Published on: November 19, 2024, 04:03h.
Last updated on: November 19, 2024, 04:25h.
Following the loss of the Tropicana, another significant establishment was quietly demolished in Las Vegas. Denis Hof’s Love Ranch, located 80 miles outside of the city in Nevada’s Nye County, where prostitution is legal, was taken down last week without much fanfare.
Prostitution is legal in 10 of Nevada’s 17 counties, but not in Las Vegas or Reno, and is permitted only in state-licensed brothels.
Money Could Buy Him Love
In 2010, Denis Hof, already well-known as a brothel owner due to the “Cathouse” series on HBO filmed at his Moonlite Bunny Ranch near Reno, purchased the Love Ranch. The establishment was previously owned by Maynard “Joe” Richards, who also owned the Pahrump Valley Times newspaper at that time.
Situated on 15 acres in Crystal, the Love Ranch featured a collection of doublewide trailers connected to create 15 one-bedroom suites, all painted pink. It also had a bar, two kitchens, and a VIP room.
The Love Ranch provided a range of services 24/7, including “oil wrestling,” “the girlfriend experience,” and “Viagra and vibrators.”
Prostitutes at legal Nevada brothels, working as licensed independent contractors, shared their earnings equally with the establishment, which is responsible for a 9% state tax.
Records indicate that licensed brothels in the state generate approximately $75 million in revenue annually.
Some Publicity is Bad Publicity
The VIP room at the Love Ranch is where former NBA star Lamar Odom suffered a cocaine and herbal Viagra overdose in October 2015.
Despite Odom’s denial of drug use and his allegations against Hof, the incident garnered significant media attention, especially since Odom was married to Khloe Kardashian at the time.
The brothel was temporarily closed in 2018 due to violations and structural issues, but reopened following a court ruling six months later.
In October 2018, Hof passed away in the same room where Odom had the overdose, and despite his death, he won a seat in the Nevada Assembly months later.
His estate was sold in 2019 to an anti-brothel advocate, leading to the demolition of the Love Ranch in 2022.