Rentboy.com

Rentboy.com was a commercial social networking site which connected male sex workers and masseurs with potential clients. Rentboy.com was also the major organizer of the International Escort Awards and a traveling cabaret called "Hustlaball."

rentboy.com
LaunchedJanuary 18, 1996 (1996-01-18)[1]
Current statusNot operational
Hustlaball in KitKatClub, Berlin

Formerly, Rentboy.com published a manifesto on their website intended for sex workers and clients. This statement promoted a philosophy of "safer sex because the vast majority of sex-workers will not engage in unsafe sex," and stated, "while this job may not be for everyone, it has its rightful place among honorable careers."[2] On August 25, 2015, CEO Jeffrey Hurant and six others were arrested at Rentboy.com headquarters.

Company profile

Rentboy.com was started by Jeffrey Hurant in 1997, making it the first male escorting website.[3] From its founding, Davids served as CEO, and Sean Van Sant served as company director. The company was headquartered in Manhattan.[4] Rentboy.com is described by Van Sant as follows:

Rentboy.com is not an escort agency. We are an ad listing service for male escorts, where men place their own ads and work for themselves, so that clients can contact them directly. Our mission is to create a non-judgmental space where anyone curious about exploring male-male companionship can hire a man by the hour.[5]

As of June 2009, rentboy.com employed 10 people in three offices and hosted 40,000 escort profiles.[6] In 2009, 1.4 million clients visited the website.[7]

On August 25, 2015, Federal agents from the Department of Homeland Security and members of the New York Police Department raided Rentboy.com's headquarters.[8]

Sponsorships

Rentboy.com sponsored its own float every year in the New York City Gay Pride March.[9]

International Escort Awards

The International Escort Awards, also known as the "Hookies," were founded by rentboy.com's Jeff Davids and Sean Van Sant.[10] The first ceremony was held at the Roxy in New York City in October 2006.[11]

Hustlaball

Hustlaball was a sex cabaret and dance party organized in part by rentboy.com[12] as a party to destigmatize and honor sex workers.[7] Starting in 2007, Rentboy.com hosted Hustlaball three times yearly with a Las Vegas show in January, a London show in May, and a Berlin show in October.[9] Part of the proceeds from this event go to charities such as the Lambeth Hate Crime Initiative, the Terrence Higgins Trust, and the Gay Men's Health Crisis.[13][14]

History

Founder Davids said of Hustlaball, "This is a chance for sex workers to be open and proud of what they do."[15]

Summary of Hustlaball Events
year location venue publicized attendees notes
1998 Midtown Manhattan, New York City Stella's Nightclub founding of event[7]
1999 New York City Lure Nightclub [16]
2000 San Francisco, Chicago Pleasuredome, San Francisco [16]
2001 New York City changed name from "Hustler Ball" to "Hustlaball" because of a lawsuit initiated by Larry Flynt due to similarity of name to Hustler Magazine[7][16]
2002 New York City, West Hollywood (Los Angeles) Factory nightclub, Los Angeles Christopher Ciccone [16]
2003 Berlin KitKatClub, Berlin first time outside US[16] Hustlaball in Berlin
2004 Berlin KitKatClub, Berlin attendance doubled from previous year[16] Hustlaball in Berlin
2005 Berlin, Las Vegas KitKatClub, Berlin Gioia Bruno, Chi Chi LaRue, Lady Bunny, Matthew Rush, Jeff Stryker, Michael Lucas held in conjunction with AVN Award Ceremony[16] Hustlaball in Berlin
2006 Berlin, Las Vegas KitKatClub, Berlin Ari Gold, Marc Almond show professionally video recorded and released[16] Hustlaball in Berlin
2007 Berlin, New York City, Las Vegas KitKatClub, Berlin Britney Spears [16] Hustlaball in Berlin
2008 Berlin, London, Las Vegas KitKatClub, Berlin Willam Belli, Jonny McGovern [16] Hustlaball in Berlin
2009 Berlin, London, New York City The Old Mint (Münze), Berlin [16] Hustlaball in Berlin
2010 Berlin KitKatClub, Berlin Hustlaball in Berlin
2011 Berlin KitKatClub, Berlin Hustlaball in Berlin
2014 Berlin, New York City, Las Vegas KitKatClub, Berlin
2015 Berlin, New York City, Las Vegas KitKatClub, Berlin Britney Spears
2016 Berlin, Las Vegas KitKatClub, Berlin

Federal and state investigation

On August 25, 2015, DHS and NYPD agents raided the Manhattan headquarters of Rentboy.com as part of a money laundering and state prostitution investigation. Seven people, including CEO Jeffrey Davids, were arrested.[8] "As alleged, Rentboy.com attempted to present a veneer of legality, when in fact this Internet brothel made millions of dollars from the promotion of illegal prostitution," acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Kelly Currie said in a statement. DHS was involved in the raid in part because the investigation involved transferring money across state lines. The seven defendants are charged with conspiring to violate the Travel Act by promoting prostitution.[17]

On October 7, 2016, Hurant pleaded guilty in federal court of promoting prostitution. In August 2017 Hurant was sentenced to 6 months in federal prison.[18] While the case had prompted allegations of anti-gay bias, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement stated that "any insinuation that a specific population was targeted is categorically false."[19]

See also

References
  1. "Home". Reports.internic.net. Retrieved 2016-11-21.
  2. "RentBoy.com Manifesto". 2010-03-23. Archived from the original on 2010-04-25. Retrieved 2010-05-04.
  3. "Jeff Davids and Sean Van Sant". Out. Here Media Inc. 2010.
  4. Pompeo, Joe (2009-01-27). "The Hipster Rent Boys Of New York". The New York Observer.
  5. Van Sant, Sean (2010-05-08). "Rentboy.com Statement About this Week's Events". rentboy.com. rentboy.com. Retrieved 2010-05-10.
  6. Weinstein, Steve (2009-06-24). "The Queer Issue: The Rise of Rentboys". The Village Voice.
  7. Solomon, Benjamin (2000). "Pimp my Party". NEXT. RND Publications. 2009 (October): 24.
  8. Dienst, Jonathan. "Feds Take Down Rentboy.com, 'World's Largest Male Escort Site,' in Manhattan; 7 Arrested". WNBC-TV. 2015 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. Retrieved 25 August 2015.
  9. "Promoter Spotlight:Tom Weise". Noizemag. Noize Magazine, LLC. 2007 (August): 42–44. 2007.
  10. "Gay Escorts Are Heroes, Saving The Globe From an International Recession (and Boredom)". Queerty.com. 2010-03-23. Retrieved 2010-05-04.
  11. Weise, Tom. "LOOKING BACK 10 Years of Rentboy.com". Just Us Boys. JUB Media, Ltd. 2007 (May).
  12. "Hustlaball Press Kit". hustlaball.com. Archived from the original on 2010-04-27. Retrieved 2010-05-04.
  13. "HUSTLABALL – Charities & Benefits". hustlaball.com. Retrieved 2010-05-04.
  14. "FEELITOUT". NEXT. RND Publications. 2008 (October): 24. 2008.
  15. Greenfield, Beth (2008). "journal article". Time Out. 2008 (October 9).
  16. "Hustlaball Hall of Fame" (Press release). Rentboy.com. 2009. Retrieved 2010-05-29.
  17. "US_v_Hurant_et_al_Rentboy_complaint_18aug2015". iwpchi.wordpress.com. Independent Workers Party of Chicago. 18 August 2015. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
  18. "Owner of Rentboy.com Is Sentenced to 6 Months in Prison - The New York Times". The New York Times. 2017-08-02. Retrieved 2022-08-05.
  19. "Rentboy.com CEO pleads guilty to promoting prostitution". Retrieved 2016-10-07.
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