The History of the Striptease

Exotic dancing is pretty much an American institution and is, frankly, far more awesome than either apple pie or baseball. Mind you if there was a way we could enjoy pie while watching strippers play baseball, then that might be the best damn thing ever.

The act of removing one’s clothes in an erotic fashion probably dates back to the first perv who just thought watching a chick get undressed by the river to wash her crack was kind of sexy. But when women actively stated engaging in such behaviour knowing that men found it hot is another matter.

The Sumerian goddess of sex, love, fertility and presumably herpes, Inanna, is said to have descended into the Underworld where she was forced at each of 7 gates to remove an article of clothing until she is finally naked. While in Hell, the Earth is barren and when she returns, so do good times. Technically this could be comparing Hell to strip clubs, or nudity to a really shitty season for crops. Sumerians were an odd lot though, so it’s best not to dwell on it.

What is worth noting is the reflection of the goddess’ removal of seven layers of clothing in the story of Salome n the New Testament, with a little embellishment from Oscar Wilde. When stripping hits the Bible, you know it’s big time. In that tale, Salome performs the Dance of Seven Veils for her stepfather to get him all hot and bothered so he’ll give in and kill John the Baptist. It’s not the hottest story you’re likely to hear all day, as murder and incest aren’t generally boner inducing themes, but whatever. The Bible isn’t supposed to get you hot anyway.

Oscar Wilde’s play dates to 1893, when the dance is given a bit more description than the Bible provided and thus the striptease is born, at least on paper. The play was followed by an opera and by the early 1900’s, you were pretty low rent and shitty if your stage production didn’t include some version of the dance. Which is to say every opera, play, film or burlesque show worth its salt had someone stripping off clothes. If that sentiment held true today, people might actually take the time to go to the theatre or at least watch the Tony awards.

 

Elsewhere in the world, belly dance and the Dance of the Bee, in which the dancer strips off clothing pretending to look for an insect stinging her, which is as hot as a prison delousing, were also gaining in popularity in Western society and producing turn of the century hard ons for men in top hats and monocles.

By the late 1890’s, burlesque shows in France were pretty much the coolest things going and they too were offering up women stripping off layers looking for imaginary bugs, because infested women were super sexy back then. Around this time is when the Moulin Rouge was hitting it big and shortly thereafter Mata Hari, the world renowned escort, dancer and spy, came on to the scene.

In 1925 in North America, the potentially true story of the first actual strip show took place at Minsky’s Burlesque. Potentially because it was fictionalized sometime later and who knows if any of it really went down. But nonetheless, it could have been a turning point in nude dancing. Unfortunately, the fuzz put the kibosh on stripteases in 1937 and it took until the 60’s came around before they made a comeback.

From go-go dancing in the early 60’s, the next kick ass innovation came on September 3^rd, 1969 when the Condor Nigh Club went bottomless and we could finally enjoy 100% nude women.

From then on it’s been mostly smooth and occasionally stubbly sailing.