Triple Treat Theater
Before it was designated a Live Fantasy Theater, the upstairs 3rd floor of Show World featured (3) adult cinemas that screened triple X-rated films, interspersed with multi-themed ‘acts’ referred to as ‘shows’. Small-scale advertisements placed in New York City newspapers promoted these sexually-themed attractions; and although the mini-marketing appeared innocuous, they guaranteed enticements emblematic of exploitation, in the time-honored tradition of vaudeville and burlesk. Lurid blurbs appeared in these advertisements; from ‘All New Strange Erotic Acts’ to ‘Weirdest Most Bizarre Acts in America’, punctuated by ‘YOU DARE NOT MISS THESE INCREDIBLE 8 LIVE ACTS.’ Further subtext were announcements such as:
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With diverse acts ranging from the vampire girls cult SISTERS OF SATIN Pain or Pleasure? Animals or Human? to the appearance of Ms ALL BARE AMERICA, one advertisement bluntly stated that ‘Legal Considerations Will Allow Us To Bring You This EXPLICIT Live Show For Only One Week.’ Regardless, customers determined the unbeatable $3 admission at all times for the combination of blue movies and continuous live shows to be highly satisfactory. ‘These themed ‘shows’ were basically a come-on; a draw,’ says John Colasanti. ‘The customer went in there under the guise that he would actually see these various lewd acts; so he paid the admission and stayed for a while. By then he saw so much nudity, he really didn’t give a fuck about the supposed ‘acts’.
When Ron Martin took over, he renamed the space the Triple Treat Theater, and it stuck, as the horde of performers continued to expand from outrageous strippers to wasted Love Teams to a perverted porcine hypnotist known as Johnny Love, among others. Porno starlets (referred to as ‘features’) and world-class strippers were booked for week long engagements and attracted legions of deviants to the Triple Treat Theater, which was now comprised of a large air-conditioned room with an elevated center stage surrounded by comfortable seating, affectionately referred to as the ‘White Room.’ With the movie screens removed in favor of monitors, obviously emphasis was placed on the explicit Live Acts. When a performer had finished her set, ‘Jack’ in the Triple Treat (the wild man with broken, rotted teeth who often introduced the feature to the audience) would announce ‘Polaroids in the lobby, polaroids in the lobby!’ Former Tommy Boy record executive Monica Lynch reportedly danced topless on stage, before her foray into the music business. Punk-rock goddess Wendy O Williams also performed as a bizarre exhibitionist before her studded career as the leader of the Plasmatics.
One such hugely popular ‘draw’ was the weathered and wicked Monica Kennedy, who used to shoot hot dogs out of her cunt into the audience, which prompted Show World barker Ramon to quip in Spanglish: ‘Oh man...I will never eat another hot dog again!’
The Triple Treat Theater, in its prime, conjures up enduring flashbacks from a vast repertoire of world-class adult stars that grazed that beloved stage. And often there existed a transcendent connection between the ‘feature’ and their devoted followers that obviously spilled over from the open stage into the audience itself. Fervent fans of triple X-rated films were entranced by the presence of the blue-movie stars; currently on tour and booked for week-long engagements at Show World, the epicenter of the adult macrocosm in Times Square. And sometimes these engagements were ‘held over’ by popularity and overwhelming demand at the box office. And with the approval of management, the performers posed for snapshots in the buff, leaving customers spoiled for a lewd momento from an unforgettable evening with a famous porno queen.
Whenever she performed at Show World, ebony goddess Angel Kelly attracted a fan base known for their undying loyalty. A striking beauty with a body lithe with anatomical perfection, the dark-skinned Angel’s dazzling display of nudity is a performance heaven-sent. And although she captured the adulation of countless admirers, other attributes aside from her sublime movements on stage put her in a class all her own.
In 1990, former live show performer ‘DEUCE42’ visited Angel in her ‘elegant’ dressing room during her week-long engagement at the Triple Treat Theater. A prolific artist, he presented her with some drawings; but since it was his birthday, Angel went out and bought him a bottle of champagne (!). Deuce42: ‘Later that evening I observed something else about Angel that truly set her apart. Although I knew of her unique connectedness to her fans, I witnessed a down-to-Earth Angel off-stage as well. I caught an exchange between her and some boys, who relished the genuine attention and affection she bestowed upon them. They were just two teenagers with disabilities who were ‘go-fers’ for the Show World booth babies. They earned their keep running errands for the girls, who weren’t allowed to leave the premises. Both of them looked like they were hit in the head with a 2 by 4; one a black kid, the other Chinese. Here in Show World they weren’t subjected to the scorn of society; and were able to earn a decent living off the books delivering snacks to gorgeous girls.
As she donned her sequined outfit and left the stage, Angel made a beeline to the two boys waiting patiently for her, ignoring the older drooling fans desperately waiting for their meet and greet. In fact the writer Cathy Brown, a close pal of Angel’s was nearby, and may bear witness to this magical moment that indeed stopped time. Now within inches of the boys, one of them spoke up immediately. ‘Hi Angel,’ he said excitedly. ‘We missed you.’ The other one simply said ‘Angel...yeah, we missed you alot. ’ Angel spoke directly to the both of them. ‘Hey fellas, I’m so glad that you came by to see me, it’s so good to see you again,’ she purred. ‘What’s been going on with you? How are things up here in Show World? Are things looking up for you? I hope things are going okay for you fellas; you know it’s always so cool when you come by to see me when I’m around…’ The boys were all smiles with crooked teeth. Like the filaments of a light bulb, they were all lit up in her presence. ‘You’re...you’re the coolest, Angel,’ the black kid said, overcoming his shyness. The Chinese kid chimed in. ‘Super-cool,’ he giggled, and glanced at this friend. ‘We waited for you to come back.’ Angel was quite taken aback. ‘Aww fellas,’ she said, and blushed. ‘You know you’re always welcome.’ As they stood there and beamed, she treated them like real persons; for them it was like Christmas or the next best thing. ‘Well, gee fellas, thanks, I don’t know what to say. Just that I’m so glad that we actually got to see each other again and spend a little time and that the both of you are doing okay.’