December 12-18, 2013

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

1984

In the bars and clubs this week, there's a free afternoon buffet every Saturday at the Innbetween, 6301 S. Harlem; Loleatta Holloway sings live at Trianon, 3150 N. Halsted; Cum All Ye Faithful to the Blue Parrot, 1128 W. Granville, for a Tree Trimming Party; and Gary, Jeffrey, Curtis & Dago Rose invite you to Big Red's, 3019 N. Clark St., for Big Red's annual employee's Christmas party.

Image: Chicago Cabaret – Gay Chicago November 8, 1984

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Some of the adult gay videos you can buy at Old Town Books & Video, 1345 N. Wells St., for $49.95 each (Betas $10 less) are "Like a Horse," "Rear Deliveries," "The Bigger the Better," and "A Matter of Size."

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Top 25 Dance Tunes according to DJ Tom Parks at Sidetrack and Hunter's: 1) "Like a Virgin" – Madonna; 2) "I Need You Tonight" – Peter Wolf; 3) "Child of Tomorrow" – Kevin Johnston; 4) "Understanding" – Bob Seger & Silver Bullet; 5) "Had a Dream" – Roger Hodgson; 6) "Locomotion" – O.M.D.; 7) "Now You're Mine" – Helen Terry; 8) "Loverboy" – Billy Ocean; 9) "Love Is (Just a Game)" – Peter Brown; 10) "Forever Young" – Alphaville; 11) "Suspense" – Toni Basil; 12) "Rain Begins to Fall" – Jermaine Jackson & Pia Zadora; 13) "Catch My Fall" – Billy Idol; 14) "No More Lonely Nights" – Paul McCartney; 15) "We Belong" – Pat Benatar.

Image: Ringling Bros. Circus – Gay Chicago October 6, 1983

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The Gay Association of Technicians/Engineers/Scientists meets at Wellington Avenue Church.

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The Baton Show Lounge, 436 N. Clark St., presents a benefit for AIDS patients, with the usual Baton cast, plus special guests: Steve and Pat of Christopher Street; Candy Stanton-Miss Gay Continental Wisconsin; Timmy & Ray Thomas of Trianon; Irene of Irene's Diamonds; Vicki Laurent of Oak Park; and Ginger Grant, Chris Murphy, Orlando Del Sol, and Robin Dupree.

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"Gonna Find Out Who's Naughty & Nice" at the Chicago Gay Men's Chorus Holiday Concert, with a guest appearance of the Artemis Singers, at Park West, 322 W. Armitage.

1990

The Top 5 Bestseller Gay Fiction books at Unabridged Bookstore, 3251 N. Broadway, are 1) "Men On Men 3" Edited by George Stambolian; 2) "Jack" by A.M. Holmes; 3) "Tangled Up In Blue" by Larry Duplechan; 4) "Sure Of You" by Armistead Maupin; and 5) "Secret Matter" by Toby Johnson.

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Image: Carol's Speakeasy – Gay Chicago May 11, 1989

The Windy City Gay Chorus performs at Mayor Daley's holiday party for the city's commissioners, board members, his staff and many prominent community leaders at the Art Institute. The chorus sang three songs, "Sing we Noel," "Christmas is Delicious," and "The First Noel."

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Feather Spirit, designer/creator of engraved copper, silver, bronze sun/moon, malachite, garnet, lapis, amethyst earrings, pendants, and brooches, is at WomenWild, 5237 N. Clark St., an art and gift gallery celebrating woman-made treasures.

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At People Like Us Bookstore, 3321 N. Clark St., Rev. Troy Perry, author of "The Lord Is My Shepard and He Knows I'm Gay," signs copies of his new book "Don't Be Afraid Anymore."

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At Women & Children First, 5233 N. Clark St., Linda Bubon, storyteller and co-owner of the store, reads "May Your Days Be Merry and Bright: Christmas Stories by Women."

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AIDS Pastoral Care Network of DuPage, a grief support group, hosts a weekly gathering at Edwards Hospital, 801 S. Washington, in the first floor 'Quiet Room.'

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Article on the front page of Windy City Times begins:

"Larry Eyler, the man convicted for killing Chicagoan Danny Bridges and suspected in numerous other gay-related murders, is the subject of a new investigation prompted by the recent publication of the book "Freed to Kill: The True Story of Larry Eyler" by Gera-Lind Kolarik.

1995

"A prosecutor in Vermillion County, Indiana, has reopened the murder case of Steve Agan, a 23 year old man whose body was found in Vermillion County in 1982. According to Lake County (Illinois) Sheriff's Detective Dan Colin, the prosecutor is relying on evidence that was suppressed in a 1984 hearing because a Lake County judge ruled the evidence had been gathered improperly."

Image: Hydrate – Gay Chicago Dec. 3, 2003

Honey West is appearing in "Vampire Lesbians of Sodom" at the Theatre Building. 1225 W. Belmont.

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For the third consecutive year, Test Positive Aware Network enlists the generous support of community businesses to distribute the 1996 AIDS Benefit Calendar. Photographer Jeff Palmer created 14 photos depicting the male body for this year's calendar. The 1996 calendar is marketed nationally with all proceeds from the Chicago area sales going to TPA Network.

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Seattle's Derivative Duo, a proclaimed classical yet humorous duo, and Chicago's About Face Theatre Collective, a new arts organization dedicated to gay and lesbian theater, joins the Chicago Gay Men's Chorus in its 14th annual holiday concert at the Athenaeum Theater, 2936 N. Southport. The chorus combines music with tongue in cheek lyrics in "Gonna Find Out Who's Naughty and Nice." The duo's appearance is being underwritten by a Chicago high school friend of Barb Glenn; Glenn and her partner Susan Nivert write the lyrics to famous classical tunes. Mental health professionals by day, demented divas by night, they've garnered national attention since the release of their 1993 recording "Opera for the Masses."

Homework

Whatever happened to Dago Rose?

Who saw Honey West in "Vampire Lesbians of Sodom?"

Who were Chris Murphy, Orlando Del Sol, and Robin Dupree?

Gay Chicago Photo Rewind

Jack Sitar photographs Halloween for Gay Chicago November 6, 1986

Frank Failing photographed the Night of the Pharaoh for Gay Chicago October 6, 2006

Guys and Gals at JJ's bar in Gay Chicago October 13, 1983 (Photo courtesy of Gay Life)

Photograph of Frankie Knuckles by Kirk Williamson for Windy City Times December 3, 2003

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, Malone Sizelove for Babble/Gab, David Costanza and others for Chicago Free Press, Jeff McCourt for Windy City Times, Stacy Bridges and Mark Nagel for GRAB, 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 Chicago Whispers: A History of LGBT Chicago Before Stonewall published by the University of Wisconsin Press.