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| -Short Attention Span Theater- |
| Vaginas R' Us |
| 2005-08-06 |
| For years, Howard White has advertised his strip club near Los Angeles International Airport with a not too subtle marquee reading "Live Nude Nude Nudes." But some tourists and nearby businesses say White has gone too far with his latest pitch for the Century Lounge: a freshly posted sign proclaiming "Vaginas R' Us." "We don't appreciate the signage and we're working with the city to make sure this establishment is adhering to all codes," said Laurie Hughes , executive director of Gateway to L.A., an association that promotes businesses along Century Boulevard just east of the airport. Ms. Hughes is also co-chair of the Ticked-Off Broads Association. White, who posted the new sign Tuesday, says he's simply advertising his business. "In a sort of a naive way, I felt that there was nothing terrible about it since the 'Vagina Monologues' was on Broadway forever," White said. "I didn't feel there was anything terrible about it." Strip club owners taking a few whacks at the libs. Gotta love it. Los Angeles city officials say White's sign doesn't break the law. "The word 'vagina' is not an obscene word and we're not in a position to question the First Amendment," said City Councilman Bill Rosendahl, whose district includes the airport area. You may remember Officer Rosendahl as the white cop on "Sanford and Son". But the business association is pursuing another avenue of attack. It contacted the retailer Toys R Us, which aggressively defends its trademark name. Toys R Us spokeswoman Susan McLaughlin said the company knows about White's sign and will be "looking into it immediately." Geoffrey's gonna whip some strip-club ass. In the meantime, White will have to take his sign down - temporarily. The new sign, which is pasted over a portion of the original marquee, is made of combustible plastic vinyl that violates the municipal code. White was served with a citation Thursday, and has until the close of business Sunday to replace the sign, said David Keim, the city's chief of code enforcement. |
| Posted by:Flyguy |
| #9 Live Nude Nude Nudes. The quicker dicker upper. |
| Posted by: DepotGuy 2005-08-06 15:02 |
| #8 pshaw, White is probably paying those women to complain so he can get all this free publicity. |
| Posted by: 2b 2005-08-06 11:06 |
| #7 Toys R' Us doesn't get to treademark R'. It's hard to see how they can argue infringement with a straight face. Are they planning to get into the sex toy business and there is likely confusion? Great publicity too, way to get this in the headlines on all the TV shows instead of just Rantburg. Between this and the Seattle Slewer story, the Victorian counter-revolution can't start soon enough for me. |
| Posted by: Mrs. Davis 2005-08-06 11:04 |
| #6 Has anyone asked Jihadi Jane? At first reading the title I thought {Hanoi|Jihadi} Jane was shopping for her vagina again.... |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2005-08-06 10:12 |
| #5 Lol, ed! Woke me up with that one, lol! |
| Posted by: .com 2005-08-06 05:18 |
| #4 The Vagina Monolounge? |
| Posted by: ed 2005-08-06 02:12 |
| #3 Yes, by all means, "Live Nude Nude Nudes" was so much more respectable. As for Toys R Us, let's get a second opinion from Geoffrey. |
| Posted by: Captain America 2005-08-06 01:37 |
| #2 Nice try Suzie, but don't hold out hope that Toys R Us will pursue this. Even if they do they can hardly prevail. Google 'R US' minus 'Toys' and you'll find dozens of companys and organizations using 'R US' in their name. Apparently Toys R US hasn't been aggressive in protecting their trade name. Or maybe they already tried and lost. |
| Posted by: GK 2005-08-06 01:15 |
| #1 I've seen the sign many time in the airport area but the trafic is so nasty with merging and such near there that if your driving you can't take the effort to figure out where his place is without messing up. |
| Posted by: 3dc 2005-08-06 00:41 |