Back then, these ads were no big deal. But today, they’re a fascinating glimpse into the life of the Los Angeles homosexual of the early ’70s. Check out those outfits! The term “groovy guys!” And reference to a mysterious drink called “the manhole,” the taste of which we can only imagine.
After a friend sent these along, we started wondering if any of the bars survived the intervening forty years. We checked Google Street View, and the results are, well, a little depressing. None of the names still exist. Many of the structures are gone. And only one remains a gay bar to this day.
Is this a symptom of a lack of community and continuity in L.A.’s gay community? Did the HIV epidemic wipe out our watering holes along with our brothers? Or is it just the normal churn & instability of the bar industry?
At any rate, check out the amazing time capsules below — what once was, and what remains.
The galas are long gone from this corner, but if you’re looking for a place to get your car stolen, you could do worse.
Could this possibly be the same structure? The “pillars” and “arch” at the doorway suggest a theme vaguely compatible with the name “Goliath.” Note the tasteful censorship on the crotch. Maybe that’s where he kept his hot wings.
Ta da, this is the only bar in the bunch that is still gay! (And one of the few that is still even a bar.) Now called The Bullet, it’s the valley’s go-to watering hole for leather and Levi’s.
“The Jaguar” is now an upscale tapas joint called Tinto in the Russian district of West Hollywood. Once much gayer, this end of town has fallen into somewhat of a decline as all the tourism and development bunched up in Boy’s Town to the west.
This isn’t an ad for a bar, but the advertising copy is just so magnificent we are obsessed nonetheless. Anybody know what Raymond “Mr. Groovy Guy ’72” Todd is up to these days? If he was 20 in 1971, he’ll be turning 62 this year. Hopefully he’d be glad to know that decades later, he’s still putting a smile on our faces and some pep in our pants.