LOS ANGELES—AVN Hall of Fame performer Mary Carey will retire from feature dancing after headlining one final time this weekend at Larry Flynt’s Hustler Club in Las Vegas.
In what is doubling as a three-day retirement and bachelorette party, Carey will take the stage for her farewell shows this Thursday through Saturday night with two performances nightly at midnight and 2 a.m.
“It’s very difficult for me,” admits Carey, who rocketed to crossover stardom in 2003 as a candidate for governor of California during the historic recall election. She placed 10th in a field of 135. “Dancing was how I got into porn. I started off as a stripper when I was 19.”
Carey remembers seeing feature dancers come to her home club every weekend and wanting to be like them someday. Then she found out that most of the features made their names in porn before going on the road.
“Featuring has always been my favorite thing,” Carey says. “I love dancing. I love performing.”
Carey juggled a porn career with appearances on reality TV shows such as “Celebrity Rehab” and “Sober House” and various roles in late-night cable movies while at the same time becoming one of the most prolific feature dancers in the world.
The last time she did a porn scene was a girl/girl in 2009; her last boy/girl was in 2007 with Nick Manning. Still, she amassed more than 120 credits in a porn career that started in 2002 and included exclusive contracts with Kick Ass Pictures—the company that masterminded her gubernatorial campaign—and Legend Video.
However her 17-plus years traveling the country as a feature, combined with her years as a ballet dancer, have taken their toll on her body. Among the knee injuries she carries with her on stage are a torn meniscus, tendinitis and arthritis.
She says one of the main reasons she’s going to hang up her stilettos is she would like start a family.
“That’s the big thing,” Carey says. “I’ve always wanted to have kids.”
She also plans to get married on July 7th—her third marriage—in Cuba.
“This is the first time I’ll get naked for only one person since I was 19,” Carey jokes. “Now I’m going to be a doctor’s wife trying to do other stuff.”
Among her other projects are completing an autobiographical book that she’s been working on for years and pursuing comedic endeavors. She says she would consider continuing to do sexy photoshoots and occasional mainstream acting.
Meanwhile, Carey says Hustler’s Deja Vu clubs have always been her favorites on the dance circuit.
“They treat you so well. I love how professional they are. I love everything about doing their clubs,” Carey says. “Every December I do Baltimore; every February I do St. Louis. … I’ve already been to most of them.”
Carey, who has a remarkable memory for when and where she has featured, tells AVN she did the Vegas Hustler Club in December 2012 with Jesse Jane and Lacey Rain and then again in January 2014 with Nikki Benz and Rubberdoll. She returned to the club last August for the Exotic Dancer convention, doing an appearance with Teagan Presley, Kaylani Lei and Daisy Marie.
“This will be my fourth time at Hustler Club Vegas,” says Carey, whose dance agency is A-List Features.
Aside from once being held at gunpoint at a club and also being arrested for touching her boobs and sticking a DVD in her ass, Carey says she’s otherwise never had a bad experience.
“I just love the adult industry so much,” she says.
The Hustler Club Vegas is located at 6007 Dean Martin Dr., Las Vegas 89118. For reservations or a free ride, call 702.795.3131.
