Take it Off, Take it Off

Take it off, Take it off - Norman A. Rubin

"The heavy beat of a drum tatoos the shimmery erotic movement of the
semi-dressed dancer as she slides in a seductive slow motion dance. At
the beat of the snares she removes an article of clothing - first a
decorative flimsy coat, then her diaphanous dress. The wolves cry 'take
it off, take it off!" The audience breathes in excited ecstasy as the
stripper's fingers fondled her cunnus within the strip of cloth barely
covering the legality. Then her slim hands caress her delectable body
and the boyos groan in delight. The stripper turns with her naked back
to the boundry of her 'cheeks' in show; with a slow tempting movement
her flimsy bra is removed and discarded. As she slowly turns to the
panting faces the teaser deftly covers her 'twin orbs' with her slim
hands, allowing a peek of her pointed 'rosebuds'. As she slides across
the stage she cups and fondles her 'didies' as an offering to her
delighted audience. Then at a signal beat of a cymbal she quickly
leaves for the cover of the stage curtain returning momentarily to
reveal her ample and inviting boobs. Hooting catcalls are her applause
as the lights dim."
(In the book 'Hot Strip Tease' (1937) a passage is cited from the James
T. Farrel's 'Studs Lonigan' where the hero has an orgasm while watching
a shimmy dancer in a cheap American burlesque theater.)
Burlesque (Burla-mockery, Italian) from it early beginnings in the
1860,s was a 'honky-tonk' type of variety acts and bits, or comic
sketches, mingled with musical numbers, featuring beautiful women and
bawdy humour. A favourite comic sketch of that period was the clown and
the pickpocket.
'A lovely pickpocket accosted the clown, dressed in baggy clothes. The
delectable creature in an enticing costume came close to him in a
provocative manner. Then one of her slim hands slipped into his pocket
and wiggled about in search. Suddenly the lovely pulled back her hand,
and let out a delightful scream, and fled from the stage. Then the
jester faced the audience with a wide grin, shrugged his shoulders and
laughingly called out, "Pockets, shmockets, who has pockets!"'. The
comic retained his position in the burlesque until the introduction of
striptease in the early 1930's.
Actually the first famous strip-tease dancer was Salome where she
pranced in the 'dance of the seven veils' around the head of John the
Baptist, served on silver platter. Legend never tells of the ogling
eyes of King Herod and the elders when Salome dropped the seventh veil
and bumped and ground her pelvic muscles with its temping offer of her
vulva.
Even Lady Hamilton, the mistress of Lord Nelson, posed shamlessly in
the alltogether (with a light covering over her delicate parts) as
Hygeia at the 'Temple of Hymen' on Pall Mall, a theater where the owner
and gentile ladies would watch perfomances in the nude. (There was some
clubs in Jolly England where gentlemen disrobed together with their
female companions and took an orgiastic part in the perfomances.) The
1841 edition of 'The Swell's Night Guide through the Metropolis
(London)' directed the admirers to such artistic perfomances (and of
other entertainment where 'bubbies' twirled and the 'Venus Font' thrust
in tempting erotic pleasure to the sight.) It continued till 1959 when
London became to be known as the Mecca of strip tease... until the
Public Morality Council stepped in, which saw the closure of clubs
featuring the art 'where a tempting brunette or blond, thrusting her
hands in her strip of panties, kneading her ample bare bubbies, and
prancing about in bumps and grinds, all to the delight of
gentlemen...'
Scandals galore followed the steps of striptease history. In 1908 the
American dancer Isadora Duncan shocked the British public. Her costume,
in her classical dances at the Duke of York theater, was a flowing
tunic that left bare her unshaven auxillary hair. Her partial emulation
of Salome on the stage with the display of her ample buds of beauty
caused consternation. Maud Allen, was another shocking American dancer
whose costume was a wisp of chiffon on her satin smooth skin. And in
America, Sally Rand, the queen of burlesque, didn't require strips of
costume for her seductive acts; a coloured balloon, that burst at the
correct time served. Other members of royalty appeared with large
peacock feathers, wide spread fans, etc...
The bluenoses in one American city were not titillated by the tempting
offer of delectable flesh on the stage. The Boston police under their
instruction in the late 1960's closed the Globe and Old Howard
burlesque theaters. During the proceeding for the closure order, the
investigating police detectives were asked by the judge why they had to
visit the theaters many times. Their answer was that they were obliged
to make quite certain the disrobing during the dancing was obscene as
it was done, 'in an artistic way'.
Well, in this day and age, with shows like 'Oh Calcutta', one does not
have to be tempted by the offering of delectable flesh by strip
dancers. As on critic put it, "Excellent naked performance, delighful
songs, but with one minor disturbing element, The privates, privities
and titties did not keep in step with the beat of the music."
"Just a bit of ribbon - such a tiny little thing,
Not as tightly tied, as ribbon should be;
So when I dance, I shall wear things that divide,
With things like ribbons, you see.."