Monday, April 18, 2005 | 11:07 a.m.
On a recent Friday night, a customer at the Vivid nightclub -- one of the newest of the city's dazzling night spots catering to the dusk-to-dawn crowd -- climbed up on a stage and began strutting her stuff.
The gyrations of her public mating dance caught the attention of a few others in the club who pulled their attention away from the two bars, the VIP lounge area and the dance floor illuminated by a 25-foot light-emitting wall to take a look.
The dancer tried a few erotic moves and slid over to an onstage bed -- a queen-sized prop that rests behind one of the bars.
But those few moves were as far as things went.
Patrons expecting something like amateur night at a local topless club went back to their drinks disappointed. The dancer stayed fully clothed, never trying anything scandalous over even popping a button off her blouse.
This from the same company that has a handful of starlets called the "Vivid Girls" under contract, a cadre of actresses whose sexual exploits leave nothing to the imagination when they're on screen -- the same company that had an estimated $150 million in sales of adult films in 2003.
Three months after opening its doors, Vivid is living up to the promises it made to its business partners and to regulators with Clark County and the state Gaming Control Board.
"We made a personal promise to them," said Paul Gordon, senior vice president and director of Ark Restaurants Corp., one of the partners in the Vivid nightclub venture. "We knew there would be some regulatory concerns and we heard from the Venetian and have had some visits from the county. They're all happy that we are running a very modest, clean entertainment club. It's tame by comparison to other clubs."
Representatives of the Venetian and the Control Board expressed some initial skepticism about whether a company that produces films starring adult film star Jenna Jameson could be a part of venture that wouldn't get a casino into trouble with authorities. The Gaming Control Board has received assurances from other properties only to fine them for breaking their promises.
The Hard Rock Hotel was fined $100,000 in 2002 for failing to respond appropriately in a well-publicized incident involving patrons who were engaging in sexual activity in the now-defunct Baby's nightclub while surveillance employees and security officers looked on. The incident occurred in connection with a swingers party hosted by the Hard Rock.
More recently, the Hard Rock settled complaints with the Control Board for reneging on a promise that its advertising campaign would be scrutinized by a company compliance committee.
Because the ads incorporated sexually charged themes, some groups began looking to the Control Board as a regulatory agency that wanted to involve itself in establishing community standards on casino advertising. Board member Bobby Siller, one of the Hard Rock's harshest critics on the advertising issue, became the regulatory point man on the question of whether the Venetian was treading in dangerous water with its Vivid nightclub.
But he said he doesn't want to be a morality judge, even though some in the community apparently have cast him in that role.
Venetian officials came to Siller for his opinion on whether the Vivid connection would jeopardize their position with the Control Board and the Nevada Gaming Commission.
"They said they wanted to use this theme and they described it in great detail," Siller said in a recent interview. "The lawyers documented what their intent would be, how they planned to market the place while staying within all the rules. What we ultimately determined is that it would be legal as long as they were consistent with county statutes.
"But one thing I learned from the Hard Rock experience is that you have to get these promises in writing, which is what we did."
Siller said as a matter of routine, county enforcement agents patrol all clubs, including Vivid, to observe potentially illegal behavior.
Nancy Hancock, management analyst with the Clark County Business License Department, said her office conducts periodic scheduled and unscheduled checks of business locations to ensure compliance with county codes.
Hancock said while the county and state offices are separate entities, they enjoy a level of interagency cooperation and refer matters on a case-by-case basis.
According to the county code, licensees are in violation is they "knowingly allow any male or female person to appear nude or topless in any area on its premises."
The code also says it's a violation if a licensee "knowingly encourages or condones nudity, lewd activity, or topless activity by patrons or who fails to take immediate corrective action against such prohibited patron activity."
While the violation of public decency statutes could result in a misdemeanor citation or the lifting of the business's liquor license -- like the high-profile case involving the Treasures topless dance club, as an example -- the Venetian would only become involved if the Control Board felt the club's action was damaging the industry's reputation.
So far, there have been no unpleasant surprises for the Venetian at Vivid.
A subsidiary of Ark holds the licensing agreement with Vivid Entertainment Group for the nightclub; Ark has a lease agreement for space in the resort with Chicago-based General Growth Properties, which owns the Grand Canal Shoppes mall; General Growth has a lease agreement with Las Vegas Sands Inc., owners of the Venetian.
As a result, there is a certain amount of insulation between the Vivid and the Venetian, but it doesn't mean there is any less scrutiny of the club.
"We're definitely keeping an eye on it," Siller said.
So are others.
When Vivid opened its doors, co-founder Steven Hirsch said the nightclub concept was designed to expand the company's brand and that more nightclubs would be developed if the Las Vegas venture was a success. A black eye in Las Vegas could potentially damage the strategy.
Gordon said even though Vivid Entertainment has promised appearances by the Vivid girls mingling with the crowd, "we have agreed to run a club that does not involve any salacious activity or planned performances."
While some clubs have dancers, Vivid instead has three-dimensional holographic images reflected on "trans-screens," large plastic panels suspended from the ceiling. Not only does the technology eliminate the cost of an employee, it also assures managers that those dancers will always keep their clothes on -- and by Las Vegas nightclub standards, the holographic dancers are conservatively attired.
Gordon said there were some new plans for the club on the horizon, but he wouldn't disclose details, other than to say that like most clubs, they would include some design renovations. Vivid's structural transformation would be completed by the end of 2005 and the company plans to continue to conform to its current operations game plan.
"While we don't exactly have two landlords, we do have two interested parties in the club in General Growth and the Venetian," Gordon said. "Everybody has to work in tandem, for our interests, their interests and for Las Vegas as a whole."
Gordon said on a busy night, the Vivid draws 500 to 600 customers, putting it in a competitive niche with some of the city's smaller clubs.
As for the bed behind the bar, Gordon said it is "a conversation piece."
"From time to time, we have models there," Gordon said of the bed. "Sometimes (the models) will be reading a book, or putting on make-up or having a conversation. Nothing more than that."
In addition to regulators paying visits to the club, the Venetian's own security officers check in occasionally to make sure the resort's interests aren't being jeopardized.
Venetian officials said they don't want "to bring unwanted attention" to the resort with any activity that would be questioned by regulators.
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