November 12, 1997

PUBLICITY RUBS SOME THERAPISTS WRONG WAY

`RUB CLUBS' IN HOT DEMAND

By RICHARD ROIK -- Ottawa Sun
A local massage parlor operator says more Ottawa men are openly seeking out "rub clubs" since Ontario went topless this summer.
"It's just lately it's gotten crazy," said Anna Czapnik, owner of Back to Nature on York St. "Men call and ask if we go topless, what size are we, or what do we look like.
"I never had that problem before," Czapnik added. "It's really bad. I didn't study to be asked those questions."
A regional police spokesman said he had no statistics on how many of the so-called "rub clubs" might be operating underground locally. But interest in the illicit sex shops has been piqued with allegations this week that regional police Deputy Chief Alex Mackie was frequenting a massage parlor run by people with alleged links to motorcycle gangs.
1