Ho Ho Ho!!

It’s that wonderful, magical, time of the year. When puppetized Fred Astaires grace the television sets of young children, and me, with happy songs and celebrations while the little truck – and its attendant penguin – bring merry missives to the North Pole so that Santa can bring joyous gifts to the young at heart all over the world. It’s a time when an animated Tom Hanks dons many hats to take children on a wonderful trip to find their beliefs. It’s a time when the Heat and Snow Misers traverse the heavens only to run afoul of Mrs. Claus. It’s time, as always, for an animatronic Burl Ives fill us all with child-like awe with his telling of the tale of the unwanted reindeer and its friend Yukon Cornelius.

But one thing all those stories have in common is Santa and the joy he brings.

An interesting subtext to those stories is the way he brings that joy. His traditional sleigh has been depicted with everything from reindeer power to anti-matter. Some have even attributed his trips to a snowmobile, a rocket and variances in the space time continuum.

Well, now you can add one more to the list. The stripper mobile. As reported by Yahoo!, it’s the perfect way to bring joy to little boys and girls. Mostly boys.

The “strippermobile” has made another run in Las Vegas, this time with properly dressed Santa’s helpers riding for a good cause.

A year after agreeing to stop a promotion that involved hauling bikini-clad exotic dancers in a truck with clear plastic sides, a company that owns several Las Vegas strip clubs used the vehicle to help deliver Christmas donations to a local charity.
Deja Vu’s truck was part of a convoy that delivered $19,000 in donated bikes and toys Friday to HELP of Southern Nevada, a nonprofit group that assists the poor, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.

Inside the large Plexiglas cubicle were a bearded St. Nick and eight female entertainers who wore long red dresses or Santa-style camisole dresses paired with leggings.

There was no gyrating or pole dancing this time.

In November 2009, Deja Vu parked the truck after local officials and residents complained its use of live strippers was unseemly and unsafe. But Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman said he had no problem with the strippermobile carrying a Santa and appropriately dressed women through the city.

“As far as I’m concerned, we are an adult playground and we’re going to be an adult wonderland,” he told the Review-Journal.

A HELP executive said her agency was comfortable taking donated toys from a strip club. Deja Vu collected the donations from patrons and employees.

“They are a legal, licensed business in our community,” said Fuilala Riley, HELP’s chief operations officer. “Their employees are part of our community, and they have children, too.”

Clark County Commissioner Steve Sisolak said the company’s attorney assured him that the strippermobile would be idled for good as a promotional tool. He still thinks it’s a traffic hazard.

“If they do the same as they did in the past, I would have the same issues,” he said.

Gary Nemeth, general manager of the Deja Vu-owned Little Darlings gentleman’s club, said the company hopes for a bigger toy drive next year.

“We want to challenge the other strip clubs,” he said. “We’re a small club. Think what those megaclubs can do.”

“There was no gyrating or pole dancing this time.” How are kids supposed to know it’s Christmas? I mean we’re talking about Vegas, not Utah, for Cri-Yi’s sake.

Anyway, Clark County Commissioner Steve Sisolak needs to grow a pair.

Of holiday ornaments, that is.

Nevertheless, in keeping with the season, I’ll leave you with this, traditional, Holiday video.