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Winnipeg Free Press > Opinion > Columnists > S (for Sin) City strippers waiting for 'rain man'

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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

S (for Sin) City strippers waiting for 'rain man'

By: Randy Turner

2/09/2009 1:00 AM | Comments: 17

It wasn't raining Tuesday, not a drop, but Robin Skolnik was gleefully anticipating some precipitation in her future.And Skolnik had a message for Pacman Jones, the potential Winnipeg Blue Bomber and patron saint of peeler bars.

"Great! When we're a block away, that's what we like," chirped the owner and operator of the S City (formerly Sin City) Exotic Nightclub, situated just a few punts from the Bombers headquarters. "I'll give you the address for him.

"We'd be more than happy to entertain him in our VIP room."

(For the record, we found out Centerfolds no longer has dancers, leaving Jones with fewer options and owner Bob Fola muttering, "It doesn't mean anything to me anymore, man." Meanwhile, none of the girls working at Teasers yesterday had heard of Pacman Jones, according to Mandy, the bar manager. One of the dancers noted, "I"m 29 years old. Should I know who he is?"

Well, a lot of people do know about Jones, and for all the wrong reasons. Pacman, after all, is the infamous former NFL star known for three things: playing football, playing with fire -- or, more accurately, the law -- and "makin' it rain," the latter referring to Jones' penchant for taking thousands of U.S. dollar bills to strip clubs and letting them fall from the sky.

On one such occasion, bullets eventually flew, too, as a man alleged to be in Jones' entourage pulled out a gun and started firing. One man was left paralyzed from the waist down.

Jones was suspended by the NFL for a year, then signed last season with the Dallas Cowboys, who subsequently suspended him for six games after the defensive back/kick returner got into a scuffle with a security officer hired by the Cowboys to be Jones' minder. In all, Jones has reportedly been arrested six times for various and sundry offences. He's not what you'd call a community member in good standing.

How toxic is Pacman? Well, there alan 18-year-old man.

We're not saying what's right or what's wrong. We're just saying what happened.

If the Bombers, under head coach Mike Kelly, who had nothing to do with the aforementioned players, want to risk signing Jones and giving him an umpteenth chance, they will have to live with the consequences -- for better or worse. They will not be the only team to do so, now and in the future.

This is professional football, folks. There are a few saints, a few felons, and a lot of men somewhere in between. Jones is clearly a problem child, but the Bombers really, really need a return guy. You do the moral math.

So maybe Jones will land in Winnipeg, maybe he won't. It was hard to tell with the gong show on Maroons Road Tuesday. Here's the Cole's Notes version: Bombers player personnel director John Murphy blabs to SI.com about signing Jones, only to have president and CEO Lyle Bauer denying the signing. Naturally, the media swarms Bombers headquarters, where the club trots out director of football operations Ross Hodgkinson, who flatly refuses to talk about Jones and then warns the TV crews and scribblers not to ask Kelly specifically about Jones because it's team (and league policy) not to discuss such negotiations.

Oh, really? Maybe they should have mentioned that to Murphy before he talked to that little publication... what's it called again? Oh, yeah, S-P-O-R-T-S I-L-L-U-S-T-R-A-T-E-D!!

Whatever. Murphy got his 15 minutes in the U.S. spotlight for signing a football player no one in the NFL wanted to touch. Congratulations. How's that database with thousands of players on it coming?

But at least Ms. Skolnik is encouraged at the rumours of Pacman's arrival. After all, the current crew of Bombers, she says, are strangers to her establishment.

"They used to be in here a few years ago," Skolnik said, "but I don't see them and I've danced for years. I think they're trying to be well-behaved and not in these types of clubs."

Ah, but if only it would rain.

"Tell him," Skolnik playfully pleaded, "I have twins coming in this week."

Show times are 10 p.m. and 12:30 a.m. The VIP room awaits.

randy.turner@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition September 2, 2009 C1

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17 Commentscomment icon

FYI i've seen a lot big names at Sin City people would be shocked! It is what it is we all need entertainment and unfortunatley this is Winnipeg where we do have the trashiest entertainment LOL!

this is a trashy article and s city too is for making their self look just as trashy.

"This article is worthy of the Sun, I expected a bit better. I'm not in agreement with the move, but an article on the effect it may have on local strip clubs? This is trash."

I agree! Of course, it's common knowledge that "adult entertainers", are very much like trash, garbage, rubbish; Once used then thrown away!







Yeah... really guys. Your readers read this paper to get away from this kind of reporting. This is not a tabloid. Randy, this article should not have been written. This is narrow minded stuff and didn't expect to see it coming out of this paper. I know you guys are feuding with the football club at the moment... but printing an article like this makes you guys look as classy as Mike Tyson.... and it makes Mike Kelly look like Steve Yzerman. So the coach wont talk to you.... take the high road. [Edited]

I agree with you JayR...your comment says more than the whole article that was written.

The press is going to be ALL over this guy if indeed he comes to Winnipeg and his every move will be scrutinized..on and off the field.

This article hits a low point in journalism and I think people would rather hear what this can do for the team and fans rather than heading to the strip club, having a few beer and writing something.

How interesting it is that the Sun had pretty much the same article printed. These guys must have been out together last night..

To Randy Turner: Please write better articles...the classic is coming in 4 days and there is barely anything written about it.

I think you guys are missing a bigger picture, and one that IS a story: The Bombers say things yet do another thing. While the focus WILL be on the Classic this Sunday, the Bombers do themselves no favours by bungling everything they do (see Derrick Armstrong) and cause things to be a circus. Pac Man is a story because at the start of the year they cut Armstead because of his off season brush with the law - yet Mr. Jones is hardly a choir boy himself and they bring him in.

Player Personnel guy John Murphy yaps to SI.com about signing Pac Man, then yesterday the team denies everything about it, and that the media cannot even bring it up. Are these guys in high school and can't handle some tough questions? Questions that would only be asked because of said article on SI.com and Murphy's quotes making it 100% sure he signed him.

While I agree this article might have been a little tabloidesque, keep in mind the Bombers brought this on themselves, especially with Coach Kelly continuing his arrogance and disdain towards the media and anyone trying to simply report the facts that are out there.

This is such a bad article and yes, it is Sun material...I expect more for the Free Press and whole article is not worthy.

I am disappointed this made it to print!

Randy Turner's article is a perfect example of how the FP Sports Dep't becoming a joke! Here's a thought, maybe start covering the Labour Day Classic! [Edited: personal attack] I used to be a fan of Turner, Lawless, Tait etc. But after the three days of coverage on Kelly's refusal to accept call-ins, to the Pacman craze of the past few days, it is clear that the FP is more concerned with the sideshow, the controversy and the like. Maybe when you start covering the team again i'll read your paper. Untill then, good riddance.

I guess Randy Turner has led the perfect life...I mean totally perfect..never in any trouble...perfect job...perfect family...perfect everything....it must be wonderful to be so perfect....I guess it's the rest of us. The 99.9 percent of us that have had a life of ups and downs.

People remember, its like life. How many CEOs or top investment bankers have done some very bad things and keep their job while the guy in the mailroom gets a DUI and gets canned. The more important you are the longer leash you have, its just that simple.

Having said that, the longer the leash the easier it is to choke yourself....which is why he is here in the first place.

In the end he plays this right he is back in the NFL in 4 months so id bet he will be on his best behavoir and will be an impact player on the field...

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