11th Hour Online

11 Questions with Brooke Taylor, star of HBO’s Cathouse
- Alex Bender

Her name is Brooke Taylor and she is a Bunny Babe at the World Famous Moonlite Bunny Ranch, a legal house of prostitution in Nevada. Originally from the Midwest, Brooke left behind a life as a case manager for adults with developmental disabilities, and took up with Dennis Hof and his girls. She has since become a star on the HBO series, The Cathouse, about the Bunny Ranch. College educated and well-spoken, you can often find Brooke as a guest on TV shows acting as a sort of spokeswoman for legal prostitution. You’ll also find her in the August 2008 issue of Hustler in an article about the Rock & Roll Fantasy Camp, and in a nude layout in Hustler’s October 2008 issue. On New Year’s Eve 2008, HBO is going premiere Cathouse: The Musical after a ten-episode stack of Entourage. Somehow, in the midst of her crazy schedule, Brooke found the time to talk to our Alex Bender for an intimate (and sure to be controversial) conversation.

1. How do you deal with other people’s attitudes towards your profession?

A lot of the attitude I get from people, if it’s negative, is based on ignorance. You know, they don’t really know, um, what legalized prostitution is. Their idea is all from the illegal side. I find it fun, you know. I like debating. Sean Hannity told me I should be a lawyer. I took that as a big compliment. But you know, all I can do is explain how things work and, let ‘em know that the beauty of America is that only I have to live by my morals and standards. They don’t have to live by mine, and I don’t have to live by theirs.

2. What was your childhood like?

Hehe, very normal! I grew up by the Mississippi river in Illinois. You know, all my family is mainly from farming communities. Um, I didn’t grow up in a huge city but I didn’t grow up in a small town but it was very normal. I wasn’t abused. I was never mistreated. My parents are still married. We did all the things normal families do, go on the dysfunctional family vacations, have the rowdy cat and all that.

3. What do your friends and family, your parents in particular, think of your career choice?

You know, I’m very blessed, and I’m so lucky to have such a wonderful support system behind me, you know. My family, my parents are very supportive. My dad—it took a couple weeks after him finding out I was here to, uh, really understand how things work. He thought, you know, I was being pimped—that I was held against my will; I was being drugged; I’m sleeping with hundreds of men a day; I was going to get a disease. You know, he had no idea. And now, here, two and half years later, we’re closer than we ever were. So, um, I did lose a few friends by making the decision to come work here, you know. Some of those people with those conservative Midwest views. The ones that I really value and that value my friendship, they’re still around. I think I’m lucky.

4. When did you decide you wanted to be a prostitute?

I graduated high school, and I went to college, and I got my degree in music therapy, and I started in the professional world as a case manager for adults with developmental disabilities. I did that for many years. You know, it was like I was in the highest position I could be in with my degree level, and I was in the hamster wheel of life. I wasn’t getting anywhere further ahead. I happened to come across HBO’s “The Cathouse” and started watching the show. And I debated for about a year, went on a few dates and said the hell with this; I’m going to get paid for this. I Googled “Bunny Ranch”. I found the website, found the message board and started posting, getting to know some of the girls that work here and I’ve been out here ever since. That’s kind of the progression of my prostitution-ness

5. Was it a sexual decision?

It was primarily financial. I was never promiscuous. I was a virgin until I was 19. I had never had a one night stand until I started working here. I was very open sexually, and I liked trying new things with my partners. I knew sex was something I liked, it was something I enjoyed, and it was something I could do. I could never be a teacher; I would never be a doctor. I wouldn’t want to, you know, work on a railroad.

6. Do you ever wish you had a career that offered the same happiness without the stigma attached to it?

The thing is, I could. Nothing is holding me here. I do have a degree. I have the finances to further my education, to get other degrees if I want. So the answer is no. Because I have left myself open, I have other options. I’m a musician so I’m pursuing a musical career as well. I would have never had the finances to pursue that had I not done what I’m doing now. But will I do this forever? No. That’s just how I am. I’ll find something else I enjoy and do that. This is my job; it’s not really my career. I don’t have any regrets. You’re right about people’s perception being the biggest downfall with this job. But I don’t have any problem with being judged.

7. I’ve read that you have between one and five clients a day. How many men do you think you’ve slept with since you’ve been employed at the Bunny Ranch?

I couldn’t tell you. After so long, you just sort of lose track. I can tell you that I slept with more men the first week here than I had in my entire life. But there is no way to look back and tell. We fill out time cards, but it doesn’t really list it there. While I’m having sex with someone every day, a lot of my business is repeat customers. I’ve had sex with less than 50 men in the past six months. We remember the men who spend really large amounts of money.

8. A lot of people say that they enjoy their hobbies, but once it becomes a job they lose that. Do you find that to be the case with your sex life outside of your job?

My personal sex life gets kinkier, I guess. There are certainly times when someone comes in and you don’t have that chemistry, so it’s not that great, but I do a pretty good job of making sure I’m satisfied. And I have men that come in and really rock my world you know. But sex is always emotional in some regard. It’s just about what level of emotion you’re bringing it to. There is enough of me to go around and share with lots of people. It’s so much more with my boyfriend that it is with my customer, because there is so much more involved.

9. You date the owner of the Bunny Ranch, Dennis Hof. How does that work, not being monogamous with your partner?

We say we’re emotionally monogamous. I have fun with my customers, and he has fun with his girls. We have fun together with girls. It works out really well. I understand his need for variety. If I didn’t, then I’m in the wrong business. Dennis is a really great guy. There is not enough woman to feed that man’s ego. So I need the help.

10. Do you have any plans to stop working in this field?

Well I’m 27 now. I don’t plan on doing this past 30. Once I don’t have to worry about working to provide for daily necessities. I plan on really pursing my musical career, so I’m working on that.

Alex: How much do you make a month? How much do you work to make that amount?

Brooke: We’re on-call for 12 hours. The house takes half. But that includes our meals, our housekeepers, bartenders, etc. It’s sort of like being an independent contractor at a hair salon. I make in excess of five figures a month, sometimes six. A girl can come out here a few days a month, 12 months a year, and bring in over a hundred grand a year.

11. Do you feel like you’ve sold yourself short by being in this profession?

I can see how people would think that, because when they think about prostitution they think about sex. I have had guys come in and spend a couple of weeks with me before. That’s not about sex. If I don’t have anything more than my body to offer them then they are not going to stay with me any longer than the 10-15 minutes it takes to have sex. I’ve met everyone from janitors to the CEO’s of fortune 500 companies. I have to use my brain. Put it this way, I was using my body before. When I was working in group homes in college, taking care of people, bathing them medicating them etc. I was using my body. We all use our body to make money, in some way or another. I just use a different part of my body. It’s really about more than the sex here.