# "Ill Fame" ?



## ALBin517 (May 31, 2011)

The manager of the Velvet Touch (adult bookstore) here in Lansing was charged with, "maintaining a house of ill fame."

It sounds like a law from the 1800s but I had never heard of that charge before.


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## snickerd3 (May 31, 2011)

so was he operating one of the happy ending movie rooms in the basement?

Supposedly the house my parents bought was used as a house of ill fame. the neighbors were overjoyed when a family with kids moved in.


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## Capt Worley PE (May 31, 2011)

It was called a 'house of ill repute' when I was a kid.


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## ALBin517 (May 31, 2011)

snickerd3 said:


> so was he operating one of the happy ending movie rooms in the basement?



Yeah, an undercover cop came in and the manager offered to arrange a little something extra.


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## Ble_PE (May 31, 2011)

Capt Worley PE said:


> It was called a 'house of ill repute' when I was a kid.


This is what I've heard them called.


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## ALBin517 (May 31, 2011)

http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/article...|text|FRONTPAGE


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## Supe (May 31, 2011)

If I had known there was a place named the Velvet Touch, I'd have stopped going to the Crusty Bucket years ago!


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## RIP - VTEnviro (May 31, 2011)

^Does Sandpaper Sally still work there?


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## cableguy (May 31, 2011)

ALBin517 said:


> Yeah, an undercover cop came in and the manager offered to arrange a little something extra.


And lemme guess... It took the undercover officer 10 trips and cost him several hundred dollars before he was able to "close" the investigation?


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## cdcengineer (May 31, 2011)

Poor devil. There goes the gov't cracking down on small business again..


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## Master slacker (Jun 1, 2011)

VTEnviro said:


> ^Does Sandpaper Sally still work there?


uke:


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## MA_PE (Jun 1, 2011)

Maybe the cop turned him in because he got the "full" one.


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## csb (Jun 1, 2011)

snickerd3 said:


> so was he operating one of the happy ending movie rooms in the basement?
> Supposedly the house my parents bought was used as a house of ill fame. the neighbors were overjoyed when a family with kids moved in.


My first apartment was in a house that used to be a funeral home. It kinda creeped me out, but the thought of living in an old brothel might be even creepier. I guess this shows I've reached the point where germs are scarier than ghosts.

The main "massage parlor" for our state got shut down. Awkward moment when a noted doctor in town was one of the clients.


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## MA_PE (Jun 1, 2011)

On a serious note:

It's the world's oldest profession.

As long as it's between consenting adults and there's no "slavery" or other forced human trafficking involved. Personally, I couldn't care less. There are much bigger problems in this world to worry about and/or waste law enforcement forces on.

csb: I don't wee why it would be "creepy" to live in a former brothel. Chances are people have had sex in any building we occupy. I'd find a mortuary a lot creepier.


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## RIP - VTEnviro (Jun 1, 2011)

I think the issue is more that the working women are often abused by their clients and pimps, and it's a great way to spread disease.

But in prinicple I agree with you. If it's consentual, and not hurting anyone, who cares.


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## Supe (Jun 1, 2011)

I say regulate it and bring in a fortune in tax dollars.


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## csb (Jun 1, 2011)

MA_PE said:


> csb: I don't wee why it would be "creepy" to live in a former brothel. Chances are people have had sex in any building we occupy. I'd find a mortuary a lot creepier.


I think the average person who is being buried had a pretty normal life, while the energy surrounding a brothel seems darker to me.

Dunno...my grandmother's house was the scene of a brutal murder where the husband/dad stabbed his wife and three children then killed himself. That was a creepy house.


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## MA_PE (Jun 1, 2011)

csb said:


> Dunno...my grandmother's house was the scene of a brutal murder where the husband/dad stabbed his wife and three children then killed himself. That was a creepy house.


yeah. I don't think I'd like that. I hope she got a good deal on it, and I'll bet she had some really good Halloween parties.


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## csb (Jun 1, 2011)

They framed the article about the murder and had it hanging in the hallway near the bathroom where the mother was left to die. The wood floor outside the bathroom was permanently stained from her blood. I never wanted to go upstairs by myself!


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## Capt Worley PE (Jun 1, 2011)

How long ago was that, csb?


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## FLBuff PE (Jun 1, 2011)

When my wife was in college, she and her roomates lived in a former house of ill repute in Boulder. One year we had a "Pimps and Hos" party. That house didn't creep me out at all. It was actually a pretty nice place.


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## csb (Jun 1, 2011)

Years ago...the murder happened in the 40s. I just checked the house and it sold in 2006 for $800,000. However, it appears it gets sold every three years or so since my grandmother moved out in the early 90s. It's a big house- three stories with an attic apartment and basement. Garage and there used to be a nice stone fish pond (still could be there). Living room, formal dining, eat in kitchen, five bedrooms, 5 baths (I think). Just also had a grisly murder and some lasting effects from the spirit world


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## Capt Worley PE (Jun 1, 2011)

The house my aunt lives in has had two previous owners commit suicide, one of them in the house, one of them years after selling it. House doesn't creep me out at all, though. Nice little house on a good sized peice of land.

But it is one of those odd things, isn't it?


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## csb (Jun 1, 2011)

It is.

I suppose a house of ill repute/fame/WHOREHOUSE (ahem) would have lots of bedrooms.


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## RIP - VTEnviro (Jun 1, 2011)

^Unless it's an orgyhouse, in which case a large common area is more appropriate.


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## Supe (Jun 1, 2011)

VTEnviro said:


> ^Unless it's an orgyhouse, in which case a large common area is more appropriate.



"You know, those walls aren't stucco..."


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## MA_PE (Jun 1, 2011)

csb said:


> They framed the article about the murder and had it hanging in the hallway near the bathroom where the mother was left to die. The wood floor outside the bathroom was permanently stained from her blood. I never wanted to go upstairs by myself!


that's kinda weird on it's own. No way I advertise it and that floor would have been ripped out and replaced before I'd even think of moving in.

Sounds like the old Simmons house in the "Ghost and Mr. Chicken"

Bloody floors in a house of ill repute....now that's really nasty. That stuff should be confined to the dungeon area which should be dirt and stone.


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## csb (Jun 1, 2011)

They tried sanding it out, but it had seeped in pretty far. The wife laid there for three days before she was discovered. Two of the girls survived and some school friends noticed they hadn't been at school. When the friends stopped by, the smell from in the house overwhelmed them and they told their parents.

And is there such a thing as an orgy brothel? Do you get a group rate?


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## Capt Worley PE (Jun 1, 2011)

I wonder if that story is Googlable...


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## snickerd3 (Jun 1, 2011)

anything is possible


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## ALBin517 (Jun 1, 2011)

csb said:


> snickerd3 said:
> 
> 
> > so was he operating one of the happy ending movie rooms in the basement?
> ...



When I was at FSU, the police used to do sweeps / stings at the big public park on the edge of Tallahassee. Seemed like they'd get at least one preacher, every time, usually for dude / dude activity.


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## csb (Jun 1, 2011)

Capt Worley PE said:


> I wonder if that story is Googlable...


I'll have to check. I remember trying to look it up in the late 90s, but there's way more info online nowadays. I'll get details from my mother tonight.


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## Capt Worley PE (Jun 1, 2011)

csb said:


> Capt Worley PE said:
> 
> 
> > I wonder if that story is Googlable...
> ...


OK.

Just goes to show there were always nutjobs, but they didn't always get nationwide attention like they do nowadays.


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## csb (Jun 1, 2011)

Doesn't that kind of go along with Sapper's free range kids question? Would we worry as much about random violent crimes if we didn't know about each one that happened?


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## Exengineer (Jun 1, 2011)

The creepiest house to live in wouldn't be a former brothel or a former funeral home, but a house where the previous resident was an engineer!


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## snickerd3 (Jun 1, 2011)

that should be a great house to live in...everything would be built and installed properly


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## csb (Jun 1, 2011)

not necessarily


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## RIP - VTEnviro (Jun 1, 2011)

^Exactly! I can barely change a light bulb!


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## Supe (Jun 2, 2011)

And I can barely afford a light bulb!


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## Capt Worley PE (Jun 2, 2011)

csb said:


> Doesn't that kind of go along with Sapper's free range kids question? Would we worry as much about random violent crimes if we didn't know about each one that happened?


Yup.

I think the media has in some ways done a disservice by covering such things. I mean, I can see the point with missing persons, hoping to get the info to a larger population to be aware of the missing person. That really started with good intentions.

And we all know what the road to hell is paved with.

BUT, I don't see any real need for me in SC to hear about some loon who tripped offine and started hosing down the schoolyard in North Dakota. It is desn't really have any bearing on my life.

But if it bleeds, it leads.


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## DVINNY (Jun 2, 2011)

csb said:


> My first apartment was in a house that used to be a funeral home.





csb said:


> ...my grandmother's house was the scene of a brutal murder where the husband/dad stabbed his wife and three children then killed himself. That was a creepy house.


WTF? Does your family know how to pick houses or I am a Gigantic DoucheBag



Exengineer said:


> The creepiest house to live in wouldn't be a former brothel or a former funeral home, but a house where the previous resident was an engineer!


My House ^ I bought it from a fellow engineer who built it.

(I just wish he was a rich engineer that bought better grade material, and wish he was an engineer that had a wife with taste, but neither were the case)


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## Flyer_PE (Jun 2, 2011)

Capt Worley PE said:


> But if it bleeds, it leads.


I would also add that the beast known as the 24-hr news cycle demands continuous feeding.


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## csb (Jun 2, 2011)

DVINNY said:


> csb said:
> 
> 
> > My first apartment was in a house that used to be a funeral home.
> ...


Hey, the house has last been a convent before it was apartments...it wasn't until after I moved in that I found out it's full history.

And our house was redone by people who used cheap materials to renovate...and with a wife with poor taste. We're slowly trying to fix all of that...


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## RIP - VTEnviro (Jun 2, 2011)

Flyer_PE said:


> Capt Worley PE said:
> 
> 
> > But if it bleeds, it leads.


Wait, we have a female mayor now?


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## MA_PE (Jun 2, 2011)

DVINNY said:


> (I just wish he was a rich engineer that bought better grade material, and wish he was an engineer that had a wife with taste, but neither were the case)





csb said:


> And our house was redone by people who used cheap materials to renovate...and with a wife with poor taste. We're slowly trying to fix all of that...


You folks get to taste the wives as part of the sale? I guess they do things differently in other parts of the country.


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## RIP - VTEnviro (Jun 2, 2011)

Damn...gotta get going on the home inspector's license!


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## csb (Jun 2, 2011)

This is how it hung in my grandmother's house.

EDIT: I found the articles on the murder! It took some work, but here are the links to the pdfs. Turns out the guy was an architect and structural engineer. I also like that there's an article on the second page about encouraging America to start a "US Department of Aeronautics" because "America is asleep to the possibilities of aerial transport."

"Drugs Family, Slays 2 With Ax, Kills Self"

Page 1: http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn8.../ed-1/seq-1.pdf

Page 7: http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn8.../ed-1/seq-7.pdf


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## Capt Worley PE (Jun 3, 2011)

^ Now THAT'S a crazy tale! Thanks for the links.


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## RIP - VTEnviro (Jun 3, 2011)

> This is how it hung in my grandmother's house.


I never knew how your grandma was hung before. Thanks for the update. One more item crossed off the ol' bucket list.


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## DVINNY (Jun 3, 2011)

My in-laws house, the house that my wife grew up in, is also the scene of a murder.

I can't remember if it were the 40's or 50's when it happened, I will need to ask my F-I-L to re-tell the story.

Two guys must have been in an argument down the street, and one pulled a knife on the other, so the other took off. The knife carrying one chased him. The guy ran into my in-laws house (been in their family since before then) and just got into the foyer, when the other guy ran in, stabbed him, threw the knife, and ran away. The guy that got stabbed bled out right there in their foyer. The police couldn't find the knife.

MANY years later, my father in law found the knife behind a radiant heater in that room. It landed between two of the heating fins and had been lodged in there for like 30 years.

The house is a 110+ year old Victorian style. I'm sure that many houses of that age have some interesting stories.


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## wilheldp_PE (Jun 3, 2011)

csb said:


> "Drugs Family, Slays 2 With Ax, Kills Self"Page 1: http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn8.../ed-1/seq-1.pdf
> 
> Page 7: http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn8.../ed-1/seq-7.pdf


How ironic is it that the guy killed himself with a razor blade, and there is an advertisement for Gillette razor blades on the second page of that article?


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## csb (Jun 3, 2011)

It does say it will save him a lot of fuss and nuisance.

I also like that on the second page there's an article about how the Post Office reported a $2M surplus. Amazing where we were as a country almost 100 years ago.


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## wilheldp_PE (Jun 3, 2011)

csb said:


> It does say it will save him a lot of fuss and nuisance.


It makes no mention of it's usefulness as a means of suicide. They are missing a large potential customer base.


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## Capt Worley PE (Jun 3, 2011)

csb said:


> It does say it will save him a lot of fuss and nuisance.
> I also like that on the second page there's an article about how the Post Office reported a $2M surplus. Amazing where we were as a country almost 100 years ago.


I remember seeing something on the history channel that said the US economy DOUBLED between 1914 to 1918. That's pretty amazing when you think about it, but makes sense. Mass production, the automobile, electricity, plumbing, and WWI industry all exploded in that era.


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## snickerd3 (Jun 3, 2011)

crazy story! AT least the two girls survived.


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## ALBin517 (Jun 3, 2011)

Capt Worley PE said:


> csb said:
> 
> 
> > It does say it will save him a lot of fuss and nuisance.
> ...


And there was none of this pesky environmental regulation. Companies could just burn and dump toxic chemicals out behind the factory.

The good old days...


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## csb (Jun 3, 2011)

snickerd3 said:


> crazy story! AT least the two girls survived.


My mom seems to remember that at least one of the girls lived in a mental institution for most of her life.

It's kinda crazy to think about the economy doubling by 1919, especially know what awaits the US 10 years from that moment.


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## snickerd3 (Jun 3, 2011)

^bears truth to the old this is your brain on drugs commercials. So sad.


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## Capt Worley PE (Jun 3, 2011)

ALBin517 said:


> Capt Worley PE said:
> 
> 
> > csb said:
> ...


In a glass half empty sort of mood today?


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## snickerd3 (Jun 3, 2011)

ALBin517 said:


> Capt Worley PE said:
> 
> 
> > csb said:
> ...


that is the only reason my job exists.


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## MA_PE (Jun 3, 2011)

csb said:


> snickerd3 said:
> 
> 
> > crazy story! AT least the two girls survived.
> ...


I heard the other one got into the movies.


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## ALBin517 (Jun 3, 2011)

Capt Worley PE said:


> ALBin517 said:
> 
> 
> > Capt Worley PE said:
> ...



Sometimes I feel like we are the first generation who's expected to correct the mistakes of the past hundred years:

Environment

Social Security

Poorly-made infrastructure

Pensions

Lifetime health care for retirees

etc

Meanwhile we have to make sure our kids have it easier than we do.

Providing for ourselves in the present seems to be less of a priority.

That was not the case in 1914 when the economy was going great guns.


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## wilheldp_PE (Jun 3, 2011)

I enjoyed reading that old newspaper. There was a ton of news packed into 2 pages, and the ads were non-obtrusive and fun to read. People just don't write like that any more. I don't just mean the language differences. I mean the amount of detail included in the stories and the writers really cared about telling the story. Nowadays, you'd be lucky to get one article that well written in an entire newspaper, and you'd have at least 10 obnoxious full-page ads.

But it's the "internet's fault" that newspapers are dying.


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