[1] Billy's Topless, was first located at 22nd street and Sixth Ave. and moved in 1970 to 727 Sixth Avenue (Avenue of the Americas) and 24th Street in Manhattan's Chelsea neighborhood in New York City,[2] was a small topless bar, more closely resembling a neighborhood bar than a strip club in both size and atmosphere; one writer described it as "no more illicit than if we had decided to go get hamburgers".

[2] An older anachronism in the New York adult entertainment scene, Anthony (born c. 1920) claimed he held to certain principles with his agency and in his club: no breast implants, no lap dancing, and no touching the dancers.

[2][6] As such, Billy's stood in contrast to expensive adult clubs such as Scores that tended toward dancers with a more stereotypically "Barbie doll" look and allowed direct contact with the patrons.

[2] Laws were enacted forbidding adult establishments from operating within 500 feet of a residence, school or place of worship, and the NYPD conducted raids on businesses that did not comply with the new ordinance.

[12] The laws were initially drafted to target the sex businesses in the Times Square area, but small, local establishments like Billy's were affected as well.