Box Turtle Bulletin
News and commentary about the anti-gay lobby“Now you must raise your children up in a world where that union of man and box turtle is on the same legal footing as man and wife…”
News and commentary about the anti-gay lobbyJune 15th, 2015
TODAY’S AGENDA is brought to you by:
From Michael’s Thing (New York, NY), August 2, 1976, page 14.
Ordinarily, the ads we feature here are for businesses from times gone by. This time, I’m making an exception for Manhattan’s Candle Bar, which has been in continuous operation as a gay bar since at least 1958. But after some fifty-seven years in business, BTB reader Phillip informs me that the Candle will be extinguished by the end of this month. The only reason the Candle lasted this long is because the business owner also happened to own the building. Otherwise, rising rents might have driven it out a long time ago:
Robert Ader bought the four-story building at 309 Amsterdam Ave. in 1985; when he died, his sister Michelle Ader took over the management. But Ader has sold the building, which was listed for $6.95 million and the new owner is not interested in keeping Candle Bar open, said Demarko, who regretted that the bar couldn’t be saved.
The Candle will close on June 22. The Bitter Queen has more on the Candle Bar’s history:
The premises has existed as a gay bar since 1958 when it was opened by George Fluss; however, it was a short run for Fluss. He lost his liquor license in 1959 for permitting “homosexual activities” on the premises according to New York State Liquor Authority records. Fluss went on to work at other gay bars and restaurants in the early 1960s including at the Pines & Dunes Yacht Club on Fire Island and the Coat of Arms at 140 East 53rd Street.
Ralph Pansini took over the 309 Amsterdam Avenue space in 1960 under the name Candlelight Lounge, and continued to operate it as a gay bar. Pansini wore a wire for New York District Attorney Frank Hogan’s investigation into corruption at the State Liquor Authority. The investigation brought down SLA head Martin Epstein and agency fixer Hyman Siegel who specialized in licensing cases.
Sen. Clyde Hoey
TODAY IN HISTORY:
► 65 YEARS AGO: Senate Committee Orders “Pervert Inquiry”: 1950. The year 1950 is better known as marking the start of Sen. Joseph McCarthy’s infamous Red Scare witch hunt. But, in the spirit of first things first, the national scare over imagined Reds in America was actually preceded by a now often-forgotten Lavender Scare. The Lavender Scare began quietly enough earlier that year when Deputy Undersecretary of State John E. Peurifoy revealed in testimony before the Senate Appropriations Committee that the State Department had gotten rid of 91 employees accused of being homosexual (see Feb 28). His testimony almost didn’t make the papers, but Republican and southern Democrats unhappy with President Truman’s civil rights policies, seized on that admission to stoke fears of, according to one uninformed estimate, as many as 3,750 “sex perverts” in the Federal Government’s employment (see May 19).
That wild guess was given to the Senate Committee on Expendatures in the Executive Department by Police Lieutenant Roy Blick, head of the Washington, D.C. police department’s vice squad. The Senate Committee then ordered an investigative subcommittee to investigate those charges. Sen. Clyde R. Hoey (D-NC) was named to head the investigation. “The paramount objectuive is to protect the Government and the public interest,” he explained, and promised the investigation will make “every effort to obtain all the pertinent facts” but without “subject(ing) any individual to ridicule.
The New York Times reported that Sen. Joseph McCarthy (R-WI), who had already made numerous allegations concerning Communists and homosexuals in the federal government, agreed to remove himself from the panel,”to avoid being in a position of judging his own allegations.” Sen. Andrew F. Schoeppel (R-KS) was named to take his place. Other panel members were Sens. Margaret Chase Smith (R-ME), John McClellan (D-AR), James Eastland (D-MS), Herbert O’Conor (D-MD) and Karl Mundt (R-SD).
TODAY’S BIRTHDAY:
► Neil Patrick Harris: 1973. NPH has successfully smashed two important acting barriers. A former child actor, he has successfully navigated the difficulties of becoming an adult actor in Broadway, film, and television. And he has also navigated the difficult transition from assumed-straight actor to a highly visible gay one, with partner David Burtka and twin children who were born in 2010. And as a very visible gay actor, he still manages to play straight roles on film and television. In addition, he has been an acclaimed host for the Tony Awards in 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2013. He didn’t host the 2010 Tonys, but that year he did win an Emmy for hosting the 2009 Awards, and he won two more Emmys for hosting the 2011 and 2012 Tonys. His winning ways continued with his performance in the Broadway premiere of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, for which he won a Drama Desk Award and a Tony for Best Actor in a Musical.
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MattNYC
June 15th, 2015
Anti-Gay Archbishop Nienstedt (Minneapolis-St. Paul) forced to resign over his role in hiding pedophile priests and their crimes.
Ben in Oakland
June 15th, 2015
Matt– let us not forget the accusations against HIM.
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