With these recent club deaths in the news, here are some gay facts:
On June 24, 1973, a fire in the gay Upstairs Lounge in New Orleans took 32 lives and injured many more. Four years later, on May 25, 1977, a fire at the Everard Baths in New York City killed nine men and injured 12. These two fires sent shockwaves through the country's gay community. How safe were gay places?
In Chicago over $5,000 was raised to help the survivors and families of the victims of the fire in New Orleans. In October 1973, the Chicago Gay Alliance and Chicago Lesbian Liberation groups said they would conduct a survey of bars to uncover fire hazards.
Mention fires in a gay bar to a Chicagoan and you're sure to get a smile that says 'suspicious.' The city has had its share of gay bars going up in flames, and here are some of the more notorious ones.
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On Valentine's Day 1975 the Inner Circle opened at 233 E. Erie with Andy Warhol Superstar, Holly Woodlawn, appearing there from the 14-23rd. Other acts performing were Marilyn Sokol, impressionist Arthur Blake, Betty Rhodes, and Gotham.
The bar included a small disco dance floor and was open for lunch and supper. Shows were featured twice nightly from Tuesday through Sunday, and there was a private dining room with catering available for parties.
On May 10, the Inner Circle was gutted by fire, in what fire officials suspected was arson. Officials reported that they found a safe open and empty and that four 5-gallon plastic bags filled with gasoline were discovered. However, the Chicago Tribune quoted employee Bradley Carlsen as saying that the bar had a cashbox, not a safe, and that he and the manager saved it with the previous night's receipts.
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At 3 a.m. Jan. 30, 1976, the Hideaway II at 7301 W. Roosevelt Rd., Forest Park, was struck by fire caused by an electrical short. The fire caused major damage to the first floor, but the second floor was only damaged by smoke.
Given the controversy over fire escapes in some of Chicago's second-story bars, Art Sims, owner of Hideaway II, was quick to point out that the exits were not damaged, and the fire was contained on the first floor because of the cement construction. He also said that if people had been in the bar at the time of the fire, they would have been able to get out.
By early April the second floor lounge and disco area of the Hideaway II was open for business, while downstairs was still being renovated and remodeled.
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In the early hours of Christmas Day 1977, a fire gutted the popular gay bar Le Pub at 1944 N. Clark St. There were no injuries and arson was not suspected. Shortly after the fire, Danny Reilly, the owner, said: 'If it takes two weeks or two months, however long it takes, Le Pub will open, bigger and better than ever.'
At 12:45 a.m. smoke was seen coming out of the basement, and the staff calmly ushered the customers out of the bar. When the fire trucks arrived, the firemen had difficulty locating the blaze because of the dense smoke. The source of the fire was eventually located in a storage area used by the North Park Apartments, which occupied the largest part of the building.
As the heat became more intense, the flames spread through the clay pipes leading up from the basement through the 18-inch thick cement floors of Le Pub. From that point it spread quickly, gutting the main lounge.
Le Pub never re-opened, though for a while Le Pub nights were held at Reilly's other two bars, the Brownstone and Alfie's.
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Another bar that drew attention as a potential fire risk was Broadway Limited at 3132 N. Broadway. In early January 1976, a concerned reader wrote to GayLife newspaper about alleged unsafe conditions; his main concern being about fire escapes and fire protection. This, coupled with an article in The Advocate about the same bar, caused GayLife to investigate. In an article headlined 'Allegations against Broadway Limited found to be untrue,' CGL lists the fire protections, and notes that residents wanting to close the bar down have called out the fire inspectors before.
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On April 26, 1981, Aron Przanowski, the 74-year-old co-owner of the Haig, 800 N. Dearborn, suffered a fatal heart attack while running from an explosion and fire at the rear of the tavern. Arson was suspected. The bar opened again soon afterwards, but finally closed down around October 1982.
WHAT A DIFFERENCE A GAY MAKES
Feb. 23-March 1
1998
U.S.: Circuit Judge Buford Parsons rules that Sharon Bottoms, the Virginia lesbian who lost custody of her son to her mother, still won't be allowed to visit the six-year-old child in the presence of her lover, April Wade. * In Alaska, Anchorage Superior Court Judge Peter Michalski hears a challenge to Alaska's ban on same-sex marriage and says choosing a partner is a fundamental right that could result in a 'nontraditional'' choice. * Elton John wins a Grammy for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for his Princess Diana tribute Candle in the Wind. Also, DJ Frankie Knuckles wins for Best Re-mixer. * Coral Lee Craig, a member of the Christian Coalition in Florida, is so offended by the book Daddy's Roommate that she manages to keep it checked out of her local library for a year. * Britain: Elton John is knighted by Queen Elizabeth II.
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1993
U.S.: Judge Kevin Thomas Duffy of the Federal District Court in Manhattan rules that the Ancient Order of Hibernians, the organizers of New York's St. Patrick's Day parade, can refuse to allow the Irish Lesbian and Gay Organization from participating. * In Orlando, Fla., 100 people show up to counter protest a gang of 30 skinheads demonstrating outside of a gay nightclub. The gays answer the skinheads shouts of 'Seig Heil!' with yells of 'Seek help!' * In Newark, Del., KKK members, and other white supremacist groups, are pelted with snowballs, as they march to protest gay rights and racial mixing.
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1988
U.S.:Eric Hubart, Jeff Stabile, and Christopher Drake file suit against Disneyland in Orange County Superior Court, alleging that the amusement park discriminated against them when security officials barred them from same-sex slow dancing. * Two hundred gay and lesbian 'leaders' gather at the Airlie House retreat complex near Washington, D.C., for 'The War Conference'; a meeting to improve inter-group communication and map out a national strategy for confronting gay and lesbian civil-rights issues, AIDS, and the AIDS backlash. * Anti-gay protesters picket a Cris Williamson concert in Charlotte, N.C., after the mainstream media describe it as a 'lesbian coming-out party.' * Canada: Svend Robinson, a 36-year-old House of Commons member, tells the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation that he is 'an MP that happens to be gay.' Robinson is the first national pol in Canada to 'come out.'
1983
U.S.: Tennessee Williams dies after choking on a plastic medicine bottle cap in his suite in the New York Elysee Hotel. He was 71. * Bernice D. Slote, considered to be the world's leading expert on the works of lesbian writer Willa Cather, dies at the age of 69, in Lincoln, Neb. * Australia: The Labor Party officially endorses an openly gay candidate for Wentworth's federal parliamentary seat. Max Pearce is a socialist, and some gay activists question whether they should support Pearce because he is gay, when they would normally vote for a different party's candidate. One commentator says: 'I'll be voting for gay pride, not for the Labor Party. Max Pearce is my candidate, because he represents a step forward for our community, for gay rights and equality. I don't give a damn whether Max Pearce is left wing, right wing, or chicken wing.'
