The Brass Rail (Toronto)

The Brass Rail

The Brass Rail is one of Toronto's downtown strip clubs. It is located on Yonge Street just south of Bloor. It is well known as a popular venue for celebrities, especially during the Toronto International Film Festival, which is based at the nearby luxury hotels of Yorkville.^[1] Stars that have been observed there include Samuel L. Jackson,^[2] Charlize Theron,^[3] Alex Rodriguez,^[4] and Colin Farrell.^[5] The Brass Rail was one of the first venues Paul Shaffer worked in, serving as host and musician.^[6]

The club has also been the site of a number of legal battles. It was the only club in Toronto to deliberately defy the city's bylaw against lap dancing. When federal laws also arrived banning lap dancing, it was one of a group of clubs that brought the issue all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada, which in the 1997 case threw out the bans on lap dancing.^[7]^[8]^[9]

References[]

^ MacInnis, Craig. "A poseur's guide to the Toronto Film Fest." The Vancouver Sun. Vancouver, B.C.: Aug 26, 2000. pg. E.13
^ Benaroia, Iris. Rail Tale; Waitressing at the notorious strip club is an education in crass costumes and celebrity carousing National Post. Don Mills, Ont.: Feb 9, 2008. pg. TO.14
^ Zekas, Rita. "Distant stars." Toronto Star. Toronto, Ont.: Sep 7, 2005. pg. E.01
^ Govani, Shinan. "From Death Star to a love nest ." National Post. Don Mills, Ont.: May 31, 2007. pg. AL.3
^ Zekas, Rita. "The latest edition of The Stripping News;" Toronto Star. Toronto, Ont.: Sep 10, 2002. pg. D.03
^ English, Kathy. "Letterman's sidekick is still a Thunder Bay boy." Toronto Star. Toronto, Ont.: Jul 21, 1985. pg. D.01
^ Tyler, Tracey. "Lap-dancing law given new life in court ; Judges overturn rulings favouring GTA strip clubs." Toronto Star. Toronto, Ont.: Jan 18, 2002. pg. B.05
^ "R. v. Pelletier". Supreme Court Reports. 3: 863. 13 December 1999.
^ "R v Mara". Supreme Court Reports. 2: 630. 1997.