D.J. Spotlight: Tony Batman

February 5, 2015| By Ron Sparkman

Few people in this industry require no introduction. I think we can all agree that Tony Batman is one of those guys. As the “nation’s M.C.”, there’s nowhere that Tony won’t go to put his skills to good use. From coast-to-coast, he’s at the top of everyone’s short list when they go to make a call for a show host. As the winner of the coveted D.J. of the Year award at the E.D. show, Tony gave a rousing speech to all in attendance about his love for what he does…as he is known to do. So how did this great master of ceremonies get his start? Humble beginnings…

Tony was working for the State of Florida as a prison camp correctional counselor for 9 years when his little sister gave him a call with an opportunity. Freshly 18 years old, she was convinced by an exotic dancer to give dancing a try. After a month of  working at the club, the D.J. walked out and she let her manager know that her brother had been a D.J. in high school. He agreed to cover the shifts at this small club, Temptations, at least until they could find a more permanent solution. At least, that was the plan. But as many of us know, when you first start, and you’re first allowed to drink and flirt with pretty girls, you’ll find yourself wanting to stick around a little longer. And, as he says, “It totally worked”. Before too long, he was working 4 nights a week and making double the money at his night job that he was at his college-degree-required day job.  The bug had bitten. He stayed on there until the owners opened up a new spot called “Showgirls” and asked him to take that on as well. Taking this as a sign, he gave up his day job and became a D.J. full time. Just like that, Tony Batman was born.

A year later, he found himself at the Tampa Deja Vu, where he spent 4 years. Then, the big moment came: He  was asked to emcee his first big event on a porn cruise with a strip club on the boat! He recalls it as a truly eye opening experience.  Thinking to himself that he could take this D.J. thing on the road, he jumped at the chance to host anything with meaning. He started building a resume’ by emceeing Nightmoves Adult Entertainment Awards, any big party or event,  and working the mic for the world famous Jenna Jameson a few times. Tony’s known to be well liked. And when Jenna Jameson likes you, that changes things. It gave him the traveling emcee cred he needed and it wasn’t on long before Deja Vu was calling, asking him to go to New York for the grand opening of a new club. “Blondage” featuring Julia Ann and Janine came through town and he got the chance to be the hype man for the duo act.  On the very first night of the Deja Vu opening, Howard Stern and his crew were scheduled to come in and be a part of the grand opening festivities. However, Howard couldn’t make it. He sent Baba Booey in his place and with that, Tony found himself in the limelight with a ton of great press.

Next, he was asked to go to New Orleans to do the same thing for the new Hustler Club on Bourbon Street. He, Jason Mahoney, and Jimmy Flynt rocked it for the entire first week and that only garnered him a stronger reputation throughout the industry. It came at no surprise when the superstar M.C. married a porn star and toured the country for 3 years, working 60 different strip clubs! Following that he picked up the Exotic Dance Pageants and he found more and more agents who wanted him for their own showcases. E.D. brought him on to do their showcases and that inspired him to finally make the move to Los Angeles where he got his very first adult on-air show with KSEX Radio. Currently, Tony has contracts with Skindustry Contests, the Miss PoleChamp series, and the Exotic Dancer Invitationals to emcee all their events throughout the year. In addition, he’s the host of the Tony Batman Talk show weekly on the PlanetPlatypus.com Network. He’s also the owner of A! Entertainment News along with Planet Platypus.

Like most D.J.s, Tony knew the second day on the job that he wanted to do it for a career. “The bug”, as I mentioned earlier. And thanks to several Tampa Strip Club D.J.s like Bo, Jimmy Jam, D.J. Ice and others, he was able to follow that dream. He’s thankful to Exotic Nites Magazine for giving him his first shot outside the booth. Credit also goes to the Deja Vu/Hustler Club owners for trusting him enough to travel the country with their brand. Nightmoves was also instrumental to the Tony Batman brand as we know it today.

I asked Tony to share some of his trademark wisdom with upcoming P.A.N.D.A.’s. He was more than happy to oblige. Tony says,  “Stay steady and try to remember that the grass is not always greener on the other side of the fence. Make the best of your opportunities and try to keep a friendly but professional relationship with the dancers you work with.  Most of all, the thing I really would have done different was save the cash I made in hand on a daily basis for that rainy day that ultimately visits all of us. I started with a broken home and nothing at the beginning, It has been proven positive that if you put your mind to work you can accomplish just about anything you want.  It is my opinion that in any business or life project, you have to sort of bend with the flow of your results, not many things turn out as you picture them from the start, and many things that you never thought would succeed, sometimes happen on their own.  TonyBatman.com started as a blog chronicling my pornstar ex-wife and I making it up through the ranks in the Adult Industry in Los Angeles. It began because no major news outlets would print our press or events. From there the A! Entertainment Show was born and I started doing radio again at KSEX Radio in LA. They asked me to start posting the happenings of all the porn star hosts, and it grew into the A! Entertainment brand you all know today, an adult industry top 5 news site. I stopped doing the radio show when I returned to the East Coast to take care of my Mother who passed away a handful of years ago now. I was in Tampa when the Planet Platypus Network started, I was asked to be a partner, accepted and moved to South Florida 2 years ago at the end of this year… Sometimes you can not actually see the good things that are waiting to happen to you, sometimes you just have to be open and ready for the opportunity when it comes knocking.”

When it comes to crazy stories, Tony has got one for every occasion. Tony submits that he has more than most but would rather people know how lucky he feels to have been on the mic at such huge institutions of the music industry like the Sunset Strip. There, he worked the Whiskey Go-Go and the Roxy, as well the Playboy Mansion, which gets his vote for the greatest gig he’s had the pleasure of hosting. His favorite annual gig is the Nudes a Poppin Festival weekend. He invites any and everyone to join him on his adventures across the country. Since the first time I met this man, he’s been there to help me become a better professional and a better person. Make sure to check out his website for tour dates, podcasts and more at www.tonybatman.com. As always, thanks for reading!

Cheers,

D.J. Ron James