A gloryhole is a hole, cut between video booths in an adult
bookstore (ABS), bathroom stall or other type of wall. It is usually placed
about where a guy's cock is located if he's standing at the hole. And, it's
usually large enough to accommodate any size cock. The way it's used is pretty
straight forward. A guy will put his cock through the hole and the person on the
other side will have fun with it through some form of sexual activity (suck,
fuck, handjob...).
The most popular use is between gay men on each side of
the wall. But, women and couples also love to play with cocks at the "hole."
Some video booths do not have a hole but, instead, have a wall that is open at
the bottom. This space, between the floor and bottom of the wall, can range from
a few inches, allowing very little action, to a few feet, allowing the occupants
to climb right into the next booth if they so desire.
Other booths have doors
that do not go from the ceiling to the floor (half doors). These are usually
setup to allow the owners and clerks to assure that there is "only one person
per booth" -- This is a common requirement of many adult establishments. Some
adult bookstores do not even offer doors to the video booths and, consequently,
no privacy is provided.
The size of video booths varies and can range from
huge rooms with a couch, chairs, etc. to very small booths, the size of a
typical telephone booth (that one person can stand in). As noted earlier, most
places do not allow more than one person in a booth. There are some, however,
that actually encourage it by advertising "couples booths" and even offer
specials to couples or provide special designated evenings as "couples
nights."
Of course, females and couples attract more customers and it's only
to the stores advantage to inform customers when they might expect to see a
female or couple at the store. There are different types of gloryholes and other
ways for people to enjoy themselves where two booths are next to each
other.
For example, many bookstores have replaced the hole with glass. These
are usually called "Buddy Booths", and a glass partition with either opaque
glass or a curtain separates the two booths.
To turn the glass from opaque to
clear, or to raise the curtain, the occupants of each booth (both sides) must
press a button. When both buttons are pressed, the occupants of both booths can
then see and watch each other, but not physically touch. However, there are a
few bookstores where the glass opens a little bit, allowing the occupants to
touch each other through the equivalent of a gloryhole!
When you enter an
adult bookstore that has video booths, you'll find that most work in the same
manner. Usually, there is some type of slot on a control panel that accepts
tokens, quarters (very rare nowadays) or paper money in the USA,
$1, $5, $10 and $20 denominations. The more money you add, the longer the video
will play.
Change is readily available either at the front desk, through a
clerk, or through change machines located in the store. In general, USA
tokens equate to a value of 25 cents and up. Some places (e.g., New York
City) charge $10 for one token which will buy you about two minutes of
viewing time. Once you enter a video booth, you deposit the token (or cash) in
the slot and the video will start. Additional controls are usually available
such as volume and channel selection, allowing you to view different
videos..
Years ago, these booths would basically have two quarter slots that
operated one of two 8mm movie projectors, which continuously looped. The slot
you dropped your quarter in would control which movie played. After a minute or
two the movie would stop and more money would be required to start where it left
off.
Almost all booths have a light inside/overhead that turns off when the
movie starts and then turns back on when your time expires. And, most booths
provide an "occupied" light outside the booth. It will light when the movie is
playing to let others know that the booth is in use as well as letting clerks
know if someone is occupying a booth, watching or not watching a video (a big
"no-no" is to be in a booth and not drop money). More recently, video booths
provide two sets of televisions - gotta love technology!
One is usually at
eye-level when you are standing, and the other up above that screen. The one at
eye level displays the video you have selected and provides the sound. The one
above cycles through other movies available and allows you to select them
through more advanced control panels. Some even use 4-way (or more) split
screens to display a number of other videos available (at the same time). With
four or more buttons on the control panel, it's easy to select any one of the
previews and watch it on the main screen... But, if you're in a booth with a
gloryhole, the video will quickly become secondary to the pleasure you're
receiving while it rolls!
The bottom line of video booths is to either
provide adult x-entertainment or to get off (have an orgasm). Gloryholes
generally lead to a guy getting pleased and cumming. But, some customers go
simply to watch a movie and maybe masturbate alone. These people, usually select
a booth without a gloryhole to be left in privacy. Leave them alone.