Dennis Hof

Dennis Hof
Dennis Hof at the 2006 Adult Video Network Convention in Las Vegas
Personal details
Born (1946-10-14) October 14, 1946
Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.[1]
Nationality American
Political party Republican (since 2016)
Libertarian (2015–2016)
Domestic partner Heidi Fleiss
Occupation Brothel owner, television personality, restaurateur, politician
Website Official website Edit this at Wikidata

Dennis Hof (born October 14, 1946), self-designated the "Trump from Pahrump,"[2] is an American brothel owner, entrepreneur, restaurateur and star of the HBO series Cathouse currently running for the Nevada State Legislature. He is best known as the owner of seven legal brothels in Nevada. In the state of Nevada, prostitution's legality is determined on a county-by-county basis.[3] Several of his brothels are in Moundhouse, Nevada, a few minutes outside Carson City. His best-known brothel is the Moonlite BunnyRanch. He is the best selling author of his autobiography "The Art Of The Pimp" and has lectured at Oxford University in England, Trinity College in Ireland and the Sorbonne University in France.

Career

The Moonlite Bunny Ranch

Hof started by purchasing and remodeling The Moonlite BunnyRanch in 1992, which was founded in 1955; he then purchased a second brothel, Kitty's, and renamed it The Love Ranch North. Hof purchased two additional brothels from longtime Nye County brothel proprietor Joe Richards: the Cherry Patch in Crystal, Nevada, renamed the Love Ranch Vegas, and the Cherry Patch II in Amargosa Valley, Nevada, renamed the Alien Cathouse. On September 8th 2018, it was announced that the Alien Cathouse was sold to business owner Raman Sharma.[4]

In contrast to other Nevada brothel owners who prefer to keep a low profile, and despite Nevada laws banning brothel advertising,[5] Hof maintains a high profile to create publicity for his brothels.[6] A gregarious man, Hof is the president of the Nevada Brothel Owners' Association, and its lobbyist; the Bunny Ranch is the closest brothel to the state capital, Carson City.

Hof also operates a website[7] and the "working girls" are encouraged to cultivate online relationships with both potential and past clients. He often appears on talk shows, which have included Oprah Winfrey, The Today Show, The View, Fox News, Howard Stern, & many others. Hof employs adult film stars, including Sunset Thomas, with whom he also had a romantic relationship.[8] He has also given free offers to soldiers returning from duty.[9]

In early 2009, due to the recession, State Senator Bob Coffin (D) had proposed legalizing prostitution statewide for tax purposes. Hof was prominently featured in a number of media reports saying he would expand into Las Vegas given the opportunity, and was already eyeing some closed casinos as property. However, the Nevada lawmakers had refused to consider the proposal of statewide legal prostitution during that legislative session.[10]

Series

Arguably, the biggest boost to the Moonlite Bunny Ranch's and Hof's profiles was the HBO series Cathouse, which ran from 2002 to 2014.[11] Two documentary series followed. In 2005 Cathouse: The Series[12] premiered. Cathouse 2: Back in the Saddle[13] appeared in 2007. Dennis Hof also was the producer of the Showtime series "Working Girls in Bed".

Both featured a look at the inner workings of a legal house of prostitution as well as the life of a number of the working girls, borrowing some techniques from reality television, such as camera-only interviews and staged spontaneity.

Filmography

Hof appears as himself in an "underground" mall shop called "Pro-Life Sex" in the 2014 indie film, Alongside Night.[14]

Public speaking and television appearances

Hof has spoken at Oxford University[15] and Trinity College, Dublin.[16][17] In 2001 the New Yorker magazine ran an 11-page article by Rebecca Mead about him entitled "American Pimp".[18]

Hof has appeared on Walton and Johnson, Brand X with Russell Brand, Rover's Morning Glory, The Johnny Dare Morning Show, Todd and Tyler, the Rod Ryan Show (on 94.5, The Buzz), American Pimp, The Tyra Banks Show, Lex and Terry, the Opie and Anthony Show, The Adam Carolla Show,[19] The Howard Stern Show, The Mike Calta Show, Loveline with Stryker and Dr. Drew, Derek and Romaine, and on Dr. Phil, as well as giving a tour and interview to conservative pundit Sean Hannity on Hannity and Colmes.

Author

In March 2015, Hof released a book, The Art of the Pimp. Unusually, the memoir includes personal accounts from women who worked for Hof in which they detail sexual abuse at his hands. It also includes a psychological profile of Hof from psychotherapist Dr. Sheenah Hankin. Dr. Hankin found Hof to be a narcissist with no empathy, and states of his relationships with his employees, “Like any pimp, he exploits them. This is sadistic behavior, and it is both unrecognized and denied.”[20]

In 1999, Lyon County sheriff's deputy Brian Putzer filed a police report accusing Hof of death threats.[21] According to Deputy Putzer, the threats were spurred when Putzer did a routine walk-through check of one of Hof's brothels and discovered documents showing that Hof was setting up sexual encounters in counties where prostitution is illegal. Putzer states that his superiors "didn't want to challenge Hof" as the county is poorly funded and Hof's brothels were a major contributor to the local economy.

In 2016 a woman who had formerly worked for Hof, Jennifer O’Kane, publicly accused Hof of nonconsensual sexual contact, rape, sexual harassment, and having sex with his workers without a condom.[22] O'Kane stated that Hof regularly gets away with the sexual abuse of his employees due to their status as sex workers, and that she had reported the rape to the D.A.'s office in 2011 but nothing had been pursued. The accusations were similar to statements made in Hof's own memoir by former Hof employees Krissy Summers and Cami Parker, who noted abusive behavior and coerced sexual encounters in the brothel.[23] A detective interviewed O'Kane regarding the accusations but charges were not pursued as there were no other direct witnesses and Hof was running for political office at the time. Deputy District Attorney Katrina Samuels again declined to prosecute the case in 2018, stating that the statute of limitations had passed.

In December 2017 another former employee, Diana Grandmaison, reported a non-consensual sexual encounter with Hof to the same detective who had investigated the O'Kane case.[24] Grandmaison stated that Hof regularly initiated such encounters with the young girls who worked for him and detailed other forms of work abuse. No further action was taken.

Politics

Hof endorsed Ron Paul in the 2008 and 2012 presidential elections.[25][26] He joined the Libertarian Party in 2015.[27][28]

In December 2016, he became a "Trump Republican."[29]

In 2016 and 2018, he ran for a seat in the Nevada state legislature, the former as a Libertarian and the latter as a Republican; he lost the first race to James Oscarson but beat him in the GOP primary in 2018.[30] He prevailed in the primary after Nye County officials attempted to remove Hof's campaign signs. However, in an emergency motion before the Federal District of Nevada, Hof prevailed in a First Amendment claim against the county.[31] He was represented in that matter by First Amendment attorney, Marc Randazza.

Personal life

In Cathouse: The Musical, Hof revealed that he only dates prostitutes. "I don't date civilians (non-working girls)." The documentary series has shown several of his relationships with employees, most notably adult film star Sunset Thomas[32] and Heidi Fleiss.[33] In his memoir Hof discloses a lack of interest in monogamy and details how every one of his relationships has broken up due to his own infidelity.[34] Hof is close friends with Fox News personality Tucker Carlson. He states that he communicates with Carlson daily to give him ideas for his show.[35]

See also

References

  1. ↑ In episode 3 of season 2 of "Cathouse," Hof mentions that he was born and raised in Phoenix.
  2. ↑ "CNN: 'I'm riding the Trump wave. He's Christopher Columbus,' says Nevada pimp running for office". Retrieved 27 June 2018.
  3. ↑ "NRS: CHAPTER 244 - COUNTIES: GOVERNMENT". state.nv.us. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  4. ↑ "Alien Cathouse Has A New Owner | Nevada Brothels". Nevada Brothels. 2018-09-09. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  5. ↑ "Unlawful advertising of prostitution", NRS 201.430 and 201.440
  6. ↑ ABC News. "Rough Recession Tests Brothel Boundaries". ABC News. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  7. ↑ "Official Bunny Ranch Homepage – Bunny Ranch Girls Pics and Videos – BunnyRanch in Las Vegas". bunnyranch.com. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  8. ↑ John Katsilometes. "Suit against Sunset Thomas offers new wrinkle in the oldest profession". LasVegasSun.com. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  9. ↑ "Nevada brothel offers free sex to returning troops". Reuters. CNN. 3 June 2003. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  10. ↑ MSNBC Archived 15 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine.
  11. ↑ Cathouse (2002) on IMDb
  12. ↑ Cathouse: The Series on IMDb
  13. ↑ Cathouse: Back in the Saddle on IMDb
  14. ↑ Alongside Night on IMDb
  15. ↑ Jennifer M. Wood. "Inside Dennis Hof's Moonlite Bunny Ranch, the World's Most Famous Brothel". Details. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
  16. ↑ Skorupa, Susan (19 June 2015). "'The Art of the Pimp': Dennis Hof tells all". Reno Gazette-Journal. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  17. ↑ "Bunny Ranch Pimp Dennis Hof Wants to Run for Senate to End Sex Trafficking". VICE. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  18. ↑ Rebecca Mead (23 April 2001). "American Pimp". The New Yorker. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  19. ↑ Adam Carolla Show
  20. ↑ "The bizarre memoir of America's most famous pimp". The New York Post. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
  21. ↑ "Former prostitutes allege unwelcome sexual contact from brothel owner Dennis Hof". The Nevada Independent. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
  22. ↑ "Former prostitutes allege unwelcome sexual contact from brothel owner Dennis Hof". The Nevada Independent. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
  23. ↑ "The bizarre memoir of America's most famous pimp". The New York Post. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
  24. ↑ "Former prostitutes allege unwelcome sexual contact from brothel owner Dennis Hof". The Nevada Independent. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
  25. ↑ "Ron Paul endorsed by Nevada brothel owner". msnbc.com. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  26. ↑ "The Moonlite BunnyRanch Endorses Ron Paul For President". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  27. ↑ BEN BOTKIN LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL. "Nevada brothel owner says he might run for U.S. Senate". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  28. ↑ Amber Phillips (9 July 2015). "The Libertarian Party is backing a brothel owner. And yes, it supports legal prostitution". Washington Post. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  29. ↑ Richard Hunter (7 December 2016). "Hof Bolts Libertarians, Joins Trump's Republicans". Press Release. Retrieved 10 April 2017.
  30. ↑ https://www.yahoo.com/amphtml/finance/news/legal-pimp-defeats-nevada-lawmaker-070355548.html
  31. ↑ https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/politics-and-government/nevada/federal-judge-orders-nye-county-to-return-hofs-political-sign/
  32. ↑ Cathouse: The Musical
  33. ↑ Kenny Herzog. "Dennis Hof Interview - Dennis Hof on 'The Art of the Pimp'". Esquire. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  34. ↑ "The bizarre memoir of America's most famous pimp". The New York Post. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
  35. ↑ "A Wild Conversation with the 'Pimp' Who Won a Nevada Primary". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
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