# Do the stripprs let you touch their breasts? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 17, 2014, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891 "2014-03-17T01:25:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891/21 "2014-03-17T20:57:23Z")
The answer is “depends”. Even within Manhattan, some high-end clubs will let you pretty much do whatever the girls will let you (just as long as you aren’t too overt). Others will get you a firm rebuke from the bouncer for putting your hands on their hips during a lap dance. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891/22 "2014-03-17T21:10:11Z")
I’ll echo what everyone above has said: it depends. As a rule in the US, the more liminal the place is legally, the more a male customer can do. In a club within city limits that has a liquor license, the answer is almost always no; in many jurisdictions, they won’t even allow nudity beyond bikinis or pasties. In a club outside of city limits without a liquor license, the rules are almost always much more lax, especially for private dances behind curtains or closed doors. The hierarchy usually progresses from body slide to hands on buttocks to hands on breasts, sometimes spilling over into full-on prostitution. In other words, don’t expect a lot of action in the corner strip club - there are just too many ways for a place like that to get closed down. ( **Msmith537** ’s experiences may belie this; like I said, as a rule.) On the other hand, a juice bar five miles out of town may well be just a step below a full-on brothel - and a baby step at that. ---
**Author:** ![Incubus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c68b51/32.png) [@Incubus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Incubus)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891/23 "2014-03-17T21:38:52Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > In CA, no. (Mostly). You can touch (depending on the club) anywhere that would not be covered by a tiny bikini. > > in Texas, OTOH, just about everywhere but insertion of digits was allowed. I’m from CA. The rules say a club cannot have fully-nude dancing if they serve alcohol. The ones that serve alcohol typically have a strip act that strips down to nothing but panties. Whats funny is often the stripper will be wearing two sets- one set on the ‘outside’ that comes off with the bra, and a G-string that stays behind. Like I said, the Crazy Horse (no alcohol) in San Francisco is all nude and is the most ‘hands on’. But its all dictated by the dancers. Groping a stripper will get you hauled off. However, dancers will come up to patrons along the ‘catwalk’, particularly those with a lot of money sitting in front of them, and ocasionally climb onto their laps briefly, grab the patron’s hands and move them around. The ‘private dances’ are _extremely_ hands on. For my bachelor party, my wife gave my best friend (the Best Man) cash so I could get a private dance. One of our other friends decided to get one too. Not only did he get one, but he came back for seconds, followed up by a step outside for a cigarette (we didn’t even know he smoked :eek: ). Those private dances were extremely pricey, at $115 for ~15 minutes, not counting the $25 cover charge. But it is San Francisco, cost of living and all that 😛 ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2014, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891/24 "2014-03-18T02:42:35Z")
Like they said: it varies by location and establishment, and it’s to a huge degree the dancer’s call within the club parameters. (And she will usually tell you a tall tale of wonders awaiting in the Champagne Room or the Upstairs Lounge for a couple of car payments’ worth, to try to make the Big Sale for the night 😃 ) Within District of Columbia limits, for instance, no way no how. They do not allow table/lap dances and for the stage they have an “arm’s length” ordinance and your “outreach” had better be limited to proferring your tip. On the plus side you may drink and she may get completely nude. At the other extreme I can attest though to Mr. **Incubus** ’ narration about Crazy Horse in San Francisco being a fair representantion of reality. 🆒 > [@Bricker](#): > > You know the saying, “When you have a hammer, everything starts to look like a nail?” > > Well, I have a law degree. > > The Supreme Court doesn’t take a position too far from yours. In 1991’s _Barnes v. Glen Theatre, Inc._, they said: > > And they went on to uphold an ordinance in Indiana that forbid totally nude dancing at any establishment with a liquor license. And more [recent decisions](http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/hustler-club-owes-2-million-back-taxes-lap-dances-judge-article-1.1609759)by [courts in NY](http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/albany-strip-club-petitions-u-s-supreme-court-overturn-tax-ruling-article-1.1423049) find to the effect that though still free speech/expression, it is an entertainment activity, thus subject to the sales tax (they used the IceCapades as an analogy), rather than really “art” and thus exempted (e.g. the ballet). (Sounds like just scrounging for every last bit of revenue to me.) ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2014, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891/25 "2014-03-18T02:49:51Z")
And of course **Siam Sam** just has to rub it in (figuratively, of course) . . . 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2014, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891/26 "2014-03-18T03:12:17Z")
My hands are in plain sight! ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2014, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891/27 "2014-03-18T05:26:47Z")
In Japan, strippers are typically completely hands off. However, they have (legal) clubs where the girls will give hand jobs and patrons can touch all they want, so it’s not all lost. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2014, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891/28 "2014-03-18T06:02:44Z")
Somewhere, **polar bear** is reading this thread and [having a good laugh](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=625497). ---
**Author:** ![polar\_bear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ec9cab/32.png) [@polar\_bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/polar_bear)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2014, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891/29 "2014-03-18T18:23:40Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > Somewhere, **polar bear** is reading this thread and [having a good laugh](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=625497). Well… just a little bit:). Whenever I hear or read about stripclubs, I have trouble understanding the appeal (given how much money seems to be spent). But each to his own of course;). ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2014, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891/30 "2014-03-18T19:23:55Z")
> [@Incubus](#): > > I’m from CA. The rules say a club cannot have fully-nude dancing if they serve alcohol. The ones that serve alcohol typically have a strip act that strips down to nothing but panties. Whats funny is often the stripper will be wearing two sets- one set on the ‘outside’ that comes off with the bra, and a G-string that stays behind. That’s the origin of “girls under glass” - you can’t have nude dancers at the same address in St. Paul - so they have two rooms with two addresses and a glass wall between them - drinks + nekkid women = more money. You can have women in lingerie in the same establishment with booze, or you can have nude dancers without liquor (I think, I might be wrong), but the most profitable combination is the glass wall. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2014, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891/31 "2014-03-18T20:53:36Z")
> [@JRDelirious](#): > > And of course **Siam Sam** just has to rub it in (figuratively, of course) . . . 😃 Yeah but he didn’t mention that the strippers may be males. ---
**Author:** ![Tall\_Nordic\_Slobby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a587f6/32.png) [@Tall\_Nordic\_Slobby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tall_Nordic_Slobby)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2014, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891/32 "2014-03-18T21:21:53Z")
I get charged a buck to touch the puppies at PetCo… What- no strippers on this site to answer the sincere and misspelled original question? Where is the diversity? ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2014, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891/33 "2014-03-19T03:15:51Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > Yeah but he didn’t mention that the strippers may be males. Hey! ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2014, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891/34 "2014-03-20T22:46:16Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > So a handshake can get you thrown in jail? Of course. It’s practically rape. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2014, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891/35 "2014-03-21T01:41:26Z")
20+ years ago, the last time I was in a strip joint? No. …but for $20 more, they’d pull out their implants and roll them down the stairs like slinkies. (…always bet on the left-side gel-pak. Trust me.) ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2014, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891/36 "2014-03-31T18:37:25Z")
> [@StusBlues](#): > > I’ll echo what everyone above has said: it depends. As a rule in the US, the more liminal the place is legally, the more a male customer can do. In a club within city limits that has a liquor license, the answer is almost always no; in many jurisdictions, they won’t even allow nudity beyond bikinis or pasties. In a club outside of city limits without a liquor license, the rules are almost always much more lax, especially for private dances behind curtains or closed doors. The hierarchy usually progresses from body slide to hands on buttocks to hands on breasts, sometimes spilling over into full-on prostitution. > > In other words, don’t expect a lot of action in the corner strip club - there are just too many ways for a place like that to get closed down. ( **Msmith537** ’s experiences may belie this; like I said, as a rule.) On the other hand, a juice bar five miles out of town may well be just a step below a full-on brothel - and a baby step at that. Update: Just a couple of days after I posted this, a strip club in my city - located right downtown - was busted for full-on prostitution, as in a majority of customers had sex with the strippers. Ostensibly, the place was just a rundown bikini bar with no public nudity. So, in this case, I was quite wrong. It seems one can have full-on sex at the corner strip club. > **[Federal prosecutors: Metro bikini bar was front for prostitution](https://www.ketv.com/article/federal-prosecutors-metro-bikini-bar-was-front-for-prostitution/7645331)** > > Federal prosecutors said a metro bikini bar was a front for prostitution. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-stripprs-let-you-touch-their-breasts/683891.md?page=1)