Although Joplin's new nightclub, Coyote Ugly's, is not affiliated with the recent motion picture starring Tyra Banks, it is a local attempt to capture the rawness of a biker bar.

"The whole idea of the Ugly's part was before the film," said co-owner Dan Vanderpool. "Bud Ugly's was actually going to be the name of it and the film came out so we grabbed Coyote and ran with it.

Located on the corner of 5th and Joplin Street, Coyote Ugly's is another rock-and-roll format establishment that opened two weeks ago. Prior to its inception, it was a country bar called Thunder Ridge, but Vanderpool did not get the business he expected. Paul Zimmerman and Danny Graves are Vanderpool's partners in this new project whose past endeavors include Club Miami and Jukebox Saturday Nights.

"Country is a dying market," he said. "We tried Guitars and Cadillacs which is now Club Miami and we moved it to a smaller venue with less overhead, but it still didn't work."

Uglys features live music Wednesday through Saturday, with local bands during the week and regional bands on the weekend. Last weekend featured a metal-rock band from Arkansas called April's Fools, who played a wide variety of covers including Kiss, Led Zeppelin, Guns 'N Roses, and Metallica.

"It's more for people that are into classic rock and roll," said Vanderpool. "More the blue collar crowd that are not into khakis, polo shirts, and Volvos."

Wednesday and Thursday nights are theme nights at Ugly's. Wednesday night is dubbed "bitch night" which has been advertised as "free draw beer and well drinks for squatters only."

"It's funny how everybody calls it ladies night, but after all the customers are gone all the employees call it bitch night."

The following evening has been dedicated to Harley Davidson enthusiasts.

"Thursday night we have what's called Thursday Night Thunder which is more or less biker night," Vanderpool said. "You ride your Harley, you get in for free, rice burners pay double."

The employees at Ugly's are also not your typical servers.

"It's all female staff except for security," he said. "The girls do some dances on the rails and on the stage."

All the female staff have unique, working names. Crystal Hudkins, whose stage name is Raven, is one of the new employees at Uglys. She works as a waitress, door attendant, and "trough girl."

"A trough girl is a girl that stands behind a trough of beer and sells it to people as they walk by," Hudkins said. "We also dance on top of the trough."

Hudkins believes the bar could be successful with the right kind of promotion.

"I think that if they can draw in the right kind of crowd that they're aiming for that it will survive," she said. "But I think that they need to do a lot more advertising out of the area."

Part of the club's philosophy is that the employees are required to be rude to the customers. Déjà Vu is another waitress at Ugly's who follows this policy.

"It's where the women can be a bitch and get away with it and the guys can come and have a good time," she said.

Vanderpool said that in the future, he may bring in local, modern rock bands from the Joplin area such as Lucid, So Far Gone, and Last Call.

"It's a consideration,' he said. "We're going to try these other things and it's a backup."

Vanderpool and associates also opened a dance club next to Ugly's called The Kage. It is an all-ages place that is open on Fridays and Saturdays until 5 a.m.

"We don't call it a teen club because we do an after-hours party," Vanderpool said. "We hand out V.I.P. passes for $2 off the $5 cover charge at the other clubs when they close and we get a pretty good crowd at 2 a.m."

The Kage is open from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. for ages 14 and up, and after 1 p.m. for ages 17 and up. The music ranges from pop, dance, and techno to rock.

"It's really the same music we spin at Club Miami but no slow songs," he said.

The décor is different than Ugly's with a more modern feel.

"We spent a lot of time on it," Vanderpool said. "It's got graffiti all over the walls and the artwork was done by Doug Patterson of Pittsburg and Brian Flock of Joplin."

Hudkins said she enjoys her new job and expects success for the new clubs in the future.

"It's a fun place to work," she said. "If they can actually pull off the things they want to pull off they can be good clubs."

Published by The Chart on -00.