Ambush Magazine Volume 36 Issue 15

THE OFFICIAL GAY MAGAZINE OF THE GULF SOUTH Celebrating LGBTQ Life, Music & Culture Since 1982 A BI-WEEKLY PUBLICATION

VOLUME 36 ISSUE 15

TUESDAY, July 17, 2018

Gay Appreciation Awards GALA

www.AMBUSHMAG.com

THE “OFFICIAL” DISH

by TJ ACOSTA, PUBLISHER

Dear Ambush Nation, Are you ready to find out who the winners of this year’s Gay Appreciation Awards are? The 30th Annual Gay Appreciation Awards Gala is less than a week away and we at Ambush couldn’t be more excited. This year we broke records with the number of nominees we received and the number of people voting. We had a total of 208 unique nominees and 2,627 votes cast. It’s very exciting to see so many new names and faces associated with the Gay Appreciation Awards this year.

I received multiple messages from people who were honored to be nominated for an award, many of whom indicated they were a first time nominee.

The top 5 in each category have been revealed and the winners will be announced at the Gala on July 21 at 7pm at Oz. Ambush will also be presenting the Lifetime Achievement Award, the highest honor of the year. There will also be secret judges who will select nominees from those in attendance for the Red Carpet Oscar Award, given to the best dressed. The proceeds from the event will be divided between Southern Decadence and Stonewall Sports. Tickets to the event are $10 and can be purchased at the door or in advance at GayAppreciationAwards. com.

STONEWALL SPORTS NATIONAL TOURNAMENT Congratulations to Stonewall Sports New Orleans and everyone who helped put on an amazing tournament. The Stonewall Sports National Tournament was hosted here in the Big Easy July 13 thru 15. Several hundred athletes from around the country descended on NOLA to compete in such sports as kickball, dodgeball and volleyball. Stonewall Sports is an LGBTQ & ally sports organization that strives to raise funds for local non-profit organizations. They have leagues throughout the country in cities from Boston to Minneapolis to New Orleans. If you’re interested in joining the Stonewall Sports league here in New Orleans, check them out on Facebook or go to stonewallsports.org for more information.

SOUTHERN DECADENCE Southern Decadence is just over a month away and the excitement is starting to build. There are numerous fundraisers between now and Labor Day being hosted by SDGMs XLIV Frank Perez and Adikus Sulpizi. If you want to be a part of the excitement feel free to support any of the official Southern Decadence fundraisers. The Gay

Inside this Issue of Ambush Sports

6-10

Southern Decadence Announcements 11-13

11-12

Snap Paparazzi: Oz New Orleans

14

Tricentennial Profiles in History: Jim Monaghan

15

4th Annual Oracle Gala to Honor the Founders of Southern Decadence

15

GAY APPRECIATION AWARD FINALISTS

Appreciation Awards on July 21st is an official Southern Decadence event.

On July 22nd there is a buffet and auction from 2 to 5 pm at Cosimo’s New Orleans French Quarter Bar located at 1201 Burgundy Street. There is also a Leather & Lace event on July 29th at the Page located at 542 N. Rampart Street. For updates and more information, check out the official Southern Decadence website SouthernDecadence.com or follow us on Facebook @SouthernDecadenceNOLA MARK YOUR CALENDARS Chin Up Tits Out: An Evening with Lana and Friends is a fundraiser for the Trevor Project and will take place at Oz on July 31 at 10pm. Join Miss Gay New Orleans America 2017 Lana O’Day and a cast of entertainers for a night dedicated to raising funds and awareness for The Trevor Project, an organization that helps reduce suicide among LGBTQ youth.

LGBT Day at the Ballpark with the Baby Cakes is scheduled for July 29 at 1pm at their home field located at 6000 Airline Drive in Metairie. $5 from every ticket sold will be donated to CrescentCare. The event is being sponsored by The Gulf South Chamber of Commerce, Cox Communications and Capital One.

Ready for Christmas? Check out Club Kid Christmas in July on Saturday, July 28, at Sipps Bar in Gulfport hosted by the one and only Miss Ivy Dripp. The festivities start at midnight featuring Lexis Redd D’ville, Laveau Contraire, Annie Thang, Justin Betweener and Sonica Boom. Sipps is located at 2218 25th Avenue in Gulfport, Mississippi.

16

Snap Paparazzi: Stonewall Sports National Tournament

18-19

Under the Gaydar: New Orleans Hot Happenings

20-24

Moments in Gay New Orleans History: Reflecting on Pride Month

25

Snap Paparazzi: The Corner Pocket

26

4 Tips for Combining Finances with Your Partner

27

LGBT Owned & Friendly Business Directory

28-29

Party Down

30-33

Trodding the Boards

34-35

Book Review: Sticky Fingers

36

Commentary: Bernie Sanders, Anthony Kennedy and the Supreme Court

36

Overcoming Rejection

37

Snap Paparazzi: Out & About with Tony Leggio

37

A Community within Communities: A Guy Named Jay.

38

Gulf South LGBTQ Entertainment & Travel Guide Since 1982 New Orleans, Louisiana info@ambushpublishing.com

ADVERTISE Looking to reach the LGBTQ community from Texas to Florida?

Print rates start as low as $96 per issue!

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Gulf South Entertainment/Travel Guide Since 1982 • Texas-Florida ANNUAL READERSHIP OVER 1M+ 260,000+ Print/780,000+ Online Official Gay Easter Parade Guide© Official Gay Mardi Gras Guide© Official Gay New Orleans Guide© Official Pride Guide© Official Southern Decadence Guide©

LETTER TO THE EDITOR info@ambushpublishing.com CIRCULATION

Alabama - Mobile; Florida - Pensacola; Louisiana - Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Metairie, New Orleans, Slidell, Monroe, Alexandria; Mississippi - Bay St. Louis, Biloxi

PUBLISHER TJ Acosta EDITOR IN CHIEF Reed Wendorf SENIOR EDITOR Brian Sands CONTRIBUTORS Brian Sands, Crescent City Sports, Frank Perez, Jim Meadows, Pastor Allie Rowland, Persana Shoulders, Rev. Bill Terry, Rodney Thoulion, Scot Billeaudeau, Shane Womack & Tony Leggio LOCAL ADVERTISING sales@ambushpublishing.com Reed Wendorf Shane Womack Jim Tomeny NATIONAL ADVERTISING Rivendell Media (212) 242-6863 Ambush Magazine is published on alternate Tuesdays of each month by Ambush Publishing. Advertising, Copy & Photo DEADLINE is alternate Tuesdays, 5pm, prior to publication week, accepted via e-mail only: info@ambushpublishing.com. The Publisher assumes no responsibility for the claims of advertisers and has the right to reject any advertising. The inclusion of an individual’s name or photograph in this publication implies nothing about that individual’s sexual orientation. Letters, stories, etc. appearing herein are not necessarily the opinion of the Publisher or Staff of AMBUSH Magazine. ©1982-2018 AMBUSH PUBLISHING LLC, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. NOTHING HEREIN MAY BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION OF THE PUBLISHER INCLUDING AD LAYOUTS, MAPS & PHOTOS.

4 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · Official Southern Decadence Guide · www.SouthernDecadence.com

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www.GayMardiGras.com · www.GayEasterParade.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · 5

Pelicans GM Demps excited, moving ahead with Julius Randle, Elfrid Payton

by David Grubb, Crescent City Sports

The New Orleans Pelicans welcomed their two highest profile additions, Elfrid Payton and Julius Randle with a press conference at the team’s Airline Drive practice facility.

Essentially, the duo steps in for Rajon Rondo and DeMarcus Cousins, two players who left indelible marks during their brief tenures in New Orleans.

While Rondo and Cousins were big parts of last season’s playoff team, General Manager Dell Demps isn’t looking back. As far as he’s concerned, Payton and Randle can be foundational players that help continue the Pelicans’ ascent in the Western Conference.

“I’m excited to have these guys with me right now, I really am,” said Demps. “Things work out for a reason, and I wish [Rondo and Cousins] the best…I’m thinking forward. I’m moving ahead.”

“Obviously we want to build off of the success we had last year. Both [Payton and Randle] are two-way players; they both can push the ball in transition. They both have the ability to create plays for their teammates and for themselves. Everyone knows how competitive it is in the NBA, particularly in the Western Conference, and these guys are gonna help us.”

Payton, a native of Gretna who prepped at John Ehret, was the team’s

first target when the free agency period began at midnight Eastern time on July 1, but he’s been on the Pelicans radar for awhile now.

“He was our first meeting,” said Demps. “We’ve been studying Elfrid for a long time. Our coaching staff did a great job showing him some video and analytics that showed that the way he plays, he can elevate our group. He’s a guy that we’ve been targeting, all the way back when he played USA basketball when he was younger.”

For Payton, it was an easy decision. After finding limited success with the floundering Orlando Magic, his career seemed off track. Following a trade that sent him to the Phoenix Suns for a second round pick, Payton needed an opportunity to revitalize his career. He believes he’ll have that with the Pelicans. And he’s prepared to work.

“I’m coming in to compete for the (starting point guard) job,” Payton said.

“I don’t expect anything to be handed to me, but my mindset is to be the starter.” Interestingly, coming back home was not a major factor in his decision. It was about finding the right fit, and from a basketball standpoint, New Orleans was that place.

“I feel like this was the best fit,” said Payton. “It didn’t matter if this team was wherever, I just felt like this

was the best fit for me right now.”

Julius Randle’s path to New Orleans was much different. Though the Pelicans had been interested in the forward, they didn’t expect him to be available this summer. But once he was, Demps pounced.

“We didn’t expect Julius to become available,” said Demps. “As soon as he became available we jumped on it as fast as we could because we definitely wanted to get him here.”

Loaded with skills and potential, Randle brings plenty to the table. He might also be the team’s toughest player since David West was running up and down the court as a New Orleans Hornet.

If Randle lives up to expectations he, Davis, and Niko Mirotic will form one of the most versatile and intimidating front courts in the NBA. “I told [Davis] I’ll be there on the front line with him every game. You won’t have to worry about me bringing my hard hat.”

Both players fit the mold of what Demps and Head Coach Alvin Gentry need to maintain the identity of the team that finally found one last season.

Both are also hungry to reach the postseason for the first time.

“It’s important to me,” said Randle.

“I’ve never experienced it. Seeing what

this team did last year, how they they play and how I figure into that; for me it was super important to be able to build on that and carry it even farther.”

“They’ve got experience, they’ve been in the league and they’ve had success,” added Demps. “We just feel like they’re ready to go. They’re ready to play. You could feel the energy in the building after we got the commitment from both of these guys.”

Demps smiled broadly throughout the presser; his excitement impossible to conceal.

“These are guys that we always wanted, and that’s where the excitement comes from,” he added. “We feel like these guys are going to make us better.”

Though both are signed to oneyear deals, if things go as well as Demps believes they will, Payton and Randle should be part of the Pelicans core for years to come.

“I’m looking towards the future,” added Randle. “This is not about this season or next. I want this to be home and to be a long term thing.”

So do Pelicans fans, Julius.

This article was originally published

by Crescent City Sports. For the most comprehensive sports coverage in the Big Easy, visit crescentcitysports.com.

to our

lgbtq community:

we see

you & you

matter. no matter what the administration says.

www.crescentcare.org | 504.207.CARE(2273)

6 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · Official Southern Decadence Guide · www.SouthernDecadence.com

Remembering, in different ways, two lives well lived

by Lenny Vangilder, Crescent City Sports

We celebrated two lives well lived under Vince Gibson and Wally English this week in two totally different ways. from 1982-84. Curl was the universiOn Sunday night and Monday, our ty’s athletic publicist from 1966-74 and former colleague and an outstanding remained involved with the school in high school coach, Rick Gaille, was reyears after, serving on the football ramembered in the way we’ve known for dio broadcast team and later on the years and years – a visitation followed athletic hall of fame selection commitby a funeral service. tee.

On Tuesday night, a friend to evThe parallels didn’t end there, eryone in sports in New Orleans and however. In 2010, each took a signifibeyond, Bill Curl, was remembered in cant turn in his career. a way that was 180 degrees different The fall of 2010 was Gaille’s final from the two days before – a party at season at St. James High School afRock ‘n’ Bowl. ter 19 seasons as the Wildcats’ head Let me say up front: There is no coach and athletic director. He guided right or wrong way to remember a St. James to 170 victories and three passing of a loved one or to celebrate trips to state championship games. one’s life. The fact that we had chances Earlier that year, Curl retired after 33 to tell stories and reflect on the greatyears as the spokesperson for the Suness that each achieved in his career perdome. certainly made each What was interday memorable. esting is their career Perhaps it was not a What was interpaths effectively flipesting to me is how flopped at that point. coincidence that on Monsimilar, yet different, Gaille moved out of day, we celebrated the the professional cathe prep ranks and life of Rick Gaille, and on reers of Gaille and into the media, doing Tuesday, we celebrated Curl were. work for prep game the life of Bill Curl.

First, the bigbroadcasts and gest similarity – both shows WGSO 990 spent time at Tulane.

AM and contributGaille’s one stint as a college assising to CCS and our previous iteration, tant coach was with the Green Wave SportsNOLA.

Curl moved out of the full-time PR of Rick Gaille, and on Tuesday, we celranks and working in preps, taking on ebrated the life of Bill Curl. a part-time position providing commuTwo days. Two great men in their nications support to own rights. Two toJohn Curtis Christian tally different rememSchool, where his brances.

All part of the landscape children had graduAll part of the of one great sports town. ated several years landscape of one earlier. Among othgreat sports town. er contributions, it was Curl who led the effort to promote This article was originally published Coach J.T. Curtis’ 500th career victory

by Crescent City Sports. For the most in 2011. comprehensive sports coverage in the Perhaps it was not a coincidence Big Easy, visit crescentcitysports.com. that on Monday, we celebrated the life

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New Orleans “shows out,” shows it’s a boxing city once again

by Lenny Vangilder, Crescent City Sports

NEW ORLEANS – Our city has seen – and been a great host of – its share of major sporting events, even championship boxing events.

Saturday night, the stars aligned for another great event: A long gap between championship bouts, the first involving a hometown fighter in more than half a century, and a marvelous intimate setting created by co-promoters Top Rank and DiBella Entertainment at Lakefront Arena.

In the end, “The Homecoming” of Regis “Rougarou” Prograis was perfect.

Even for the undercard, which started 3 1/2 hours before Prograis entered the ring, there was a solid crowd on hand. By the time ESPN hit the air at 6 p.m. for the co-main event won by undefeated lightweight Teofimo Lopez, there was a palpable buzz inside the building.

The crowd erupted when Prograis entered the ring led by a Mardi Gras Indians second line. When the ring announcer introduced Prograis, the roar was louder than the microphone.

As the knockdowns of Juan Jose Velasco piled up – one in the fifth, one in the seventh and two in the eighth before Velasco’s corner asked that the

fight be stopped – so did the amplitude come true. around the ring.

“You ever set a goal for yourself, “We brought big-time boxing back then achieve it?” Hill said. “I walk these to New Orleans,” Prograis said, “We streets every day. To have people brought the city out. That’s what we cheer my name on a grand stage like were trying to do.” this, I love it.”

The notables in the crowd of 3,612 By all indications, even before the included Gov. John Bel Edwards, world doors opened, the staffs of Top Rank junior welterweight champion Terence and DiBella Entertainment – which “Bud” Crawford, Pelicans general co-promoted the card – were overmanager Dell Demps and current and ly pleased with both the venue and former NFL players Tyrann Mathieu, the city’s response, and indicated this Keenan Lewis and Booger McFarland, could be the start of regular appearjust to name a few. ances in the Crescent City.

“I was glad, of course,” to see the As part of its new deal with ESPN, crowd when he entered the building, Top Rank has made a conscious efPrograis said, “but fort to get away from you’ve got to go and traditional venues The crowd erupted fight. I knew I was like Las Vegas and going to have a hard bring these nationally when Prograis enfight. It’s excitement, televised to new ventered the ring led by but you’ve got to hide ues. It was recently a Mardi Gras Indians in Fresno, California, that excitement.”

New Orleand has upcoming second line. ans native Jeremy cards scheduled for “Zereaux” Hill won by Kissimmee, Florida, unanimous decision on the undercard and Oklahoma City. to remain unbeaten in three profesOf course, it helps New Orleans’ sional fights. cause to have a local contender like For Hill, a McDonogh 35 graduate Prograis, who became the first New who is a laborer when he’s not boxing, Orleans-area boxer to defend his title Saturday’s opportunity was a dream in his hometown since Willie Pastrano

defeated Gregorio Peralta by a fifthround TKO on April 10, 1964, at Municipal Auditorium.

It’s safe to say most of the crowd on hand Saturday night had not been born when Pastrano defended his title that night.

“This was big,” Prograis said. “My goal was to bring big-time boxing back to New Orleans, and we did.”

Saturday’s win earned Prograis a berth in the eight-man World Boxing Super Series tournament. After the way New Orleans “showed out,” in Prograis’ words, perhaps he’ll get a shot at bringing one of those fights back to his hometown again.

“Of course I could do it in New Orleans again,” Prograis said. “We’ll bring out a bigger crowd next time.

Maybe we’ll go to (the) Smoothie King (Center).”

If Prograis’ ascent continues, maybe even the building next door – which has hosted a few title fights of its own – could be in play.

This article was originally published

by Crescent City Sports. For the most comprehensive sports coverage in the Big Easy, visit crescentcitysports.com.

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8 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · Official Southern Decadence Guide · www.SouthernDecadence.com

www.GayMardiGras.com 路 www.GayEasterParade.com 路 July 17 - 30, 2018 路 The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com 路 9

Louisiana native Lanerie returns to winner’s circle after wife’s death

by Lenny Vangilder, Crescent City Sports Three weeks to the day after his wife Shantel died, jockey Corey Lanerie was back in a place he’s visited more than 4,400 times – the winner’s circle.

Lanerie won the fourth race at Ellis Park in Henderson, Kentucky, on Friday, a turf sprint aboard 6-5 favorite Hide the Honey.

“Hide the Honey with Corey Lanerie on her back and an angel on his,” track announcer Jimmy McNerney said as the winner crossed the finish.

The Lafayette native then made it back-to-back victories on the card, capturing the fifth race aboard Sohni.

“I think when I get back to riding, it will kind of get my mind freed and back to normal life,” Lanerie said earlier Friday in an interview with Jennie Rees of the Ellis Park publicity staff. ” Once I get on the horse, I focus on the race and my job, whatever I have to do. I think I’ll go out there and do my job and just let it go as it is, and I think I’ll be fine.”

Shantel Lanerie died June 22 at the way-too-soon age of 42 after being hospitalized the day before with a severe infection of the colon. She had been diagnosed with stage 1 breast cancer earlier this year and was the face of breast cancer awareness efforts at Keeneland and Churchill Downs this spring. Jockeys across the country spread the word about Shantel’s battle by wearing pink leg bands with the

Gulf Coast Equality Council With Scarlet Pearl Casino Resort & Harrah’s Gulf Coast Present

message “Fight With Shantel.”

“She supported me through thick and thin,” said Corey Lanerie, who wore an shirt under his silks with “Fight With Shantel” embroidered in pink on the collar. “She was there when I wasn’t doing any good and at my best moments.”

Shantel Lanerie, a native of Cecilia, was laid to rest on June 28 just outside Lafayette. Corey Lanerie and the couple’s 10-year-old daughter, Brittlyn, have spent much of the last two weeks in Louisiana, though he did ride in four stakes races last Saturday at Arlington Park in Illinois – his first mounts since June 17.

The 43-year-old Lanerie was a regular at Fair Grounds each winter through 2013 before returning to New Orleans last season. He has won 20 riding titles on the Kentucky circuit, including 15 at Churchill Downs at four at Ellis, where the Kentucky circuit operates for much of July and August.

With Friday’s two victories, Lanerie now has 4,409 career wins, six behind another Louisiana native, Craig Perret, to move into the top 50 all-time in Thoroughbred racing history.

This article was originally published

by Crescent City Sports. For the most comprehensive sports coverage in the Big Easy, visit crescentcitysports.com.

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10 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · Official Southern Decadence Guide · www.SouthernDecadence.com

Early Southern Decadence Fundraising Sets Record Fundraising for Southern Decadence 2018 is underway and SDGMs Adikus Sulpizi and Frank Perez have already set a record, having raised over $12,000.00.

Tropical Isle $2,500 Black Penny $1,000 The Double Play $1,000 Two Chicks Walking Tours $1,000 Tomy Acosta $500 Phil Barbee $500 Lost Love Lounge $500 City Wholesale Liquor Co. $500 Dr. Robert McWhirter $250 Blue60 Guest House $250 Mr. Friendly $200 Helene Berot $200 Major Tom & Johnny $100 Press Party at Bourbon Pub $1,172 Black Penny Art Auction $1,125 Decadence Gets Dirty at the Phoenix $1,126

Southern Decadence Parade Registration Now Open

Grand Pre’s Potato Salad Contest $340 Total $12,263 (Plus $1,149.00 raised from the Announcement Party at Oz; it will be added to the above total upon receipt by the Southern Decadence Financial Oversight Committee.)

In addition to the $12, 263, SDGMs Adikus Sulpizi and Frank Perez have secured $33,000 in in-kind donations from Skyy Vodka, Bud Light, Tours By Steven, Two Guys Cutting Hair, Crescent City Tour Booking Agency, Ambush Magazine, former SDGMs Jeffrey Palmquist & Coca Mesa, Glamour Puss, and Quartermaster Deli.

Monies raised after parade expenses will be donated to the official charities of Southern Decadence 2018—Mr. Friendly and the LGBT+ Archives Project of Louisiana.

Registration is now open for groups wanting to march in the 2018 Southern Decadence Parade. Last year, over 70 groups (consisting of over 1,000 people) marched in the parade and Parade Captains Steven Mora and Chad Boutte expect even higher numbers this year. To register as a participant,

email Southerndecadenceparadecaptain@gmail.com or call 594-239-9745.

There is no charge to participate in the parade. The deadline for registration is August 19.

Photo credit: Ryan Hodgson-Rigsbee

Southern Decadence Events Saturday, July 21 Gay Appreciation Awards at Oz Sunday, July 22 Cookout at Cosimo’s Sunday, July 29 Leather & Lace at the Page Sunday, August 5 Deviled Egg Contest at Cutters Friday, August 10 Boys in the Shower at Grand Pre’s Saturday, August 11 Underwear Party at Cutters Thursday, August 16 Cocktails and Queer History Sunday, September 2 46th Annual Southern Decadence Parade Monday, September 3 Survivor’s Bar Crawl at Corner Pocket Note: Any event not listed here is not an official Southern Decadence Parade fundraiser, which means any money generated by such events is not necessarily going toward producing the 2018 Southern Decadence Parade. Please be aware that some bars may be hosting what they are calling “Southern Decadence” fundraisers, but that money is not being turned over to the Southern Decadence Financial Oversight Committee. www.GayMardiGras.com · www.GayEasterParade.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · 11

Southern Decadence Sponsorships SDGMs XLIV Frank Perez and Adikus Sulpizi would like to thank the following businesses and individuals for being Official Sponsors of Southern Decadence 2018:

Presenting: Skyy Vodka, Bud Light, Tours By Steven, Two Guys Cutting Hair, Crescent City Tour Booking Agency, Ambush Magazine Platinum: Tropical Isle, Jeffrey Palmquist & Coca Mesa Gold: The Black Penny, The Double Play, Two Chicks Walking Tours Silver: Tomy Acosta, Rose Barbee, Lost Love Lounge, Quartermaster Deli, City Wholesale Liquor Co. Bronze: Dr. Robert McWhirter, Helene Berot, Blue60 Guest House Pearl: Major Tom & Johnny Sponsorships are still available through August. For more information on being an Official Southern Decadence 2018 Sponsor, please contact SDGMs XLIV Frank Perez or Adikus Sulpizi at frankearlperez@gmail.com or adikussulpizi@gmail.com

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12 路 The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com 路 July 17 - 30, 2018 路 Official Southern Decadence Guide 路 www.SouthernDecadence.com

4

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LGBT+ Archives Project of Louisiana

ORACLE

GALA

HONORING THE FOUNDERS OF SOUTHERN DECADENCE Maureen & Charlie Block, Robert Laurent, Tom Tippin, Preston Hemmings, and Bruce Harris

SUNDAY August 12 @ 6:00 PM ACE HOTEL 600 Carondelet Street Special Guest Host HOWARD PHILIPS SMITH

Book Launch SOUTHERN DECADENCE IN NEW ORLEANS World Premier THE EARLY FILMS OF SOUTHERN DECADENCE Mini-Exhibition THE FIRST INVITATIONS OF SOUTHERN DECADENCE Meet & Greet THE FOUNDERS, FORMER & REIGNING GRAND MARSHALS Tickets EVENTBRIGHT.COM (ORACLE GALA) or frankearlperez@gmail.com

ARE YOU FEELING DECADENT? “Get your things together and come back to Belle Rêve,” Frederick Wright would implore, during that awfully hot end of summer in 1972. It was at the home of MICHAEL EVERS in FAUBOURG TREMÉ that the first Southern Decadence was held, an impromptu costume party to celebrate friendship, commraderie, and the joy of life and love. This original concept remains true to the grand revel that we know today as the Southern Decadence Festival. Come join the LGBT+ Archives Project for the 4th Annual ORACLE GALA as we honor the founders of Southern Decadence with a look at some of the early invitations and restored film footage of the walking parades through the French Quarter, which are part of the SOUTHERN DECADENCE ARCHIVES at Tulane. Come as your favorite Decadent and enjoy this romp through history!

www.GayMardiGras.com · www.GayEasterParade.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · 13

Snap Paparazzi: Oz New Orleans Photos Courtesy of Persana Shoulders

OZ New Orleans 2-story, 24/7 gay dance club with DJs, drag shows, go-go dancers & a balcony for people-watching.

OPENING HOURS

FRI, SAT & SUN: 24/7 MON–THURS: Opens at 1PM

ADDRESS 800 Bourbon Street New Orleans, LA Phone: (504) 593-9491 14 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · Official Southern Decadence Guide · www.SouthernDecadence.com

Tricentennial Profiles in History: Jim Monaghan

by Frank Perez Email: f.perez@sbcglobal.net

Jim Monaghan Throughout its storied history, the French Quarter has played host to a variety of colorful “Bar Barons”--Arnaud Casenave, Owen Brennan, Tom Caplinger, Dixie Fasnacht, and at least a dozen others. Of these lounge impresarios, one of the most interesting, and significant, was the legendary Jim Monaghan.

Originally from Zanesville, Ohio, Monaghan moved to New Orleans around 1967 and opened a shortlived pastry shop on Royal Street.

Monaghan, an Irish-American, then decided beer could make more money than pastries.

Monaghan’s instincts were right on target. Over the following 30 years, he would own no less than 30 bars in the French Quarter, including Bonaparte’s Retreat, Burgundy Street Outback, Katy’s Underground, The Abbey, Molly’s at the Market, Molly’s on Toulouse, Nick’s Place, The Erin Rose, The Patio, and Easy Eddies.

Bonaparte’s Retreat, located at 1107 Decatur Street, was a rough affair. Fights and marijuana busts were common and, in 1971, the Galloping

Gooses Motorcycle Gang got into a huge brawl at the bar that resulted in a court banning them from the French Quarter altogether. Jim Morrison of The Doors once told an interviewer that Bonaparte’s Retreat was his favorite bar in New Orleans.

A block away, Molly’s was a bit more cordial. Opened in 1973, Molly’s became something of a salon for the city’s intelligentsia--writers, journalists, and attorneys all vied for a coveted window seat--and local celebrities would often make guest bartending appearances. During his 1985 trial on corruption charges, Governor Edwin Edwards hosted a party there and recited an original poem that urged his prosecutor to kiss his ass. In 1982, Monaghan started the Molly’s Halloween Parade, a tradition that still thrives today. Monaghan also had St. Patrick’s Day and Bastille Day parades.

In many ways, Monaghan, more than anyone, was responsible for the transformation of Decatur Street in the 1970s and 1980s. Monaghan ran unsuccessfully for the City Council in 1990 and suffered a heart attack in 1991. When he died in 2002, a huge Jazz Funeral more than four blocks long meandered through the French

Quarter.

Andrei Codrescu, a regular at Molly’s, eulogized Monaghan by writing, “Crusty old Irish anarchist, who trusted nobody, loved almost everybody, was most certainly loved by a great many,

he took the world for what it was, but was no man’s fool.”

At his request, Monaghan’s cremains were placed in an urn above the cash register at Molly’s.

4th Annual Oracle Gala to Honor the Founders of Southern Decadence The LGBT+ Archives Project of Louisiana’s 2018 Oracle Gala will honor the founders of Southern Decadence.

Each year the Archives Project honors an individual or organization that has made a substantial donation of LGBT+ materials to a local library or museum. This year’s Oracle Gala recognizes the founders of Southern Decadence, who have generously donated their memorabilia to the Louisiana Research Collection at Tulane University.

Several of these founders will be at the Gala, including Robert Laurent, Maureen and Charlie Block, Tom Tippin, Preston Hemmings, and Bruce Harris.

A special, one-time only, exhibit of these items, and other artifacts chronicling New Orleans LGBT+ history, will be featured at the Gala. Of particular interest will be Laurent’s series of invitations from the 1970s.

The Oracle Gala will also include a screening of rare film footage of the

first several Southern Decadence parties/parades. Former Southern Decadence Grand Marshals will be recognized as well.

In addition, the first book ever published on Southern Decadence— Southern Decadence in New Orleans

by Frank Perez and Howard P. Smith, forthcoming from the LSU Press, will be available at the Gala.

Howard P. Smith, author of Unveiling the Muse: The Lost History of Gay Carnival in New Orleans, will be the Master of Ceremonies.

Both Perez, who serves as President of the Archives Project, and Adikus Sulpizi, current Southern Decadence Grand Marshals, will be in attendance at the Gala.

The Oracle Gala will be held on Sunday, August 12, at the Ace Hotel, from 6:00pm to 9:00pm. Tickets are available at https://www.eventbrite. com/e/4th-annual-oracle-gala-tickets-46785977117?aff=ebdssbdestsearch or in person from Perez.

www.GayMardiGras.com · www.GayEasterParade.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · 15

GAY APPRECIATION AWARD FINALISTS

The GAA Gala is Saturday, July 21 7-10pm at Oz New Orleans

Purchase Tickets today in advance www.GayAppreciationAwards.com

Gay Appreciation Awards thanks those in the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Community who are often not recognized for the outstanding services and efforts they perform.

Scan with Your Phone’s Camera for Tickets

Bartender of the Year Ashlee Logan Jeremy Cole Philip Anthony Palumbo aka “Felicia Philips” Urban Cook, Jr. Wayne Penton Bitch of the Year Aubrey Synclaire Persana Shoulders Princesse Stephaney Reba Douglas Taze-Ya Ballz Buzzy Fanning AIDS Award Adikus Sulpizi Crescent Care & NO/AIDS Task Force Misti Ates Team Friendly NOLA Toby Lefort Cheridon Comedy Award Clorox Bleachman Gia GiaVanni Lana O’Day Persana Shoulders Tittie Toulouse Dance Club of the Year Bourbon Pub & Parade Good Friends Bar Oz New Orleans Sipps Bar Gulfport Splash (Baton Rouge)

These individuals and businesses have made the LGBT Community into the viable, successful and powerful community it is today across the Gulf South.

DJ of the Year Bouffant Bouffant Chris Allen Jonathan Reed Kyle David Tim Pflueger Donnie Jay Performing Arts Award AUX Colorguard Daniel Nardicio Jamie Lee Rineholt New Orleans Gay Men’s Chorus Tennessee Williams Theatre Company Fly Fashion Glamour Award Chi Chi Rodriguez Connie Hung Gia GiaVanni Monica Synclaire Tiffany Alexander Gay Man of the Year Andrew Palermo Frank Perez Jeffrey Mayeux Lonnie Cheramie Poseidon Davenport Gay Mardi Gras Ball of the Year Krewe of Armeinius Krewe of Petronius Mystic Krewe of Lords of

Leather Mystic Krewe of Satyricon The Krewe of Amon-Ra

Golden Lantern Good Friend’s Bar Sipps Bar Gulfport

Hair Salon or Stylist of the Year Aivi Dang Head Quarters Jonathon Baxter Joseph McCrory Two Guys Cutting Hair

Party/Event of the Year Gay Easter Parade Halloween New Orleans Memorial Day Pensacola New Orleans Pride Southern Decadence

Leather Bar of the Year Cafe Lafitte in Exile Rawhide The Golden Lantern The Page The Phoenix/Eagle Leather Person of the Year Adikus Sulpizi Brock Andersen Matthew Birkhoff Tim Goodman Troy Powell Lesbian of the Year Ilana Obuchowski Mina Hernandez Misti Gaither Sandy Sachs Tracy Foxworth LGBTQ Business of the Year Bourbon Pride Covenant House Crescent Care & NO/AIDS Task Force EAT New Orleans Sun Herald Newspaper Marcy Marcell Entertainer of the Year ChiChi Rodriquez Coca Mesa Gia GiaVanni Nicole Dubois Snow Wyte (Brandon Aizen) Neighborhood Bar of Year 700 Club Cafe Lafitte in Exile

Restaurant/Deli/Coffee House of the Year Chef Ron’s Gumbo Stop Clover Grill Country Club EAT New Orleans Louisiana Pizza Kitchen Uptown Show Club of the Year Bourbon Pub & Parade Golden Lantern Oz New Orleans Sipps Bar Gulfport The Corner Pocket Sports League Team Spirit Award Big Easy Bears (Softball) Geaux Cups (Softball) Kick Tease (Stonewall) Queen Cake Suck My Kick (Stonewall) Sports Top 10 Award (Player with most clutch plays) Beau Moss Caleb Dufresne Cameron Tillman Dustin Woehrmann Michael Styles Rob Gerhart Transgender Person of the Year Adrian Claveria Chi Chi Rodriquez Kayla Starr Regina Adams Rikki Redd

16 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · Official Southern Decadence Guide · www.SouthernDecadence.com

L L E H EZES E R F JULY VER O 2 2 0 2 JOIN U

L E C E S AS W

T 5 3 R U O E T A R B E

Y R A S R E V I N N A H

THE MOST EXCLUSIVE PARTY OF SOUTHERN DECADENCE

S T ICKE T E ON SAL G N S TA R T I J U LY 2 1

ATLAS GRANT AND BENNETT ANTHONY

WITH

941 ELYSIAN FIELDS AVENUE, NEW ORLEANS

OPEN 24 HOURS, NO COVER

FOLLOW US TO THE FUN

www.GayMardiGras.com 路 www.GayEasterParade.com 路 July 17 - 30, 2018 路 The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com 路 17

Snap Paparazzi: Stonewall Sports National Tournament Photos by Randy P Schmidt

Beautifully Renovated Historic Cottage 5036 N. Rampart St. ∙ 3 Bed, 2 Bath, 1760 SF ∙ $239,000 This recently renovated home offers an expansive patio, ample yard space, off street parking and tons of natural light. Hardwood floors, tall ceilings and crown molding create the authentic Creole Cottage feel while offering an updated open floor plan. The master suite has a large walk-in closet, georgous bath and opens onto the patio. +1 504-777-1773 ∙ Michael.Styles@evusa.com

ENGEL&VÖLKERS MICHAEL STYLES

Engel & Völkers New Orleans ∙ +1 504-875-3555 ∙ neworleans@evusa.com 722 Martin Behrman Ave., Metairie, LA 70005 ©2018 Engel & Völkers. Each brokerage independently owned and operated. Licensed in Louisiana.

18 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · Official Southern Decadence Guide · www.SouthernDecadence.com

Snap Paparazzi: Stonewall Sports National Tournament Photos by Randy P Schmidt

www.GayMardiGras.com 路 www.GayEasterParade.com 路 July 17 - 30, 2018 路 The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com 路 19

Under the Gaydar: New Orleans Hot Happenings

by Tony Leggio Email: ledgemgp@gmail.com

Summer is now in full swing and things are heating up in a good way.

A little sweat never hurt anyone. Here are just a few of the hot happenings to help your calendar sizzle. (If you have a fundraiser, party, show or event coming up and would like to be listed in the calendar, please email me at ledgemgp@gmail.com).

Tuesday, July 17, 2018 Kocktail Karaoke: Good Friends Bar; 740 Dauphine St.; 9 p.m. - 1 a.m.

Join us at Good Friends Bar for Kocktail Karaoke. The winner gets a $25.00 bar tab. $5 Fireball.

Country Dance Lessons: GrandPre’s; 834 N. Rampart St.; 8 p.m.

Tuesdays are Country Dance lessons with dancing from 8 - 11 p.m.

Bourbon Boylesque: Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; 8:00 p.m. See the men of Oz like you have never seen them before. The show stars Atomyc Adonis, Bobby B, Franky, Phathoms Deep and special guests. Hosted by Trixie Minx.

Tacos, Tequila and Tiaras: Buffa’s Bar and Restaurant; 1001 Esplanade Ave.; 8 p.m. Tacos, Tequila, and Tiaras is one of New Orleans’ only family friendly drag shows! Join hostess Vanessa Carr Kennedy every Tuesday, have a taco or two, and learn a little bit about the art of drag.

Twofer Tuesdays: Double Play Bar; 439 Dauphine St. The drinks special is two for one drinks until 10 p.m.

Tequila Tuesdays: Four Seasons Bar; 3229 N. Causeway Blvd.; Open to close. Features $5 Tequila Sunrises, $6 house margaritas, $7 peach or strawberry margaritas and $7 Patron shots.

Wednesday, July 18, 2018 WednesGays at LPK Uptown: Louisiana Pizza Kitchen; 615 South Carrollton Ave.; 5 p.m. Join us every Wednesday to celebrate diversity. See old friends or make some new ones and find out what’s happening in the Nola community. All this while enjoying 1/2 price drinks from the bar. Invite your friends.

You Better Sing Karaoke; Cafe Lafitte in Exile; 901 Bourbon St.; 9 p.m. - 1:00 a.m. Join DJ Kory and DJ Derek as they play Karaoke at Cafe Lafitte in Exile. Behind the bar slinging your drinks are Jeremy, Ryan, and Tim. $5 Fireball, $25 Gift Certificate for GFB, plus Free Tatertots Gift Card for Clover Grill.

Oz Show Night: Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; 10:30 p.m. This popular drag show is hosted by Persana

Shoulders and features Nicole Lynn Foxx, Lisa Beaumann, Connie Hung, Anastascia Davenport; Chichi Rodriguez and Dominique DeLorean.

Game Night: GrandPre’s; 834 N. Rampart St.; 7 p.m. Wednesdays are Game Night with Honey Bee at 7 p.m. with free jello shots and Bar Tabs.

Half-Price Hump Days (Wednesdays): Double Play Bar; 439 Dauphine St. The drink special is all drinks are half price until 10 p.m.

Hump Day: Rawhide 2010; 740 Burgundy St.; 4 - 9 p.m. 2 for $4 wells, draft, and domestic beers.

Wine Night: Four Seasons Bar; 3229 N. Causeway Blvd.; 5 p.m. close. $15 bottles of wine.

Thursday, July 19, 2018 Honey Bee Trivia: GrandPre’s; 834 N. Rampart St.; 7 p.m. Thursday is Honey Bee Trivia at 7 p.m. Four rounds with jello shots to the winner of each round and a Bar Tab to top person/team of the night.

Girl | Crush: Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; 9 p.m. Girl | Crush is brings you a weekly event for girls who like girls, and their friends! This flavor of CRUSH entitled DTF is exclusive to New Orleans’ #1 Dance Club, Oz and happens every Thursday night.

The Jeff D Comedy Cabaret; Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; 10 p.m. The Comedy Cabaret stars Jeff D. featuring Gia Giavanni. Enjoy hilarious comedians, amazing talent and the Ladies of Oz. Strip Off: Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; midnight Persana Shoulders hosts the Strip Off every Thursday night. Sign up begins at 11 p.m. and the show features a spotlight performance by Miss Gay Louisiana America 2013 Mercedes Ellis Loreal. Winners receive 1st PLACE - $100 Cash • 2nd PLACE - $50 Bar tab Three-Dollar Thursdays: Double Play Bar; 439 Dauphine St. The drink special is $3 Fireball and Jagermeister shots all day and night.

Bring Your Own Meat Night: Four Seasons Bar; 3229 N. Causeway Blvd..; 6 - 8 p.m. Bring your own meat for the grill and the bar will have all the sides.

Friday, July 20, 2018 Music of Senator Ken: Golden Lantern; 1239 Royal St.; 7:30 - 9:30 p.m. Enjoy live music with Senator Ken playing all your favorites.

Play Girlz: Golden Lantern; 1239 Royal St.; 10 - 11:30 p.m. Drag show featuring Gia GiaVanni and special guests.

New Meat Amateur Dance Contest: Corner Pocket; 640 St. Louis St.; 6:30 p.m. Hosted by Lisa Beaumann, anyone can enter - $100 cash prize.

Long Island Fridays: Double Play Bar; 439 Dauphine St. The drink special is $5 Long Island Iced Teas all day and night.

Hens vs. Chickens: Four Seasons Bar; 3229 N. Causeway Blvd.; 10 p.m. Join Tittie Toulouse, Big Momma, Zaquisha Spice ad Scarlet Michaels for this fun filled show.

Saturday, July 21, 2018 Music of Vanessa Carr Kennedy; Golden Lantern; 1239 Royal St.; 7:30 - 9:30 p.m. Enjoy songstress Vanessa as she sings some of the tops hits of yesterday and today.

Divas R Us; Golden Lantern; 1239 Royal St.; 10 - 11:30 p.m. This wonderful drag show directed by Monica Sinclaire Kennedy includes special guest stars.

Piano Bar with Trey Ming; Good Friends Bar; 740 Dauphine St.; 4 7 p.m. Sing along with your favorite songs with talented piano player Trey Ming.

CAT 5 Hurricane Saturdays: Double Play Bar; 439 Dauphine St. The drink specials are $5 Hurricanes all day and night and from 8 - 10 p.m. Doubles for the price of a single on all alcohol.

Ambush Magazine Presents 30th Annual Gay Appreciation Awards: Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; 7 - 10 p.m. Gay Appreciation Awards thanks those in the LGBTQ community who are often not recognized for the outstanding services and efforts they perform. These individuals and businesses have made the LGBTQ Community into the viable, successful and powerful community it is today across the Gulf South.The proceeds from this year’s event will be given to Stonewall Sports and Southern Decadence. Tickets can be purchased at Eventbrite.

GCPAH Beer Bust: Four Seasons Bar; 3229 North Causeway Blvd.; 8 - 10 p.m. $5 ALL YOU CAN DRINK Beer Bust with $1 jello shots to top off the night.

Exotique Totally Eighties Show: Four Seasons Bar; 3229 N. Causeway Blvd.; 10:30 p.m - 1:30 a.m. EXOTIQUE is a drag show that is themed every month. Come sing along and dance to some of your favorite 80’s songs. FREE entry.

It’s Showtime on Rampart; GrandPre’s; 834 North Rampart St.; Starting at 10 p.m. Join show director Moanalot Fontaine for this exciting show with Sable Nicole Starr and special guests.

Sunday, July 22, 2018 Bottomless Sundays: Double Play Bar; 439 Dauphine St.. The drink spe-

cial is $15 Bottomless Bloody Marys and Mimosas from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Bottomless Mimosas:Cafe Lafitte in Exile; 901 Bourbon St.; 1 - 4 p.m.

Bottomless Mimosas are offered upstairs from 1 - 4 p.m. for $12.

You Better Sing Karaoke; GrandPre’s; 834 North Rampart St.; 7 p.m.

Join DJ Kory and DJ Derek as they play Karaoke.

Jubilee: Golden Lantern; 1239 Royal St.; 5 p.m. This Sunday Funday show stars Reba Douglas and special guests.

Zingo: Corner Pocket; 640 St. Louis St.; 6:30 p.m. Play Bingo followed by the Barry BareAss Dancer of the Week Contest.

Oz Show Night: Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; 9:30 p.m. This popular drag show is hosted by Persana Shoulders and features Lisa Beaumann, Connie Hung, Anastascia Davenport; Chichi Rodriguez and Dominique DeLorean.

Drink Drown and Drag: The Bourbon Pub; 801 Bourbon St.; 6 - 9 p.m.

Sunday Funday upstairs at The Parade. $15 Drink and Drown from 6 9 p.m. with a star-studded drag show starting at 8 p.m.

Sunday Worship: Metropolitan Community Church of New Orleans (MCCNO); 5401 S. Claiborne Ave; 10:00 a.m. New Orleans first LGBTQ church welcomes you to join us for our Sunday worship service where they celebrate God’s Love for everyone.

Buffet and Auction Benefiting Southern Decadence: Cosimo’s; 1201 Burgundy Street; 2 - 5 p.m. Come out to legendary French Quarter bar Cosimo’s for a delicious buffet and auction.

Food will include a custom taco bar, a pasta dish, jambalaya, pizza, and dessert (and maybe even meat pies!) All you can eat for $10. Proceeds benefit Southern Decadence 2018 and its official charities: the LGBT+ Archives Project of Louisiana and Mr. Friendly.

Under Construction: Double Play Bar; 439 Dauphine Street; 2 - 5 p.m.

The Krewe of Armeinius presents Under Construction - an afternoon of hot men, hamburgers, hot dogs, jello shots and boy auction. The admission is $15 and includes food.

Coca Mesa’s Drag Brunch; Boomtown Casino; 4132 Peters Road; Noon. Come out to Boomtown fro Coca Mesa’s Drag Brunch which in clouds bottomless mimosas, food and non-stop entertainment. Tickets are $35, To purchase tickets, call 504-3667711.

Monday, July 23, 2018 Karaoke Monday: The Bourbon Pub; 801 Bourbon St.; 7 - 9 p.m. Enjoy happy hour prices all night long. Host-

20 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · Official Southern Decadence Guide · www.SouthernDecadence.com

www.GayMardiGras.com 路 www.GayEasterParade.com 路 July 17 - 30, 2018 路 The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com 路 21

p.m. Enjoy live music with Senator Ken playing all your favorites.

Play Girlz: Golden Lantern; 1239 Royal St.; 10 - 11:30 p.m. Drag show featuring Gia GiaVanni and special guests.

New Meat Amateur Dance Contest: Corner Pocket; 640 St. Louis St.; 6:30 p.m. Hosted by Lisa Beaumann, anyone can enter - $100 cash prize.

Long Island Fridays: Double Play Bar; 439 Dauphine St. The drink special is $5 Long Island Iced Teas all day and night.

Art That Makes You Smile - Works

by Leroy Morvant: Severio Gallery; 834 Chartres St; 4 - 8 p.m. Join Leroy Morvant for a cocktail reception featuring his original paintings, pillows, coasters and home goods.

Saturday, July 28, 2018 Music of Vanessa Carr Kennedy; Golden Lantern; 1239 Royal St.; 7:30 - 9:30 p.m. Enjoy songstress Vanessa as she sings some of the tops hits of yesterday and today.

Divas R Us; Golden Lantern; 1239 Royal St.; 10 - 11:30 p.m. This wonderful drag show directed by Monica Sinclaire Kennedy includes special guest stars.

Piano Bar with Trey Ming; Good Friends Bar; 740 Dauphine St.; 4 7 p.m. Sing along with your favorite songs with talented piano player Trey Ming.

CAT 5 Hurricane Saturdays: Double Play Bar; 439 Dauphine St. The drink specials are $5 Hurricanes all day and night and from 8 - 10 p.m. Doubles for the price of a single on all alcohol.

Wicked - The Premier: Four Seasons Bar; 3229 N. Causeway Blvd.; 10 - 11:30 p.m. Analia XO is happy to announced a brand new show called WICKED! 3 performers who love breaking the rules of “drag” will come together to give you a SHOW! Performers include Auguste Phillippe, Athena Phillippe and Analia XO. NO COVER.

Sunday, July 29, 2018 Bottomless Sundays: Double Play Bar; 439 Dauphine St.. The drink special is $15 Bottomless Bloody Marys and Mimosas from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Bottomless Mimosas:Cafe Lafitte in Exile; 901 Bourbon St.; 1 - 4 p.m.

Bottomless Mimosas are offered upstairs from 1 - 4 p.m. for $12.

You Better Sing Karaoke; GrandPre’s; 834 North Rampart St.; 7 p.m.

Join DJ Kory and DJ Derek as they play Karaoke at Good Friends Bar. Behind the bar slinging your drinks are Jeremy, Ryan, and Tim. Jubilee: Golden Lantern; 1239 Royal St.; 5 p.m. This Sunday Funday show stars Reba Douglas and special guests.

Zingo: Corner Pocket; 640 St. Louis St.; 6:30 p.m. Play Bingo fol-

lowed by the Barry BareAss Dancer of the Week Contest.

Oz Show Night: Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; 9:30 p.m. This popular drag show is hosted by Persana Shoulders and features Lisa Beaumann, Connie Hung, Anastascia Davenport; Chichi Rodriguez and Dominique DeLorean.

Drink Drown and Drag: The Bourbon Pub; 801 Bourbon St.; 6 - 9 p.m.

Sunday Funday upstairs at The Parade. $15 Drink and Drown from 6 9 p.m. with a star-studded drag show starting at 8 p.m.

Sunday Worship: Metropolitan Community Church of New Orleans (MCCNO); 5401 S. Claiborne Ave; 10:00 a.m. New Orleans first LGBTQ church welcomes you to join us for our Sunday worship service where we celebrate God’s Love for everyone.

Coca Mesa’s Drag Brunch; Boomtown Casino; 4132 Peters Road; Noon. Come out to Boomtown fro Coca Mesa’s Drag Brunch which in clouds bottomless mimosas, food and non-stop entertainment. Tickets are $35, To purchase tickets, call 504-3667711.

LGBT Day At The Ballpark with the Babycakes: Shrine on Airline: 6000 Airline Drive; 1 - 6 p.m. Join the LGBTQ+ community, friends, family, and organizations to celebrate Pride Day with the Baby Cakes presented

by The Gulf South Chamber of Commerce, Cox Communications and Capital One.VIP Packages are available for $38 which include a Party Shack ticket, all you can eat buffet that includes hamburgers, hotdogs, potato salad, cookies, tea, lemonade and water, as well as a Specialty Pride Hat! Cash bar will also be available for alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. Wristbands with VIP Packages will give kids access to unlimited jumps on the Bounce House! Lower Bowl standard seats are available for $10 with great views from the first base line! You may addon a Specialty Pride Hat for only $13!

A portion of each ticket purchased through this special ticket package will go to support CrescentCare, an organization which provides quality care to individuals, couples and families that seek a “medical home” where they can consistently go for care. Gates open at 12:00pm with Catch on the Field from 12:00-12:30 and then Kids Run the Bases postgame! For tickets, go to www.groupmatics.events/event/LGBTDay. Monday, July 30, 2018 Karaoke Monday: The Bourbon Pub; 801 Bourbon St.; 7 - 9 p.m. Enjoy happy hour prices all night long. Hosted by Denny with VJ Dollabill.

S.I.N. Night: The Corner Pocket; 940 St. Louis St.; Starting at 9 p.m.

Come drink with Ashlee. Get your SIN card and receive $2.50 canned beer Margarita Mondays: Double Play

22 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · Official Southern Decadence Guide · www.SouthernDecadence.com

Continued from Page 20

ed by Denny with VJ Dollabill.

S.I.N. Night: The Corner Pocket; 940 St. Louis St.; Starting at 9 p.m Come drink with Ashlee. Get your SIN card and receive $2.50 canned beer or well drinks and $1.50 draft.

Margarita Mondays: Double Play Bar; 439 Dauphine St. The drink special is $3 margaritas all day and night.

Pool Tournament: Rawhide 2010; 740 Burgundy St.; 9:45 p.m. $2 PBR and $50 Gift Certificate for Rawhide Lazy Susan Karaoke: Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon Street; 9 p.m. - 1 a.m. Join bartender Mark and a revolving cast of drag queen hostesses for LAZY SUSAN KARAOKE with Music

by DJ JRB. Mondays are a drag, so make them fabulous and sing the night away.

Gumbo Days For then Lords of Leather: Chef Ron’s Gumbo Shop; 2309 N. Causeway Blvd.; 11 a.m. - 10 p.m. Eat, drink, and be Mary at Chef Ron’s on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday (July 23-25) and indicate. “Lords of Leather” on your ticket and Ron will donate 25% to their Bal Masque.

Tuesday, July 24, 2018 Kocktail Karaoke: Good Friends Bar; 740 Dauphine St.; 9 p.m. - 1 a.m.

Join us at Good Friends Bar for Kocktail Karaoke. The winner gets a $25.00 bar tab. $5 Fireball.

Tequila Tuesdays: Four Seasons

Bar; 3229 N. Causeway Blvd.; Open to close. Features $5 Tequila Sunrises, $6 house margaritas, $7 peach or strawberry margaritas and $7 Patron shots.

Country Dance lessons: GrandPre’s; 834 N. Rampart St.; 8 p.m.

Tuesdays are Country Dance lessons with dancing from 8 - 11 p.m.

Bourbon Boylesque: Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; 8:00 p.m. See the Men of Oz like you have never seen them before. The show stars Atomyc Adonis, Bobby B, Franky, Phathoms Deep and special guests. Hosted by Trixie Minx.

Tacos, Tequila and Tiaras: Buffa’s Bar and Restaurant; 1001 Esplanade Ave.; 8 p.m. Tacos, Tequila, and Tiaras is a one of New Orleans’ only family friendly drag shows! Join hostess Vanessa Carr Kennedy every Tuesday, have a taco or two, and learn a little bit about the art of drag.

Twofer Tuesdays: Double Play Bar; 439 Dauphine St. The drinks special is two-for-one drinks until 10 p.m.

Wednesday, July 25, 2018 WednesGays at LPK Uptown: Louisiana Pizza Kitchen; 615 South Carrollton Ave.; 5 p.m. Join us every Wednesday to celebrate diversity. See old friends or make some new ones and find out what’s happening in the Nola community. All this while enjoying 1/2 price drinks from the bar. Invite

your friends...

You Better Sing Karaoke;Cafe Lafitte in Exile; 901 Bourbon St.; 9 p.m. - 1:00 a.m. Join DJ Kory and DJ Derek as they play Karaoke. Behind the bar slinging your drinks are Jeremy, Ryan, and Tim. $5 Fireball, $25 Gift Certificate for GFB, plus Free Tatertots Gift Card for Clover Grill.

Oz Show Night: Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; 10:30 p.m. This popular drag show is hosted by Persana Shoulders and features Nicole Lynn Foxx, Lisa Beaumann, Connie Hung, Anastascia Davenport; Chichi Rodriguez and Dominique DeLorean.

Game Night: GrandPre’s; 834 N. Rampart St.; 7 p.m. Wednesdays are Game Night with Honey Bee at 7 p.m. and free jello shots and Bar Tabs.

Half-Price Hump Days (Wednesdays): Double Play Bar; 439 Dauphine St. The drink special is all drinks are half price until 10 p.m.

Hump Day: Rawhide 2010; 740 Burgundy St.; 4 - 9 p.m. 2 for $4 wells, draft, and domestic beers.

Wine Night: Four Seasons Bar; 3229 N. Causeway Blvd.; 5 p.m. close. $15 bottles of wine.

Thursday, July 26, 2018 Honey Bee Trivia: GrandPre’s; 834 N. Rampart St.; 7 p.m. Thursday is Honey Bee Trivia at 7 p.m. Four rounds with jello shots to the winner of each round and a Bar Tab to top per-

son/team of the night.

Girl | Crush: Oz New Orleans New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; 9 p.m. Girl | Crush brings you a weekly event for girls who like girls, and their friends!

This flavor of CRUSH entitled DTF is exclusive to New Orleans’ #1 Dance Club, Oz and happens every Thursday night.

The Jeff D Comedy Cabaret; Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; 10 p.m. The Comedy Cabaret stars Jeff D. featuring Gia Giavanni. Enjoy hilarious comedians, amazing talent and the Ladies of Oz. Strip Off:Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; midnight Persana Shoulders hosts the Strip Off every Thursday night. Sign up begins at 11 p.m. and the show features a spotlight performance by Miss Gay Louisiana America 2013 Mercedes Ellis Loreal. Winners receive 1st PLACE - $100 Cash • 2nd PLACE - $50 Bar tab Three-Dollar Thursdays: Double Play Bar; 439 Dauphine St. The drink special is $3 Fireball and Jagermeister shots all day and night.

Bring Your Own Meat Night: Four Seasons Bar; 3229 N. Causeway Blvd..; 6 - 8 p.m. Bring your own meat for the grill and the bar will have all the sides.

Friday, July 27, 2018 Music of Senator Ken: Golden Lantern; 1239 Royal St.; 7:30 - 9:30

Sat, July 21 at 10:00 PM

HoneyBee Trivia

Happy Hour Daily

Thursdays 7:00 PM

noon - 9:00 PM

Free Jello Shots & Bar Tab

Our Famous

Watermelon Mojito Is back!

Check out our summer drinks. They will cool you off!

Sat, July 27 at 10:00 PM

www.GayMardiGras.com · www.GayEasterParade.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · 23

Bar; 439 Dauphine St. The drink special is $3 margaritas all day and night.

Pool Tournament: Rawhide 2010; 740 Burgundy St.; 9:45 p.m. $2 PBR and $50 gift certificate for Rawhide Lazy Susan Karaoke: Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon Street; 9 p.m. - 1 a.m. Join bartender Mark and a revolving cast of drag queen hostesses for LAZY SUSAN KARAOKE with Music

by DJ JRB. Mondays are a drag, so make them fabulous and sing the night away.

Tuesday, July 31, 2018 Kocktail Karaoke: Good Friends Bar; 740 Dauphine St.; 9 p.m. - 1 a.m.

Join us at Good Friends Bar for Kocktail Karaoke. The winner gets a $25.00 bar tab. $5 Fireball.

Country Dance lessons: GrandPre’s; 834 N. Rampart St.; 8 p.m.

Tuesdays are Country Dance lessons with dancing from 8 - 11 p.m.

Bourbon Boylesque: Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; 8:00 p.m. See the Men of Oz like you have never seen them before. The show stars Atomyc Adonis, Bobby B, Franky, Phathoms Deep and special guests. Hosted by Trixie Minx.

Tacos, Tequila and Tiaras: Buffa’s Bar and Restaurant; 1001 Esplanade Ave.; 8 p.m. Tacos, Tequila, and Tiaras is one of New Orleans’ only family friendly drag shows! Join hostess Vanessa Carr Kennedy every Tuesday,

have a taco or two, and learn a little bit about the art of drag.

Twofer Tuesdays: Double Play Bar; 439 Dauphine St. The drinks special is two for one drinks until 10 p.m.

Tequila Tuesdays: Four Seasons Bar; 3229 N. Causeway Blvd.; Open to close. Features $5 Tequila Sunrises, $6 house margaritas, $7 peach or strawberry margaritas and $7 Patron shots.

Chin Up Tits Out - An Evening With Lana O‘ Day: Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon Street; 10 p.m;. - 2 a.m.

Join Miss Gay New Orleans America 2017 Lana O’Day and a cast of of New Orleans’ finest entertainers for a night dedicated to raising awareness and funds for The Trevor Project. TTP is an organization that helps reduce suicide among LGBTQ youth through a hotline and other programs. The entertainers have donated their time and will be donating all money raised during the benefit to Lana’s Trevor Project fundraiser. Let’s reach for the stars! Lana will also be doing a special number to raise money for Southern Decadence 2018 charity Mr Friendly. Performers include Lana O’Day, Trixie Minx, Britney DeLorean, Xena Zeit-Geist, Justin Betweener, Luna Rei, Monique Michaels-Alexander, and many more.

NOAGE Potluck: Community Church Unitarian Universalist; 6690 Fleur Di Lis Drive; 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.

Join NOAGE for their monthly potluck!

LOCALLY OWNED AND OPERATED, CCS COVERS AREA SPORTS ON THE HIGH SCHOOL, COLLEGE & PRO LEVELS WITH A KEEN EYE TOWARD PROVIDING THE NEWS & ANALYSIS YOU WANT.

Come to eat, come to meet new folks, come to network, come to enjoy a summer night. All ages welcome! Bringing a dish is encouraged, but not required.

Wednesday, August 1, 2018 WednesGays at LPK Uptown: Louisiana Pizza Kitchen; 615 South Carrollton Ave.; 5 p.m. Join us every Wednesday to celebrate diversity. See old friends or make some new ones and find out what’s happening in the Nola community. All this while enjoying 1/2 price drinks from the bar. Invite your friends.

You Better Sing Karaoke; Cafe Lafitte in Exile; 901 Bourbon St.; 9 p.m. - 1:00 a.m. Join DJ Kory and DJ Derek as they play Karaoke at Cafe Lafitte in Exile. Behind the bar slinging your drinks for you are Jeremy, Ryan, and Tim. $5 Fireball, $25 Gift Certificate for GFB, plus Free Tatertots Gift Card for Clover Grill.

Oz Show Night: Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; 10:30 p.m. This popular drag show is hosted by Persana Shoulders and features Nicole Lynn Foxx, Lisa Beaumann, Connie Hung, Anastascia Davenport; Chichi Rodriguez and Dominique DeLorean.

Game Night: GrandPre’s; 834 N. Rampart St.; 7 p.m. Wednesdays are Game Night with Honey Bee at 7 p.m. with free jello shots and Bar Tabs.

Half-Price Hump Days (Wednesdays): Double Play Bar; 439 Dauphine St. The drink special is all drinks are half price until 10 p.m.

Hump Day: Rawhide 2010; 740 Burgundy St.; 4 - 9 p.m. 2 for $4 wells, draft, and domestic beers.

Wine Night: Four Seasons Bar; 3229 N. Causeway Blvd.; 5 p.m. close. $15 bottles of wine.

Thursday, August 2, 2018 Honey Bee Trivia: GrandPre’s; 834 N. Rampart St.; 7 p.m. Thursday is Honey Bee Trivia at 7 p.m. Four rounds with jello shots to the winner of each round and a Bar Tab to top person/team of the night.

Girl | Crush: Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; 9 p.m. Girl | Crush is brings you a weekly event for girls who like girls, and their friends! This flavor of CRUSH entitled DTF is exclusive to New Orleans’ #1 Dance Club, Oz and happens every Thursday night.

The Jeff D Comedy Cabaret; Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; 10 p.m. The Comedy Cabaret stars Jeff D. featuring Gia Giavanni. Enjoy hilarious comedians, amazing talent and the Ladies of Oz. Strip Off: Oz New Orleans; 800 Bourbon St.; midnight Persana Shoulders hosts the Strip Off every Thursday night. Sign up begins at 11 p.m. and the show features a spotlight performance by Miss Gay Louisiana America 2013 Mercedes Ellis Loreal. Winners receive 1st PLACE - $100 Cash • 2nd PLACE - $50 Bar tab Three-Dollar Thursdays: Double Play Bar; 439 Dauphine St. The drink special is $3 Fireball and Jagermeister shots all day and night.

Bring Your Own Meat Night: Four Seasons Bar; 3229 N. Causeway Blvd..; 6 - 8 p.m. Bring your own meat for the grill and the bar will have all the sides.

Get Your Event Listed

If you want to make sure your upcoming event is listed, email the information to me at ledgemgp@gmail.com.

crescentcitysports.com facebook.com/ccsdaily @ccsdaily

Robert Menuet, LCSW Relationship Therapy and Marriage Counseling

@ccsprep TherapistOrleans.com 504-219-1446 24 · The1Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · July - PM 30, 2018 · Official Decadence Guide · www.SouthernDecadence.com Untitled-1 Southern 1 Untitled-5 6/1/18 17 1:01

6/13/18 4:55 PM

Moments in Gay New Orleans History: Reflecting on Pride Month

by Frank Perez Email: f.perez@sbcglobal.net

In recent years, the arrival of June has triggered a debate in my head—is Pride still necessary?

As a historian, I think of Stonewall and the lightning bolt struck there by the queer gods. I think of how pervasive the closet was. I think of the Mattachine Society and how conservative it was. I think of the Gay Liberation Front and how radical it was. I think of the early Pride Parades. I think about how important those parades were for our collective and individual well-being.

I also think of how Pride Parades have changed over the years. I think of how they have been co-opted by Corporate America in a fevered attempt to capture our rainbow dollars. I think Pride Parades today are essentially corporate trade shows.

But is it really that simple? And if it is, is that a bad thing? No and maybe not. Pride grew out of a terrible need that is gradually but surely diminishing.

Much like the role of gay bars that has changed as society evolves, so has Pride. Besides, at least here in New Orleans, we still have Southern Decadence. May the queer gods help us if that parade ever becomes any more

corporate than it already is.

On a personal note, last month was an especially poignant Pride month. The month began with the annual membership meeting of the LGBT+ Archives Project, an organization I helped found five years ago and which I have the pleasure of continuing to lead. History has always been a passion of mine and I consider it an honor to have played a small role in getting some of our local LGBT+ history out of the closet.

Then I spent much of the month preparing for Southern Decadence and the annual Press Party. I’m proud to have been selected as a Grand Marshal. It’s thrilling for me to be a tiny part of such a huge New Orleans tradition. And it’s fun too, despite all the behind-the-scenes work that is involved.

The Southern Decadence Press Party was held on June 21, and what a night it was! But the jubilation of that night was replaced a few days later by the 2nd anniversary of the Pulse massacre and the 45th anniversary of the Up Stairs Lounge arson. The Archives Project collaborated with St. Mark’s Methodist Church to host a commem-

orative service and second line parade for the victims of the Up Stairs. Having the new mayor attend the service and walk the parade was significant given the city’s reaction, or lack thereof, 45 years ago.

A few days later, the Historic New Orleans Collection hosted a panel discussion about the legacy of the fire. Among the memories and attendant emotions the panel evoked was the commemorative event held in the same room five years earlier, which I also organized. In 2012, Rip and Marsha told me they wanted to plan something special for the 40th anniversary of the fire but that they didn’t have the time to organize it. They then asked me if I would do it. They assured me money was no object and they would anonymously underwrite the whole affair if necessary. That memory made me miss Rip and Marsha more than I usually do, which is a lot.

Then there was Ferris LeBlanc’s family. Ferris died in the Up Stairs Lounge fire in 1973, a fact his family did not learn of until 2013. I became acquainted with Ferris’ sister Marilyn and her family when they visited New Orleans in 2013 in an attempt to claim Ferris’ body and bring him back to California. Since then, I have become

friends with the family and was happy to spend the weekend with them while they were in town for the memorial service. I’m sad to report that three years later, they are still fighting the city and the cemetery to recover Ferris’ body (more on that saga in a future column).

The month ended on a sour note when Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy announced his retirement.

Kennedy was the swing vote in a number of key decisions that favored equality, including Obergefell vs. Hodges, the landmark 2015 decision that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide.

Kennedy’s departure from the court is particularly ominous since his replacement will be selected by Trump. This will likely set civil rights back a generation or two.

And that brings us back to Pride.

If the Trump disaster has taught us anything, it is that society can regress more easily than it can evolve forward.

All the hard-fought rights won since the 1960s--everything from civil rights for black Americans to reproductive rights for women to due process for immigrants to equal protection under the law for LGBT+ people--all of that is now in danger of being lost. And that makes Pride more necessary than ever.

RESTAURANT & BAR LARGE COVERED PATIO ON ESPLANADE

DAILY SPECIALS Open 11am – 10pm Daily Except Mondays

HAPPY HOUR WEEKDAYS 4 – 6PM

SUNDAY BRUNCH 11AM – 3PM $1 MIMOSAS $3 SANGRIAS & BLOODY MARYS

THE TRADITION LIVES ON AT

3201 ESPLANADE AVE. · 948-0077 www.GayMardiGras.com · www.GayEasterParade.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · 25

Snap Paparazzi: The Corner Pocket Photos by Jeremy

THE CORNER POCKET

Where the Boys are dancing nightly on the bar!

OPENING HOURS Everyday 9pm - TILL ADDRESS 940 St Louis Street, New Orleans, LA 70112 Phone: (504) 568-9829 www.cornerpocket.net

26 路 The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com 路 July 17 - 30, 2018 路 Official Southern Decadence Guide 路 www.SouthernDecadence.com

4 Tips for Combining Finances with Your Partner

by Scot I. Billeaudeau, JD, LL.M. ADPA® Email: S.Billeaudeau@ampf.com

As a relationship grows, working toward goals together may become more of a financial priority. If you’re ready to move to the next phase financially, consider the following tips: 1.

Communicate early and often. When it comes to relationships, you’ve probably heard the advice that communication is key. This adage holds true when combining finances as well. Be transparent about your spending habits, goals and feelings about money from the start. Whether you decide to establish joint financial accounts or keep them separate, keeping your partner informed can help you both work better as a team.

2. Choose your insurance coverage. Insurance policies can provide a layer of protection over your finances and may help you feel more confident about your ability to handle unexpected events. Make it a priority to review your individual life, disability, health, car and home insurance policies before deciding what coverage you would like as a couple. If either of you receive benefits through an employer, pay attention to the qualifying events and dates for when you can change your elections.

3.

Update the beneficiaries and will. Thinking about what happens if one of you passes away may not be romantic, but it is an important step to protecting your loved ones financially.

Discuss with your partner how you’d like assets to be divided and consider formalizing your wishes in a will. Also, update beneficiaries on your financial accounts (e.g. checking, saving and retirement accounts) and assets if necessary. This is especially important if you were previously married and your former spouse is listed as a beneficiary. In the same vein, if you want your partner to share ownership in any vehicle or property you own, update the titles accordingly.

4. Set goals together. Now that you’re earning, spending and saving to support your life together, why not formalize the dreams you share for your future? Set aside time to discuss your short- and long-term goals, such as buying a house, pursuing higher education or retiring early. Communicating your top priorities can help you reach compromise and avoid possible financial disputes.

Scot I. Billeaudeau, JD, LL.M. ADPA®, is a Financial Advisor with Waterfront Wealth Management, a private wealth advisory practice of Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc. He specializes in addressing the unique needs of the diverse LGBTQ community, fee-based financial planning and asset management strategies, and has been in practice for 11 years.

www.GayMardiGras.com · www.GayEasterParade.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · 27

LGBT Owned & Friendly Business Directory

bars

Job Opportunities Ambush Magazine is growing!

Freelance & Contributing Writers Wanted

We want to hear from you if you are a working or aspiring journalist interested in covering topics meaningful to the LGBTQ community.

Snap Paparazzi Photographer Wanted

Do you frequent the LGBTQ bars and events? We want to hear from you if you are interested in regularly covering the bars and events.

If you are interested, please email your resume, cover letter, and portfolio to info@ambushpublishing.com

Mobile, AL [251] B-Bob’s Downtown, 213 Conti St., 433.2262, B-Bobs.COM Flip Side Bar & Patio, 54 S. Conception St., 431.8819, FlipSideBarPatio.COM GABRIEL’S DOWNTOWN, 55 South Joachim St., 432.4900 The Midtown Pub, 153 Florida St., 450.1555 Pensacola, FL [850] THE ROUNDUP, 560 East Heinberg St., 433.8482 Baton Rouge, LA [225] GEORGE’S, 860 St. Louis, 387.9798, SPLASH, 2183 Highland Rd., 242.9491, SplashBR.COM Lake Charles, LA [337] CRYSTAL’S, 112 W. Broad, 433.5457 Metairie, LA [504] FOUR SEASONS & PATIO STAGE BAR, 3229 N. Causeway, 832.0659, FourSeasonsBar.com New Orleans, LA [504] 700 CLUB, 700 Burgundy, 561.1095, BIG DADDY’S, 2513 Royal, 948.6288 BIG EASY DAIQUIRIS, 216 Bourbon, 501 Bourbon, 409 Decatur, 617 Decatur THE BLACK PENNY, 700 N. Rampart BOURBON PUB & PARADE, 801 Bourbon St., 529.2107, BourbonPub.COM Café Lafitte in Exile, 901 Bourbon Street 522.8397, Lafittes.COM. Café Lafitte in Exile is the oldest continuously operating gay bar in the United States.

CORNER POCKET, 940 St. Louis, 568.9829, CornerPocket.NET COUNTRY CLUB, 634 Louisa St., TheCountryClubNewOrleans.COM, 945.0742 CUTTER’S, 706 Franklin, 948.4200 THE DOUBLE PLAY, 439 Dauphine, 523.4517 THE FRIENDLY BAR, 2301 Chartres, 943.8929 GOLDEN LANTERN, 1239 Royal, 529.2860, Facebook.COM/GoldenLanternBar Good Friends Bar, 740 Dauphine St, 566.7191, GoodFriendsBar.COM. Designed for a casual night out or a quiet evening with that special someone, we offer a wide selection of liquor, beer, and the world renowned Separator.

GRANDPRE’S, 834 N. Rampart St., 267.3615, Facebook.com/grandpres KAJUN’S PUB, 2256 St. Claude Ave., 947.3735, KajunPub.COM MAG’S 940, 940 Elysian Fields Ave., 948.1888 OZ NEW ORLEANS, 800 Bourbon, 593.9491, OzNewOrleans. COM THE PAGE, 542 N. Rampart St., 875.4976 PHOENIX/EAGLE, 941 Elysian Fields, 945.9264, www.phoenixbarnola.com Rawhide 2010, 740 Burgundy St., 525.8106, Rawhide2010.COM. Leather, Dark Rooms, & Bears All Around. You can feel the throb of excitement and smell it in the air. This isn’t just a bar. This is an experience!

TROPICAL ISLE: Home of the Hand Grenade, 721 Bourbon St., 529.4109, TropicalIsle.COM VALIANT THEATRE AND LOUNGE, 6621 St. Claude Ave., Arabi, LA, 504.900.1743 Slidell, LA [985] BILLY’S, 2600 Hwy. 190 West, 847.1921 Biloxi, MS [228] CLUB VEAUX, 834 Howard Ave.,

207.3271

bookstores

New Orleans, LA [504] FAB - Faubourg Marigny Art & Books, 600 Frenchmen St., 947.3700

circuit/events

Easter Sunday, April 11, 2018, 19th Official Gay Easter Parade, New Orleans, sponsored by Ambush, GayEasterParade. com

costumes

New Orleans, LA [504] QT PIE BOUTIQUE - 241 Dauphine St., 581. 6633

galleries

New Orleans, LA [504] CASSELL-BERGEN GALLERY, 1305 Decatur St., cassellbergengallery.com, 504.524.0671

guides

AMBUSH Mag, 828-A Bourbon St., New Orleans, LA 70116-3137; 504.522.8049, AmbushMag.COM; marsha@ripandmarsha.com

groceries/delis

New Orleans, LA [504] QUARTERMASTER DELI, THE NELLIE DELI, 1100 Bourbon, 529.1416

hair salons

New Orleans, LA [504] Two Guys Cutting Hair, 2372 St. Claude Ave., Suite 125, appointments: Adikus 215.519.5030, Trent 504.239.2397

hardware

New Orleans, LA [504] MARY’S FRENCH QUARTER HARDWARE, 732 N. Rampart, 529.4465. More than just a hardware store, Mary’s Ace French Quarter Hardware also features an extensive selection of kitchen and bath items upstairs.

accommodations

New Orleans [504] AARON INGRAM HAUS, 1012 Elysian Fields, New Orleans, LA 70117, PHONE: 504.949.3110, www.ingramhaus.com/xqey, e-mail us at ingramhaus@yahoo.com.

Condos with queen-size beds, private entrances; located only six blocks from Bourbon Street and walking distance to most New Orleans attractions. Several favorite bars are within one block. [0118] BLUES60 GUEST HOUSE, 1008 Elysian Fields Ave. New Orleans, LA 70117, Phone: 1.504.324.4311, www.blues60guesthouse.com, info@blues60guesthouse.com. The Blue60 Guest House with 5 suites provides a peaceful retreat in the center of the Faubourg Marigny, just blocks from the French Quarter and Frenchman St. [1115] BURGUNDY BED AND BREAKFAST, 2513 Burgundy St., New Orleans, LA 70117, PHONE/FAX: 504.942.1463, Toll Free (Continental US only): 1.800.970.2153, www.theburgundy.com, E-mail us at theburgundy@cox.net. Gay owned and operated in newly renovated 1890’s double. Four guest rooms with private baths, guests’ parlor and “half-kitchen”, courtyard and half-open tubhouse with spa (hot tub/ whirlpool). Clothing optional in sunbathing and hot tub area. Walking distance to French Quarter. Immediate vicinity of gay and lesbian bars/venues. [0815] The french quarter guest houses, 1005 St. Peter, New Orleans, LA 70116, Phone: 1.800.367.5858, FrenchQuarterGuest-

28 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · Official Southern Decadence Guide · www.SouthernDecadence.com

Houses.com, email: Info@frenchquarterguesthouses.com. Four meticulously restored boutique inns located in the heart of the French Quarter’s most popular LGBT neighborhood. Each building’s individual character and charm provides an unforgettable authentic French Quarter experience!

media

New Orleans, LA [504] AMBUSH Mag, Official Gay Easter Parade Guide, Official Gay Mardi Gras Guide, Official Gay New Orleans Guide, Official Gulf South Guide, Official Pride Guide, Official Southern Decadence Guide, P.O. Box 2587, LaPlace, LA 70069, 522.8049, AmbushMag.COM; email: info@ambushpublishing.com

organizations

FOOD FOR FRIENDS, 504.821.2601 ext. 254 FRIDAY NIGHT BEFORE MARDI GRAS (FNBMG), 504.319.8261, www.fridaynightbeforemardigras.com GAY APPRECIATION AWARDS, 828A Bourbon St., 70116-3137; 522.8049; AmbushMag.COM/GAA GAY EASTER PARADE, 828-A Bourbon St., 70116-3137, 504.522.8049, info@ gayeasterparade.com, GayEasterParade.

COM GAY MARDI GRAS, 828-A Bourbon St., 70116-3137, 504.522.8049, GayMardiGras.COM GAY NEW ORLEANS, 828-A Bourbon St., 70116-3137, 504.522.8049, GayNewOrleans.COM HAART (HIV/AIDS Alliance Region Two, Inc.), 4550 North Blvd. Ste. 250, Baton Rouge, LA 70806, 225.927.1269, www. haartinc.org, offers a complete continuum of care to people living with HIV/AIDS including housing, primary care, medications, case management, and an array of supportive services. In addition HAART provides HIV prevention education and FREE testing to the Baton Rouge area.

HALLOWEEN IN NEW ORLEANS, INC., PO Box 52171, 70152-2171; HalloweenNewOrleans.COM KREWE OF AMON-RA, PO Box 7033, Metairie, LA 70010, KreweOfAmonRa. COM KREWE OF ARMEINIUS, PO Box 56638, New Orleans, LA 70156-6638, KreweOfArmeinius.ORG KREWE OF MWINDO, PO Box 51031, 70156; 913.5791, KreweOfMwindo.ORG, krewe@kreweofmwindo.org KREWE OF NARCISSUS, PO Box 3832, New Orleans, LA 70177. Contact: 504.228.9441 KREWE OF PETRONIUS, PO Box 1102, Kenner, LA. 70063-1102, www. kreweofpetroius.net KREWE OF QUEENATEENAS / KING CAKE QUEEN ROYALTY CLUB, 828-A Bourbon St., 70116-3137, 522.8049, GayMardiGras.COM/KCQ LGBT+ Archives Project of Louisiana, 1308 Esplanade Ave., New Orleans, LA

70116, 504.475.7911, www.lgbtarchivesla.org MYSTIC KREWE OF LORDS OF LEATHER, 1000 Bourbon St #B415, New Orleans, LA 70116, www.lordsofleather.org MYSTIC KREWE OF SATYRICON, 2443 Halsey Ave., New Orleans, LA 70114, 504.906.7990 Todd J. Blauvelt / Secretary, krewe.of.satyricon@gmail.com, MysticKreweOfSatyricon.COM NO/AIDS TASK FORCE, 2601 Tulane Ave., Suite 500, 70119; 504.821.2601; NOAIDSTaskForce.COM NEW ORLEANS PRIDE, info@neworleanspridefestival.com; 504.321.6006; NewOrleansPrideFestival.COM; NOLAPride.

ORG; New Orleans Pride fully embraces the message of “One CommUNITY” as we celebrate our history and promote the future prosperity of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast Region. We use public awareness and education about the LGBT+ community as a way to combat “phobias” and discrimination. Our programs, seminars and events leading up to, and during Pride weekend, are meant to include individuals from all walks of life.

RENEGADE BEARS OF LOUISIANA, PO Box 3083, New Orleans, LA 70177; renegadebearsoflouisiana@gmail.com SOUTHERN DECADENCE, 828-A Bourbon St., 70116-3137, 504.522.8049, SouthernDecadence.COM ST. ANNA’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH, 1313 Esplanade Avenue New Orleans, LA 70116 504.947.2121, stannanola.org Metropolitan Community Church of New Orleans (MCCNO), 5401 S. Claiborne Ave — Pastor Alisan Rowland: New Orleans first LGBTQ church welcomes you to join us for our weekly Sunday worship services at 10:00 AM, where we celebrate God’s Love for everyone.

Broussard’s Restaurant & Courtyard, 819 Rue Conti, 581.3866, http://broussards.com Cafe Sbisa, 1011 Decatur St., 522.5565, www.cafesbisanola.com Cheezy Cajun, 3325 St. Claude Ave., 265.0045, www.TheCheezyCajun.com Clover Grill, 900 Bourbon St., 598.1010, www.CloverGrill.com. Since 1939, our quirky, cozy, unique diner has been home to the best breakfasts & burgers on Bourbon Street–maybe even the whole French Quarter!

Country Club Restaurant, 634 Louisa St., www.TheCountryClubNewOrleans. com, 945.0742 Gene’s Po-Boys & Daquiris, 1040 Elysian Fields Ave., 943.3861, www.genespoboys.com Ilys Bistro, 1040 Elysian Fields Ave., 947.8341, www.Facebook.com/ILYSBistro Kingfish Kitchen & Cocktails, 337 Chartres St. 598.5005, www.KinfishNewOrleans.com Mona Lisa Restaurant, 1212 Royal St., 522.6746 Orleans Grapevine Wine Bar & Bistro, 720 Orleans, 523.1930, www.OrleansGrapevine.com Quartermaster: The Nellie Deli, 1100 Bourbon St. , 529.1416, www.QuartermasterDeli.net Royal House Oyster Bar, 441 Royal St., 528.2601, www.RoyalHouseRestaurant.com

real estate

New Orleans, LA [504] Engel & Völkers New Orleans, Michael

Styles, Realtor — Michael specializes in helping first-time homebuyers and real estate investors find the perfect New Orleans properties. 504.777.1773, NolaStyles.com Latter & Blum, Steven Richards Realtor, 504.258.1800, SteveRichardsProperties.com

retail/shopping

New Orleans, LA [504] BOURBON PRIDE, 909 Bourbon, 566.1570 COK (Clothing or Kinkl), 941 Elysian Fields, 945.9264 MARY’S FRENCH QUARTER KITCHEN & BATH, 732 N. Rampart, 529.4465 QT PIE BOUTIQUE - 241 Dauphine St., 581. 6633 XXXSHOP, 1835 N. Rampart St., 504.232.3063

services

New Orleans, LA [504] Formal Connection, 299 Belle Terre Blvd. LaPlace, LA, 985.652.1195

theatres

New Orleans, LA [504] CAFE ISTANBUL, 2372 St. Claude Ave., #140, 504.974.0786, CafeIstanbulNOLA.COM

tours

New Orleans, LA [504] Gay New Orleans Walking Tour, Crescent City Tour Booking Agency, (LGBT Business of the Year) 638 St. Ann St., 568.0717. follow Gay New Orleans Walking Tour @ Facebook.COM

pharmacy

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www.GayMardiGras.com · www.GayEasterParade.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · 29

Party Down

by Tony Leggio Email: ledgemgp@gmail.com

Party Down From Decadence to Jack Daniel’s my two weeks were filled with excitement. On Tuesday, I went to the New Orleans Advocates for GLBT Elders (NOAGE) monthly potluck event. This wonderful gathering for the gay community is open to all ages and is an ideal opportunity to meet new people.

This month it was held at the Community Church Unitarian Universalist.

Besides the amazing food that people make (or in my case buy), you become part of a monthly social group. I have met some interesting people and learned more about our community from them. Please make it a point to attend one of these socials, I guarantee you will enjoy the experience. Bringing a dish is suggested but not required.

The following night was all about the Rosé. I love that beautiful and fruity blush wine. I mean we have come a long way from white Zinfandel.

NOSH (New Orleans Social House) hosted one of its paired dinners with different rosé wines. This five-course meal was excellent at an affordable price. The venue hosts these monthly dinners (this was my third) and you

get a glass of the featured variety with each dish. The winery rep is on hand to discuss each wine in detail followed by the chef (who is sexy as hell) to explain the dish and why it pairs nicely with the wine. This one was a very fun culinary class. Entitled Rosé Around the World, we tried some of the most exclusive brands in the industry. And for the meal, it included Mascarpone Crostini, Gulf Shrimp over Polenta, Cantaloupe Salad, Slow-Cooked Pork Loin and Apricot Tart.

On Thursday, I received a little Adult Education when I went to see Hall and Oates and Train at the Smoothie King Center. I remember seeing Hall and Oates in the eighties.

They may be a little bit older, but the hits are still just as good. I do have to say, I love Train, but was sort of disappointed in them. There was no excitement to their performance, it was rather just bland. I like their songs, but they definitely made me feel like I was at a easy listening concert rather than a rock one.

The following week was the 4th of July. I came back from Nashville (see below) just in time for the festivities on

Wednesday. Some friends and I went to the 4th of July Fest in Crescent Park. We brought out some wine and hung out listening to the very lively and festive Bag of Donuts. Nothing says “I Love America” more than sexy and sweaty rockers. They had bars and food trucks; it was a great place to catch all the action of the dueling barges fireworks show. The fireworks were fun (albeit a little short - 10 minutes), hanging out with my friends drinking wine on the banks of our beautiful Mississippi River was priceless.

On Saturday, it was a day of food, music and decadent delights. I went to Piano Bar upstairs at Good Friends.

Trey Ming was tickling the ivories. I had a great time enjoying Joey’s cocktails and singing along with some fun tunes.

If you have not gone to Piano Bar, it is an incredible way to spend a Saturday afternoon. Trey is a talented singer and his repertoire is vast. From show tunes to hard rock and everything in between, Trey can perform just about anything. His melodic voice, fun atmosphere, scenic views from the balcony and delicious libations all mix together nicely for an entertaining time. After, I headed down to the Double Play for their Potluck Supper and Auction for Southern Decadence. There was an incredible spread, set out with delectable homemade dishes. Adikus and Frank had some nice live auctions of liquor baskets and art. There were lots of folks out to help support their causes which are Mr. Friendly and the LGBT+ Archives.

Sunday was all about house parties. I so enjoy relaxing at a good afternoon house party with friends. This Sunday , I attended two, the first was a birthday/housewarming party of Cat and Mikey Tinkleboot at their lovely new home in Old Arabi, which is becoming the trendy new neighborhood to live in. They had a lovely selection of Rosés and cheeses. Next I was off to Old Algiers for the third anniversary of Dan Beck’s company Inner Makeup. His home is in a historic temple in Algiers Point where he does his readings. I personally can vouch for Dan, he is an amazing astrologer. The things he discussed with me about my sun sign were riveting. He explained how my birthday and time along with my sign affect many things about my make-up and personality. He does individual, couples and group readings.

His husband James is also a talented chef, so the appetizers and desserts were scrumptious. This was a high note to end two weeks of non-stop fun.

Book of the Month If you love good apocalyptic novels, then my choice for this month will be right up your alley. The Ship by Antonia Honeywell is the story of a young woman living in a crumbling dystopian world where her only chance of survival is to board a ship that can only save

500 people. The novel starts off very quickly as it explains what is happening in the world and how young Lalla and her family are dealing with the chaos all around them. A tragic event soon brings them onto the Ship and the story unfolds form there.

Honeywell creates a slow-burn mystery as you watch Lalla grow from a sheltered little girl into a young woman filled with passion and hope. Reading this book, you cannot help but get chills especially with what is happening in the world today. The Ship is a very intense coming-of-age novel set in a disturbing reality. One thing about the novel I enjoyed is the questions that still lingered after reading it. I thought about all the characters and their actions and considered what I might do if I were faced with the same circumstances.

The Ship is one of those novels that stay with you long after you finish the book; and isn’t that what a good book is supposed to do? For more information about the author, go to www. antoniahoneywell.com.

Ambush on the Road I love a good road trip. Whether on my own, with momma Dawn or friends, I find serenity in watching the land fly by through the window of a car, seeing the landscapes of our country from a different vantage point. A group of my friends and I just recently traveled over the long Fourth of July weekend to Nashville, the capital and most populous city of Tennessee. It’s located on the Cumberland River and is a center for the music, healthcare, publishing, banking and transportation industries, as well as home to Vanderbilt University.

Founded in 1779, near the original Cumberland settlement of Fort Nashborough, Nashville was named for Francis Nash, the American Revolutionary War hero. In 1806, Nashville was incorporated as a city and became the county seat of Davidson County. In 1843, the city was named the permanent capital of the state of Tennessee.

Now that we have the history out of the way let’s talk about how incredible this city is. Lovingly referred to as “Music City,” “Athens of the South” or, most recently, “Nash Vegas,” Nashville has everything from attractions, shopping, nightlife, dining and a great gay community. And we experienced it all in the short four days we were there. We arrived on Friday evening and headed to dinner at one of the restaurants that serves a dish that the city is known for-hot chicken, a staple dish in Nashville and a “must” on your dining list.

Hot chicken’s origin story goes that the owner of Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack’s great-uncle Thornton was quite a womanizer. After a particularly late night out, his girlfriend cooked him a fried chicken breakfast with extra pepper as revenge. Instead, Thornton

30 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · Official Southern Decadence Guide · www.SouthernDecadence.com

decided he liked it so much that, by the mid-1930s, he and his brothers had created their own recipe and opened the restaurant. What began as breakfast revenge is now an essential food for late-night diners.

We went to Hattie B’s Chicken which was just around the corner from our hotel. If you can stand the line (our wait was 35 minutes and this was at 9 p.m.), you are in for a treat.

The restaurant is literally a small shack with a covered outdoor dining area cooled with fans. The restaurant is named after three women in the owner’s family with the name Hattie. The chicken comes in six different spice levels from Southern with no heat to Shut The Cluck Up which is considered a burn notice. I had mine at the fourth level which is called Hot and it was spicy delicious. The chicken is served with pickles and atop white bread, as per traditional local preparation methods. Their chicken can be served straight or with waffles - yum! They have a great selection of sides from pimento mac’n’cheese to black eyed pea salad as well as homemade desserts like peach cobbler and banana pudding. We ate at the original Hattie B’s Hot Chicken in Midtown Nashville.

After dinner, we returned back to our hotel and got settled in. We stayed at the Springhill Suites by Marriott. If you are looking for an affordable place to stay this place is perfect. It also has several fabulous amenities like free breakfast buffet everyday, an impressive fitness center (which surprisingly I used twice while there), a refreshing indoor pool and free shuttle to various destinations within a 2-mile radius.

On Saturday, we were true tourists starting the day by taking the complimentary shuttle to the Parthenon.

The Parthenon is the centerpiece of Centennial Park, Nashville’s premier urban park. The re-creation of the 42foot statue Athena is the focus of the Parthenon just as it was in ancient Greece. The building and the Athena statue are both full-scale replicas of the Athenian originals. I have seen the original Parthenon and this is just as stunning. You can take the architectural tour which I highly suggest which goes into detail about the creation of the structure which was made for their World’s Fair in 1897 but then rebuilt and completed in 1931.

The Parthenon also serves as Nashville’s art museum; its permanent collection includes a group of 63 paintings by 19th- and 20th-century American artists donated by James M. Cowan. It also was the setting for two movies: Nashville in the ‘70’s and more recently Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief.

Next we headed downtown to Broadway which is affectionately named “Nashville’s Honky Tonk Highway” and went to the Johnny Cash Museum. I really did not follow John-

ny Cash much when he was alive, but after touring the museum, I am an absolute fan of the man. You may have heard his story in movies like Walk the Line and Ring of Fire, but this place brings him to vivid life. From his humble upbringing to his notorious bad boy days when he was arrested, you follow his story through his records, movies and memorabilia. He was such a fascinating man and his life was rich. This is a definite must-see if you ever get to Nashville.

We grabbed lunch at one of my favorite downtown restaurants in Nashville, Merchants. Not only do they have great food, but a very storied history. The building was constructed in 1870 and housed a different business on each floor, including a pharmacy and a hotel. Starting in the 1920s when The Ryman Auditorium began hosting The Grand Ole Opry, country music stars such as Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, Dolly Parton, Porter Waggoner, and Roy Acuff stayed there. I make it a point to stop at Merchants every time I visit Nashville to taste their great food and craft cocktails. Their duck fat tater tots are my favorite.

We walked off lunch and stopped for a little dessert at the Goo Goo Shop. After sating our sweet tooth, we had a few cocktails at Legends Corner. This honky tonk had everything four gay guys needed--a hot doorman nicknamed Guns, a sexy four-man band led by musician Lefty Ferguson, and a great selection of local and imported beers. It is easy to let time slip away at this place listening to great music and having refreshing (and cold) cocktails on a hot day.

That night we went to dinner at a gay-owned establishment called Suzy Wong’s House of Yum. The name says it all. This was a rollicking evening of entertainment that kicks your dining experience up another notch.

First, the food is incredible with tasty dishes and top drag entertainment.

The restaurant is owned by the wonderful Arnold Myint. Born in Nashville, he is a celebrity chef, TV personality, culinary instructor and has an alter ego Suzy Wong who is oftentimes seen out at social events or in the media as a philanthropic domestic diva. Myint has competed on the Emmy Award-winning television program Top Chef, and most recently Food Network Star Season 11. My favorite dishes were their Brussel sprouts, chicken egg rolls and assorted yum bowls which are great for sharing. The performer that evening was Vanity who is one of the Playmates at Play Dance Bar, a nightclub and showbar which is adjacent to the restaurant.

Along with Tribe Video Bar, they’re part of a complex of gayness so you can actually spend an entire evening of dinner and entertainment under one roof. We went to all three. Tribe

has a more laid back vibe with videos and hot guys serving alcohol. Play Dance Bar is huge and crowded. They do shows at 9 p.m., 11 p.m. and 1 a.m.

Their core cast members are all showstoppers, each one bringing their own style and charisma to the stage. They are all excellent but my favorites were Vanity and Deception.

The following day started with brunch aboard the General Jackson Showboat. The riverboat cruise is entitled Sundays in the South. The show takes you on a musical journey through a typical southern Sunday with country, patriotic, and gospel numbers, all energetic. Four singers accompany a band, and you enjoy a buffet lunch of Southern favorites liked baked beans, fried chicken and baked macaroni. After the show, guests can go up on the decks and enjoy the views of the Cumberland River as the boat leaves from the Gaylord Opryland area and travels to downtown Nashville and back. It was a beautiful day to cruise the river and sip cocktails on the decks.

When we got off the boat, we did a little retail therapy at the Opry Mills Outlet Mall which is right next door to the boat. We found some great sales before heading back to town.

That night for dinner, we went down to the Gulch area, which is a dynamic mixed-use community in the heart of Nashville. The Gulch received its name from the natural geographic depression arching throughout the

110-acre development. A sparsely occupied area for nearly 50 years, urban revitalization began in the early 2000’s and continues to transform the landscape of the neighborhood.

Dinner was at a Del Frisco’s Grille, a trendy steakhouse chain that serves modern American cuisine (LA does not have one yet). The service, decor and food were excellent and even though I am not a chain restaurant-type person when I travel, this one was exceptional.

That night, we went back to Broadway to check out the scene after dark. The nightlife is wild but the whole street is lit up in neon. A good friend told me that he loved Nashville because it is a drinking city with a music problem, and that is a great description, although I love the music scene, so together they join to make a harmonious coupling.

Our last day in Nashville was spent doing the Whiskey Trail. We drove down to Lynchburg to tour the Jack Daniels Factory and it was the one of the highlights of the trip. We had some Jack Daniels lemonade on the way because what else would you drink on a Monday morning? Once there, the complex is impressive. A little history of Jack Daniels: Jack Daniels left home when he was ten and was taken in by Reverend Dan Call. At the Call Family Farm, he learned the art of whiskey-making from the preacher and an enslaved man named Nathan “Nearest” Green. Jack would later hire Nearest as the Jack Daniel Distillery’s head

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www.GayMardiGras.com · www.GayEasterParade.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · 31

Snap Paparazzi: Out & About with Tony Leggio Photos by Tony Leggio Tony Does Nashville

32 路 The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com 路 July 17 - 30, 2018 路 Official Southern Decadence Guide 路 www.SouthernDecadence.com

distiller. The Jack Daniel Distillery was officially established in 1866, making it the very first registered distillery within the US, with Jack as the Master Distiller.

Daniels’ life story is completely fascinating. He was considered a ladies man and never married. Rumor has it the reason he named his Bourbon Old #7 was because that was the number of girlfriends he had. He was a snappy dresser and loved to throw parties.

Even his death was interesting; he died in 1907 after he kicked his safe in his office causing an infection that eventually led to gangrene.

With the tour, you get a more indepth history of Jack Daniels and see the man’s first office (you see the safe that did him in) and peer into the mouth of Cave Spring Hollow which draws 800 gallons of water every minute from miles below the Earth’s surface.

It is credited with making Jack Daniels whiskey taste so good and is 56 degrees at all times.

You can take two types of tours, one with sampling and one without.

Do the samples because you are in a dry county, so this is your only chance.

You end your tour at the gift shop where you can buy bottles, so I ended up going home with a case of various flavors. I highly recommend the Jack Daniels tour to anyone visiting the area. Whether you are a whiskey fan or not, it is a compelling experience.

After the tour, we went to downtown Lynchburg, just a few blocks away and toured their main square which is like stepping into a Norman Rockwell painting, complete with cute shops and restaurants. We dined at Miss Mary Bob’s for lunch which was one of the most unique and memorable dining experiences. With nine dining rooms, you’re seated at a table with other people and served family style. The food is Southern staples like meatloaf, fried chicken, fried okra, mac’n’cheese, mud

pie, baked apples, green beans and rolls.

I was never a fan of eating meals with strangers, but each dining room has a hostess who is seated at the head of the table and moves the conversation along. Before long, the table was laughing and we were no longer strangers. The lovely white Greek Revival building facing the town square was already a well-regarded boarding house in the late 19th century, but after Miss Mary Bob and her husband bought the establishment in 1908, it quickly became a Southern institution.

Miss Mary died in 1983 at 101 but her recipes live on.

After the scrumptious lunch, we went to the George Dickel Distillery next. Born 40 years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, George A. Dickel was an established Nashville merchant when he entered the whisky business. Dickel grew his reputation for selling the smoothest, most mellow spirits in the region. Thus, Geo. A. Dickel & Co. was born and when the Cascade Hollow Distillery opened in 1878 in neighboring Coffee County, George Dickel bought a large share. George Dickel followed in the Scottish tradition of spelling whisky without an “e.” Their tour is also interesting, if on a much smaller scale than Jack Daniel’s, but it was very good whisky and extremely smooth. We did a tasting after the tour and they even have a George Dickel Tabasco Brand Barrel Finish, or Hot Dickel for short.

After a day of bourbon, we had an easy evening returning back to the Gulch area for dinner at Peg Leg Porker, a noted barbecue restaurant in the city which even has a tie to NOLA, having participated in Emeril Lagasse’s Boudin, Bourbon and Beer. Peg Leg Porker is owned and operated by Carey and Delaniah Bringle who opened the restaurant in 2013. Their meats are smoked fresh daily and they have an

array of delicious side dishes. I recommend the smoked green beans and the coleslaw.

That concluded our road trip to Nashville. I love this place, land of hot cowboys, smooth bourbon and good music, everything a gay man’s heart desires.

Bartender of the Month The only thing better than hanging out at a bar with great atmosphere is having an awesome bartender who enhances your experience. That is how I met my bartender for the month of July, Joey Betterton at Good Friends Bar. I was sitting upstairs listening to the talented Trey Ming perform at the Piano Bar on Saturday afternoon and Joey was our bartender. People hang out at bars for a myriad of reasons, but having a professional who is personable and witty can make your time at the venue more enjoyable and ensure your return.

Hailing from Ocean Springs, Mississippi, Joey has worked at Good Friends since August.

He moved to NOLA from Memphis, Tennessee where he worked at the Pumping Station. He cites being closer to his family and the great queer community in our

city as his main reasons for coming to the Crescent City and after hanging out with him, we are all the better for it. Joey is a pro behind the bar, not only with his cocktail-making skills, but his personality and charm just shine through.

And on a more superficial note, he is extremely easy on the eyes and rocks one of the best 70’s porn-staches I have seen on a man!

Joey is also quite the mixologist with a few of his own special cocktail creations such as the Scarlett O’Hara (which is whiskey based) or the Hairball (which is vodka based). Both are delicious, He also makes a mean Old Fashioned, but his drink of choice when he is out and about is a Rose Kennedy (very glamorous). His favorite holiday so far behind the bar in NOLA has been Memorial Day, but he is looking forward to the upcoming Southern Decadence.

What he loves about bartending in our city is the access to a vast cross-section of people. He gets to meet so many interesting and fun people from all over the world here. So make it a point to stop by Good Friends, located at 740 Dauphine Street, and let Joey fix you a cocktail. There’s nothing like having a good drink made by a sexy “Old Fashioned” Southern Boy!

Snap Paparazzi: Out & About with Tony Leggio at NOAGE Potluck Photos by Tony Leggio

www.GayMardiGras.com · www.GayEasterParade.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · 33

Trodding the Boards

by Brian Sands Email: bsnola2@hotmail.com

Macbeth at Tulane’s Lupin Theater through July 22 Every time Melisande Cook comes on stage as Lady Macbeth in the New Orleans Shakespeare Festival at Tulane’s (NOSF’s) current production of the Scottish play, the air crackles with electricity. With her rich alto voice, she compels you to listen to her every word because she expresses each one of them with a bone-deep understanding of Shakespeare’s evil heroine.

Her soigné elegance covers a ruthless ambition. Her cool demeanor never lets anger overtake her. She personifies a deep moral darkness. She doesn’t fear blood until it is too late to cleanse her soul.

Cook, who directed a splendid all-female undergraduate production of Julius Caesar at Tulane in 2015, never overdoes Lady M’s maleficence.

In fact, it’s her pared down manner, devoid of an histrionic flourishes, that chills. Only when she gets to the sleepwalking scene do the words choke in her throat.

According to Cook’s bio in the program, this marks her seventh production of Macbeth. Clearly she has absorbed the lessons of the previous six.

Would that everything else about Jessica Podewell’s production was at Cook’s level. This is yet another NOSF production that effectively gets Shakespeare’s tale across with a clean, unfussy rendering but, Cook excepted, misses both greatness and opportunities to offer interpretive relevance.

Podewell has given this Macbeth a fairly modern setting but, under Martin Sachs’ darkly atmospheric lighting, has left out the specifics of time and place.

Jennifer Jacobs’ black costumes for the noblemen reference The Matrix; the witches come from some dystopian future or perhaps a late night Bywater party.

In Kevin O’Donnell’s sound design, tribal music pops up to add militaristic flourishes while dripping water locates the witches in some tunnel or abandoned building. Or are these to be taken as expressionistic touches?

Tony Medlin’s avuncular King Duncan presents in a black suit with military ribbons on his chest, vaguely 1930ish.

Clint Johnson, Andrew Vaught and Brendan Bowen in Carl Walker’s production of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) All well and good, but Podewell doesn’t pull it all together. At one point, Lady Macbeth takes a pill (Valium?) out of a drugstore pill bottle which she then washes down with a swig of wine. Yet Burton Tedesco has staged the fight and battle scenes with knives and daggers in a world where guns would seem the more likely weapons.

One of the combatants carries a small, old-fashioned axe which, tucked in his mod costume, simply appears odd.

One wishes Podewell had had the courage of her convictions and settled on one approach. A sci-fi setting? Fine, then let’s use light sabers. A contemporary one? For a play in which the word “tyranny” stands out, Podewell would have many choices: Syria, Turkey, Hungary, the Philippines, North Korea, Russia and even perhaps our own country these days. Heck, she could change outfits of state (or hints thereof) every scene to show how this drama applies universally.

Or Podewell could have gone a different route with a more abstract, streamlined interpretation. As done here, on Joan Long’s repurposing of her All’s Well That Ends Well set, now painted a steely black, the production sometimes has a skimpy look; its banquet has the fewest guests I’ve ever seen.

I understand that NOSF works on a budget. Why not turn that to an advantage with a radically stripped down Macbeth, a la Peter Brook’s Carmen, with the bare minimum of actors? As it is, while most cast members play only one role, some have three assignments. One generally knows who’s what when, though Jacobs’ costumes could make the distinctions clearer especially among all those thanes

who tend to blur together here as in most productions (an exception being NOSF’s last Macbeth in 2010 when each thane stood out).

All this might not have mattered had Podewell guided the rest of her cast to performances like Cook’s. To be sure, the sense of each scene always comes across but in broad strokes; Shakespeare’s words are never mined for their full value resulting in a Macbeth not nearly as rich as it could be.

Or should I say as “he” could be?

John Neisler certainly gives an intelligent performance as the Thane and future King of Scotland, but it’s all exterior. He also has a tendency to rush his lines, some of the most memorable in the English language.

His “I have done the deed” hardly sounded like he had just killed a man.

“I have supped full with horrors” did not convey his fall from moral grace. And that greatest of nihilistic speeches, “Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow...” was simply tossed off, not the agonized response to his wife’s untimely death.

This is a shame as Neisler is an accomplished actor. In The NOLA Project’s recent The Three Musketeers, he marvelously etched with dry humor the duplicitous and power-hungry Cardinal Richelieu. He expertly portrayed an anguished man confronted by his past in 2015’s Blackbird. It’s hard to say if, for Macbeth, he was miscast, misdirected or, perhaps, a little of both, but he never fully gets under Macbeth’s skin as Cook does for Lady M. Similarly, the rest of the ensemble, most NOSF veterans, give well-informed performances that yet tend toward declamation. Two exceptions--Beverly Trask as the First Witch

34 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · Official Southern Decadence Guide · www.SouthernDecadence.com

and an Old Woman, and Brendan Bowen as Lennox. Both impart their too few lines with the utmost of clarity; Trask, in particular, uses her dancer’s body to enhance her speeches.

While this production could have been conceived and done 10, 20, or even 30 years ago, some may not complain and will find its generally classic approach a good thing. The audience with which I saw it seemed to appreciate it (without giving it the now obligatory standing ovation).

I would have hoped for more. But that said, despite the play’s ending of the rightful heir restored to Scotland’s throne, this NOSF production did leave me with a deep-grained sense of despair. As we look around the world and see tyranny ceaselessly emerging and, more and more, triumphing, we must admire those artists who illuminate what can happen if we ever halt the fight against it.

Carl Walker, An Appreciation

Esteemed “Man of Theater” Carl Walker passed away on July 8. He was 61.

Walker directed many shows.

Comedies. Dramas. Musicals. It didn’t matter the genre, if his name was on the bill, you knew it was going to be done well. Very well.

In the course of six years, Walker was nominated for 6 Ambie Awards in three different categories: Best Director of a Musical (Boobs! (2004) and My O My (2005)); Best Director of a Play (Bash (2005) and I Am My Own Wife (2009)); and Best Original Work for My O My, which he conceived (Kevin Allman shared the nomination for his script) and, with Jim Fitzmorris, as writer/adapter of The Last Madam (2006).

On February 6, 2006 before a standing room only crowd at Le Chat Noir, Walker won twice for two very different shows that had played in 2005 before Hurricane Katrina struck. It was the first opportunity since Katrina for the theater community to come together and reconnect.

His nod for Best Original Work honored My O My, a musical revue that paid homage to the performers and patrons of New Orleans’ legendary drag venue, Club My O My. Starring Bob Edes, Doug Parks, Brian Peterson, Shawn Ryan and Paul Soileau, it was funny, sharp and moving, and perfectly recreated a world virtually unknown to those who had never experienced it.

He was also honored for Bash, Neil LaBute’s challenging evening of three one-act plays, which he did under the auspices of Tulane’s Department of Theatre and Dance. Though it was only a brief run featuring undergraduates, his work on it was no less dedicated or incisive than for his higher profile projects.

As I wrote in these pages in April

2005, “Director Carl Walker recently gave Bash a striking New Orleans premiere at Tulane. Aided by Max Lawrence’s moody lighting, Walker led his young actors to give fearless accounts of their [characters’] nasty doings.”

If Walker could stage the knottiest of plays, like Bash and Doubt (2007), to tremendous effect, he was just as comfortable with lighter, even frothy, fare. From my August 2004 review: “The wittily playful material in BOOBS! The Musical: The World According to Ruth Wallis meshed perfectly with Carl Walker’s directorial sensibility and he brought out the best in it. The humor was embraced without being overdone.

With the help of Cecile Casey Covert’s ingenious costumes and Amanda Hebert’s unending supply of wigs, Walker conjured up singing pizzas, dancing pink poodles, and a towering bride of Frankenstein with breasts that vocalize.”

Similarly, for one of his last productions, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged), in 2013, I commented “Director Carl Walker squeezes every bit of manic merriment out of Works by imparting a galloping lunacy to it, but wisely gives his cast free reign to allow for a fizzy spontaneity.”

He will be missed. R.I.P.

Andrew Larimer, An Appreciation

Andrew Larimer is also leaving New Orleans but under happier circumstances as he’s moving to Austin to pursue other projects and business opportunities. He was an original member of The NOLA Project and its founding Artistic Director.

I first got to know Larimer, as both an actor and director, in the years after Katrina when The NOLA Project took up residence here. In 2010, he was assigned to direct a playlet I wrote for Southern Rep’s 6x6. More on that later.

But it was in 2011, when he directed A Midsummer’s Night Dream, The NOLA Project’s debut in NOMA’s Sculpture Garden, that I began to fully appreciate his genius. This snippet from my review only begins to describe how magical that show was: “Using a 90 minute version of Dream that, nonetheless, captures all the play’s narrative and linguistic highlights, Director Andrew Larimer keeps the staging of the scenes relatively simple yet makes fantastic use of the spaces throughout the Garden. For the play’s conclusion, the director delivers a coup de théâtre (coup de Jardin?) that has to be seen to be believed.”

Larimer and The NOLA Project returned three years later to the Sculpture Garden with Pete McElligott’s Adventures in Wonderland which allowed audience members to follow one of three storylines, each focusing on dif-

Andrew Larimer (4th adult from left) hosting his solar eclipse viewing party last summer ferent characters from Lewis Carroll’s original Alice texts. It remains one of the most memorable productions I’ve ever seen anywhere.

As I wrote: “Larimer’s precise intertwining of the three tracks is nothing short of masterful, and magnificently captures the loopy madness of the tale. Throughout the show, Larimer avoids simple cartoonishness as he and his cast bring these iconic characters to life.”

Larimer’s inventiveness continued with a play he wrote and directed in 2016, Exterior. Pool-Night, a backstage look at the making of a Hollywood motion picture being filmed in New Orleans where nothing is going right. This show began around the pool of a downtown hotel.

Audiences then broke into three groups, each traveling with its own set of actors and following separate plot lines, before returning to the pool of the title. Wearing headphones so as to hear the actors (including Larimer) on the other side of the street, I’ll not soon forget watching an attempted drug deal in a CBD alley.

If Larimer is supremely talented,

he’s also a joy to work with. The aforementioned 10-minute playlet focused on two friends who meet to compare, and outdo each other’s, recent dining experiences. Andrew respected the text scrupulously and brought out every bit of nuance I imagined as I wrote it. If the audience was kinda cool to it, it certainly wasn’t the director’s fault.

More happily, for Southern Rep’s 3x3, an evening of longer one-acts, he guided my BANG! or 21 Ways the World Might Have Begun, a series of scenes, some serious, most comic, that put forth some proposals about what happened before the Big Bang.

Not only did he astutely help to shape it, but he brought in props, including a small drone, that wonderfully enhanced it beyond the mere words I had written.

He too will be missed. But, hopefully, he’ll return. Often.

Till then, you can enjoy the delightful script he provided for the Historical Musical Train Tour which toot-toots its way through City Park three times a day Fridays through Sundays till November. How nice that part of Andrew Larimer shall remain here for a while.

Please send press releases and notices of your upcoming shows to Brian Sands at bsnola2@hotmail.com.

www.GayMardiGras.com · www.GayEasterParade.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · 35

Book Review: Sticky Fingers: The Life and Times of Jann Wenner and Rolling Stone Magazine

by Frank Perez Email: f.perez@sbcglobal.net

Sticky Fingers: The Life and Times of Jann Wenner and Rolling Stone Magazine. Joe Hagan. 2018.

Knopf. 547 Pages. $29.95.

Hunter S. Thompson, Tom Wolfe, and Annie Leibovitz are just a few of the talents Jann Wenner hired to write for Rolling Stone—the cultural touchstone magazine he founded that not only reported but also shaped modern pop culture.

The story of Jann Wenner, Rolling Stone’s founder, editor, and publisher, and the pioneering era he helped curate, is told here for the first time in detail. Joe Hagan gives readers a look at storied concert venues and rockstar hotel rooms; he tells never-before-heard stories about the lives of rock stars and their handlers; he details the journalism and internecine office politics that accompanied the startup; he brings to life the drug and sexual appetites of the era; and he reports on the politics of the last fifty years that were often chronicled in the pages of Rolling Stone magazine.

Supplemented by a cache of documents and letters from Wenner’s personal archives, Sticky Fingers de-

picts a rock-and-roll fan of who idolized youth & beauty and learned how to package it, marketing late sixties counterculture as a testament to the power of American youth. The result is a portrait of man and era, and a biography of popular culture, celebrity, music, and politics in America.

Hagan skillfully avoids the common pitfalls of biography: the tendency to overstate or underemphasize key aspects, romanticizing the subject, getting lost in minutiae. Here Hagan maintains a perfect balance which imbues the narrative with perspective— the strength of any good biography.

Hagan’s achievement in this regard is especially impressive considering he was a contributing editor to the magazine.

Hagan has written for New York, Rolling Stone, The Wall Street Journal, among others. He has published profiles and investigative exposés of such significant figures and subjects as Hillary Clinton (her first post-Secretary of State interview), Karl Rove, the Bush family, Henry Kissinger, Dan Rather, Goldman Sachs, and Twitter.

Commentary: Bernie Sanders, Anthony Kennedy and the Supreme Court by Frank Perez The howls were predictable when Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy recently announced his retirement from the Supreme Court. The religious right began drooling while reasonable people who believe in civil liberties justifiably cringed at the thought of Trump appointing another judge to the high court.

All that was to be expected. What I didn’t expect, although I perhaps should have, were the cries of disgruntled former Democrats—the hardcore Bernie folks who are still pissed off about the Democratic primaries two years ago.

Their reaction was to relitigate the corruption of the two-party system and the 2016 Democratic National Convention, which they claim was rigged.

Mind you, I like Bernie Sanders.

I agree with most of his positions and I would have proudly voted for him in the general election. And I agree with the general sentiments of the hardcore Bernie folks—the two-party system is broken and bad for democracy. I do not, however, believe that Hillary Clinton is the female version of the anti-Christ who murders her opponents and sacrifices babies to Lucifer in the back rooms of pizza parlors.

After Kennedy’s announcement, I found it incredulous and offensive that

the Bernistas denied any culpability for the impending disaster that will be the Supreme Court. As justifiable as their grievances were in 2016, they should have followed the advice of their leader and voted for the Democratic nominee.

Bernie Sanders himself, realizing the clear and present danger of Donald Trump, endorsed Clinton and urged his supporters to vote for her. But they disregarded that wise advice and now we have not only a fascist in the White House, but also a Supreme Court ready to turn back the clock on everything from civil rights to environmental protections.

The Bernistas’ stubbornness has had tangible consequences—and not good ones—for real people. Trump’s policies are harmful and are damaging people’s lives in very real ways. And now he has a Supreme Court to validate his bigoted agenda.

Once Trump and Clinton won the nomination of their respective parties, the Bernistas should have held their noses and voted for Clinton. But they never got the lesser-of-two-evils memo. The current tragedy that is the White House and now the Supreme Court rests, in part, on them. Idealism is noble, but idealism without a pinch of realism can be disastrous.

36 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · Official Southern Decadence Guide · www.SouthernDecadence.com

Overcoming Rejection

by Pastor Allie Rowland, Metropolitan Community Church of New Orleans (MCCNO) Email: alisan.rowland42@gmail.com Website: www.mccneworleans.com

I hate the word “rejection.” And you probably don’t like it either because nobody likes rejection. As people in the LGBT community or allies, many of us have faced bullying and other forms of rejection at some point in our lives.

Sometimes we’ve been rejected by employers or potential employers.

Sometimes we’ve been rejected by communities and religious institutions.

The worst rejections are when we’ve been rejected by people we love.

There are the big rejections that change the course of our lives, and the smaller rejections that just sting.

When this happens we often question ourselves. Sometimes we know what caused the rejection; other times it makes no sense at all. Sometimes the pain of rejection can bring us to our knees; other times it’s just irritating and inconvenient.

The good news is that rejection is

never the end of the story. What can seem like the end of one path is often the redirection we need to other places and people where we can truly thrive in ways that we were not before.

We have many reactions to rejections that happen in our lives. Sometimes we withdraw from others and go into hiding. Sometimes we decide to punish ourselves, and we sink into depression. Sometimes we lash out at others in anger and frustration, and then we have to deal with the repercussions of the pain we caused or relationships that were broken. It would be silly to think that we can completely ignore the pain that happens when we feel rejected. Pain never heals when we ignore it or pretend it doesn’t exist.

Because pain is our body’s way of letting us know that something needs to heal, even if the pain is emotional and not physical.

When we are dealing with the aftermath of rejection, love can be the source of healing. We can treat ourselves with love, and we can reach out to others in love and friendship. We can find communities that celebrate who we are by volunteering with them, or by finding a spiritual community where we can be loved. We can overcome rejection better and faster, if we admit that it’s affected us, face our feelings, and then seek the healing we need.

Because we know what rejection feels like and how challenging it can be, we can also seek to be more sensitive about our judgments of other people. Most of us have had judgmental thoughts about others; it’s natural. The problem is that such thoughts can lead us to treat others with less respect, to ostracize them, or even shut them out of our lives completely. Of course, we’ll always have personality conflicts with some people. And there will always be those whose behaviors are harmful to us; walk away from them.

If, however, we always believe we are right about our judgments of others

and never reflect and reconsider them, then it’s possible that we are closing ourselves off from love. Even when someone behaves in a way that we do not understand, it’s possible we don’t know that person’s life experiences or why they made the choices they made.

Every day we have the opportunity to demonstrate love in the way that we act. If we act with judgment and rejection, then that’s what people will receive from us. On the other hand, if we display forgiveness, acceptance, and grace, then people will experience unconditional love through us. If judgment or the pain of rejection is blocking you in some way from giving and receiving love, then may today be an opportunity to seek some of the healing you need.

May you be guided to love others in a way that heals the wounds they have faced from rejection. May you be guided to release your judgments and offer unreserved forgiveness. And may you come to truly know your own worth and value in spite of whatever rejections you have faced in life. Your life and the love you have to give is important!

Snap Paparazzi: Out & About with Tony Leggio Photos by Tony Leggio

Southern Decadence Potluck at Double Play

www.GayMardiGras.com · www.GayEasterParade.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · 37

A Community within Communities: A Guy Named Jay.

by The Very Rev. Bill Terry+ Email: fr.bill@stannanola.org A gathering was held recently at The Corner Pocket to say goodbye to Jay Sewell. But I am getting ahead of myself. A week or so before, Jeremy called to ask if I’d consider doing a memorial service for one of the community members who had recently passed.

I said, “Of course.” He then inquired if I had an aversion to doing the ceremony in a bar. “Of course not. It wouldn’t be my first nor likely my last.” He then, with some timidity, wondered if I knew what kind of bar The Corner Pocket was and that they had dancers there?

I said “So long as the boys have their pants on during the faith part I’m good.”

I had the pleasure of meeting Jay’s life partner Michael, a kind and gentle soul, and a group that surrounded the two for much of their time together. I had not been acquainted with Jay, but I got to know him and his tenacity and bravado quite well as we prepared for the celebration of his life.

A form of Christian memorial service with prayers was put together and the bar was transformed. Lights and gossamer white cloth created an arch behind which various food items had

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been arrayed.

Jay’s cremains would be in a box which would be placed on a cloth covering on the bar at the spot where he had usually sat; during the service and after, Michael would then be able to sit there with the cremains as if Jay was still in the house. Behind the covering and around his box was an antique cross and matching candlesticks.

When the time came for the memorial, a wonderful young performer ushered us in with music. His name is Trey Ming and he was a delight to work with. I don’t say that lightly as I can be a cuss when it comes to sacred music.

The opening tune was Amazing Grace and, as it played, the bar quieted.

Oh, what a crowd we were. Two folks decked out in church vestments, some young ones in cut-off short shorts, a few older gents in varying degrees of NOLA summer dress. A good turn-out by friends whom I recognized from the Krewe of Amon-Ra. When it came time to give a sermon of sorts I noted that The Corner Pocket was well-known for its dancers and that God indeed has an apprecia-

tion of beauty.

We continued with a few more prayers and then came to the Lord’s Prayer. I started it as one does, but then took silent and just listened. Almost everyone was praying. It was truly a holy moment.

I stood quietly listening to the prayers of the gathered, occasionally looking in Michael’s eyes and seeing his tears of love. This celebration of life was more than a recounting of Jay’s time here, but a reminder that his life matters, not only to Michael, but to the entire community.

As I walked out of The Corner Pocket into the bright afternoon sun, its

heat waxing up my cassock, a friend, Frank Perez, sidled up to me. If you know Frank he has a look that tells you “here it comes.” His head bows slightly, he gets a devilish grin, a real glint comes to his eyes and you just wait for it, “So, you’re about the only religious guy that I know that can say in a sermon that God likes a good piece of a__.”

I laughed my fool head off and sauntered toward my car seeking cooling shadows, chuckling much of the way. Though that Sunday afternoon ended with a laugh, it was, in the fullest sense, a holy afternoon.

(Photos by Jeremy of CP)

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38 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South: www.AmbushMag.com · July 17 - 30, 2018 · Official Southern Decadence Guide · www.SouthernDecadence.com

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