ELYRIA — Vic’s Night Club owner Dean Costa said today that he had no knowledge of a flier being passed around by a male revue group performing at his club tonight and was appalled when it was brought to his attention, but he plans to go on with the show.

“We didn’t make it or know anything about it,” Costa said.

The flier, which included an image of a man with two guns, was produced by the manager for “The Chocolate Factory All Male Revue Show,” who Costa called “a really good guy” who is not from our area and had no idea about Elyria’s problems.

“He did not realize it was totally inappropriate,” Costa said. “He was trying to be helpful” by helping to promote the show.

Costa called it “very uncommon” that an outside group would pass around fliers without his knowledge.

Costa said he spoke with Councilman Forrest Bullocks, who had demanded the show be canceled (read the original story), and said of Bullocks, “He was surprised I agreed so totally with him.”

Bullocks said this afternoon that he was disappointed the show wasn’t canceled but was on good terms with Costa after speaking with him.

Costa said he has no reservations about doing business with the group or its manager and plans to go on with the show.

“All it really is is a girls night out,” he said. Men are not admitted to the show, he said.

Costa said manager Mande Kamms, who addressed the flier yesterday, was actually talking about a different flier that had been produced by the club. That flier had nunchucks on it, not guns, he said, but speculated Kamms must have thought the nunchucks were being interpreted by people to represent guns when she responded to a reporter’s questions.

Costa said Kamms was very upset when the actual flier was brought to her attention and even called up several police officers she knows to apologize and clear up the miscommunication.

Costa called the flier “the worst thing we ever could have done,” considering his passion about cleaning up downtown Elyria.

“I don’t want them in our club,” he said, referring to people with guns. “It’s bad for business. We’re losing customers to Amherst and other places” because of the perception downtown Elyria is a violent place.

Costa said his club is the only one with metal detectors in Elyria. He said an incident over the weekend in which two men were arrested after one of them flashed a gun in the club happened after the man left the bar and returned and forced his way in at closing time.

Councilman Bullocks said he doesn’t necessarily buy that explanation.

“The last incident they had was after (the patrons) left the club,” he said. ” ‘Women only’ doesn’t mean that when they leave that there won’t be some sort of confrontation.

“It not the business themselves, it’s the clientele,” Bullocks said. “Evidently, the business is getting a name of being a negative place to be.”

“I don’t know how it could be any more wrong,” Costa said of the flier. “But it is what it is, and it’s done.”

Contact Rona Proudfoot at 329-7124 or rproudfoot@chroniclet.com.