Dennis Hof (born October 15, 1946), is an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
entrepreneur, restaurateur, and legal bordello operator. He is best known as the latter, owning two legal
brothelA brothel, also known as a bordello, cathouse, whorehouse, sporting house and various other euphemisms, is an establishment specifically dedicated to prostitution, providing the prostitutes a place to meet and to have sexual intercourse with clients.-Legality:Today, brothels are illegal in the vast...
s in
NevadaNevada is a state located in the western region of the United States. The capital is Carson City and the largest city is Las Vegas. The state's nickname is Silver State, due to the large number of silver deposits that were discovered and mined there...
His brothels are in
Moundhouse, NevadaMound House, Nevada is a small unincorporated town in western Nevada on U.S. Route 50 that is situated between Nevada's capital, Carson City, and Dayton, Nevada. Its elevation is 4,974 feet , and it is located at about...
, a few minutes outside Carson City, less than an hour by car from
Reno, NevadaReno is a city in and the county seat of Washoe County, Nevada, United States. The population was 180,480 at the 2000 census; in 2008, its population was estimated at 217,016, making it the fourth-largest city in the state after Las Vegas, Henderson and North Las Vegas, and the largest outside of...
. He also owns a nightclub restaurant, NV50, across the street from the
Moonlite Bunny RanchThe Moonlite BunnyRanch is a legal, licensed brothel in Mound House, Nevada, United States, some east of Carson City. The ranch, is owned and operated by Dennis Hof...
.
In
Cathouse: The Musical, Hof reveals that he only dates prostitutes.
Dennis Hof (born October 15, 1946), is an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
entrepreneur, restaurateur, and legal bordello operator. He is best known as the latter, owning two legal
brothelA brothel, also known as a bordello, cathouse, whorehouse, sporting house and various other euphemisms, is an establishment specifically dedicated to prostitution, providing the prostitutes a place to meet and to have sexual intercourse with clients.-Legality:Today, brothels are illegal in the vast...
s in
NevadaNevada is a state located in the western region of the United States. The capital is Carson City and the largest city is Las Vegas. The state's nickname is Silver State, due to the large number of silver deposits that were discovered and mined there...
His brothels are in
Moundhouse, NevadaMound House, Nevada is a small unincorporated town in western Nevada on U.S. Route 50 that is situated between Nevada's capital, Carson City, and Dayton, Nevada. Its elevation is 4,974 feet , and it is located at about...
, a few minutes outside Carson City, less than an hour by car from
Reno, NevadaReno is a city in and the county seat of Washoe County, Nevada, United States. The population was 180,480 at the 2000 census; in 2008, its population was estimated at 217,016, making it the fourth-largest city in the state after Las Vegas, Henderson and North Las Vegas, and the largest outside of...
. He also owns a nightclub restaurant, NV50, across the street from the
Moonlite Bunny RanchThe Moonlite BunnyRanch is a legal, licensed brothel in Mound House, Nevada, United States, some east of Carson City. The ranch, is owned and operated by Dennis Hof...
.
In
Cathouse: The Musical, Hof reveals that he only dates prostitutes. "I don't date civilians (non-working girls)." The documentary series has shown his several relationships with employees, most notably adult film star
Sunset ThomasSunset Thomas is the stage name of an American pornographic actress; her real first name is Diane. She was runner-up for Penthouse Pet of the Year in 1998 and is a member of the Adult Video News Hall of Fame...
.
The Moonlite Bunny Ranch
Hof started by purchasing and remodeling The Moonlite BunnyRanch, founded in 1955; he also purchased another brothel, formerly Kitty's, and renamed it The
BunnyRanch TwoThe Love Ranch is a legal, licensed brothel located about 7 miles east of Carson City, Nevada in the unincorporated town of Mound House, in Lyon County, at 95 Kit Kat Drive....
. In contrast to other Nevada brothel owners, members of the Nevada Brothel Owners' Association, who prefer to keep a low profile, Hof, despite Nevada laws which ban brothel advertising, maintains a high profile to create publicity for his brothels.
He also operates a website and the "working girls" are encouraged to cultivate online relationships with potential, and past, clients. He often appears on talk shows, employs
adult film starsPorn Stars is the second studio album by the band Pretty Boy Floyd. It features re-recordings of five tracks from their debut album Leather Boyz With Electric Toyz, a re-recording of one track from Tonight Belongs To The Young, and a re-recording of one track from their EP A Tale of Sex, Designer...
, e.g.,
Sunset ThomasSunset Thomas is the stage name of an American pornographic actress; her real first name is Diane. She was runner-up for Penthouse Pet of the Year in 1998 and is a member of the Adult Video News Hall of Fame...
, and other women who have achieved notoriety. He has also given free offers to returning soldiers.
In early 2009, due to
the recessionBeginning in the late 2000s —and with much greater intensity since September 2008—the industrialized world has been undergoing a recession, a pronounced deceleration of economic activity...
, State Sen.
Bob CoffinBob Coffin is a Democratic member of the Nevada Senate, representing Clark County District 10 since 1987. Previously he was a member of the Nevada Assembly from 1983 through 1985.-External links:* official government website* profile...
(D) had proposed legalizing prostitution statewide for tax purposes. Hof was prominently featured in a number of media reports saying he would expand into
Las VegasLas Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada, the seat of Clark County, and an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, fine dining, and entertainment. Las Vegas, which bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, is famous for the number of...
given the opportunity, and was already eying some closed casinos as property.
However, the
NevadaNevada is a state located in the western region of the United States. The capital is Carson City and the largest city is Las Vegas. The state's nickname is Silver State, due to the large number of silver deposits that were discovered and mined there...
lawmakers had refused to consider the proposal of statewide legal prostitution during that legislative session.
Cathouse series
The biggest boost, arguably, to the Moonlite Bunny Ranches' profile--and Hof's--was the HBO documentary special
Cathouse. Two documentary series followed. In 2005
Cathouse: The Series premiered.
Cathouse 2: Back in the Saddle appeared in 2007.
Both featured a look at the inner working of a legal house of prostitution as well as the life of a number of the "working girls," borrowing some techniques from "Reality TV" such as camera-only interviews and staged "spontaneity."
Media persona
Dennis Hof has appeared in "Rod Ryan Show" (94.5, The Buzz),
American PimpAmerican Pimp is a 1999 documentary that examines the pimp subculture in the United States. It was directed by the Hughes Brothers, the filmmakers behind Menace II Society and Dead Presidents....
,
The Tyra Banks ShowThe Tyra Banks Show is an American talk show hosted by Tyra Banks....
,
Lex and TerryLex and Terry are two nationally syndicated morning drive radio hosts broadcasting from Dallas, Texas on KEGL 97.1 FM. Their show is distributed and sold by Envision Radio Networks....
, the
Opie and Anthony Show,
The Howard Stern Show,
The Bubba The Love SpongeBubba the Love Sponge is a controversial radio talk show host. Bubba's radio shows are broadcast on Howard 101 at Sirius Satellite Radio and on various Cox Radio stations....
Show, Loveline with Stryker & Dr. Drew, "Derek and Romaine" and on
Dr. PhilDr. Phil is a television show hosted by Phil McGraw. After McGraw's success with his segments on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Dr. Phil debuted on September 16, 2002...
, as well as giving a tour/interview to conservative pundit
Sean HannitySean Patrick Hannity is an American radio and television host, author, and conservative political commentator. His nationally syndicated radio program, The Sean Hannity Show, airs throughout the United States on Citadel Media...
on Hannity and Colmes. Hof and the Bunny Ranch were profiled in the
The New Yorker magazine's 23 April 2001 issue.
Hof was interviewed on FOX News in December 2007 for his support for
Republican PartyThe Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the Grand Old Party or the GOP, despite being the younger of the two major parties. In the U.S...
presidential candidate Congressman
Ron PaulRonald Ernest Paul, M.D. is an American physician and Republican Congressman for the state of Texas. Paul is a member of the Liberty Caucus of Republican congressmen which aims to limit the size and scope of the federal government, and serves on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, the Joint...
in the Republican caucus in Nevada. "Pimpin' for Paul" was a deal that provided two bunnies for one; campaign donations were collected for Paul.