On a dimly lit street in the grimy East Village sits a New York institution where, on any given day, shy, love-struck men looking for connections walk through the door.
But at the entrance to the Turkish and Russian bath on East 10th Street hangs a photograph of a very familiar face.
The grainy photo shows a young Diddy, his face slightly hidden under a baseball cap, posing with a friend.
It was taken during one of the many visits the owners say the rapper made throughout the ’90s, when he was at the top of his game as the King of Hip Hop.
Now, as he sits in a squalid cell accused of sex trafficking and horrendous abuse, the visits bring dark questions about how the rapper hid his unhealthy obsession with sex in plain sight from the world that revered him.
P. Diddy is pictured with a friend during one of his frequent visits to The Turkish & Russian Bath. The photograph hangs proudly in the lobby of the East Village institution.
The modest three-story townhouse, located on 10th Street in the East Village, has been a destination for locals and celebrities alike since its founding a century and a half ago.
The simple three-story townhouse has been a destination for locals and celebrities alike since its founding a century and a half ago.
Since 1892, men and women have flocked to this legendary bathhouse for its health benefits: exfoliating, steaming, relaxing and rejuvenating.
Many visit innocently, looking for a place to rinse off the city after a hard day’s work.
But for Diddy, the appeal ran deeper.
That’s according to his former bodyguard, Gene Deal, who claims he visited him to look for male partners.
On a recent rainy September afternoon, DailyMail.com visited the famous bathhouse.
Next to Diddy’s photo are those of other famous clients, none of whom are in the same legal trouble that the rapper is now drowning in.
John F. Kennedy Jr., Danny DeVito, LL Cool J, Liev Schreiber, Matthew McConaughey, Hugh Jackman and Russian MMA fighter Igor Zinozier.
The authentic Russian Room is one of the areas of the bathhouse that P. Diddy frequented
The sauna, also known as schvitz.
At 11.30am, a line of men was already waiting for the doors to open, ready to enjoy the ‘men only’ session that runs from noon to 5pm.
The crowd included men of various ages, professions and demographics.
Some were newcomers. Others, veteran splashers. Many were fit and muscular, while others appeared well fed and with generous bellies.
By 2 p.m., nearly 100 men had passed through the basement of the bathhouse, some wrapped in small loincloths, others completely naked.
While many were there for nothing more than a steam, others quickly got frisky.
When the men weren’t taking a dip in the heated freshwater pool or using the steam and sauna rooms, they indulged in therapeutic treatments: mud and salt scrubs, shiatsu massages, or the plaza’s signature oak leaf massage.
According to some staff members, that was one of Diddy’s favorite treatments.
The cold pool
One of the steam rooms.
The outdoor roof terrace
In a video interview with The art of dialogueGene Deal, Diddy’s former bodyguard, spoke about the record producer’s trips to the Russian and Turkish baths months before he was arrested for running a criminal enterprise.
Deal claimed his boss secretly met with gay men in steam rooms, sometimes three times a week.
—So you heard the rumors. I used to wait for him outside the Turkish baths,” Deal told the producer, “that’s where a lot of gay men gather and take hot baths together,” he said.
‘That’s why, you know, two, sometimes three times a week, the driver and I were outside.
“He ran into the Turkish bath. You have that big bathtub at home, but do you want to come here?” he laughed.
John F. Kennedy Jr. was one of the notable people whose painting hung on the wall of the legendary bathhouse.
A photograph of Matthew McConaughey is also displayed in the bathhouse.
Actor Danny Devito with friends.
Blues brothers: Dan Akroyd and John Belushi
Diddy has never addressed the claims.
The bodyguard also talked about some of Diddy’s escapades, recalling one of his trips to an exotic bookstore.
The bathroom isn’t just for male patrons: there are designated women-only times and mixed “couples” times, when men must wear shorts.
The Bath offers annual and monthly memberships or just one-day passes starting at $60. Walk-ins are also welcome.
For Diddy, gone are the days of a lavish bathhouse visit that carried the sneaky chance of getting lucky.
It’s safe to say that their showers at Brooklyn’s famous Metropolitan Detention Center are much simpler and more solitary.
Exactly what you did or didn’t do will remain hidden in a cloud of vapor.
DailyMail.com contacted the owners of the bathhouse but did not receive a response.