenty years. This job enabled my children and me opportunities we would never have ever heard about if I had nver become one.
I have done some things and acted certain ways that most "ordinary" people thnk I should be ashamed of; but I am not. The only thing that I can truly say that I am ashamed of is for my children to know who their real father is. I wish I had cheated on him; so there would be a doubt in my mind that he might not be their real father. It is really embarrassing for me to know that my children know I went to bed with such a low-classed deadbeat.
One time in Detroit, I got my purse stolen right off my arm while I was talking to my Mother on the phone. My purse was more like an overnight bag - small suitcase looking.
I was across the street from the theater where I was dancing at as a stripper - the Wood-Six Burlesk Theater on Woodward at a little grocery store on the coner. I was standing right inside the glass door area right before you go into another door to the store. I had my back to the outside door talking to my Mother on the telephone.
I had my purse on my shoulder. I felt a tug on my purse. I paid no attention. I thought, for some reason, it was some of the guys I worked with across the street teasing me. I kept talking without turning around. I felt a few more small tugs and then all at once, I felt myself being knocked up next to the glass wall. I looked and saw only the strap of my purse hanging down. He had ripped the purse from the strap. I had been knocked up next to the wall in the process.
I ran out and saw him running down the sidewalk and duck in an alley. He had on a brown jacket. This was the only way I could have identified him. I could only recognize his back with a brown jacket.
Lucky for me I had on high-heeled boots; so I could not chase him. He would have probably killed me if I had followed him in the alley. I just stood on the corner screaming at him.
I went across the street and told the projectionist what happened. He came out with me. We crossed the street and saw him coming out of the alley. We ran over to him. The projectionist had an ice pick. He told the guy to give me back my purse. Of course, he denied it all. He said, "I don't know what you're talkin' about, lady". The projectionist told me, "Just give me the word. I'll stick him". I told him not to beause I could not say 100% that it was him. I had not seen his face.
As we walked back to the theater, we saw a police car. We told them what had happened. They did not act surprised. In their matter-of-fact-"Ho-Hum" attitude they said, "Yeh! We saw you talking to him".
Sometimes I watch a movie of someone about to be attacked. The person had plenty of time to do something to get away or to defend themselves, but does not move. I think, “Why doesn't she move? Why doesn't she do something? She could do it now! She could escape or do her attacker harm!” The fact is that in some real-life experiences a person is too scared to move. I know this because I went through it one time.
I was driving down Western Avenue toward Blue Island in Chicago. I was on my way to dance as a stripper at Flapper's Peep show on Blue Island. The traffic was back-up at a stop light. I did not realize I was parked in the traffic in a bad area of Chicago. But I was soon to find this out.
I had my window down with the radio on enjoying the nice afternoon. My purse was on the seat. All at once, a young, tall slender-looking black guy reached in the window and grabbed my purse. At that point, he could have done anything to me. I was so scared. All I did was sit there and scream. I could not move. He took off running toward a big apartment complex. Which I found out later was the projects of Chicago.
I saw a police car on the corner. I went and told the policeman what happened. He had a “ho-hum” sort of attitude. I told him I knew which building he ran into. He asked me if I could identify him. I said, “No, but I know what kind of shirt he has on”. He said, “Oh! Those guys change shirts all the time”. He would not help me at all.
By now, I was more mad then scared. I thought I would just try to find him myself. I drove up to the location where he had stolen my purse, turned right and drove around the apartment complex. Lo and behold! To my surprise there he was lounging on the grass! He looked up and saw me and started running. I was following him in my car down streets I did not know. He ducked into another building. I was too mad by now to realize that I was in his territory and did not use enough reasoning to think, “What am I going to do with him if I catch him?” I was not smart enough to know that if I had stopped and overcame him that his friends would overcome me. He would have been too strong for me to restrain anyway. I was too dumb to know that no matter what I could do, I would not get my purse back. This was his neighborhood. I did not realize what danger I was putting myself in. Lucky for me he never stopped. He probably would not have ran; but he probably was wondering if I had a gun on me. Since I was bold enough to chase him, he probably thought I had some kind of equalizer on me.
While I was chasing him in my car, my tire went flat. I thought, “I'm sure not going to change it here. I'm getting out of this neighborhood!” By now, I was beginning to really realize the danger I had put myself into. This danger was much worse than getting my purse stolen.
I rode the car on the flat and got out of his neighborhood and decided I would just ride it on the flat tire until I got to work. I was now back at the point where the crime had been committed once again waiting for the light to change – only this time full of frustration with a flat tire – unlike when I was sitting there relaxed enjoying the day with my radio on before he stole my purse. As I was sitting waiting for the light to change, the policeman who I had asked for help pulled beside me and decided to add a little salt to my wound as he said while observing my tire, “This just isn't your day – is it?”
No, it was not my day. But I learned a lot that day. The police who took my report when I got to work told me to always put my purse out-of-sight. I told them that maybe I should have had my window rolled up. They said he would have probably busted my window anyway to get my purse. And then I would have a window to replace besides all the other trouble. They tried to make me feel it was my fault. But I did learn many things that day the hard way – just as I have done so in the past during several incidents. I, also, learned that the policeman is not always your friend.
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Going to Newfoundland was a very exciting experience for me. It is the first time I had ever been out of the United States. It really took along time to fly over there; but I slept most of the way anyway.
I flew to Montreal, Canada from the United States. I do not remember what state that I was in when I left. When I got to Montreal, it was confusing for me. The people working at the airport would say, “Bonjour”. I would say “Oh! Hi!”
I had a little trouble with my luggage. The woman taking my luggage told me I had too much. I started telling her that I had to have it all with me because I needed it for my job. She got really angry. She started tossing my luggage and speaking her language. It did not take any knowledge of the French language to know that she was cussing. But anyway, she at least, let me take it all.
I had a little trouble at the custom's entrance. I do not remember the details. I just mainly remember having to go to an office and talk to a man in a suit behind a desk about why I was going to Newfoundland. He said that I was supposed to have some kind of work papers. He asked me how much money I had on me. He made a call and discussed my situation with someone on the phone and told them that he believed my story. I just had told him the truth about being booked in Newfoundland to dance and that I did not know I was supposed to have work papers. In the end, he let me proceed on my journey to Newfoundland.
It was fun just to have a lay-over in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Well, not really a lay-over – more like just changing planes. When I was a kid we used to say, “I'll knock you clear to Nova Scotia!” Now I was here; and nobody knocked me here.
I danced in St. John's, Gander, Corner Brook, and Spanish Fork. My transportation to Newfoundland and back was paid as part of my contract. I was supposed to stay six weeks; but my tour was cut short in Spanish Fork. I had not completed my week at the bar when one night a bar-room brawl broke out.
The owner of the bar had two women who were wives of two band members and me get in a little closet off the side of the bar which was their store room for liquor. I could get a good look at the fight from where I was standing. We were in back of the bar off to the side. The rowdy customers were climbing on top of the bar trying to get behind it. The owner was behind the bar with a ball bat keeping them from accomplishing that effort. One of the wives of a band member who was in the store room with me fainted. They were both crying. I was, to my surprise, quite calm and trying to comfort the scared women. I just figured, “Well, I'm here. There's nothing I can do about it now. All I can do is hope for the best and that I live through it all. The same philosophy I had when I was flying.
Lucky for me, the bar owner was the winner. I do not know how he got rid of them. I did not see all the fight; but I am sure the band members helped out, too, especially since two of them had their wives that could be in possible danger.
After this incident, I was really scared to be there. I just wanted to go home even if it meant no pay. I needed to figure out a way to get the owner of the bar to let me leave immediately. He was really upset. I realized that he was more upset than me. I used this to my advantage.
I do not remember all of the details; but I convinced him to let me leave that night. I concocked a story that there was a possibility that I was not there legally and that he might get shut down because of it. That's all he needed to hear! He was nervous enough. He did not want anymore trouble.
He had his wife take me to the airport immediately. We were in the car at the airport. She pro-rated my pay for the week and gave it to me. I told her that I needed the money for the plane ticket. She was not going to give it to me. I told her that the deal was that the first place I danced paid for my way over and the last place paid for my way back to the United States. I do not know how I convinced her. Maybe she was more nervous than her husband and just wanted me out. But whatever the reason, at least, I got the ticket paid by her and left. I was really glad. Here I was in a small fishing port so far back that the bus or a taxi would not go there. I just wanted to “get-out-of-town”. I had had enough run-ins with the law in Kansas City about my stripping. I sure did not want to be in a jail in a foreign country.
I was supposed to work in Labador the next week. It was not on my contract; but the woman who owned the bar in Labador saw my show at one of my stops and booked me for the week after Spanish Fork. I wish I could have worked for her.
I will never forget the means of transportation I used to get from place to place. I took the plane to my first stop which was St. John's where the air force base was located. The next place I went either Corner Brook or Gander, did not have an airport; so I took the bus. The next place, either Corner Brook or Gander, did not have plane service or bus service; so I took a cab. The last place, Spanish Fork, did not have plane service, bus service, or cab service going to this place. I paid a cocktail waitress and her husband to drive me to this next destination. I was wondering if the availability of transportation was going to get any worse. But he bar-room brawl took care of my chances of venturing any further.
The cocktail waitress who had taken me to Spanish Fork and I developed a passing moment of friendship. She wanted me to bring my kids and visit someday in the future. She said that I had changed her mind about strippers. She said that everyone thinks they will go to bed with anyone. But she said how she knew I had not been touched by anyone since I had been in their little fishing port. So that really made me feel good that I had had the capability of projecting this fact to someone to let them know that a woman is not a whore just because she is a stripper.
I wish my family would have learned this in my life-time. But that is gone to the wayside. After so long a time of trying to fit in one gives up even if it is her own family.
The bar that I worked at where the cocktail waitress and her husband gave me a ride to Spanish Fork was either Gander or Corner Brook. I think it was Corner Brook. The owner was really nice to me. He took me on a tour of the fish factory. That was the big industry of the town and the only thing going on except me. I appreciated his being so nice to me. I especially, appreciated his kindness one night when some guys were trying to break my motel door down.
I was in a room that had an entrance to the outside as well as a door to the hallway. After my show one night, some guys were outside my room hollering for me to let them in and pounding on my door. Once again, as in the bar room brawl incident that happened the next week, I remained unusually calm. I started to heat a cup of water in my little electrical pot that I heated up things like soup. I had decided that if they knocked the door down, I would throw the hot water in their faces and try to run out. I was afraid to open the door to the hallway because I thought they might have someone standing outside that door waiting for me to open it. Then I did hear a knock at the door in the hallway. I thought, “Oh! No!” Then I heard the kindest voice in the world to me at that time. It was the owner. I let him. In. He went to the other door and got rid of all the idiots.
I remember one place I danced in Newfoundland where the working conditions were horrendous. I had to walk from the dressing room which was a storeroom through a kitchen that was quite unkempt. I had to step over crap like chicken parts and lettuce to get to the stage which was only a corner of the dance floor. All the customers gathered around me to watch me strip to the music.
I wish I would have gotten out and seen more of Newfoundland while I was there. But I was always too afraid of someone maybe trying to hurt me. Or someone thinking I was easy sex material since I was a stripper. I tried to avoid all trouble as much as I could. I lived through it all without getting hurt; so maybe I was right.
I did venture out one time to see a hockey game – mainly because I had never been to one before. It was nothing like I had expected. I was scared to death of the crowd. The hockey players were so violent. The crowd would holler, “Kill him! I want to see some blood!” I was glad to get back to my room safely after that game.
I took a walk one time in one of the cities where I worked. I realized that they had nothing better or as good as the United States. In the restaurants, the tables were just wood – no formica – maybe that is better.
At one town, I think it was my first stop – St. John's – my motel room was a bedroom in a large house. Everyone used the same restroom and shower. The restaurant was a kitchen. I would sit at the table and order my meal. This was quite different for me. Sometimes in the living room some musicians would play their guitars and sing. I went down and listened to them sometimes.
St. John's is where they wrote a really nice article about me and put it in the paper. I still have it.
I am glad for the experiences I had in Newfoundland even thought some of them were scary. It was a pretty country from what I saw of it. The most I saw of it was when I took a taxi from one spot to the next because the plane or bus did not go that far back. There were big trees for miles and miles. It was really pretty. Newfoundland seemed like a place untouched by human hands except, sadly I must say, the fishing ports where I danced. The fish in the sea at these places experienced the devastation and murder at the hands of the fisherman.
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Sometimes when I would get a rowdy crowd or a difficult one - especially, in the burlesk theaters - I would stop my strip act and do my yoga positions. By this time, I would be pretty well naked. The guys would be hollering obscenities or whatever. I would do my yoga and was able to block out everything they were saying or, at least, block it out to the point of having me not care what they sid - no feelings toward their words at all. One might say I was in a state of meditation at this point.
On the stage, I always looked differently than off the stage. As a matter-of-fact, unlike most people, I looked and still do look better without my clothes on. Still, at the age of fifty-four, I look like eighteen from the neck down. But from the neck up - my face looks like a road-map.
When I was on the stage, I was beautiful. This was my area of feeling on top of the world. I knew at certain moments on the stage that nobody could look as good as me. I was at my best as far as beauty was concerned.
The beauty which I possessed on the stage was more than skin-deep. By becoming a stripper and baring it all, I was able to mentally bare my sould and transform my consciousness on a higher realm of thought. My thoughts were beautiful, too, even though I was performing to what most people consider the "next thing to prostitution".
My older sister, Darla, was always the prettiest and still is. She has a natural beauty that needs no make-up. My physical appearance - my face - needs make-up to even become attractive. The only time I have ever been pretty is on the stage. At these time, my beauty soared and surpassed even Darla's natural beauty.
One time when I was dancing on the stage - stripping - there was a man and a woman sitting on the front row of the burlesk theater. They were gazing at me. The man said something to the woman. She said, "Be quiet, I want to see this". The man looked at me and said, "You've got a body even Jesus could fall in love with".
Sometimes when I would be dancing a a stripper in the strip clubs - after I finished my show, I would come out with something skimpy on to hustle drinks from the men. Sometimes a guy would say to me, "I want to talk to that girl who was just on the stage". Needless to say, it was me. That is how much different I looked on the stage - naked - compared to having on clothes - even skimpy clothes.
Opal's new podcast as THE OLD STRIPPER:
The trailer of the upcoming feature film THE OLD STRIPPER:
Jack's new Filmmaker V-Log about his Mother Opal, the OLD STRIPPER:
I feel that everyone should pay back to the world some way for the privilege of having lived. I feel that my way of doing this will be to fight for animal rights.
I was dragged through Hell to make me realize that it is wrong to kill animals. I feel that it is my "duty" to the world to, at least, let it know that killing animals is wrong. There is not a doubt in my mind about this.
If I had not been left to raise my kids on my own and become a stripper, I really feel that I would not have ever become a vegetarian. I knew I was going to have to raise them on my own with no help from anyone. I wanted to, at least, raise them until they were eighteen. I decided to study health. I figured if I could keep healthy, then I could live until they were both, at least, eighteen and able to take care of themselves.
By studying health, I realized that it was unhealthy to eat animals. Later on, I became radical about feeling sorry for the animals who are victims of slaughter and man's various appetites.
If I can be thankful for anything I accomplished in this life, it is the fact that I realized that it is wrong to kill animals. All the hard times I had to go throgh was worth it if it meant I would realize this. If I had my life to live over, and knew all the hard times I would have to endure - but in the long run I would realize the injustice society dishes out to animals - I would say, "I will endure these trials and tribulations and be dragged through the "pits of Hell" just to know that it is wrong to kill animals.
I have enjoyed all the worldly things. I have done everything I want to do as far as the world can offer me. I have all the worldy "things" I ever want. Now it is my time to give back to the world. I feel that by letting people know it is wrong to kill animals is my way of doing this.
A STRIPPER WHO FOUND HERSELF IN THE MOST UNCONVENTIONAL WAY
Lamar, Missouri - Have you ever wondered what goes through the mind of a stripper?
In the 1970's, the Burlesque industry was thriving. Nudity and pornography was a public and political outrage. And people across the country were flocking to burlesque theaters to see Melissa St. John: The Upside Down Girl, A.K.A. Wild Star. Little did they know she was a single Mother, alone, on the road, with her two children in boarding schools in separate states. Over a 6 year period while traveling on a burlesque circuit across the country, she was searching for a way to come face to face with her true spirit. Through writing her innermost thoughts on paper, she found herself in the most unconventional way.
THOUGHTS OF A STRIPPER: A MOTHER'S STORY, by Opal Dockery, is an inspirational, spiritual and autobiographical journal of a stripper's thoughts over a 6 year period in the 1970's. Her personal thoughts on single parenthood, spirituality, alternative lifestyle thinking, travel, the burlesque industry and family will inspire you, shock you and uplift you.
Asked about her book, Opal replied, "I was a stripper for approximately twenty-two years. This book contains a portion of intense thoughts I experienced during six years of this time, most of which I was on the road from 1971 to 1977. The source of my book is based on my feelings".
To promote the limited edition first printing of STRIPPER, Dixie Publishing is offering a huge discounted price to the public. Effective immediately, by purchasing the novel directly through the publisher, the buyers will receive the $39.00 novel for only $25.00 plus shipping and handling. By eliminating the middleman, readers will have access to the book before it reaches bookstores at a substantial savings, by emailing, calling or visiting the website to purchase THOUGHTS OF A STRIPPER.
Opal Dockery is a writer, actress and speaker; and is presently available for speaking events. Star of the award-winning cult- following comedy short film PHONE SEX GRANDMA, Dockery is a former stripper for over 20 years, and has been a vegetarian/vegan for over 40 years. She has a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and Master's Degree in Criminal Justice. Dockery is currently the subject of a feature film documentary THE OLD STRIPPER, directed by her real-life son, filmmaker Jack Truman.
Title: THOUGHTS OF A STRIPPER: A MOTHER'S STORY Author: Opal Dockery First Printing 2009, Copyright 1997 Price: 39.00 ISBN: 0-9701769-0-2 182 Pages, Illustrations and News ArticlesInspirational/Spiritual/New Age/Alternative/Parenthood/Family Contact: Jack Truman, Dixie Productions, 417-398-2877 Email: trumanjack@hotmail.com Book Website: http://thoughtsofastripper.webs.com
Opal in the trailer for the upcoming feature film THE OLD STRIPPER:
Jack talking about his Mother's book THOUGHTS OF A STRIPPER: A Mother's Story:
A STRIPPER WHO FOUND HERSELF IN THE MOST UNCONVENTIONAL WAY
Lamar, Missouri - Have you ever wondered what goes through the mind of a stripper?
In the 1970's, the Burlesque industry was thriving. Nudity and pornography was a public and political outrage. And people across the country were flocking to burlesque theaters to see Melissa St. John: The Upside Down Girl. Little did they know she was a single Mother, alone, on the road, with her two children in boarding schools in separate states. Over a 6 year period while traveling on a burlesque circuit across the country, she was searching for a way to come face to face with her true spirit. Through writing her innermost thoughts on paper, she found herself in the most unconventional way.
THOUGHTS OF A STRIPPER: A MOTHER'S STORY, by Opal Dockery, is an inspirational, spiritual and autobiographical journal of a stripper's thoughts over a 6 year period in the 1970's. Her personal thoughts on single parenthood, spirituality, alternative lifestyle thinking, travel, the burlesque industry and family will inspire you, shock you and uplift you.
Asked about her book, Opal replied, "I was a stripper for approximately twenty years. This book contains a portion of intense thoughts I experienced during six years of this time, most of which I was on the road from 1971 to 1977. The source of my book is based on my feelings".
Opal Dockery is a writer, actress and speaker. Star of the award-winning cult-following comedy short film PHONE SEX GRANDMA, Dockery is a former stripper for over 20 years, and has been a vegetarian for over 35 years. She has a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and Master's Degree in Criminal Justice. Dockery is currently the subject of a feature film documentary THE OLD STRIPPER, directed by her real-life son, filmmaker Jack Truman.
Title: THOUGHTS OF A STRIPPER: A MOTHER'S STORY Author: Opal Dockery Copyright 1997, First Printing 2009 Price: 39.00 ISBN: 0-9701769-0-2 182 Pages, Illustrations and News Articles Inspirational/Spiritual/New Age/Alternative/Parenthood/Family Contact: Jack Truman, Dixie Productions, 417-398-2877 Email: trumanjack@hotmail.com Book Website: http://thoughtsofastripper.webs.com/
Sometimes during the period that I was raising my kids, a smart-ass would tell me I should give them to a family; so they could have a "home". I ignored their comments because whenever my kids and I were together we were the "home". I tried to teach them that when we were apart - me at work traveling and them in their oarding schools - that we were still at "home" in our hearts and our minds.
There was one dancer in Detroit that was always telling me I should give up my kids. People like her I hated immediately.
I am just glad that I never did listen to all the ignorant advice such as this. There was never a doubt in my mind that I was doing the right thing by keeping my kids. I was sure of it then; and I am sure of it now.
Opal's son Jack talking about her new STRIPPER book THOUGHTS OF A STRIPPER:
One time I was dancing as a stripper at a burlesk theater in Flint, Michigan. I went to work and saw a mob of church protestors carrying signs denouncing the theater as evil. Well, I had to work. I needed the money. I walked through the protestor's line. One of them came up and said to me, "If you died today, do you know if you would go to heaven or Hell?" I said, "I'd go to heaven. Do you know where you'd go?" He just stared at me, speehless. Then I started quoting Bible verses to him. He did not say anything else. When I came out from my show, the protestors were gone.
It really offended me to have them bothering me this way. I did not go to their church with a sign trying to get them to cme to the burlesk theater.
Opal in the trailer of the upcoming feature film THE OLD STRIPPER:
I think back at different times during my years of dancing that I took a lot of chances with my life. Some I will not mention. There are so many. I could probably write a book about just that.
One chance I took many times was when my kids were little; and I would take off in the middle of the night with them in the backseat to my next dancing job. I did not even think about what could happen to us all if we broke down in the middle of the night and some psycho came along and did whatever with us.
Another chance I took several times was walking to the dark parking lots in back of the burlesk theaters that I worked at by myself. But, actually, there was no one around to walk with me; so I really did not have much of a choice if I wanted to get my car.
These are only two examples of the chances amoung many that I took. If I had to do over, I would not take these chances. But I am glad that I did take those chances amoung many more or we would still, probably, be in Lamar, Missouri and never have been able to see all the things we have seen and travel to all theplaces my strip jobs and chances took us. I am just glad we all lived through it all and that we do not have to take these chances again.
I am happy to know that a higher force - call it God or whatever name I want to give it was watching over us. Or maybe it was my own unknown force that was inside me taking over. Maybe I was not aware and still am not that it was me - my strong force - that watched over us and guided and protected us. I do not know.
BUT WE DID HAVE FUN!
The trailer of Opal's feature film THE OLD STRIPPER:
One week when I was dancing as a stripper in Detroit, Michigan. One of the girls that was on the show - Misty Knight - told me a very funny story. She said she was in the little cafe next to the burlesk theater when a short little fat guy cme up and propositioned her for $100.00.
She went to his motel room. She said she could hardly even see it let alone feel it. He was all red in the face and huffing and puffing when he said, "I wanna make you "cum'". He could just barely get the words out. She laughed and replied, "How in the Hell do you think you can make ME cum?"
I had a lot of hard times while I was raising my kids; but it was all worth it. I also, had a lot of good times. The good times outweigh the bad times. As hard as it was back then, sometimes I feel a little sad as I think about those past days. I sometimes with it had never ended - that I was still a stripper and my kids were still little and needed me. My life was full back then.
It certainly was not easy to be the sole supporter of my two kids and myself with no one to rely on but me. I got no child support or any other outside financial support. I raised my kids from day to day. If I did not make $5.00, it just was not there.
The main thing that always kept me going was the fact that none of us were ever sick. I was always thankful for our health. Anytime I would get discouraged, I always thought about that. I knew that I had nothing to complain about as long as we had our health. I still feel that way.
I always kept my main objective clear in my mind - to raise my kids the best way I could and to always make sure they had the best of care and to try to provide all their wants, desires and needs.
Many times it took all my money to do this - even my motel money. Which resulted in my sleeping in the car even on cold, icy wintery nghts. But as long as I knew the kids were O.K., I would get by some way.
This sleeping in the car and doing without the necessities became a way of life for me and has stayed with me throughout my life. If I had to live out of my car today and just scrape by on nothing, at least, I would be used to it. That is more than most people can say. All these people can hope for is that they will never be faced with that fact because they know they would never be able to cope. But people like me can. When the chips are down, the strong survive.
Abe was a manager of a burlesk theater where I worked as a stripper in Buffalo, New York. He was one of the nicest people I have ever met in my life. He would take the girls out to eat. Some borrowed money from him. I never heard him speak very harshly about anyone.
He had these little mathematical quiz questions he got out of a book. He would be in his office trying to work them. I would come in to see him; and he would ask me what I thought the right answer was. I would always tell him the right answer. At different times, he asked me if I wanted to bet my paycheck - double or nothing - on the next quiz question. I really did want to do this because I was sure I could answer the next question; but I was afraid I might possibly lose; and I could not afford to lose a week's pay. And if I won, who knows - he might have been really mad about having to pay me double.
One time I was working at his theater on my birthday. After my show, he had someone walk out on the stage and give ma a birthday present. It was a litle portable mirror which wa smagnified on one side and regular on the other. The projectionist announce to the audience that it was my birthday. I thought that was nice of him to do; and I still appreciate his kind gesture today.
Representing sex for pay on the stage by dancing as a stripper was more of a challenge for me than most girls. I am not a naturally pretty person in the face. I wear glasses, I am cross eyed, and I have small breasts. Just to look at me - you would never guess that I was even a stripper.
Back then was no different. Off the stage, I looked like the plainest "plain-Jane" that ever existed. But on the stage, I would shine. Actually, I looked better without my clothes on than with them on and still do.
The first time I ever worked at the Plaza Burlesk Theater in Washington, D.C., the manager was quizzing me. Of course, he had not seen me on the stage yet or without my clothes on.
Even though I was booked for one week, I could tell he was nervous about my being on his stage because he thought I was ugly. He asked me how long I had been dancing. He talked about such things as how the guys that come in to his theater like big tits. I laughed and just said, "O.K.!" I was so sure of myself back then. I knew no one looked as good as me or did as good a show. I knew he would like me after he saw my show.
After my show, he came back stage and apologized to me for his actions. He said, "I knew you were a "pro" when I saw you "hit the stage!"
One time in Detroit, Michigan, the manager at the Burlesk Theater told me her theater was a little different from the other theaters where I had been performing. I had just arrived at the theater. I was booked for one week. When I asked her what was different, she said, "Well, come on in here and watch the next act". The girl's "act" was performing sexual intercourse as well as oral on the stage.
I told her that, in my opinion, that "act" crosses the line from being a stripper to a cheap prostitute and that I would not do it. She told me I had to do it if I wanted to work that week. I said, "Then, good-bye, because I will do my regular show and nothing more. If that is not good enough, then I will not work. For some reason, she changed her mind.
I worked the whole week following this sort of "act". I was the star of the show; so I had to go last. The girl doing the sex act right before me said, "I'll take it easy this week - not be so wild to make it better for you; since you're not doing sex on the stage". The last act was always supposed to be better and outshine all the others. If the guys saw and experienced all this sex, and then had the star of the show come out and just did a regular strip show, then nine times out of ten they would not like her - might even "boo" or walk out. I told her to just do her show anyway she wanted and to not worry about me! I received no "boos", no one walked out, and I was asked by the manager to return sometime in the future to work.
Opal's new trailer of THE X-RATED GRANDMA on YOUTUBE:
I was sitting in the little restaurant next door at the Burlesk Theater in Detroit, Michigan in between my show when a "guy" came up and sat by me at the counter. He told me how he liked my show. I thought, "Oh! No! Another "jack-off" wanting to take me to bed!"
But his request was not for my body. It was quite different. He asked me if I had some panties on. I told him I did. He said that he would give me $5.00 for them. Well! I thought this was a real deal because they were some raggedy ones I had borrowed from my sister, Brenda, anyway. I agreed to sell them to him for $5.00.
I told him I would go in the bathroom and take them off and bring them to him. I knew by his offer that he was a sniffer and whatever else he could do with them. But I did not care because I could use the $5.00; and it was just an old pair of raggedy pants anyway.
But I could not let it be this easy. Ihad to tease him a little. I said, "I'll go take them off in the bathroom and wash them out for you!" He said, "Oh! No! Don't do that!" Anyway, the transaction was made.
I told the girls on the next show about it. I thought I had don pretty good. All the girls started telling me how stupid I was. They said I could have got, at least, $25.00 out of him. Since this was my first experience with this type of deal, I was still "green" - as I was in a lot of things back then. But since then, I have learned.
I used to think that maybe "ignorance is bliss"; but I am glad for all the mistakes I have made to reach the level where I am now.
Some think it is not necessary to know all the bad things that happen in the world. But some never know good unless they can compare it to bad.
Even though I suffered through many trials and tribulations, I have tried to turn the events around to make something good out of it. I have raised two good people from it. And through it all, I found my spirit. Without the hard times, I do not believe this would ever have happened.
Opal's New YOUTUBE Trailer of THE X-RATED GRANDMA:
There was this black guy I knew in Detroit, Michigan. He was the ticket and candy man at the Burlesk Theater where I worked. He was so funny. He told us girls that he was a preacher and that his mane was Reverend ------ --- I do not remember his name after the Reverend part. He wlways dressed in a black suit with a gold cross hanging around his neck. The funny part about it was the fact that he was a pimp.
My friend whose stage name was Misty Knight and I would aggravate him to death. We would see him on the street when he was not working at the theater. He would stand there like any good pimp looking for men to sell his whores. We would goup to him and holler, "Oh! Reverend ----! We've been lookin' for you!" We would keep calling him Reverend and Preacher really loud which was not too good for the business that he was conducting on the street. He would get really mad and say, "You Bitches get outta here! Go on, now! Get away!"
The thing was, we were messing up his action on his "main" job. It was really funny to aggravate him this way. But as I think back, I wonder if he really was a pimp. He was a really nice guy. He could have been much more harsh with us than he was and probably would have been if he had been a "real" pimp. Maybe he was afraid of losing his job at the theater if he got mean with the dancers. Or maybe he wa pretending to be a pimp just as he was pretending to be a reacher. Or maybe he was just a unique, nice person and did do both.
Own PHONE SEX GRANDMA on CREATESPACE at: http://www.createspace.com/255255
Opal, aka PHONE SEX GRANDMA, as THE X-RATED GRANDMA:
She taught me about the vice squad. I could not understand why they had the right to "bust" us if we were going by the laws. My boss, Doris, told her to explain everything to me as she complained about how dumb I was. Kansas City Kitty explained how that sometimes in this business it did not matter if you followed the laws or not. If they want to "bust" you, they will. I found that to be so true in the years to come.
At times, I would dance at the Follie's as well as the Pink Pussy Cat - averaging, approximately, eleven shows a day between each one. The Follie's was testing the law that said we had to keep our pants on. The manager would, occasionally, have us girls "flash" - pull the G-String aside for a moment. Since I was not on the road at the time, I got "busted" almost every week. The manager would go bail us out for $25.00 each; and we would go tdo our next show. This went on for quite awhile.
The vice squad would come arrest me at the Pink Pussy Cat for what I had done at the Follie's. Finally, they told Doris that if she kept letting me dance there, they would close her down.
Kansas City Kitty told me I was too "hot" with the police. But I kept dancing at the Follie's and kept getting arrested. It really did not make any difference to me because it was just a misdemeanor. I was doing what my boss said, he bailed me out, and I got my full pay which was the real reason I was there.
Finally, I learned what Kansas City Kitty meant when she said I was too "hot" with the police. The vice squad let me know that if they even saw me walking down the street they would arrest me. That was my clue to leave town. I left Kansas City, Missouri and stayed gone for about twelve years.
Kansas City Kitty took me under her wing and showed me the "ropes" of the stripping business. She was an older lady who had been dancing for quite some time. If it had not been for her advice, I would have made a lot more mistakes than I did.
We worked at the Pink Pussy in Kansas City, Missouri as well as the Folly's Burlesk Theater. At the Pink Pussy Cat, we were strippers. At the Folly's Burlesk, I was a stripper and she was a cashier.
She taught me how to put on pasties - a stiff cloth of material shaped like the nipple that covered only the nipple. We had to wear this because of the Kansas City laws - no nipples could show.
She taught me how to put on the different layers of my outfit - such as G-String first - then G-Strap over that or some sort of clothing that resembled panties.
She sold me my first dancing gown for $10.00. That was a lot for me back then; but it was a deal. It was a really pretty red, sequin gown trimmed in black feathers. It was the same gown I had seen in many visions when I was married and did not even comprehend what a stripper was. Being a stripper was the furthest think from my mind back then. But the visions would haunt me, especially, at night when I lay awake and could not go to sleep. Not only would I see myself stripping on a stage in front of a bunch of men; but I would, also, see my children in differnet states. All this proved to be true.
Kansas City Kitty, also, helped me make life-long decisions concerning my children. I did not know what to do with my children if I went on the road to dance. It was time for John to go to the first grade. She suggested putting him in a military school. That was the best advice I ever got from anyone concerning my children. I just wish I would have kept him in there for his twelve years of school; so does he.
Kansas Kitty Kitty proved to be very helpful in teaching me how to get money out of men. She would make up a story that we were collecting money to get a pizza. The guys would chip in. For some reason, the pizza never did come.
A "guy" that really liked me a lot was going to take me out to spend money on me for such things as clothes and boots. Kansas City Kitty wanted me to get in practice on conning men; so she gave me a list of things for me to get for her. Some of the things were different pieces of material and a bottle of her favorite perfume - Taboo. I had "the guy" take me to the costume shop. I got the material she wanted. He said, "That looks like material the Kansas City Kitty make her outfits out of". I was not sure of myself and got really nervous; so I was really afraid to get the perfume. I thought he would catch on to that, too. I did not want her to be mad at me; so I was really afraid to get the perfume. I thought he would catch on to that, too. I did not want her to be mad at me; so I bought the perfume for her myself. This really made her mad. She told me that it was not the perfume that she cared about. She wanted me to get the "feel" for conning men. I did over the years; and I am glad.
One time before I learned my lessons well from Kansas City Kitty, I went home at a "guy's" apartment and spent the night with him. I told her about it the next day. She said, "Well, what is he going to do for you?" I said that I guessed nothing and that he had offered to give me gas money; but I turned it down. She held her head in her hands explaining to me that I should get things and money out of these guys - and to not let them have anything free!
One night, after I had spent the night with him, he came in the club saying he was looking for his "little Rose". By then, I finally had decided in my mind what he was looking for was a free piece of ass anytime he wanted. I told Kansas City Kitty, "He looks like an old hound dog lookin' for a bitch dog in heat". She laughed so much! I think she knew as I did that I had finally saw the light about these guys. From now on, I would be no one else's "little Rose". At least, not a "free rose".
The first time I went on the road, Kansas City Kitty gave me a necklace with St. Christopher to help protect me . She was a Catholic. I was not; but I felt that it might help me. I wish I still had it.
Knsas City Kitty was oriental. It was really difficult to see what she looked like because she wore a lot of garb on her face - bit dark glasses, big bushy blonde hair, and lots of make-up. She would holler from the stage, "I'm a clown!" She twirled the tassels on her breasts; but they were false breasts - I heard - she did not tell me this. I, also, heard that she had received silicone injections and had made them too big which caused her to have them removed. I, also, heard that she had cancer. I guess it was cancer of the breasts.
One thing I did not like aabout her advice was when she tried to get me to get small amounts of silicone injections. But this is the only thing I remember that was bad advice. Luckily, I had enough "horse-sense" to know that this was not for me.
Kansas City Kitty always encouraged me to start saving money and invest it. She said her relatives had cheated her out of a bunch of money - something to do with a savings she had had with one of the relatives. She had some money saved in a savings and loan under this relative's name. This person had died; and the other relatives kept her part of the money even though they knew it belonged to her. She cautioned me to never invest my money in a savings and loan.
I really do appreciate all the time Kansas City Kitty took with me to help get me on my feet as a stripper as well as the special interest she took in my personal life with my kids. From the first time she said, "Do you really want to get into it?"; and I answered, "Yes". She showed me the "ropes" and gave me priceless advice on everything. I wish she were alive; so I could say, "Thank you".
