Maybe it was just a quiet Monday

Fred’s Lounge is located among a collection of buildings and gas pumps for truckers and travelers about 8 miles west of Missoula on the freeway. It sells liquor as you enter and has a dozen or so video poker and keno games. I expected more of a roadhouse atmosphere with a noisy crowd and busy dancers but it was kind of dead. Maybe because it was a Monday.

It seemed like a friendly place and several customers seemed to be on a first name basis with the staff and dancers.

The dancers ranged from 5s to 8s and about seven were working in the early evening. One dancer I waited to see but had to finally leave was a lookalike for a young Natalie Wood. Dancers have a long stage and show a little enthusiasm when you tip them. Only a few patrons were there to watch. A dancer sat and chatted with a regular but they usually disappeared in the dressing room rather than smiling and visiting with patrons. So I didn’t ask about private dances, and they didn’t offer while they were dancing.