Innovation in the Restroom

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Needless to say, when you visit as many different clubs as I do you’ll see some pretty unique things. One thing that lets the innovation go wild is the restroom. That’s not unique to clubs, of course: if you’ve been in a Bass Pro Shop you may have seen their men’s and women’s rooms labeled “bucks” and “does” (that’s the plural of doe, not the singular of do ). A regional sports restaurant called Roosters has their restrooms tagged “chicks” and “roosters.” In the clubs you’re likely to see anything from boring, bland walls (that have been marked up with graffiti) to posters for the upcoming shows to other innovative artwork. Previously one of the most unique things I had seen was at Zanzabar’s here in Louisville. Their men’s and women’s restroom doors were marked by Travis Bickell and Iris Steensma (the characters of Robert DeNiro and Jodie Foster, respectively, in Taxi Driver). That was one-upped last night in Knoxville. When I went into the ladies’ room I found myself face to face with Janis Joplin. As you can see in the picture, they cleverly painted Joplin’s face on the wall so that her “glasses” were the mirrors over the handbowl. Very cool. I wonder what the men’s room looked like.