"From Jeans to Black Suits; an Insider's Perspective on the Nighttime economy".

New York City is known as the city that never sleeps and night clubs are the popular venues which give the city's its deserved reputation exciting social settings and hedonistic enjoyment. Unfortunately, binge and underage drinking, disorderly conduct, and violence are often part of this nightlife culture establishments which can create unwanted levels of danger and risk for patrons and security alike. Although this nightlife culture is endlessly written about in the popular media, there is limited academic research on the nightlife and in particular almost nothing on the culture of bouncers either in New York City or elsewhere in the United States. In this paper I describe and analyze the primary roles of bouncers as they enforce rules and regulations within three of the city's most popular nightclub establishments located in the Bronx and in Manhattan. Employing a cross-sectional study of 15 interviews with bouncers and ancillary staff plus participant observations over a seven month period I show how the structure relates to the night club culture and the problems and contradictions faced by the local political establishment as it tries to regulate an industry built on excess and transgression. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]