In A, Uh, Stroke, 18 Years Of New York Magazine References To Yobbery Rendered Unintelligible To Future Generations
Posted: December 12th, 2008 | Filed under: Follow The Money, HistoricalOnce the highest-grossing strip club chain in the world and a hangout for Madonna, Howard Stern, Russell Crowe, Jason Giambi and countless others, Scores will shut down before the new year, company officials said.
“It’s over; it is what it is,” said Scores lawyer George Weinbaum. Co-owner Elliot Osher confirmed the closing.
A weak economy, the loss of the W. 27th St. Scores’ liquor license and the possibility the E. 60th St. joint would lose its booze ticket all helped do in the flesh factory.
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Founded in 1990 with one club at 333 E. 60th St., Scores grew into a national chain of seven clubs, including Scores West on 27th St., which took in as much as $400,000 a night, according to sources.
In its heyday, the East Side club was a mecca for sports stars like Giambi and Mark Messier, actors like Crowe and of course Stern, who talked up the club on his radio show. The Knicks held parties there, and eventually Scores became a publicly traded company.
The clubs were honey traps for out-of-town businessmen, who blew expense accounts on lap dances and champagne magnums, only to have their hangovers worsened by mind-boggling tabs.
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On Wednesday night, at the E. 60th St. location, a lone customer downed a half-price beer as club employees kept promising dancers would take the stage “any minute.”