At one time, Harry Mohney was the largest distributor of adult material in the entire world. As the owner and founder of Déjà Vu, Mahoney owns and operates more than 100 strip clubs and adult retail businesses, including Las Vegas’ Erotic Heritage Museum. Now, the man behind Larry Flynt’s Hustler Club and Little Darlings is getting into another business—karaoke.
Last month, Mohney opened The Cat’s Meow on the second floor of Fremont Street’s Neonopolis complex, adjacent to popular bowling and fandom spot The Nerd. The massive karaoke bar is an offshoot of the popular Bourbon Street original, which opened in New Orleans in 1989. That location has seen the likes of Westworld denizen Evan Rachel Wood and adult film star Stormy Daniels gracing its stage, as well as “Wrecking Ball” singer Miley Cyrus, “Kiss From a Rose” singer Seal and “Amish Paradise” singer “Weird Al” Yankovic. (That’s a solid karaoke set right there.)
The Vegas location has the over-the-top kitsch on lock, with different-colored velvet leopard prints covering nearly every inch of the almost 10,500 square-foot building. Outside, the façade is covered in cartoony murals of singing felines sporting mohawks, cowboy hats and fedoras.
Patrons enter through a giant Vegas and Cat’s Meow-themed gift shop that looks similar to an adult bookstore, with shirts, mugs, hats and other various Sin City-branded merchandise for sale. Situated on the right is the karaoke venue, a large, open-space decked out with disco balls, bright lights, two bars, plenty of tabletops, a giant stage, a KJ booth and, of course, more leopard print. Throughout the night, the Cat’s Meow staff will take the stage and sing songs, participating with and hyping up the crowd, playing on the small drum set or busting out a tune on one of the guitars.
Similar to Mohney’s other venues, The Cat’s Meow offers a number of specials, like Sindustry Mondays, which includes 2-for-1 drinks from 4 p.m. to close, and during happy hour every day from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Guests can also pay $30 to “cut the line” and sing without waiting. And while The Cat’s Meow is certainly tamer than Mohney’s other ventures, he’s taken a cue from the adult world bysyncing the stage up to live webcams and streaming the action online. Now we only have one question: Which song will you choose when you go viral?
THE CAT'S MEOW 450 Fremont Street #201, Sun.-Thu., 5 p.m. to 2 a.m., Fri.-Sat., 5 p.m. to 4 a.m., 702-527-7555.
