The Gold Club
The Gold Club was a strip club in Midtown Atlanta that operated until 2001, the same year the owner admitting racketeering charges.
Operations[edit]
The Gold Club was one of the most prominent strip clubs in Atlanta Georgia,[1] located on Lindbergh Road.[2]
Owner Steve Kaplan[1] was the subject of a 14 week trial in 2001[3] after prosecutors alleged that the club was used for prostitution, money laundering, bribery and credit card fraud.[1] Kaplan was also accused of having links to the Gambino crime family.[4]
The club was managed by Thomas "Ziggy" Sicignano, who acted as a witness for the prosecution during the trial.[1] Steven Sadow represented Kaplan during the court case, brought under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act.[3] As part of a plea deal during the trial,[5] Kaplan confessed to racketeering.[6] Judge Willis Hunt sentencing Kaplan to sixteen months in prison.[7] Details of the plea deal included agreeing to close the club, 400 hours of community service, and a $5 million fine.[7]
The club was the focus of the 2001 Court TV program Sex, Sports & the Mob: Atlanta's Gold Club, written and directed by Steven Dupler.[8] After the club's 2001 closure,[6] Atlanta City Council agreed to attempt to purchase the location[2] although it was next used as a church before opening as The Gold Room nightclub in 2009.[6]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d "CNN.com - Sex, sports and the mob: The Gold Club trial - June 15, 2001". CNN. 15 June 2001. Archived from the original on 2021-11-28. Retrieved 2023-08-24.
- ^ a b Esters, Kelli; Good, Joshua B. Good (7 August 2001). "From nude bar to park? Atlanta City Council votes to try to buy Gold Club". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Archived from the original on 10 Dec 2001. Retrieved 2023-08-24.
- ^ a b Firestone, David (2001-08-03). "Top Defendants in Strip-Club Trial Strike Deal". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2021-03-23. Retrieved 2023-08-24.
- ^ Simmons, Bill (27 September 2007). "Idiot's Guide to Gold Club Trial". Grantland. Archived from the original on 2023-06-06. Retrieved 2023-08-24.
- ^ "Gold Club owner pleads guilty to racketeering in deal with prosecutors | Maryland Daily Record". 2001-08-02. Retrieved 2023-08-24.
- ^ a b c Coffee, Gertha (19 October 2009). "Gold Room to fill spot vacated by Gold Club". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. ISSN 1539-7459. Archived from the original on 2023-08-24. Retrieved 2023-08-24.
- ^ a b Harris, Art; Polk, Jim (8 January 2022). "CNN.com - Ex-Gold Club owner gets 16 months - January 8, 2002". www.cnn.com. Archived from the original on 2022-10-01. Retrieved 2023-08-24.
- ^ "WILL YES MEAN NO FOR WPOP?". Hartford Courant. 2001-12-14. Archived from the original on 2023-08-24. Retrieved 2023-08-24.