Contrary to popular opinion, Brooks did not win last year's election based on her tits. She won because of her position on a central issue in the Western states - development.

While her opponents, organized into a group called "Historic Georgetown, Incorporated," have advocated prettying up the village of Georgetown into a Victorian quasi-theme park, Brooks, who now operates area beauty salons, has advocated bringing in real, meat-and-potatoes businesses in a last-ditch attempt to save this slowly dying former mining town.

Venus in Furs

Ms. Brooks has stood up to the poisonous ire faced by anyone who challenges the status quo in a small town. After showing up, terrified, at the local police station, she currently faces charges of falsifying evidence and filing false charges of assault by these same opponents. What's more, these opponents are the ones who brought Brooks' stripper past to the national consciousness.

After facing these charges, accusations about "loose morals," and admitting occasionally smoking pot, Ms. Brooks lost a recall election on April 2nd. But if she hadn't angered the advocates of twee carriage rides and gingerbread houses, we would not know about her magnificent mounds today. And that's why she's so adequate and controversial - she proves that even a stripper can have a brain, an agenda, and a plan.

All in all, Koleen Brooks is an ex-mayor for today's "postmodern age," turning failure into a stunning success. As I interviewed her by telephone, her assistant and friend Kerry Ann chimed in from time to time.

Perdida: What would you say is the role of a good mayor?

Koleen Brooks: I think the role of a good mayor is being a people person and getting people educated on whats going on in the government..making the community come together, knowing the politics and I think the mayor should represent the people.

P:were you a good mayor?

KB: We got a lot accomplished, with all the controversy and everything. I wanted to put Georgetown on the map. I got 180 ppl registered to vote, got the kids aware of what was going on, made the kids feel very important...The little kids from the grade school up to 6th grade. I want to do a community center, skateboarding. Our kids dont have anything to do and we need to work on our youth right now.

P: Would you consider an adult-oriented business in town ? Why or why not?

KB: I tried to get the hotel in, but nobody was telling me the truth. I had a developer and basically that didnt go through because Historic Georgetown, Incorporated wouldnt let us build it...I did all sorts of charity work for the kids, trying to get a biker convention, old antique cars coming in. No nudity oriented businesses in georgetown, thats not what I want to bring in..I will do a feature at Shotgun Willie's and set up a fund for women who do go to school.. and retirement fund for dancers.. That is actually in the works.

P: Who are your enemies, such as Georgetown Police Officer Dillard, and Historic Georgetown, Incorporated (HGI), and why are they so opoosed to you and your plans?

KB: The real issues came out in this campaign. That's why - they're the same enemies I had before I got elected. It's all good - I go thru town like I always have, people put their heads down and that's OK. Those are the people I knew were against me.

P: What happened between you and the town hall employees?

KB: The administrator could have made me the best mayor. He got in 3 months before I got elected. He went against me with the old guard because he doesnt care who he works for. My clerk, Phyllis, should have been helping me instead of making me go around in circles. I'm the head of the police department, according to the town's 1868 charter. I had a cop, Officer Dillard campaigning against me the whole 9 months that I was campaining. I got in office and said "lets let bygones be bygones." He said, "you are not my boss, we'll get you somehow."

Whatever. It's been a conspiracy the whole time with town hall, saying I am hard to work with, I was asking pointed questions and they were the ones that made this. I never went into town hall half the time, they were so mean!

P:So, it was basically the forces of conservatism, with regards to some local business people and the town hall resistant to change?

KB: That's what I ran on, change, just bringing people into town, making georgetown prosperous. We have 10 empty stores right now - we're dying! They {HGI} wanna select the people who come in, what kind of businesses they have and who they are. And if they make it impossible for anybody to start up a business, we've gotta do a "how can we help you" government instead of a "no you cant."

P Would you say that the skills of an adult entertainer and a mayor are similar?

KB: When I used to dance fifteen years ago, everybody talked about government, issues, the war... It's a pretty good background. I was a businesswoman before being mayor, I opened 5 hair salons. I had a goal. I was a single mother, I never went on aid. what I can bring is knowing the people and knowing the issues -- instead of {political opponents} slinging mud at me and getting me charged with all this stuff. There was no facts, it's all been dropped.

P: How does the Playboy shoot affect your trial and your planned 2003 mayoral run?

It's not going to have any impact. The people who are voting know the real issues and thats what they are gonna go on. If they want to be down on me for who I am and my life or whatever, I'm 37 years old. That Playboy shoot was a dream come true for me! I didn't do it while I was in office. Hustler asked me, Penthouse, Howard Stern. I held everything till I was out of office. I focused on being mayor, not that other stuff. And then Playboy called when they heard I lost {the recall election}, and thats when I did playboy. I did playboy 14 hours after they swore in the new mayor. I was in the air and I thought it was great. It boosted my ego. I know what I have to do and where I'm good at it, I'm not gonna go downhill, "strippers and all that," but they are good people. They do have a bad reputation.

P: Tell us more about the aid to adult entertainers.

KB: That was what I wanted to focus on, is that kind of charity fundraising. There are people who go to school and need some help. Strippers who do this for 14 years don't have any retirement or backup and I'd like to help them be a little bit more professional, using stripping as getting somewhere, fulfilling dreams so they can go to school in the daytime.

Kerry Ann, KB's friend and assistant: She was going to originally do charity at shotgun willie's, but one of the guys she originally danced for there, Troy, has 3 other places down in denver and he has offered 10K for her charity if she were to do a charity, be a feature, sign autographs.

P: Would you consider yourslef a role model?

KB: Of course!

P: More as a mayor, a businesswoman, or an adult entertainer?

KB: All 3 of them. But 'm not in office now, I can get back to being me now.

KA:: The genre she is most popular with now is the 16 to 25 year olds. She's been a role model to them in a way so that everybody is saying, "we can get involved with politics. She is a real person, she did it, so why can't we?"

KB: It doesn't matter who you are, if you're an electrician, an average person. The people who are in power - one came to town, he deep-fried hamburgers. Another one came to town, cleaned toilets. They all started out the same way and got together and got to higher places in Georgetown. But what they are doing is depressing Georgetown rather than helping it. HGI is buying up a lot of our prime real estate and the taxpayers pay for that. It's going to be a retirement community with other sources of income. People cannot afford to pay these taxes. HGI is buying up land for the purpose of restoring the Victorian house community for the Victorian tours.
Even when you come into town - the sign says it's "historic Georgetown." But it's a mining town! We have to get back to our real history. It would be great if HGI did functions and things for us. They own the park and they only do one thing, the Christmas market, there. They could be doing all kinds of stuff - having music in the summertime, art shows, but they have the final say. Their museum - the y only open it up for their own members. They have all this property and we're not benefiting from it. They are buying up our prime real estate and killing Georgetown. We need to be prosperous. You go to the town hall and try to get started, they choose if it's the right kind of business. We're dying. We have all these empty spaces and that's what HGI has been working for for the last 30 yrs. It wasn't just me - during the election, the whole town came together, the "old guard." I'm the "new guard" - young people are starting to come to me and be on my side and stuff, too. It's all going really good but the people who did help me are being blackballed, blacklisted with their businesses and stuff. HGI told them they are blacklisted, anybody who did anything and was a part of my campaign and supported me. They are telling people to boycott us. I'm like, "Oh my god, I've done this to everybody, they are having a hard time. But we have more people coming in to {a local restaurant} and I come in there, I sign autographs, I get stickers, it's my bar. I keep a good head about everybody.

P: So you've become a successful draw for tourism in yourself as a person?

Super Furry Animal

KB: I worked for this. I wanted to put Georgetown on the map... My opponents were getting caught in all the drama they put me through. It's crazy. They are slandering me and going on my lifestyle instead of the issues. but the real issues are coming out. It's not me, we have a great group that is working with us and these people do understand what is going on. Dexter {the guy who accused her of flashing patrons in his bar} left town {recently}. They said I was gonna leave but I'm not leaving, Dexter is. He didn't vote for me, got everyone in town against me and he left yesterday. They kept telling everyone during recall election that I'm stirring up all this shit and I'm gonna leave, and I lost a lot of supporters that way. I've lost almost 30 pounds, my friends seen all the stress I've gone through, and they didn't want to see me go through it. They are my friends but went on the other side with all the commotion.

P: How is your son dealing with it?

KB: He's doing great, one thing that was missing during the 1st campaign was my son. But he did come here for 2 weeks and work on the recall. my son supports me 100 percent. we grew up together. He's right behind me. He was my bodyguard after everything.

I love Georgetown and everything but I really gotta watch my back, I don't feel safe here, death threats and everything, I don't feel comfortable, I am trying to run around town and stuff but I have to call everybody when I'm going home..

KA: I give her my dog.

P: Would you consider yourself a feminist?

KB: No.

P: Why not?

KB: I''m just me. That's why I ran for mayor. I knew the people from when I grew up, and I am so glad. I knew when I got elected that they were gonna recall me in 6 months. and I knew it wasn't gonna be easy but theres nothing i could do.

P: why did you get into dancing when you wanted to make money?

KB: a lot of dancers don't have any education. they are trying to get their education by dancing and its good money. They go in to strip because they need to make a living for themselves. they are great, a lot of great women, doing their day jobs and then come and dance 8 hours. its very hard work.

P: does anyone do it as an art, a career?

KB: of course, there's people who have been there for 14 years, they do know that they'll make money and stick with it, but what happens after you leave that you don't have anything. basically they cant stop doing it.

P: What's good to do in Georgetown?

KB: Come into town, we have wonderful restaurants, historic mining tours, a railroad train, we have a lot of good things to get the people in here. We have the businesses and people need to support us!