Gay life in Chicago this week, back in...

1977

Tech. Sgt. Leonard Matlovich is the speaker at the monthly meeting of One of Chicago, to be held at 615 W. Wellington. Matlovich is currently fighting to remain in the Air Force after being discharged.

Hand in Hand Films present Jack Deveau's Rough Trade, the Blue Collar, Blue Movie introducing Myles Longue, at the Bijou, 1349 N. Wells.

The Chicago Blues Trio appears at Man's Country, a "private membership club" at 5015 N. Clark St.

The Howard Brown Memorial Clinic celebrates their third anniversary. The clinic is open from 2:00–500 p.m. Sundays, and from 7:00–10:00 p.m. on Wednesdays at 2205 N. Halsted.

Some of the bars sadly missed include: Big Red's, 642 W. Diversey; Blue Pub, 3059 Irving Park Rd.; Den One, 1355 N. Wells; Dingbats, 247 E. Ontario; Fosters Little Club, 868 N. State St.; Harlow's, 27 E. Ohio; Saturdays, 661 N. Clark St.; and Stage 618, 618, N. Clark St.

(Image: Little Jim's – Gay Life August 10, 1979)

1986

In the bars and clubs this week: Help celebrate Irene and Harry's 36th anniversary at Irene's Diamonds, an alternative sports bar, at 3169 N. Halsted; party ‘til 4 a.m. at Christopher Street, 3458 N. Halsted St.; Peppers, 1502 W. Jarvis, is "Simply Intoxicating"; there's a Strike Against AIDS Raffle Party at Nutbush City Limits, 301 N. Harlem, Forest Park, starring Vicki Laurentz and Marina Towers; it's the Grand Opening of Fire Island, 1177 N. Elston; and the Glory Hole, 1343 N. Wells St., presents A Pageant Mr. Gay Illinois '86 starring Fred Matthews, Mr. Gay All American '85 and featuring Chicago Molly as Master of Ceremonies.

Jim Novak of Nutbush City Limits picks his Top Five dance hits: 1) What Have You Done For Me Lately? – Janet Jackson; 2) All Played Out – L.I.F.E.; 3) Seclusion – Shawn Benson; 4) Mama Radio – Rudy & Company; 5) Mandrill – Patrick Colby.

Mattachine Midwest celebrates its 20th anniversary with a banquet at the Midland Hotel, the same location as their early meetings in the 1960s.

Openly gay U.S. Congressman Gerry E. Studds (D-Mass) delivers a speech at an AIDS fundraiser for the Champaign-Urbana Gay Community AIDS Project, the Illinois Gay and Lesbian Task Force and the Gay/Lesbian Illini.

(Image: Chicago Eagle – Gay Chicago April 30, 1998)

Popular theatrical productions this week include: Art, Ruth and Trudy, a musical comedy by the Practical Theatre Company at Club Victoria Cabaret, 3153 N. Broadway; the musical La Cage aux Folles, at Arie Town Theatre, 2300 S. Lake Shore; Fooglewoogle, a comedy, at 615 W. Wellington; Forbidden Broadway, a musical revue, at Hotel Continental, 505 N. Michigan Ave.; Happy Days at the Goodman Theatre, 200 S. Columbus Dr.; and Stage Left presents One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest at 3244 N. Clark St.

Alix Dobkin and Lucie Blue Tremblay perform at the Mountain Moving Coffeehouse for Womyn and Children at 1655 W. School.

"Providing Legal Counseling for the PWA," a free workshop for attorney's interested in learning more about how they can help people with AIDS, takes place at St. Clement's Church in the Parish Centre, 638 W. Deming.

Popular lesbian bar, the Ladybug, 3445 N. Halsted St, closes down. Marilyn Bohm opened the bar in 1979 with her partner Vera Young. In August 1984 Young died from lung cancer. Bohm is thought to have relocated to Arizona.

(Image: Saturdays at Spin – Gay Chicago April 13, 2000)

1998

In En La Vida Sukie de la Croix interviewed the fabulous Faustina (Fausto Fernos), who said: "You see, I am not gay, because to be gay means I would have a man in my bed, and unfortunately I have no-one, not even a poofy cat. You see, when you reach sexual enlightenment, you do not need to make love to anyone, for me a gentle bath of bubbles, a subtle breeze from the sea brings upon me unbridled orgasms … I see the world as my lover, and I am my world's keeper."

Keith Ridgeway, the gay Irish author of The Long Falling, a novel about a paradoxically conservative, cosmopolitan modern Dublin, where a gay man can be out, but a teenage girl can't get an abortion, is reading and signing his books at Barbara's Bookstore, 1100 Lake, Oak Park.

A new store opens at 3505 N. Halsted. It's called Leathersport and it's for Big Bad Boys … and Girls.

An announcement in Gay Chicago reads: "Pride Agenda Bookstore, Chicago's only exclusively gay and lesbian bookstore, is now on the World Wide Web with the opening of its new Web page." Also this week, the Pride Agenda Bookstore is vandalized when someone throws a brick through the window. Oak Park police label the incident a hate crime.

(Image: Nightspots – November 13, 2002)

Thanks go to publishers Michael Bergeron for Chicago Gay Crusader, Ralph and Craig Gernhardt for Gay Chicago, Grant Ford and Chuck Renslow for Gay Life and Tracy Baim for all the publications at the Windy City Media Group, which aided the above research. St. Sukie de la Croix is an internationally published reporter, playwright, photographer and historian. He is also the author of the upcoming book Chicago Whispers: A History of LGBT Chicago Before Stonewall published by the University of Wisconsin Press.