October 12, 2017 Edition of the Bay Area Reporter

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Gay strip club for sale

Spotlight on Martin , Lyon

ARTS

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Pterosaurs

Bambi Lake

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Since 1971, the newspaper of record for the San Francisco Bay Area LGBTQ community

Vol. 47 • No. 41 • October 12-18, 2017

Defense accuses dead B.A.R. writer of sexual attack

by Seth Hemmelgarn

T

he attorney for the man accused of fatally strangling former Bay Area Reporter writer Dan Aiello is claiming that his client, Kyle Billy Fletcher, had been “in fear of a sexual assault,” and Fletcher “was defending himself.”

Kyle Billy Fletcher Attorney Justin Mixon made his comments to the B.A.R. last week just after Sacramento County Superior Court Judge Michael G. Bowman ordered Fletcher, 38, to stand trial on first-degree murder and other charges.

Aiello, 53, was found dead in his home April 15, 2015 with a belt wrapped around his neck. According to police testimony during the Wednesday, October 4 preliminary hearing, Fletcher claimed Aiello, who was on the floor, had wrapped a belt around his own neck and tried to force Fletcher into having sex with him. According to court testimony, the two had known each other for years and Aiello was upset that Fletcher had never had sex with him.

Mixon said Fletcher had “used enough force to stop the attack” by grabbing the belt. “... He didn’t think he hurt him or killed him.”

But police, who testified Wednesday that they’d discovered Aiello’s naked body after seeing Fletcher carrying a TV from Aiello’s home, didn’t indicate that Fletcher had said anything about having just defended himself against a violent attack.

Officer Filmore Graham said that when police responded to a disturbance at about 3:30 a.m. at 1326 X Street, where Aiello lived behind his small Midtown Moped shop, he saw Fletcher carrying a flat screen TV and a woman who was also carrying something.

Fletcher, who “was really sweaty,” even though “it was really cold outside,” said, “This is my shop.

My partner and I own it,” Graham testified, adding that Fletcher had said “Dan” was “in the back lying down.”

Officer Tony Parham, who’d also responded to the scene, testified that Fletcher seemed “very nervous.”

Moments later, Graham and Parham found Aiello in his bedroom, lying face down on the floor with a belt “wrapped around his neck,” said Graham, who added there had been a possible shoeprint on his back. Aiello was soon pronounced dead.

Sergeant Jason Kirtlan, who was a homicide detective at the time Aiello was killed, said that during an interview that morning, Fletcher told him that Aiello had repeatedly paid him for sex acts during the four years they’d known each other.

Aiello, who was gay, worked for the B.A.R. as a freelance writer who covered marriage equality See page 15 >>

LGBTs caught in horrific N. Bay fires

Alex Madison

by Heather Cassell

F

ast-moving wildfires fueled by dry brush and Diablo winds roared through the hillsides and vineyards in Napa and Sonoma counties starting late Sunday night and continued to burn out of control.

LGBT winery owners and other community members were among the evacuees and those

who lost homes or had businesses damaged.

Fountaingrove Lodge, a luxury LGBT retirement community in Santa Rosa, suffered some damage, according to media reports and facility officials. Residents were evacuated shortly after midnight October 9, Robert May, executive director of Fountaingrove Lodge, told the Los Angeles Times.

The complex, operated by Oakmont

See page 14 >>

by Tony Taylor

I

n an effort to enhance beauty and promote safety, the Dolores Park Garden Club has been formed to, among other things, build and sustain flower beds throughout the park. Under the direction of volunteer Robert Brust, a small group recently gathered near the park’s Helen Diller playground to prune, pick, and pluck.

“This is one of park and rec’s babies,” said Brust, referring to the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department while standing inside a bioretention flower bed constructed earlier this year.

Bioretention planters are planted depressions designed to collect and absorb runoff.

Under Rec and Park’s supervision, the bioretention flower bed sits near the base of several Guadalupe palm trees, which stayed in place during the park’s $20.5 million renovation that was completed in early 2016. Added during construction, underground pipes guide natural spring water from the hillside of Dolores Heights and Castro Hill to the enclosed flower bed.

“With the slightest amount of rain, this thing bursts into water,” said Brust of the bioretention area, which was strategically placed near the children’s park for educational purposes.

The Dolores Park Garden Club had three volunteers and two Rec and Park employees during its first workday September 28. It’s a project of Rec

Tony Taylor

Robert Brust of the Dolores Park Garden Club trims overgrowth in the bioretention flower bed near Helen Diller playground during the club’s first workday on September 28.

and Park, Dolores Park Works, and the Dolores Park Ambassadors.

“I love the park,” said volunteer Kim O’Connor, a lesbian who has lived in the Dolores Park area

Photo courtesy of Lani Ka’ahumanu.

Photo by Mick Hicks.

Photo by Robert Pruzan.

Co-Chairs Marke Bieschke & Alex U. Inn

Management Group, includes apartments, assisted living, and memory care facilities. All were evacuated, according to a post on the company’s website. The Times reported that Villa Capri, the assisted living facility, burned to the ground.

“It was a harrowing experience,” May told the paper. “The flames were right in front of us.”

The residents were transported to senior

Garden club has first workday at Dolores Park

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for almost 30 years. “I’m here weeding and pruning and looking forward to planting later.”

Volunteer Tom Shaub, a gay man, has seen See page 15 >>

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GENVOYA is a 1-pill, once-a-day prescription medicine used to treat HIV-1 in people 12 years and older who weigh at least 77 pounds. It can either be used in people who are starting HIV-1 treatment and have never taken HIV-1 medicines before, or people who are replacing their current HIV-1 medicines and whose healthcare provider determines they meet certain requirements.

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GENVOYA does not cure HIV-1 or AIDS. To control HIV-1 infection and decrease HIV-related illnesses, you must keep taking GENVOYA. Ask your healthcare provider if you have questions about how to reduce the risk of passing HIV-1 to others. Always practice safer sex and use condoms to lower the chance of sexual contact with body fluids. Never reuse or share needles or other items that have body fluids on them.

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Severe liver problems, which in rare cases can lead to death. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you get these symptoms: skin or the white part of your eyes turns yellow, dark “tea-colored” urine, light-colored stools, loss of appetite for several days or longer, nausea, or stomach-area pain.

The most common side effect of GENVOYA is nausea. Tell your healthcare provider if you have any side effects that bother you or don’t go away.

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• All the medicines you take, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. Other medicines may affect how GENVOYA works.

Keep a list of all your medicines and show it to your healthcare provider and pharmacist.

Ask your healthcare provider if it is safe to take GENVOYA with all of your other medicines.

• If you take antacids. Take antacids at least 2 hours before or after you take GENVOYA. • If you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant.

It is not known if GENVOYA can harm your unborn baby. Tell your healthcare provider if you become pregnant while taking GENVOYA. • If you are breastfeeding (nursing) or plan to breastfeed. Do not breastfeed. HIV-1 can be passed to the baby in breast milk.

You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch, or call 1-800-FDA-1088.

Please see Important Facts about GENVOYA, including important warnings, on the following page.

Ask your healthcare provider if GENVOYA is right for you.

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GENVOYA does not cure HIV-1 or AIDS.

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IMPORTANT FACTS This is only a brief summary of important information about GENVOYA® and does not replace talking to your healthcare provider about your condition and your treatment.

(jen-VOY-uh) MOST IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT GENVOYA

POSSIBLE SIDE EFFECTS OF GENVOYA

GENVOYA may cause serious side effects, including: • Worsening of hepatitis B (HBV) infection.

GENVOYA is not approved to treat HBV. If you have both HIV-1 and HBV, your HBV may suddenly get worse if you stop taking GENVOYA. Do not stop taking GENVOYA without first talking to your healthcare provider, as they will need to check your health regularly for several months.

GENVOYA can cause serious side effects, including: • Those in the “Most Important Information About GENVOYA” section.

• Changes in your immune system.

• New or worse kidney problems, including kidney failure.

• Too much lactic acid in your blood (lactic acidosis), which is a serious but rare medical emergency that can lead to death. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you get these symptoms: weakness or being more tired than usual, unusual muscle pain, being short of breath or fast breathing, stomach pain with nausea and vomiting, cold or blue hands and feet, feel dizzy or lightheaded, or a fast or abnormal heartbeat.

• Severe liver problems, which in rare cases can lead to death. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you get these symptoms: skin or the white part of your eyes turns yellow, dark “tea-colored” urine, light-colored stools, loss of appetite for several days or longer, nausea, or stomach-area pain.

The most common side effect of GENVOYA is nausea.

ABOUT GENVOYA •

•

GENVOYA is a prescription medicine used to treat HIV-1 in people 12 years of age and older who weigh at least 77 pounds and have never taken HIV-1 medicines before.

GENVOYA can also be used to replace current HIV-1 medicines for some people who have an undetectable viral load (less than 50 copies/mL of virus in their blood), and have been on the same HIV-1 medicines for at least 6 months and have never failed HIV-1 treatment, and whose healthcare provider determines that they meet certain other requirements.

GENVOYA does not cure HIV-1 or AIDS. Ask your healthcare provider about how to prevent passing HIV-1 to others.

Do NOT take GENVOYA if you: • Take a medicine that contains: alfuzosin (Uroxatral®), carbamazepine (Carbatrol®, Epitol®, Equetro®, Tegretol®, Tegretol-XR®, Teril®), cisapride (Propulsid®, Propulsid Quicksolv®), dihydroergotamine (D.H.E. 45®, Migranal®), ergotamine (Cafergot®, Migergot®, Ergostat®, Medihaler Ergotamine®, Wigraine®, Wigrettes®), lovastatin (Advicor®, Altoprev®, Mevacor®), lurasidone (Latuda®), methylergonovine (Ergotrate®, Methergine®), midazolam (when taken by mouth), phenobarbital (Luminal®), phenytoin (Dilantin®, Phenytek®), pimozide (Orap®), rifampin (Rifadin®, Rifamate®, Rifater®, Rimactane®), sildenafil when used for lung problems (Revatio®), simvastatin (Simcor®, Vytorin®, Zocor®), or triazolam (Halcion®).

• Take the herbal supplement St. John’s wort.

• Take any other HIV-1 medicines at the same time.

GET MORE INFORMATION •

• •

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Go to GENVOYA.com or call 1-800-GILEAD-5 If you need help paying for your medicine, visit GENVOYA.com for program information.

These are not all the possible side effects of GENVOYA. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you have any new symptoms while taking GENVOYA. Your healthcare provider will need to do tests to monitor your health before and during treatment with GENVOYA. BEFORE TAKING GENVOYA Tell your healthcare provider if you: • Have or have had any kidney or liver problems, including hepatitis infection.

• Have any other medical condition.

• Are pregnant or plan to become pregnant.

• Are breastfeeding (nursing) or plan to breastfeed. Do not breastfeed if you have HIV-1 because of the risk of passing HIV-1 to your baby.

Tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take: • Keep a list that includes all prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements, and show it to your healthcare provider and pharmacist.

• Ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist about medicines that should not be taken with GENVOYA. HOW TO TAKE GENVOYA •

•

GENVOYA is a complete one pill, once a day HIV-1 medicine.

Take GENVOYA with food.

GENVOYA, the GENVOYA Logo, LOVE WHAT’S INSIDE, SHOW YOUR POWER, GILEAD, and the GILEAD Logo are trademarks of Gilead Sciences, Inc., or its related companies. All other marks referenced herein are the property of their respective owners. Version date: April 2017 © 2017 Gilead Sciences, Inc. All rights reserved. GENC0144 06/17

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10/3/17 3:29 PM

t

Community News>>

October 12-18, 2017 • Bay Area Reporter • 5

San Francisco’s gay Nob Hill Theatre for sale

by Sari Staver

T

he Nob Hill Theatre, an iconic San Francisco gay male strip club, is going up for sale later this month.

The adult cinema and video arcade, located at 729 Bush Street, will be listed for $347,000, said Zephyr commercial Realtor Steven “Stu” Gerry, the listing agent. For another $3.78 million, the two-story building that houses the theater is also for sale, added Gerry, who said the Nob Hill is among the most interesting properties he has marketed in his many years as a real estate agent.

“I’ve had a number of sex dungeons,” said Gerry, who is gay, in an interview at the Nob Hill.

The property will hit the market October 20 and showings will be “by appointment only,” said Gerry, formerly the owner of the former Cafe Flore in the Castro and a longtime headwaiter at Bix, a popular South of Market restaurant.

According to Gary Luce, who owns the theater with his husband, Larry Hoover, the Nob Hill is the only club in the city combining cinema and a video arcade.

Sari Staver

Real estate agent Steven “Stu” Gerry will be listing the Nob Hill Theatre next week.

“Maybe the only one in the nation,” Luce said in an interview at the theater.

He said customers from around the world are among his regular patrons.

“Even people from Amsterdam say there is nothing like this back home.”

Luce and Hoover bought the club several years ago after getting a call from Shan Sayles, who owned the Nob Hill and a number of movie

theatres across the country. Sayles died in 2016.

“We have enjoyed owning the Nob Hill Theatre but are ready to retire,” said Luce, who manages the theater with his husband. “We hope the new owners of the property will keep the current business operating.”

According to Gerry, the Nob Hill Theatre is a “successful, cash

flow-positive” business. A new owner might also want to develop condominiums or apartments above the business, said Gerry.

“We’ve been told by city officials that the property has potential for development,” he said.

The property, built in 1911, is 3,272 square feet, according to tax records, said Gerry. It consists of a 50-seat theater, 20 video booths (including two suites) a maze area, two private dancer rooms, and a private pole dance lounge. A one-bedroom apartment located behind the theater was featured in the January 1982 issue of Architectural Digest. The current owners of the theater now live there, said Gerry, but plan to move after the sale.

As it is currently operated, customers pay between $20-$30 for all day privileges to watch movies, which play continuously, and live shows, which take place in the afternoon and evening. There is no additional charge to watch videos in the downstairs arcade.

In the 1950s, the theater, then called Club Hangover, showed foreign films, said Gerry. At one point, it was owned by baseball star Joe DiMaggio and

a photo in the lobby of the theater shows Louis Armstrong playing there, said Gerry.

“There is quite a history here,” he said.

In the late 1960s, it was renamed the Nob Hill and screened independent films before the previous owners turned to porn and live dancing, Gerry said.

The current owners have made “many improvements” in the property since they took over, said Gerry, who described the property as “immaculate.”

Although online porn has become a multibillion-dollar business, “there will always be a market for live performance,” said Gerry. “It’s a part of LGBT culture that is not going to go by the wayside.”

“But only time will tell whether the new owner will want to continue the business as is,” he added. Gerry estimated the sale could take up to three months, typical for the longer sales cycle in commercial properties.

A former dancer at the club, Matt See page 14 >>

Gay man assaulted in the Castro

by Sari Staver

G

ary McCoy, an advocate for people who are homeless and for people living with HIV, was assaulted in the Castro Sunday morning, October 8.

McCoy, a gay man who was recently appointed to Governor Jerry Brown’s statewide Homeless Coordinating and Financing Council, was attacked at 8:20 a.m. at Castro and Market streets, he told the Bay Area Reporter in an interview later that day.

As he walked along the street near Jane Warner Plaza, McCoy said a man struck him in the face with a closed fist, breaking his glasses and “really shaking me up,” he said.

A call to 911 brought police “in less than two minutes,” and they arrested the man across the street at Harvey Milk Plaza, said McCoy, 39.

San Francisco Police spokesman

Sari Staver

Gary McCoy

Officer Robert Rueca confirmed the incident, telling the B.A.R. in a telephone interview that the suspect,

Leslie Bailey, 32, was booked on two felony counts of vandalism and battery. Bailey, who did not give an address, was out on bail at the time of his arrest and is now in jail, awaiting his court appearance, said Rueca.

“This man is clearly someone that has many challenges, including unmet mental health needs,” McCoy said in an email to the B.A.R., “and points to the need for programs to provide such services.”

McCoy said he appreciated the quick response by police. He said he also received a call from gay District 8 Supervisor Jeff Sheehy “almost immediately after the incident.”

“We had a great discussion on the work his office has been doing – including increased beat cops in the neighborhood,” McCoy said. “I know most of the folks that hang around in

LGBT center hosts Economic Justice Month

by Seth Hemmelgarn

T

he San Francisco LGBT Community Center is hosting Economic Justice Month with a series of October events meant to connect people with opportunities and resources.

The month will showcase the work of the center’s Economic Development department in providing unique resources and support services that are meant to boost financial stability and self-sufficiency for lowand moderate-income LGBTQs and their allies, according to a news release from the center.

“Every day, the SF LGBT Center’s Economic Development Department supports low- to moderate-income LGBTQ individuals and allies with services designed to increase self-sufficiency and financial stability,” said Clair Farley, the center’s director of economic development, in response to the Bay Area Reporter’s emailed questions.

Farley’s department works with more than 3,000 people a year in an effort to connect them with inclusive employment, housing, and other services. “... Our communities are struggling to survive in the Bay Area and across the country with the current administration’s policies,” she said, referring to President Donald Trump.

“It is important that we come together

Rick Gerharter

Bernard Boudreaux, left, greeted Suzy Jane Edwards at the October 5 launch party for Economic Justice Month, a monthlong program by the economic development team at the LGBT Community Center.

in these times to share our resiliency and share skills/ resources with one another, whether that is a referral to an inclusive workplace, help decreasing debt, support navigating housing in the Bay Area, or having a better understanding of our rights.”

The center, which is located at 1800 Market Street, started Economic Empowerment Day in 2011, and now it offers a month filled with community-building activities and economic empowerment events, said Farley.

This year, programming has been expanded to include the first LGBTQ

Financial Planning Day October 21, in partnership with Horizons Foundation.

According to Horizons, “members of the LGBTQ community will have access to great financial education sessions and pro-bono consultations with some of the Bay Area’s top advisers, including members of Horizons’ Professional Advisors Council.”

The center’s LGBTQ Career Fair is set for October 26 at the San Francisco offices of LinkedIn, at 222 Second Street.

The event will include leading Bay Area employers who are dedicated to diversity and inclusion in the workplace.

There will be a Queer-Street Marketplace October 28 to showcase community entrepreneurs. Additionally, throughout the month, there will be workshops and events that include a tenants’ rights panel, tips on navigating the gig economy, and addressing youth homelessness, said Farley.

The month of special events launched last Thursday where community leaders, including Isa Noyola, a trans Latina activist who’s regarded as a national leader for LGBT immigrant rights, were recognized. t All events are free, but registration is encouraged. For more information, visit http://www.sfcenter.org/ ejm.

the Castro, and have a great relationship with them – this was not one of them, and the incident caught me completely off guard.”

In an email to the B.A.R., Sheehy said he was “very concerned about what happened” to McCoy. “No one should be assaulted in the Castro,” Sheehy wrote. “I am actively working with Captain [Bill] Griffin and we now have foot patrols in the Castro but I will continue to work to make the neighborhood safer. We need to recognize that we need to grow the police

force to increase public safety.”

McCoy said that, at first, responding police officers said the suspect would be cited and released. But when they learned he had violated his parole, and that McCoy’s glasses cost over $500, the charges were upped to felonies, and he would not be released.

“I was glad he was not back on the street,” said McCoy. McCoy is a policy and community affairs manager with the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department. t

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<< LGBT History Month

6 • Bay Area Reporter • October 12-18, 2017

Lyon, Martin paved the way for lesbians

by Alex Madison

I

n a time when President Donald Trump has directed a ban on transgender individuals from serving in the military, his administration has rescinded protections for trans students in public schools, and the advancement of LGBTQ national historic landmarks are in question, the stories of those who fought for equal rights in an earlier era seem to be more important than ever before.

One such story is that of Phyllis Lyon and Del Martin, who ushered in the modern lesbian movement and made history by becoming the first same-sex couple married in San Francisco – twice. Their accomplishments as activists and the love they shared have become a symbol of perseverance, strength, and hope for the LGBTQ community.

“If you got stuff you want to change, you have to get out and work on it,” said 93-year-old Lyon.

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“You can’t just sit around and say I wish this or that was different. You have to fight for it.”

Lyon is still a beacon of strength, wit, and charm as she reminisced about her younger years. Although Martin died in 2008 at age 87, Lyon still lives in the couple’s one-bedroom home nestled in the hills of Noe Valley, which they shared for more than 50 years.

“I can’t be out galloping around like I used to, getting stuff done,” said Lyon as she sat in her living room during a recent interview with the Bay Area Reporter. Decades ago, the room served as a gathering place for lesbians during a time of social conformity, when the lesbian community only had a handful of bars in the Castro district in which to meet and socialize.

“Oh, gosh, we used to have dance parties here all the time,” Lyon recalled, smiling.

Although Lyon said she has not considered submitting her home to become a national or local landmark after she passes, one step inside the cozy abode reveals the couple’s history-making life seen through countless pictures, knickknacks, and newspaper clippings.

Kendra Mon, Martin’s only child from her first marriage, remembers spending summers at the couple’s home when she was a student at UC Berkeley. Over the years, Mon has come to understand the important role her mother and Lyon played in the lesbian community, something she didn’t quite grasp as a young adult.

“Lesbians would call the house from all over the world,” said Mon, a retired mother of two who lives in Petaluma, California. “A lot of their friends were scared at that time.

Mom gave them a place where they could feel safe.”

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When former San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom ordered city officials to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples in February 2004, the “Winter of Love” was unleashed, as images of happy gay and lesbian couples lined up outside City Hall were beamed into living rooms across the country, and around the world. But that day, February 12, started off with a quieter ceremony inside a City Hall office, where Newsom married Lyon and Martin as LGBT community leaders and others looked on.

Ultimately, the California Supreme Court ruled several months later that those 2004 marriages were invalid because Newsom had exceeded his authority. Lyon and Martin – and the thousands of others – would have to wait four more years, when the same court in May 2008 overturned Proposition 22, a same-sex marriage ban, and said that denying marriage rights to same-sex couples violated the state Constitution. Wedding bells began ringing in the Golden State in June.

(The same-sex nuptials were halted in November of that year, after state voters passed the Proposition 8 marriage ban. After years of legal wrangling, the U.S. Supreme Court in June 2013 tossed out Prop 8 on a technicality and same-sex marriages resumed in California.)

Martin and Lyon were the first same-sex couple to be married in the city in 2004 and 2008. Framed, yellowed San Francisco Chronicle articles of the couple’s historic marriages grace the walls of Lyon’s welllit living room. The headlines read, “Wedding Bells to Ring in a New Era,” and “The Wait is Over.”

“We got it started for everybody else,” Lyon said of her 2004 wedding.

“We didn’t get married just for us.

We knew it was important to a lot of other people.”

Although their first marriage ended after 181 days, it didn’t stop

t

Associated Press

Del Martin, left, and Phyllis Lyon are married by San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom on June 16, 2008.

Alex Madison

Phyllis Lyon stands in the living room of her Noe Valley home

the couple from continuing their fight. Martin and Lyon exchanged vows again on June 16, 2008.

Martin died August 27, just 74 days after again making history.

The matching pink and blue suits the couple wore are now in the permanent collection in the archives of the GLBT Historical Society.

A longtime friend of both women, Kate Kendell, executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, personally asked Lyon and Martin to be the first same-sex couple to wed in 2004.

“I called the house and Phyllis answered the phone. I told her I needed them to do one more thing for the movement,” Kendell said, recalling it to be a humorous conversation, after Lyon put her on hold to ask Martin.

They said yes a few minutes later.

Kendell attended both marriage ceremonies, an emotional experience for her.

“I burst into tears, as did other staffers,” she said. “You knew you were a part of something historically very important standing there.”

For someone who grew up in a time where lesbianism was seen as “immoral, sick, and illegal,” Lyon said she never believed she would live long enough to marry her “sweetypuss” and the love of her life, as she called Martin, let alone see same-sex marriage legalized nationally. But sure enough in a landmark decision on June 26, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples could marry in all 50 states.

“I think we’ve made tremendous progress,” said Lyon, laughing about how she is still amazed that people don’t fall over dead when she tells them she is a lesbian. The incredible accomplishments of Lyon and Martin no doubt played a role in the progress of the LGBTQ community in San Francisco and beyond. When Martin died, then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) famously said, “We would never have marriage equality in California if it weren’t for Del and Phyllis.”

Earlier days

Martin began working as an activist after receiving her degree in journalism from UC Berkeley. While working on a newspaper in Seattle, Martin met Lyon in 1950 and the two began working on behalf of lesbians in their community, health care access, advocacy on behalf of battered women, and issues facing elderly Americans.

Together more than 50 years, the couple founded the Daughters of Bilitis in 1955, the first social and political organization for lesbians in the United States. In 1956 they started a newsletter called the Ladder, which grew into a publication about lesbian politics and culture and became a lifeline for hundreds of women isolated and silenced by the restrictions of the era.

Martin also became an activist for the feminist movement in 1963 when she was the first out lesbian to serve on the board of directors of the National Organization for Women. The women were pioneers, tireless activists, and together a symbol of what it means to fight for equality and love in the LGBTQ community.

Their many contributions over the past five decades are credited with shaping the modern LGBT movement.

In 2005 Lyon and Martin were inducted into the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association’s LGBT Journalists Hall of Fame.

“No, we are not back in the 1950s, but we are facing some of the most threatening and dangerous times, certainly in my lifetime,” Kendell said of the Trump administration’s lack of support of the LGBTQ community. “Phyllis and Del are examples of how you live during difficult times.

I look to them as an inspiration, a north star of how you show up, you fight, and be present.”

Lyon plans to donate some of the items in her home to the Smithsonian Institute after she is gone, but, as Kendell said, the memory and legacy of Martin and Lyon live on through their writings, perseverance, and love for one another.t

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<< Open Forum

t Second-class status looms for LGBTQs

8 • Bay Area Reporter • October 12-18, 2017

Volume 47, Number 41 October 12-18, 2017 www.ebar.com PUBLISHER Michael M. Yamashita Thomas E. Horn, Publisher Emeritus (2013) Publisher (2003 – 2013) Bob Ross, Founder (1971 – 2003) NEWS EDITOR Cynthia Laird ARTS EDITOR Roberto Friedman BARTAB EDITOR & EVENTS LISTINGS EDITOR Jim Provenzano ASSISTANT EDITORS Matthew S. Bajko • Seth Hemmelgarn CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Ray Aguilera • Tavo Amador • Race Bannon Erin Blackwell • Roger Brigham Brian Bromberger • Victoria A. Brownworth Brent Calderwood • Philip Campbell Heather Cassell • Belo Cipriani Richard Dodds • Michael Flanagan Jim Gladstone • David Guarino Liz Highleyman • Brandon Judell • John F. Karr Lisa Keen • Matthew Kennedy • Joshua Klipp David Lamble • Max Leger Michael McDonagh • David-Elijah Nahmod Michael Nugent • Paul Parish • Sean Piverger Lois Pearlman • Tim Pfaff • Jim Piechota Bob Roehr •Donna Sachet • Adam Sandel Khaled Sayed • Jason Serinus • Gregg Shapiro Gwendolyn Smith • Sari Staver • Jim Stewart Sean Timberlake • Andre Torrez • Ronn Vigh Charlie Wagner • Ed Walsh Cornelius Washington • Sura Wood ART DIRECTION Max Leger PRODUCTION/DESIGN Ernesto Sopprani PHOTOGRAPHERS Jane Philomen Cleland • FBFE Rick Gerharter • Gareth Gooch Jose Guzman-Colon • Rudy K. Lawidjaja Georg Lester • Dan Lloyd • Jo-Lynn Otto Rich Stadtmiller • Steven Underhil Dallis Willard • Bill Wilson ILLUSTRATORS & CARTOONISTS Paul Berge • Christine Smith ADVERTISING/ADMINISTRATION Colleen Small Bogitini VICE PRESIDENT OF ADVERTISING Scott Wazlowski – 415.829.8937 NATIONAL ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVE Rivendell Media – 212.242.6863

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T

he Trump administration released its “license to discriminate” memo last week, giving carte blanche to business owners to cite their own religious views in order to exempt them from complying with numerous anti-discrimination laws. In what was a horrible week, Attorney General Jeff Sessions decreed that his interpretation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 does not protect transgender workers from employment discrimination, and the Department of Health and Human Services expanded the rights of employers to deny women insurance coverage for birth control. We have been waiting for these memos and policy changes for months. It’s just the latest example of Trump strengthening support among his anti-gay base at the expense of specifically harming women and LGBTQ people, and potentially everyone.

The U.S. Supreme Court is set to take up a case involving the “religious liberty” argument. Masterpiece Cake Shop owner Jack Phillips refused to sell a wedding cake to a same-sex couple because otherwise it would violate his Christian beliefs. Sessions’ memo makes the same argument as Phillips’ case, which the justices will hear in December.

“Except in the narrowest circumstances, no one should be forced to choose between living out his or her faith and complying with the law,” Sessions wrote. He then went on to outline 20 principles that “should guide administrative agencies and executive departments in carrying out this task.” Crucially, the fourth principle states that “Americans do not give up their freedom of religion by participating in the marketplace, partaking of the public square, or interacting with the government.”

This is the logic that anti-LGBTQ religious freedom bigots have been using for years to justify their freedom to discriminate as it means that people’s actions based on their religious views are not constrained by laws. And, because there is no federal anti-discrimination law protecting LGBTQs, attorneys and advocates have been using laws like Title VII, which are now being reinterpreted and reversed by the Trump administration.

As others have noted, Sessions’ sweeping memo will enable systematic, government-wide discrimination. Chad Griffin, president of the Human Rights Campaign, said it will have “a devastating impact on LGBTQ people and their families.”

HRC did a preliminary analysis of the memo and Trump’s announcement Friday that employers will no longer be required to provide insurance coverage for birth control if it’s against their religious beliefs, and the results are frightening: • A Social Security Administration employee could refuse to accept or process spousal or survivor benefits paperwork for a surviving samesex spouse.

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Alice club’s strange award choice

We know lots of hard-working politicians in San Francisco who have demonstrated leadership. Sunset district Supervisor Katy Tang is not one of them. Yet, Tang, a straight ally, will receive the Legislator of the Year Award from the Alice B. Toklas LGBT Democratic Club at its Fall Awards

next week. Count us confused as to why the club would honor a supervisor who was a driving force behind the board’s vote last week to torpedo a proposed medical cannabis dispensary in her district. In an email, Alice club Co-Chair Louise “Lou” Fischer wrote, “We are honoring Supervisor Tang for her groundbreaking work on the HomeSF legislation that is increasing the stock of affordable housing in the city’s outlying neighborhoods for families, teachers, firefighters, first responders and middle-income workers.”

OK, but Tang was among the nine board members who fell for a misinformation campaign propagated by the anti-LGBT Pacific Justice Institute. The institute, which is labeled a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, whipped Sunset residents into a frenzy, leading them to besiege the board with unverified information that a medical marijuana dispensary would lead to an increase in crime, which would in turn lower property values.

In the months leading up to last week’s hearing, which was to appeal a planning commission determination that approved the Apothecarium project, a church pastor claimed – without evidence – that relatives of parishioners have died from pot overdoses.

On Thursday (October 12), the planning commission will hear another request for a different medical cannabis dispensary in the Sunset, at 2161-2165 Irving Street. Should the commission approve the project, it will be interesting to see if the same forces appeal this one, which is proposed by Barbary Coast Dispensary.

The medical cannabis and recreational marijuana industries are only going to grow more robust as adult use of cannabis becomes legal January 1. Yet San Francisco officials still seem stuck drafting regulations, even after the city formed a task force last year to prepare for legal pot sales.

Supervisor Jeff Sheehy and Mayor Ed Lee have preliminary legislation that needs to be finalized soon by the board. If there was ever a time for leadership on this issue by Tang, whose district is more conservative than other parts of the city, it is now. At the least, she should stop opposing medical cannabis dispensaries, especially when her district has none and people have to travel across town to obtain their medicine.

San Diego, where Democrats have a one-seat advantage on the City Council, last week legalized a local supply chain for marijuana in advance of Proposition 64, the adult use measure, taking effect in January. Surely progressive San Francisco can do better than opposing medical dispensaries and setting up bureaucratic roadblocks.

In the meantime, an ally such as Tang should not be lauded by an LGBT political club after voting to support an anti-gay hate group’s ridiculous claims over progressive and humane policies. There are many others who are more deserving.t

The future of the STD epidemic

by Adam Cohen

Bay Area Reporter

• A federal contractor could refuse to provide services to LGBTQ people, including in emergencies, without risk of losing federal contracts.

• Organizations that had previously been prohibited from requiring all of their employees from following the tenets of the organization’s faith could now possibly discriminate against LGBTQ people in the provision of benefits and overall employment status.

• Agencies receiving federal funding, and even their individual staff members, could refuse to provide services to LGBTQ children in crisis, or to place adoptive or foster children with a samesex couple or transgender couple.

LGBTQs living in California have some of the strongest protections in the country, but this federal nightmare will affect us here, too. The Social Security ramifications alone could be shattering, perhaps returning to the days before same-sex marriage when couples had to cobble together agreements.

But it’s LGBTQs in other states who will really bear the brunt of this. According to HRC, more than 50 percent of Americans live in an area of the U.S. where LGBTQ people are at risk of being fired, evicted, or declined services because of who they are, and two-thirds of LGBTQ people report having faced such discrimination in their lives.

Trump knows that he can’t change Obergefell v. Hodges, the Supreme Court ruling that legalized same-sex marriage in all 50 states. But he and his administration are chipping away at hard-fought rights one by one, led

by Sessions and Vice President Mike Pence, two of his most anti-LGBTQ officials. It’s something Republicans have done for years with AfricanAmericans (think of the Voting Rights Act that was gutted by the high court in 2013), immigrants, and women.

When the going gets tough, this president lashes out at the most vulnerable – in this case, LGBTQs, for which there is no specific federal non-discrimination policy despite decades of trying by the Human Rights Campaign and politicians. The administration is relegating LGBTQs to second-class citizenship. Activists have long warned about this, even after securing marriage equality. This president poses a dangerous setback by using the federal government to repeal the gains we have made.

he Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published its latest sexually transmitted diseases surveillance report late last month, documenting nearly 470,000 new gonorrhea infections in 2016 alone – an 18.5 percent increase from the previous year. Public health departments simply cannot keep up with these numbers and have estimated that hundreds of thousands of additional cases have ultimately gone unreported. If left untreated, gonorrhea can cause serious health problems such as chronic pelvic pain, ectopic pregnancy, infertility, and an increased risk of HIV acquisition.

To compound the seriousness of this epidemic, the World Health Organization reported on rising rates of antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea, which makes the infection “much harder, and sometimes impossible, to treat.” In the CDC’s newest STD report, 3.6 percent of gonorrhea infections tested for antibiotic resistance were found to be resistant to one of the two antibiotics used as our last-resort dual therapy treatment. This percentage is only going to increase.

In response to this soon-tobe untreatable epidemic, public health prevention efforts against gonorrhea and other STDs have been met with budget cuts, clinic closures, and limited contact

choosing in 2015 – on short notice and with little stakeholder input – to change the term from unprotected sex to condomless sex. While this may appear to be a simple alteration, the alarming implication is now that one could still be protected while not using condoms. There is little doubt that the CDC’s demotion and limited advocacy of condom use play a role in skyrocketing STD rates, particularly among adolescents and young adults.

We have become complacent to the $16 billion According to the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, condom annual burden of this STD use has stagnated in the U.S. epidemic. We dismiss gonorrhea infections as easily curable, ignoring the fact tracing of positive cases. In addition, testing that antibiotic-resistance will have a detrigonorrhea for antibiotic resistance is now mental effect on our nation’s health. becoming an essential component of STD We are losing control of this epidemic. testing and treatment services – but We need public health officials to doublemost clinics are not outfitted to test down on prevention, testing, and treatment for drug resistance. efforts to stop this modern catastrophe. The Condom use – the most costbest time to address this STD epidemic was effective prevention method 20 years ago, the second-best time is now. t available against gonorrhea and other STDs – has stagnated in the United States. The CDC has all but abandoned the promotion of condoms, instead

Adam Cohen, PhD, MPH, is the director of advocacy and policy research at AIDS Healthcare Foundation.

t

Politics>>

October 12-18, 2017 • Bay Area Reporter • 9

Gay organ donor hopes to inspire others to donate

by Matthew S. Bajko

C

lark Williams found himself increasingly disillusioned by the election of Donald Trump as president last November. Not only was he vowing never to travel to states that backed the former reality television star turned politician, but the gay Democrat began disconnecting from Trump supporters he knew on social media platforms.

“I was becoming pessimistic and almost hateful. I didn’t like myself, or the person I was becoming. I was buying into the argument of us versus them and blue states versus red states,” recalled Williams, 52, who lives in Sherman Oaks in the San Fernando Valley outside Los Angeles. “I was paying a price for that. I realized I needed to do something truly selfless that had nothing to do with politics.”

Without telling his husband or teenage daughter, Williams contacted the UCLA Kidney Transplantation Program to inquire about becoming a living donor. It was something he had been curious about for some time as well as something he could do anonymously.

“The person receiving my kidney could be a Trump voter or a person who hates gay people, who knows?”

Williams, who formerly lived in San Jose and was a well known political leader in the South Bay, told the Bay Area Reporter in a recent phone interview. “The thought of it restores my faith in humanity during these really dark times. That is what I like about it.”

As he learned more about becoming a living donor, Williams realized he had never heard of another person from the LGBT community volunteering in such a manner. And once he started disclosing his decision to be a donor to family members and close friends he would need to rely on during his six to eight weeks of recuperation, Clark found many people were confused about how he could be a kidney donor as a gay man but not able to donate blood.

Under a federal policy many health officials and LGBT leaders criticize as antiquated, men who have had sex with men can’t donate blood unless they have been celibate for a year.

With the advancement in treatments for, and the detection of, HIV, there is a growing movement to see the U.S. Food and Drug Administration revise its blood donation rule for gay and bisexual men.

There is no such prohibition, however, when it comes to gay and bisexual men donating their organs.

By being public about his decision to become an organ donor, Williams hopes other gay men will seriously consider doing so themselves, as there is a tremendous need for living donors.

Kidneys from a deceased donor tend to last 10 years in the recipient, while living organ donations can last up to 15 years.

According to the Organ Procurement & Transplantation Network, there are 104,424 people on the kidney transplant waiting list. Each year roughly 5,000 people die while waiting to be matched with a donated kidney.

“Why few gay people donate is because they are not aware they can become a live organ donor,” said Williams, recalling how it was one of the first things he asked about when he called the UCLA program. “I disclosed to them right away I was gay and asked if it would be an obstacle to my donating, and they said, ‘No.’ I was surprised because I knew of the blood ban with the FDA.” Jennifer Terenzini, the living donor and paired exchange transplant coordinator at the UCLA clinic, told the B.A.R. that the policies diverge

Clark Williams

because people donating a live organ go through a more “stringent process” than those giving blood.

“A living kidney donor goes through a lot of education sessions, consultations, lab work and radiology testing,” said Terenzini. “The process is not taken lightly.”

Of the nearly 140 kidney donations it handles each year, the UCLA clinic does not track how many of the donors are gay. As part of the screening process, male organ donors are asked if they have engaged in sex with another man in the past year as part of the questionnaire all donors must fill out.

While that information is not disclosed to the organ recipient, they are informed that the kidney is coming from a donor who could put them at “increased risk for disease transmission.” They can then decline the donation or accept it.

“The person getting Clark’s kidney was not told it is coming from a gay man, just from a person with one of those risk categories,” said Terenzini.

“They are told here are the categories the person could be and asked do you want to accept that type of category or prefer not to accept that type of organ.”

All kidney donors are screened for HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases prior to donating. And they are asked not to engage in sex during the four weeks prior to donation.

Williams will be admitted to the hospital Tuesday, October 17 so doctors can remove his left kidney, which will be transplanted in the recipient within 24 hours. Barring any pain or nausea, Williams should be cleared to go home on the 18th.

Right up until the moment he is given anesthesia, Williams can change his mind. But he insisted to the B.A.R. he intends to proceed with the procedure.

“There is no reason why I am not going to have a nice, long, healthy life with my lone kidney. The body only needs one,” said Williams, who had served as vice chair of the Santa Clara County Democratic Party and as co-chair of the LGBT Caucus of the California Democratic Party from 2011 to 2013.

Before agreeing to be a donor, Williams, a stay-at-home dad, asked his 14-year-old daughter and husband to both sign off. Because of his decision, should they ever need a kidney transplant, they would be placed at the top of the waiting list.

“As I found out why he was doing it, I became really happy he was giving a kidney in need and saving a life. I didn’t really understand that at first,” said Caroline Williams, who would like to be a doctor. “When he told me, I was very happy and proud he is my dad.”

His husband, attorney Jim Moore, who is also 52, said he was not surprised by Williams’ decision.

“He is just exceptional in that way. He really sees himself as part of a global community,” said Moore.

“Honestly, I was on board right from the beginning. I know Clark is also

remarkably thorough, and before he raised it with us, I know he would do the research into the ground.”

He joked his only qualm is having to care for Williams after the operation, as he doesn’t deal well with being sick.

“Even under normal situations, he is not a good patient. We are going to have our hands full,” said Moore.

Williams’ kidney donation will kick off what is called a Never Ending Altruistic Donor chain, as the recipient of his kidney had to find a friend or family member willing to also donate a kidney to a stranger. The string of donations will continue until a transplant recipient is unable to find a donor, thus breaking the chain. The record to date is 30 kidney donations.

“I am hoping it is a lot,” said Williams, of the chain he is starting.

He won’t find out the results for several months. And while he would like to meet the person receiving his kidney, it will be up to them to decide if they want to learn who the donor was.

“If they say yes, I would love to meet them,” he said. “But I have to be OK with the fact I may never know.”

To learn more about becoming a living kidney donor, visit https://kidneyregistry.org/.

Barry Schneider Attorney at Law

family law specialist* • Divorce w/emphasis on Real Estate & Business Divisions • Domestic Partnerships, Support & Custody • Probate and Wills www.SchneiderLawSF.com

415-781-6500 *Certified by the California State Bar 400 Montgomery Street, Ste. 505, San Francisco, CA

Wiener dual endorses in East Bay Assembly race

Gay state Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) has dual endorsed a straight former Obama administration official and a lesbian education leader in an East Bay Assembly race next year.

The moderate freshman state lawmaker decided to throw his support behind both Buffy Wicks, who worked on Barack Obama’s campaign and later as a White House aide focused on passing his landmark Affordable Care Act health legislation, and Judy Appel, who serves on the Berkeley school board and is the former executive director of the LGBT nonprofit Our Family Coalition.

“I have great relationships with both and deeply respect their work and commitment to housing reform, investment in transit, and LGBT equality,” Wiener, a former San Francisco supervisor, told the B.A.R. Tuesday.

See page 15 >>

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<< Community News

10 • Bay Area Reporter • October 12-18, 2017

Workshop on older Americans planned Best Wedding Photographer as voted by BAR readers

compiled by Cynthia Laird

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he San Francisco Department of Aging and Adult Services and the San Francisco Interfaith Council will hold a workshop, “Faith, Community, and City: Coming Together to Support Older Adults and Persons with Disabilities” Monday,

October 16 from 8:30 a.m. to noon at St. Mary’s Cathedral (St. Francis Room), 1111 Gough Street.

During the event, faith communities will engage in a discussion with DAAS and its partner organizations on serving the needs of older adults and adults with disabilities.

The Reverend Jay Williams, a queer

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cisgender man who was recently named lead pastor at Glide Memorial Church, will deliver the keynote address. Other LGBT individuals, including Rabbi Eric Weiss, will also be speaking.

Lesbian Shireen McSpadden, executive director of DAAS, will discuss challenges facing older adults and the services the agency offers; and Michael Pappas, a gay man who is executive director of the interfaith council, will talk about the perspective and resources the faith community brings to this population.

There will also be a panel discussion, breakout groups, and a resource fair.

At the end of the workshop, participants will consider establishing an ongoing form of communication.

Tom Nolan, a gay man and manager of special projects for DAAS, said that the event represents the first formal conversation between the aging department, its community-based partners, and the interfaith council.

There is no cost to attend. To register, visit https:// events.r20.constantcontact.com/ register/eventReg?oeidk=a07eekm ymdg86bfefdb&oseq=&c=&ch=.

t

about the Dignity Fund, which was approved by voters last year and provides funding for seniors and adults with disabilities.

There is no cost to attend.

Richmond Pride film event

Glide pastor Jay Williams

Sheehy to address LGBT seniors

Gay District 8 Supervisor Jeff Sheehy will speak at a community forum at Openhouse, the LGBT senior agency, Friday, October 13. The open house runs from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the community room at 55 Laguna Street, the site of its senior housing facility.

Others on hand will include the aforementioned DAAS, which wants to hear about LGBT seniors’ experiences with current services in San Francisco. Information will be available

Richmond Rainbow Pride will hold a film and culture event Saturday, October 14 from 4 to 9:30 p.m. at the Courtyard Marriott at Hilltop, 3150 Garrity Way in Richmond.

The event includes 13 short films that will screen starting at 4:40. The documentary “Against Hate” will be shown at 7:30.

There will also be live music, refreshments, art, and a panel discussion.

The event is made possible by the Queer Women of Color Media Project and the Richmond Arts and Culture Commission.

Admission is free. For more information, visit http://www.richmondrainbowpride.org.

Blessing of the animals

St. Francis Lutheran Church will hold a blessing of the animals Saturday, October 14 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the courtyard at 152 Church Street in San Francisco.

Adoptable dogs from Cooper’s Dream Animal Rescue and the Friends of Madera Animal Shelter will be on hand, and people can See page 14 >>

Castro patroller John Fitzinger dies

by Seth Hemmelgarn

patrol chief for the volunteer group Castro Community on Patrol, said, “John was our first line of safety,” and he was usually able to respond to situations in minutes, faster than regular police.

Mr. Fitzinger also “had a real balance of compassion and law enforcement,” said Carey. “Many times, he was able to help people find their way into various services” just “by working with them. ...That was one of his real skills. Not everybody ended up in handcuffs.”

Mr. Fitzinger had worked with lesbian Castro Patrol Special Police Officer Jane Warner, who died in 2010 after a long battle with cancer.

Alan Byard, president of the San Francisco Patrol Special Police Officers Association, said that Mr. Fitzinger got appointed to the neighborhood “about 12 years ago.”

He took over the beat after Warner died and soon won praise from the Castro’s bars and other businesses.

“No matter what kind of situation he was in, he always had a smile,” said Byard. “He always had good words to say about people, even people he had conflicts with on the street. ...

He genuinely cared about what was going on in his beats there.”

Byard said his organization is working to fill Mr. Fitzinger’s spot to ensure there’s no “lapse in coverage” in the neighborhood.

Holly Fitzinger, who lives in Rio Vista, recalled visiting Mr. Fitzinger while he was patrolling the neighborhood and seeing how warmly people treated him.

Fitzinger said that her uncle “was as straight as a board,” but he cherished his work in the Castro.

“He just loved everything about his job and that community, and he was so protective over his people,” she said. He also helped educate others about the LGBTQ community.

“He taught a lot of the family to be open-minded, and that people are people, no matter what gender, what sexuality, or what race,” said Fitzinger.

Supervisor Jeff Sheehy, whose District 8 includes the Castro, said in a statement, “John was a tremendous positive presence in the Castro for many years and will be truly missed by the community. ... He tirelessly worked to help residents and merchants in the neighborhood. My deepest condolences to his family during this difficult time.”

Plans for a memorial are pending. t

for many nonprofits, including, Health Initiatives For Youth, Children’s Book Press, Horizons Foundation, Burning Man, and the Shasta AIDS Project.

Gary’s passion was being of service. Appointed to the Statewide Working Group, he advised two governors on distributing California’s Title II funding for people with HIV/AIDS and was a ferocious voice for PWAs in rural communities, fighting for the same care and medicines as urban areas. Although HIV-negative himself, the Working Group’s PWA caucus made him its only member emeritus for outstanding

service to the PWA community.

Gary adored his friends, cats, Winnie the Pooh, his house in Wales, and the ocean and was happiest in his seaside home in Carmel. Gary was love personified and filled both friends and acquaintances with laughter, hope, and joy. This is not hyperbole; it is the simple truth. Gary will be remembered by all who encountered him as a virtuous man, a hero. The world seems indigent without him. A memorial will be held Saturday, October 14 from 2 to 4 p.m. at the National AIDS Memorial Grove in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park.

L

ongtime Castro Patrol Special Police Officer John Fitzinger, who spent years working to ensure safety in San Francisco’s LGBT neighborhood, died Saturday, October 7, one day before his 62nd birthday.

Holly Fitzinger, 37, who was Mr. Fitzinger’s niece but regarded him as her father, said he died after having a procedure related to heart problems.

Mr. Fitzinger was “genuinely the most kind-hearted man I ever met in my life,” she said.

Mr. Fitzinger was well known for keeping people in check in the neighborhood, which often has a mix of rowdy bar patrons and homeless people.

“John Fitzinger was the epitome of community policing,” Andrea Aiello, executive director of the Castro/Upper Market Community Benefit District, said in an email to the Bay Area Reporter. “... Everyone knew him, especially the nighttime crowd and the street people. They knew him as a tough but fair police officer; one who would rescue them if they were hurting but wouldn’t allow bad behavior.”

Aiello said Mr. Fitzinger “worked closely” with police from Mission Station, which oversees the district.

(Patrol special police officers are approved by the San Francisco Police Department but hired by private businesses and individuals to provide security. The city doesn’t consider them to be police officers.)

In a phone interview, Greg Carey,

Courtesy CCOP

Castro Patrol Special Police Officer John Fitzinger

Obituaries >> Gary D. Page March 3, 1953 – July 2, 2017 Gary Page was fully human: smart, sassy, funny, stubborn, too kind and too smart by half. An independent accountant, he served as executive director or chief financial officer

1985

Help Reduce Isolation in Your Community Give back as a one-on-one Shanti volunteer for our newest program!

2015

Shanti’s LGBT Aging & Abilities Support Network(LAASN) Supporting LGBT Seniors and Adults with Disabilities

1995

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Since 1974, Shanti has trained 20,000 Bay Area volunteers to offer emotional and practical support to some of our most vulnerable neighbors, including those with HIV/AIDS, women’s cancers, and other life-threatening diseases. We are now excited to announce that our services are being offered to LGBT aging adults and adults with disabilities who face isolation and need greater social support and connection.

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If you think you or someone you know could benefit by being a Shanti client, or to learn more about the services, please contact Joanne Kipnis at 415-625-5214 or email: jkipnis@shanti.org

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2010

The LGBT Aging & Abilities Support Network is made possible by funding from the City and County of San Francisco’s Department of Aging and Adults Services.

2006

2001

Embracing Compassion.

Care, and Community Since 1974

<< Business News

12 • Bay Area Reporter • October 12-18, 2017

t

Startup allows LGBT clients to tailor their investments

by Matthew S. Bajko

S

an Francisco-based startup OpenInvest is empowering LGBT investors to ensure their stock portfolios include only companies deemed to be supportive of LGBT rights.

The online investing site, which claims to be the world’s first Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) platform

for retail investors, makes it as easy as swiping left or right for its users to decide if they want to divest or invest with a certain company. And such decisions can now be made during a person’s commute, as OpenInvest this week released its first mobile app for its clients to manage their accounts on their handheld devices.

The platform can also notify users

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about stockholder initiatives and proxy fights targeted at companies in their portfolio and allow them to take action. It will also send users a notice when a company takes an action they may not support and ask them if they want to divest from it.

“Your investments really are one of the most powerful ways to change the world,” said Josh Levin, co-founder and chief strategy officer at OpenInvest, a Y Combinator and Andreessen-Horowitz-backed public benefit corporation. “You have a political vote and consumer choices, but your assets, if you have investments, really have an outsized impact. This weapon for most people is sitting on the shelf collecting dust. The goal with new technology is to get people into the game and make change in ways that never happened before.”

Instead of lumping all of a client’s investments into one fund, which makes it impossible to pick and choose individual companies to invest with, OpenInvest asks users to select from a dozen different themes, such as the environment or LGBT rights, that they care about it. Based on those choices, it will then suggest companies deemed supportive of those causes for a person to invest in.

In terms of gauging if a company is LGBT-friendly or not, OpenInvest uses the Corporate Equality Index released annually by the Human Rights Campaign, the national LGBT rights advocacy group. The 2017 CEI report ranked a record breaking 517 businesses with a top score of 100 percent and the coveted distinction of “Best Places to Work for LGBT Equality.”

“We make it easier for people to hit a button and it instantly moves your money into a whole group of companies in the theme, like LGBT,” said Levin, who is straight. “We have people coming back every day pulling out names or

OpenInvest co-founder Josh Levin

asking about companies. Sometimes we will email users with a list of companies and give them a prompt to pull out.

When you pull companies in or out of your portfolio, it rebalances so it doesn’t affect your investing.”

OpenInvest charges a fee of 0.5 percent of the assets under management annually. It requires a minimum investment of $3,000 to open an account. While it does not report exact figures, Levin said the 1-year-old platform has signed up thousands of people and is managing millions of dollars.

“This is the first time passive investing performance and diversification follows the market. We are not trying to beat the market or come under the market; the performance follows the overall market,” said Levin.

OpenInvest had a booth at Pride this year to talk to LGBT investors about how they could utilize their stock portfolios as a part of their activism. Levin told the Bay Area Reporter that business leaders are paying attention to such matters.

“Companies listen. If you speak up, they will hear it,” he said. “These companies employ hundreds of thousands of people and impact hundreds of thousands of lives. It really makes a difference.”

To learn more about OpenInvest, visit http://www.openinvest.co.

East Bay cities float public bank idea

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Officials in Oakland, Berkeley, and Richmond are exploring the possibility of creating a public bank, an idea backed by several out East Bay leaders.

Dubbed the Public Bank of Oakland, the regional financial institution could be used to provide community benefit lending and handle cannabis business deposits. Such entities are currently solely cashbased and unable to open accounts with existing banks due to restrictive federal policies.

The concept is similar to the public bank operated by the state of North Dakota. City leaders in Los Angeles are also looking at forming their own public bank.

“Certainly, the medical cannabis community has been a very strong part of the coalition for this. They are ridiculously left out of banking, so that is one community a public bank can serve,” said lesbian at-large Oakland City Councilwoman Rebecca Kaplan, who has spearheaded the proposal since last year.

In late September the Oakland City Council signed off on authorizing a public bank feasibility study and allocated $75,000 in funding for it. Berkeley’s council then approved $25,000 to cover the remaining cost of the study, which is being conducted by consulting firm Global Investment Company.

The study should be finished by the end of the year and brought before Oakland’s City Council for review in early 2018. In addition to having institutional depositors, the analysis will also look at if the bank would allow members of the public to also open

accounts with it.

“Yes, we do think it is likely to have the bank take private deposits,” said Kaplan. “The feasibility study is looking at the options for that. That is absolutely on the table.”

Kaplan’s fellow council member Abel Guillen, who identifies as two spirit, co-sponsored the resolution calling on the city to study the concept. In Berkeley, gay City Councilman Kriss Worthington urged his city to contribute financially to the report, while Alameda County officials and the city of Hayward have expressed interest in the idea.

“I don’t think it is an absolute slam dunk and certain to happen. It is going to take a lot of research and exploration,” said Worthington.

If it is deemed feasible, he suggested that any number of local entities, from governments and labor unions to environmental groups and others, could find it desirable to invest their funds with a public bank. The collaboration on the bank, he noted, would be similar to how East Bay cities have formed a regional clean power program set to launch next year.

“I think Berkeley doing it alone or Richmond doing it alone is extremely challenging because of our size. A partnership with Oakland, which is pretty big, might have enough critical mass that it might be viable,” Worthington said of the public bank idea.

As for how the federal government might react, especially should the bank take deposits from marijuana businesses, Worthington said local officials would need to take that into account. The sale of marijuana for adult recreational use will become legal in 2018 in California, and it remains unclear what the reaction to such sales in the states that have legalized marijuana use will be by the Trump administration and Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who is adamantly opposed to the legalization of the drug.

“We may end up deciding to include medical cannabis dispensaries and not recreational ones,” said Worthington. “We have to keep an open mind on that.”

While a final decision on creating the bank will not be made until after leaders in the three cities review the consultants’ report, Kaplan expressed optimism about seeing it come to fruition.

“I do think there is a very strong likelihood we will move forward, but of course no one will make that decision until we see the results of the feasibility study,” she said. “I think the fact more cities are getting involved also increases the likelihood of success.”

Honor Roll

The Fillmore Merchants Association of San Francisco raised $7,500 for the city’s LGBT community center during its second annual Shop OUT Day on August 26. Twenty of the neighborhood’s businesses donated 10 percent of their sales that Saturday to the upper Market Street facility, which reopened this spring after an extensive interior remodel.

The merchants group presented center officials with a check during an October 6 ceremony.

“The SF LGBT center is more than just a physical space. The center not only supports the entire spectrum of the LGBTQ community with its programs and services, but also represents the inclusiveness and tolerance which is the heart of San Francisco values,” stated Vas Kiniris, owner of Zinc Details and executive director of the association. “We are proud to support the center’s mission today and will continue work together to create a stronger community for future generations.”t Got a tip on LGBT business news?

Call Matthew S. Bajko at (415) 8298836 or e-mail m.bajko@ebar.com.

<< Community News

14 • Bay Area Reporter • October 12-18, 2017

<<

N. Bay fires

<<

Nob Hill Theatre

From page 5

Converse, said he “loved” the five years he spent working there in the 1990s.

“It was probably the most fun I’ve ever had at a job,” Converse said in a telephone interview with the Bay Area Reporter. Converse said he

<<

The fires have ravaged Sonoma County, particularly Santa Rosa.

Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency Monday. Vice President Mike Pence, in California to rally support for President Donald Trump’s tax plan, said he spoke with Brown and said the federal government stands ready to assist.

Trump approved a federal disaster declaration Tuesday.

The fire burned a quarter of a mile away from Sullberg’s home in Santa Rosa. He was up late playing music when transformers started blowing throughout his neighborhood, he told the B.A.R.

“I saw this crazy spark, like lightning. It sounded like fireworks going off lighting up our neighborhood,” he said, but when they went outside, “we looked over and it seemed like it was ‘The Lord of the Rings,’ this crazy moving fire. I could see it just over the trees.”

There was little information and no authorities at 2:40 a.m., Monday, so the couple jumped into their truck to check on their businesses in Healdsburg and Windsor. Traffic as people fled the area was insane, he said.

“I’ve never seen people drive so crazy off the freeway, they were offroading it,” said Sullberg.

By Tuesday police were patrolling Santa Rosa to ward off looters.

Carnivele was stunned.

“I’ve lived in Sonoma County for 20-plus years, I’ve never experienced anything like this,” said Carnivele, who is fortunate that authorities brought a generator Tuesday for a cellphone tower that resides on his property just outside of the main square. “It’s smoky, gray, creepy and still.”

Many LGBT-owned vineyards and businesses in Napa and Sonoma didn’t respond to the B.A.R.’s attempts to contact them.

To aid LGBT wine country fire victims, Positive Images is collecting donations, which can be made to http:// posimages.org/donate, or a check can be sent to Positive Images, 200 Montgomery Drive, Suite C, Santa Rosa, CA 95404 with #sonomacountyfires in the comment section online or memo section on the check.

Napa’s LGBTQ Connection, an LGBT youth organization, is open and providing a safe gathering space, food, water, free Wi-Fi, charging stations, child care, and other needs to the community. The organization is also gathering supplies and taking donations, said Ian Stanley, program director. The organization is currently in need of gift cards to major retailors for food, clothing, blankets, child care supplies, and facemasks to protect from the smoke.

To donate, visit https://onthemove. thankyou4caring.org/donatetolgbtq or drop supplies off at 780 Lincoln Avenue, Napa, CA 94558.

San Francisco-based Rainbow World Fund is mobilizing to raise funds and will have the Rainbow World Fund bus parked at Jane Warner Plaza in the Castro to gather supplies to take immediately to Napa and Sonoma by Thursday, said Executive Director Jeff Cotter. For more information, visit www.rainbowfund.org.

To donate, visit https://donatenow. networkforgood.org/1210623.t

accident” during a visit to the theater.

An employee asked Converse if he’d ever thought of applying for a job as a dancer, “probably just flirting with me,” he said.

Then working at a bank, Converse said the idea was “intriguing” so he “went home, practiced dancing for a few weeks, and came back and applied for a job.” At the time, the application process included participating in an

amateur night, dancing for an audience who voted for each contestant.

Converse came in first and was offered a job on the spot, he said.

“I took it the whole thing very seriously,” he said. Paid $30, plus tips, for a 22-minute on-stage dance, Converse kept his day job for a while, then worked full-time as a stripper before returning to writing.

“It was a great experience,” he said.

Especially rewarding, he said, were letters he received from two patrons, one who said he had been impotent until he saw Converse dancing and another who said seeing the show made him realize he was gay.

“It will be very sad if the new owners decide not to continue as a strip club,” Converse said. “There is nothing else like it anywhere. It would mean the end of an era.”t

Hirsh said in a news release.

The nonprofit will also recognize Sharon M. Dulberg with its Attorney of the Year Award. Law firm Jones Day will receive the Firm of the Year Award.

Hirsh pointed out that despite a difficult climate for HIV/AIDS fundraising, and a 27 percent increase in its caseload over the last decade, ALRP continues to provide free and sliding scale legal services to over 1,500 people living with HIV/AIDS each year.

The wine and food reception will include silent and live auctions. Live auction items include getaway vacations to Palm Springs and Puerto Vallarta, lunch with Mayor Ed Lee, a Bay Area restaurants and wine package, and use of an AT&T Park luxury suite at a San Francisco Giants game.

Tickets start at $100. For tickets and more information, visit http:// www.alrp.org or contact Jim McBride,

director of development, at (415) 7011200, ext. 301 or jim@alrp.org.

party Saturday, October 21 at 6 p.m. at GitHub facilities, 88 Colin P. Kelly Jr. Street in San Francisco.

El/La is unique in that it provides a holistic family-style safe space for transgender Latinas where they can access culturally competent services and resources across their intersecting identities, i.e., ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation in Spanish.

Services include an evening drop-in space, violence prevention, HIV prevention and PrEP navigation, leadership development, and advocacy.

The evening will include a cocktail hour, dinner, and program.

Tickets for El/La community members are $25. Individual tickets are $50, with higher levels for those who want to contribute more.

For more information, visit https://ellaparatranslatinas-3598. wedid.it/?ct=t%2811th+Anniversar y%29&mc_cid=93992b15ab&mc_ eid=%5BUNIQID%5D. t

From page 1

facilities in Concord and Albany, according to Fountaingrove Lodge’s website.

May didn’t respond to the Bay Area Reporter’s request for comment by press time.

An updated statement on the website Tuesday said that the lodge structures were unharmed.

“Our understanding as of today is the Varenna community sustained slight damage to the northern side of the property, and Villa Capri was destroyed in the fire,” Oakmont officials wrote. “We are grateful to say the structures of Fountaingrove Lodge and the Terraces were unharmed, however, expect there will be smoke damage.”

“Our focus continues to be on the care, welfare, and safety of our residents and staff,” wrote Chris Kasulka, president and CEO of Oakmont Management Group. “We want to thank our staff, residents, and Oakmont families for all of their support during this difficult time.”

Authorities began evacuating people shortly around 11 p.m. October 8 after the first fires broke out.

As of Wednesday, 17 fires were burning. New fires sparked Tuesday, despite a lull in the weather that aided firefighters in tackling the multiple blazes burning throughout northern California.

More than 20,000 people evacuated Napa and Sonoma counties alone, according to authorities.

At least nine counties – Butte, Calaveras, Lake, Mendocino, Napa, Nevada, Solano, Sonoma, and Yuba – were affected.

The worst fires are the Tubbs Fire in Sonoma and the Atlas Fire in Napa, which continued blazing Wednesday.

Officials said 170,000 acres have been burned in six major fires.

More than 3,500 structures have been destroyed, according to Cal Fire’s website. Those include homes, businesses, and wineries.

Shelters were quickly opened to aid evacuees. Local hotels offered shelter and Airbnb activated its Open Home program.

“A lot of evacuees are being put up at hotels and bed and breakfasts,” said Jamie Cherry, who owns the Inn on First in Napa with his husband, Jim Gunther. He recalled how quickly the city came together following the earthquake three years ago. “We are all trying to put our best feet forward to help people in need.”

News Briefs

From page 10

bring their own pets for a blessing.

Oakland LGBTQ center to hold forum on racism

The new Oakland LGBTQ Community Center will hold a forum on racism Tuesday, October 17 beginning at 6:30 p.m. at 3207 Lakeshore Avenue (entrance is on Rand Avenue).

Titled “Under the Rainbow,” the forum and workshop will look at racism within the LGBTQ community. The center said that individuals can share (2-3 minutes) of personal instances of racism within the LGBTQIA+ community.

The forum is in collaboration with Spectrum Queer Media.

For more information, visit https:// www.oaklandlgbtqcenter.org/.

The Fountaingrove Lodge LGBT retirement community, shown here in an undated photo, was spared in the Tubbs Fire.

Some other LGBT evacuees are finding shelter with friends in Mendocino County and Sebastopol on the Sonoma coast. Jim Roberts, a gay man who owns The Madrones in Mendocino, helped a friend who fled from Healdsburg, he told the B.A.R. Tuesday morning.

B.A.R. contributor Jack Fritscher said some friends were making their way to safety at his home in Sebastopol Monday afternoon. Christian Sullberg, a gay man in Healdsburg and bakery owner who’s board president of Positive Images, said they were checking and reaching out to Sonoma’s LGBT youth via the organization’s internal Facebook group page and mobilizing to assist Sonoma’s LGBT community.

Gary Saperstein, co-principal of Out in the Vineyards, texted the B.A.R. that he evacuated the city of Sonoma Monday.

Gary Carnivele, owner of http:// www.gaysonoma.com and host of OutBeat Radio, returned to the city of Sonoma with his partner Tuesday from a trip in Texas. He was searching for friends who were close to the epicenters of the fires, he told the B.A.R. The death toll stood at 21 people

by Wednesday and was expected to increase, authorities said. An estimated 45 of 670 people reported missing were found, according to media reports.

The American Red Cross is assisting with evacuation centers and Facebook activated its Safety Check program.

An estimated 150 people suffered fire-related injuries, authorities said.

Six individuals were flown to a hospital in San Francisco to be treated for burns late Monday afternoon.

Two of the burn victims were in

critical condition Tuesday, according to ABC7 News.

retired as a dancer to return to his career as a writer.

Converse wrote about his years at the Nob Hill in two recently published books, “Strip Shot,” which was the #1 LGBT horror bestseller on Amazon. com and “Behind the Velvet Curtain,” about a stripper stalked by an obsessed fan.

Converse, a gay man, said he got the job at the Nob Hill “totally by

ALRP marks 34th year with reception

The AIDS Legal Referral Panel will commemorate its 34th year of service at its From the Heart reception and auction Wednesday, October 18 from 6 to 9 p.m. in the Julia Morgan Ballroom at the Merchants Exchange, 465 California Street in San Francisco.

The reception is ALRP’s signature event, and this year will feature the aforementioned Sheehy as special guest host. He is the Board of Supervisors’ first openly HIV-positive member.

Attorneys who have helped ALRP clients will be honored.

“ALRP is so proud to honor the tremendous contributions of longtime volunteer panel attorney John W. Rosenzweig with our ALRP 2017 Clint Hockenberry Leadership Award in recognition of his years of work on behalf of people living with HIV/AIDS,” Executive Director Bill

t

LGBT wine country

The fires affected LGBT wine country residents and businesses.

The Atlas Fire erupted north of Calistoga, a popular gay escape on the northernmost tip of the Napa Valley.

Gay vintner John Newmeyer had to evacuate when a neighbor knocked on his door at 3:30 a.m. October 9, he wrote in an email to the B.A.R. Newmeyer and his business partner, David Mahaffey, who’s straight, own the boutique winery Heron Lake Vineyard, which is produced under the Olivia Brion label. The men were allowed back onto their property at 10 a.m., where they did what they could to protect it. They were forced to evacuate a second time after the Atlas Fire circled them again an hour later.

“We watched from a mile away, with great anxiety, as huge plumes of smoke rose over our area,” Newmeyer wrote.

They were allowed back onto their property at 4 p.m.

“We were gratified to find our house still standing and the vines mostly unharmed,” he wrote, stating their saving grace was the mowed grassland around the property and among the vineyards.

There was a little damage to the property and the stored wine. The men lost an estimated $6,500 of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay and a small case storage shed near the house, Newmeyer wrote.

“Fortunately, 98 percent of our wine cases had been stored not there but in a big storage facility down in the valley,” he wrote. “Our winery and barrels of more recent vintages are in a nearby underground tunnel and were untouched.”

Among Newmeyer’s nine LGBT friends and neighbors, three homes were burned and six homes were spared, he wrote.

“Next spring our hilly land will once again be green and lovely, but our sadness about our neighbors’ losses will endure,” he wrote.

Chris Johansen, who owns Embrace Calistoga, a bed and breakfast, with his husband, Brent Riedberger, told the B.A.R. Tuesday that downtown Calistoga was untouched. That all changed overnight, when evacuations were ordered and the Napa County town was threatened.

They didn’t have power and cellphone service as of late Sunday night, but Johansen anticipated power would be restored sometime Monday, he said.

As of Tuesday, more than 91,000 customers were still without power, according to PG&E. Cellphone service remained unreliable, but emergency cellphone towers were being installed to provide service, authorities said.

Comcast worked to install free Wi-Fi service in the affected areas through Friday, reported ABC 7 News.

While many of the LGBT-owned accommodations and businesses were located near or directly in town, LGBT-owned Chateau de Vie was located closer to the fire. Johansen and Riedberger reached out to the owners, but the men hadn’t heard from them, he said.

The fires were also north of the city of Napa, which so far was untouched by the fire, said Cherry.

The fires were also north of the city of Napa, which so far was untouched by the fire, said Cherry. Authorities said Wednesday that the city of Napa remain on evacuation alert.

Geyserville was ordered to evacuate Wednesday.

Santa Rosa

Art for AIDS coming up

The UCSF Alliance Health Project’s popular Art for AIDS will take place Friday, October 20 at City View at Metreon, 135 Fourth Street in San Francisco. A VIP reception will be held from 5:30 to 6 p.m., followed by the event from 6 to 10.

Art for AIDS is a juried live and silent auction that will feature 180 modern and contemporary pieces of art for purchase.

AHP provides HIV/AIDS and mental health services to the LGBTQ community.

Tickets are $150. People can view the art at www.artforaids.org.

El/La marks 11th anniversary

El/La Para TransLatinas will celebrate its 11th anniversary with a

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Community News >>

Garden club

From page 1

the transformation of the park since moving to the area in 1991. “We’re making the community aware they need to be involved. There’s been so much trash accumulating since the rebirth,” he said.

The volunteers agreed that the August shooting on the pedestrian bridge, which wounded three people, has decreased community interest in the park. So far, police have announced no arrests.

“The horrible shooting was a symptom of a problem,” Brust said.

“The park needs people to pay attention to it.”

Brust, a gay man, said he and his partner got involved in the park soon after they moved to nearby Liberty Street 12 years ago. He said that he “spent the first five years just picking up trash and talking to people,” which allowed him to meet his neighbors.

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Sexual attack

From page 1

and other issues before opening the moped shop.

On the night Aiello died, Aiello had swallowed capfuls of GHB, and Fletcher had drunk some, too. Then, Aiello got naked on the floor, wrapped a belt around his neck, and raised his butt “in the air,” according to Kirtlan’s account of the interview.

Fletcher started walking on Aiello’s back to massage him, which was something they’d done before, said Kirtlan.

Soon, Aiello was on the floor snoring, and Fletcher walked out with the TV and digital video recorder, which he said were his, Kirtlan testified.

Fletcher “denied even touching” the belt at first, said Kirtlan, but Fletcher’s claim of not touching the belt changed.

Fletcher said that while he was on Aiello’s back, Aiello grabbed his feet and pulled him down, Kirtlan testified. Fletcher, who knew that Aiello had AIDS and was afraid of contracting it, had to grab the belt in order to stay upright.

“Mr. Aiello became aggressive and took him to the ground. They were wrestling,” and Fletcher used the belt to stay away from Aiello, said Kirtlan.

At some point, Aiello also started to undo Fletcher’s pants, Kirtlan testified that Fletcher had told him.

Aiello had methamphetamine and GHB in his system when he died, according to attorneys in the case and court testimony.

The Sacramento County Coroner’s office determined the cause of death was strangulation.

Text messages

Kirtlan said that Fletcher’s phone contained over 17,000 text messages between the two men, the “majority” of which had come from Aiello, who was “not happy” that Fletcher was dating women.

The texts showed that Aiello, who thought of Fletcher as “a god,” had said, “I’ve been waiting four years to

<<

“If you just take your children and flee when the park gets overrun, it goes feral,” said Brust. “[Since the shooting], there’s not enough energy near the bridge and it’s an opportunity for the LGBTQ community to do stuff in the park.”

Brust feels it’s important to bring a strong LGBTQ presence into Dolores Park again, noting that he misses the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence’s Easter Sunday Hunky Jesus contests. Due to the park’s renovation, the Sisters moved their annual Easter festivities to Golden Gate Park’s Hellman Hollow in 2015.

“This is a good first start,” Brust said of the garden club’s inaugural workday. “We’re trying to make this a sustainable effort, a real club that keeps [the community] engaged.”

Dolores Park Ambassadors, a community group supporting the garden club, encouraged neighbors, visitors, dog walkers, and concerned citizens to take an active role in making Dolores

Political Notebook

From page 9

In a Facebook post that afternoon, Wicks wrote she was “thrilled” to have Wiener’s support.

“Scott has fought tirelessly for affordable housing, improving public transportation, LGBTQ rights and equity for all,” wrote Wicks, who lives in Oakland with her husband Peter and their newborn daughter, Josephine. “If elected, I’ll be honored to work alongside him in Sacramento to improve the lives of all Bay Area residents.”

Appel told the B.A.R. in an emailed reply that she is “proud” to have Wiener’s backing in the race.

“As a leader in the LGBTQ community for over a decade I have had

Former Bay Area Reporter writer Dan Aiello

get it from you,” and “I know I will never get raped by the perfect dick but the rest of these bitches can,” Kirtlan confirmed in his testimony.

Aiello had paid Fletcher “up to $20 per act” for “sexual gratification,” Fletcher told Kirtlan. He also told Kirtlan that he had used Aiello as “a farm animal” and “he would put a leash on him and walk him like a dog,” Kirtlan testified.

Fletcher’s phone had also contained several graphic videos and photos, including a video of “a stream of urine going into Mr. Aiello’s mouth,” Fletcher said “it was him,” said Kirtlan.

A photo showed Aiello’s scrotum tied with vice grips and a white strap, which Fletcher said he’d placed there.

Kirtlan testified that the texts also showed Aiello had told Fletcher he’d leave him the moped shop if Fletcher married him.

Surveillance footage

Police detective Jeffrey Griggs testified that Aiello’s neighbor had called police after being woken up by “sounds of a struggle.”

Griggs said he eventually watched video footage from the DVR from Aiello’s home, which had been located inside the Jeep that Fletcher drove there. The video, which wasn’t played in court, showed that Fletcher had approached Aiello’s front door at about 1:45 a.m.

The footage shows Aiello opening an interior door and talking to Fletcher, who remained outside a screen door.

“Mr. Aiello was pretty animated,” the opportunity to work to make better the lives of LGBTQ people, particularly families and their children across the diverse demographics of our community, and I believe it is that commitment that has won me Sen. Wiener’s support,” wrote Appel, who has two children, Kobi, a sophomore at Sarah Lawrence College, and Tris, a junior at Berkeley High School, with her wife, Alison Bernstein. “I look forward to furthering my work with and for LGBTQ people once I get to Sacramento.”

Appel and Wicks are seeking the 15th Assembly District seat, as the incumbent, Assemblyman Tony Thurmond (D-Richmond), is running to be the state’s superintendent of public instruction. Six Democrats have so far formed campaign committees to seek the seat, including lesbian

October 12-18, 2017 • Bay Area Reporter • 15

Park a clean and safe environment for everyone.

“There’s plenty of areas in the park for us to really get involved in,” Brust added. “The overall trash problem has gone down, but [broken] glass is a big problem. It’s difficult for gardeners to pick up. Children and dogs are at risk, too.”

In September, the Board of Supervisors approved a ban on glass containers in all San Francisco parks.

However, the most controversial aspect of the legislation, a proposed $1,000 fine for littering and dumping in Dolores Park, was tabled due to the effect it could have on low-income residents.

“There’s still a lot of work left,” Brust said.t Upcoming garden club workdays are October 12 and November 9 from 10 a.m. until noon. More information is available at http:// www.doloresparkworks.org.

waving his palms up and down, said Griggs. A few minutes later, Aiello opened the door a second time and the men talked again. This time, he let Fletcher in.

The two could be seen walking around inside, then coming and going from Aiello’s bedroom until about 3.

Almost 20 minutes later, Fletcher returned to the front room alone, said Griggs. He used the phone and went back into the bedroom a few more times, apparently looking for something, Griggs testified.

Then, “the surveillance cameras all lose their feed one by one,” and the footage ends, he said.

Along with the DVR, police also found several other items inside the Jeep, including a credit card for Midtown Moped in Aiello’s name, five packages of methamphetamine weighing a total of almost 45 grams, 98 hydrocodone pills, several syringes, a Viagra pill, and four cellphones, according to court testimony.

Kirtlan said that about two weeks prior to Aiello’s death, he had filed a financial crimes incident report alleging that Fletcher had stolen $200.

Griggs testified that the woman who’d called police the morning of Aiello’s death said that Aiello had instructed her to call 911 if she ever saw Fletcher outside the moped business.

Beside the murder charge, Bowman also held Fletcher to answer on burglary and robbery charges, along with charges of possessing and transporting methamphetamine for the purpose of sale. He was set to be arraigned Wednesday.

Fletcher, who had on orange jail scrubs, a crew cut, and a thick beard when he appeared in court Wednesday, was arrested shortly after Aiello’s death and has been in custody ever since. He’s being held without bail.

Deputy District Attorney William Satchell is prosecuting the case.

Sabrina Ahrens-Gravelle, who was reportedly in the Jeep when Fletcher allegedly killed Aiello, was sentenced in August 2015 to five years probation in the case after she pleaded no contest to possession of methamphetamine. t Richmond City Councilwoman Jovanka Beckles and bisexual East Bay Municipal Utility District board member Andy Katz.

Beckles has secured support from a number of progressive LGBT leaders in San Francisco, including gay former supervisors David Campos and Tom Ammiano, who also served in the state Assembly. The top two vote-getters in the June primary will advance to the general election next November.

The district includes the cities of Albany, Berkeley, El Cerrito, El Sobrante, Emeryville, Hercules, Kensington, Piedmont, Pinole, Richmond, San Pablo, Tara Hills, and a portion of Oakland. If an out candidate were to win, they would be the first out state lawmaker from the East Bay. t

Legal Notices>> AMENDED SUMMONS – SERVICE BY PUBLICATION [CCP § 751.05] - 20 ROMOLO I7, LP, A DELAWARE LIMITED PARTNERSHIP, PLAINTIFF, V. ALL PERSONS CLAIMING ANY LEGAL OF EQUITABLE RIGHT, TITLE, ESTATE, LIEN OR INTEREST IN THE PROPERTY COMMONLY KNOWN AS 20 ROMOLO PLACE, SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, MORE PARTICULAR DESCRIBED IN THE COMPLAINT ADVERSE TO PLAINTIFF’S TITLE OR ANY CLOUD ON PLAINTIFF’S TITLE THERETO; AND DOES 1 THROUGH 20, DEFENDANTS. FILE CGC-17-560709

The people of the State of California, to all persons claiming any interest in, or lien upon, the real property herein described, or any part thereof, defendants, greeting: You are hereby required to appear and answer the complaint of 20 ROMOLO I7, L.P, A Delaware limited partnership, plaintiff, filed with the clerk of the aboveentitled court and county, within three months after the first publication of this summons, and to set forth what interest or lien, if any, you have in or upon that certain real property or any part thereof, situated in the City and County of San Francisco, State of California, particularly described as follows: THE LAND REFERRED TO HEREIN BELOW IS SITUATED IN THE CITY OF SAN FRANCISCO, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO, STATE OF CALIFORNIA AND IS DESCRIBED AS FOLLOWS: COMMENCING AT THE POINT OF INTERSECTION OF THE SOUTHERLY LINE OF FRESNO STREET AND THE EASTERLY LINE OF ROMOLO PLACE, RUNNING THENCE EASTERLY AND ALONG SAID LINE OF FRESNO STREET 71 FEET 6 INCHES; THENCE AT A RIGHT ANGLE SOUTHERLY 57 FEET 6 INCHES; THENCE AT A RIGHT ANGLE WESTERLY 71 FEET 6 INCHES TO THE EASTERLY LINE OF ROMOLO PLACE; THENCE ATA RIGHT ANGLE NORTHERLY ALONG SAID LINE OF ROMOLO PLACE 57 FEET 6 INCHES TO THE POINT OF COMMENCEMENT. BEING PART OF 50 VARA BLOCK 86.

APN/Parcel ID(s): Lot 023, Block 0145 And you are hereby notified that, unless you so appear and answer, the plaintiff will apply to the court for the relief demanded in the complaint, to wit: quiet title to the Property consistent with the legal description above, against all adverse claims of all claimants, known and unknown, as of the date the Complaint in this case was filed.

Witness my hand and the seal of said court, Date: Aug 16, 2017, Clerk, by Anna L. Torres, Clerk Of The Court.

Lubin Olson & Niewiadomski LLP, 600 Montgomery St. 14th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94111; (415) 981-0550.

SEP 21, 28, OCT 05, 12, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037761400

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: A52 SIGNS & GRAPHICS, 1161 QUESADA AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed A52 SIGNS & GRAPHICS, LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 12/19/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/14/17.

SEP 21, 28, OCT 05, 12, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037757300

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: JUNIOR, 2545 24TH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed WILLARD CAPITAL PARTNERS LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/11/17.

SEP 21, 28, OCT 05, 12, 2017 STATEMENT OF ABANDONMENT OF USE OF FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME FILE A-037736600

The following persons have abandoned the use of the fictitious business name known as: GLADIOLUS VENDING, 575 NAPLES ST #B, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business was conducted by a limited liability company and signed by GLADIOLUS LLC (CA). The fictitious name was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/24/17.

SEP 21, 28, OCT 05, 12, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037774700 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: HAIGHT & COLE LIQUOR, 1699 HAIGHT ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94117. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed CINDY ZEIDAN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/25/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/25/17.

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037767900 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: RASKIN REAL ESTATE, 1300 25TH AVE #300, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed RICHARD B. RASKIN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/20/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/20/17.

AUG 24, 31, SEPT 07, 14, 21, 28, OCT 05, 12, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037765500

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037771600

SEP 21, 28, OCT 05, 12, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037759600

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037767300

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: A1 HAULING, 443 GATEWAY DR #101, PACIFICA, CA 94044.

This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed NASHAT ABDELGHANI. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/18/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/18/17.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SHOULDER DANCING AUTHENTIC ETHIOPIAN FOODS, 103 HORNE AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed WOLDE G. HAILESELASSIE. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/01/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/12/17.

SEP 21, 28, OCT 05, 12, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037759400 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SAN FRANCISCO CAD, 3609 ALEMANY BLVD, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94132. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed DAPHNE PRZYGOCKI. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 02/10/00. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/12/17.

SEP 21, 28, OCT 05, 12, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037761500 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: JADEYE BEAUTY, 518 TARAVAL ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94116.

This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed JESSICA YURASH. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/01/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/14/17.

SEP 21, 28, OCT 05, 12, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037763600 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: NORTH AMERICA YOUR WAY, 790 EDDY ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed GO WEST TOURS (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/15/17.

SEP 21, 28, OCT 05, 12, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037763000

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: A DIGNIFIED HOME CHILDREN AND YOUTH SERVICES, 575 NAPLES ST #B, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed A DIGNIFIED HOME (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/15/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/15/17.

SEP 21, 28, OCT 05, 12, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037754000 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: DIRECT THC, 214 CALIFORNIA ST, SUITE 211, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94111. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed DIRECT DISTRIBUTION, INC. (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/06/17.

SEP 21, 28, OCT 05, 12, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037754600

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: GLADIOLUS LASER, 575 NAPLES ST #B, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed GLADIOLUS LLC (CA).

The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/07/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/07/17.

SEP 21, 28, OCT 05, 12, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037753200 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: HYPHEN HUMAN DEVELOPMENT, 660 4TH ST. #146, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107.This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed ANSA CONSULTING GROUP, LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/06/17.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: TREASURE ISLAND AUTO GROUP, 849 AVE D, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94130. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed MABEL V. CUBBAGE. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/15/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/22/17.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: ORGANIC CLEANING SERVICES, 41 THOMAS AVE #9, BRISBANE, CA 94005. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed MONICA MARIA RODRIGUEZ HERNANDEZ. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/14/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/20/17.

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037769400 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: MEI ZHONG TRADING, 832 STOCKTON ST #A, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94108. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed JI CHEN JIANG. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/21/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/21/17.

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037768300 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: RAINBOW MARKET AND DELI, 684 LARKIN ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed FAUZI M. ALASHMALI. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/20/17.

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037752300 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: EIGHTEA, 91 6TH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed BRIAN ZHAO. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/06/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/06/17.

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037767000

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: CIVIC CENTER LANDSCAPE, 1700 BROADWAY #102, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed GLENN MURTA. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/09/98. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/20/17.

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037766100 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: CHARLIE’S JANITORIAL & GENERAL INTERIOR AND EXTERIOR SERVICES; CHARLIE’S JANITORIAL SERVICES, 2954 25TH ST #A, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed CARLOS EDUARDO GONZALEZ. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/19/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/19/17.

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037763300

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: MOSAIC, 128 S.LAKE MERCED HILLS, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94132.

This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed ALEXANDER DEL SALTO. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/15/17.

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037764500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SUBWAY #51109, 177 TOWNSEND ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed ARASH SHAHVALI. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/18/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/18/17.

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017

<< Classifieds

16 • Bay Area Reporter • October 12-18, 2017

Legal Notices>> FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037749900

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: KIDS KINGDOM, 1840 LOMBARD ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123.

This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed ROSIMEIRE HERRINGTON. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/01/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/01/17.

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037766500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: PURE 710SF, 49 KEARNY ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94108. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed 710 SF INC. (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/19/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/19/17.

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037769500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: THANH THANH CAFE, 2205 CLEMENT ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94121. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed THANH HA INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/21/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/21/17.

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037743800

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: TRUE LIGHT PRINTING AND PHOTO, 3910 MISSION ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by a married couple, and is signed ZHEN GUANG LIM & SHU FEN YU. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/13/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/30/17.

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037751500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: MONOLOG RECORDS, 681 14TH AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94118. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed MONOLOG RECORDS LLC (CA).

The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/01/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/05/17.

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037767600 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SIAM ORCHID CRYO, 518 TAYLOR ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed SIAM ORCHID LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/20/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/20/17.

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037764800 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: WOW THAI BISTRO, 701 RANDOLPH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94132. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed WOW THAI BISTRO, LLC (CA).

The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/18/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/18/17.

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037771900

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: HERB’N VEGAN, 1501 CORTLAND AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110.

This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed HERB’N VEGAN LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/22/17.

SEP 28, OCT 05, 12, 19, 2017

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037755700

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: COLLEEN MATTHEWS LCSW & ASSOCIATES; PURE FOCUS FAMILY SOLUTIONS, 1321 EVANS AVE #C, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed COLLEEN MATTHEWS. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/07/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/07/17.

OCT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037781700

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: JUST TUK IT, 1135 CAPITOL AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed CLARENCE J. HARDY. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/29/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/29/17.

OCT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037783300

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: BRISA TOURS, 3322 BUCHANAN ST #308, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed CHRISTINE BARNETT. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 10/01/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 10/02/17.

OCT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037776700 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SPA BEM-TI-VI, 3150 18TH ST #262 SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed ALESSANDRA CAVALLERO. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/31/16. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/26/17.

OCT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037772600

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: AKIWEE, 1373 46TH AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed FUJIAN HO. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/18/17.

The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/22/2017.

OCT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037780300

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: MEX RICO, 433 BARTLETT ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by a general partnership, and is signed DAVID J. SANCHEZ JR; BARBARA M. SANCHEZ; FRANCISCO M. SANCHEZ. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/01/71. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/29/17.

OCT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037776300 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: WASABI BISTRO, 524 CASTRO ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94114. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed UNITED RESTAURANT CORP (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/26/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/26/17.

OCT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2017

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037779900

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: DR. PAUL’S, 1250 MISSOURI ST #312, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed DEFINED CONCENTRATES (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/22/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/29/17.

OCT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037780700 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: CAFE TABOO, 600 YORK ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed JIN HOUSE CAFE INC. (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 07/05/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/29/17.

OCT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037770400 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: BAKER PLACES’ ACCEPTANCE PLACE, 1376 4TH AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed BAKER PLACES, INC (CA).

The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/14/90. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/21/17.

OCT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037770500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: BAKER PLACES’ JOE HEALY DETOX PROJECT, 101 GOUGH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed BAKER PLACES, INC (CA).

The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/14/90. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/21/17.

OCT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037781800

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SAN FRANCISCO MUSIC HALL OF FAME; SAN FRANCISCO MUSIC WALK OF FAME, 1353 BUSH ST #112, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed SAN FRANCISCO SOUND (CA).

The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/29/17.

OCT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037781600

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: MUSIC CITY REHEARSAL, 1353 BUSH ST #112, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109. This business is conducted by a limited partnership, and is signed PACIFIC EQUITIES WEST LLC, GP OF MUSIC CITY LP (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 06/27/16. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/29/17.

OCT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2017 NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF WILLIE BELL HOWARD IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO: FILE PES-17-301275

To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate, or both, of WILLIE BELL HOWARD. A Petition for Probate has been filed by LUSTER DONNEL HOWARD in the Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. The Petition for Probate requests that LUSTER DONNEL HOWARD be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent.

The petition requests the decedent’s will and codicils, if any, be admitted to probate. The will and any codicils are available for examination in the file kept by the court.

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The petition requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act. (This authority will allow the personal representative to take many actions without obtaining court approval.

Before taking certain very important actions, however, the personal representative will be required to give notice to interested persons unless they have waived notice or consented to the proposed action.) The independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority. A hearing on the petition will be held in this court as follows: Oct 31, 2017, 9:00am, Rm. 204, Superior Court of California, 400 McAllister St., San Francisco, CA 94102. If you object to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney. If you are a creditor or contingent creditor of the decedent, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the latter of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined by section 58(b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code.

Other California statutes and legal authority may affect your rights as a creditor. You may want to consult with an attorney knowledgeable in California law. You may examine the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE-154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code section 1250. A Request for Special Notice form is available from the court clerk. Attorney for petitioner: ALMA SOONGI BECK, ESQ. (SBN: 197383) LAKIN SPEARS, LLP, 2400 GENG ROAD #110, PALO ALTO, CA 94303, 650-328-7000.

OCT 12, 19, 26, 2017 SECOND JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT, COUNTY OF BERNALILLO, STATE OF NEW MEXICO CHILDREN’S COURT DIVISION NO. D-202-SA-2017-020 IN THE MATTER OF THE ADOPTION PETITION OF DANIEL LUKE GONZALES NOTICE OF PETITION FOR ADOPTION STATE OF NEW MEXICO TO NOUFAL HADIOUI AND THE PARENTS OF NOUFAL HADIOUI:

YOU ARE HEREBY NOTIFIED that Daniel Luke Gonzales, the above-named Petitioner, has filed a Petition for Adoption of the minor child, Khalila Adrianna GriegoMorrow born November of 2002 in the above referenced action. The biological mother, Misty Gonzales, consents to the step-parent adoption. Unless you enter your appearance within twenty (20) days of the date of the final publication of this Notice in the Second Judicial District Court, Children’s Court Division, before the Honorable Marie Ward, judgment by default will be entered against you. The date of the final publication is October 26, 2017.

Respectfully submitted: LITTLE, GILMAN-TEPPER & BATLEY P.A. Randy W. Powers, Jr. Attorneys for Daniel Gonzales, 316 Osuna Rd. NE, Suite A, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87107 (505) 246-0500

OCT 12, 19, 26, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037779000

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: BANOU COUTURE, 27 CYPRESS LANE, DALY CITY, CA 94014.

This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed MARYAM ARIA. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/28/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/28/17.

OCT 12, 19, 26, NOV 02, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037790600 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: XU’S DESIGN LAB, 2259 18TH AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94116. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed JIACEN XU. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious

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business name or names on 10/01/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 10/04/17.

OCT 12, 19, 26, NOV 02, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037782200 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: RADEFF DESIGN STUDIOS, 956 ILLINOIS ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed TRACY E. RADEFF. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 10/30/02. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 10/02/17.

OCT 12, 19, 26, NOV 02, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037765400

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: BAY AREA EFFICIENT MOVERS, 1238 NORTHPOINT DR. #D, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94130. This business is conducted by a general partnership, and is signed EZIZ TACHMURADOV & DZIANIS VASILEUSKI. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 07/26/16. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/18/17.

OCT 12, 19, 26, NOV 02, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037791800 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: EMERALD ISLE TRUSTS & ESTATES, 345 FRANKLIN ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed HALLINAN & HALLINAN PC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/01/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 10/05/17.

OCT 12, 19, 26, NOV 02, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037772500 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: ACCOUNTING PARAMEDICS, 291 PUTNAM ST #B, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed SIMKEINASO, INC (CA).

The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/22/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/22/17.

OCT 12, 19, 26, NOV 02, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037785100 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: RIA HEALTH, 44 GOUGH ST #203, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed DXRX INC. (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 10/03/17.

OCT 12, 19, 26, NOV 02, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037792500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SHELLAC NAIL BAR, 702 LARKIN ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109.

This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed STRAND SF LLC, (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 10/05/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 10/05/17.

OCT 12, 19, 26, NOV 02, 2017 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-037791500 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SANDY HILL FLOORING, 5235 DIAMOND HEIGHTS BLVD #108, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94131. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed SANDYHILL BUILDERS, LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 10/05/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 10/05/17.

OCT 12, 19, 26, NOV 02, 2017

To place your classified ad, call 415-861-5019 Then go have a drink & relax...

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Vol. 47 • No. 41 • October 12-18, 2017

www.ebar.com/arts

AMNH/Getty Images

What if pterosaurs still thrived on Earth, and visited the Bay Area?

Pterosaur psyndrome! T

by Erinosaurus Blackwellis

he desire for dinosaurs in the digital age is easily met.

You can get them in print or plastic, full-color, full-size, animatronic, video or videogame, 3D-immersive. But are any of these real dinosaurs? And what do I mean by “real?”

Courtesy SFFILM

See page 21 >>

Haynes + Vachon, moviemaking duo Christine Vachon produced “Boys Don’t Cry” (1999), an adaptation of the Brandon Teena story (left, Hilary Swank) directed by Kimberly Peirce.

by Sura Wood

I

n 1991, following the release of their first collaboration “Poison,” producer Christine Vachon and director Todd Haynes found themselves on the leading edge of what has since been dubbed New Queer Cinema. Nearly three decades and nine successful joint projects later, their partnership is going strong. “Sparks on Celluloid: Haynes + Vachon,” a fourth and particularly rich iteration of the Modern Cinema series, showcases seven features from the team, a shorts program, and a free screening of “Mildred Pierce,” their five-part miniseries originally broadcast on HBO in 2011, along with over 20 movies that have shaped their cinematic psyches.

See page 24 >>

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<< Out There

t Music for the curious at heart

18 • Bay Area Reporter • October 12-18, 2017 2pub-BBB_BAR_101217.pdf

1

9/14/17

11:36 AM

by Roberto Friedman

W

hat the Davies Hall nightclub SoundBox is to the San Francisco Symphony, SF Opera Lab Pop-Ups are to the San Francisco Opera – “entry points” for the “opera-curious” to explore the mysteries and power of the human voice, theatrically, in intimate spaces well beyond the War Memorial Opera House. Since the first event at Public Works in 2016, Pop-Ups have been held at the Chapel and Oasis in SF, and at the Uptown in Oakland.

Tonight (Thurs., Oct. 12), Opera Lab pops up at the dance club Mezzanine in downtown SF. The event, dubbed “Operatronica,” features operatic arias performed by Adler Fellows and electronic dance music (EDM) by the DJs of SF-based Loves Company. This genreblending evening might seem like an unusual musical mixture, but it comes from the imagination of its co-host, Verdian bass Anthony Reed, who is comfortable in the worlds of both opera and EDM. In his third year as an Adler Fellow, Reed also co-leads and records with an electronica group. He has been seen on the Opera House stage this season in Strauss’ “Elektra” and Verdi’s “La Traviata.”

Songs from the operatic repertoire will alternate with EDM sequences. Along with bass Reed, director Aria Umezawa, a first-year Adler Fellow, will curate and host the evening. Adler Fellows who will perform include sopranos Toni Marie Palmertree, Sarah Cambidge and Amina Edris; tenors Pene Pati, Amitai Pati and Kyle van Schoonhoven; baritone Andrew G. Manea; bass-baritone Brad Walker; co-host and bass Reed; and pianists Jennifer Szeto and Ronny Michael Greenberg.

Here’s the deets in a nutshell: “Operatronica,” SF Opera Lab Pop-Up at Mezzanine, 444 Jessie St., SF. Thurs., Oct. 12, doors at 8 p.m., show at 9 p.m. Tickets: ($20 advance, $25 at the door, $40 VIP) visit sfoperalab.com.

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BUY TICKETS AT NCTCSF.ORG BOX OFFICE: 415.861.8972 25 VAN NESS AVE AT MARKET ST

Cory Weaver/San Francisco Opera

Bass Anthony Reed as the King of Egypt in Verdi’s “Aida.”

(4AD), and it’s sent us way out of this world. The music is a stellar combination of vocals by Sufjan Stevens, Bryce Dessner on guitar, compositions by Nico Muhly and beats by James McAlister. The tracks pay tribute to the planets and a few other celestial bodies.

In album order, if not exactly that of an orrery (a model of the solar system), the subjects are Neptune, Jupiter, Hailey’s Comet, Venus, Uranus (no jokes, please), Mars, Black Energy, Sun, Tides, Moon, Pluto, Kuiper Belt, Black Hole, Saturn, In the Beginning, Earth and Mercury.

If you know Stevens’ angelic voice, you recognize it at first wail.

It’s all the more ethereal as it emanates from a body that exhibits so many masculine signifiers. Muhly’s compositional know-how manifests itself in the sophisticated orchestrations of the album’s piano ballads and spacey electronics. Percussive rhythms never let us lose the beat.

Stevens’ vocals explore mythology, astrology, science, astronomy and the mysteries of human consciousness.

Are the songs about the planets, or are they allusions to the Roman and Greek gods they were named for? We dunno, but we enjoy the teasing ambiguity. Hello, Spacemen!

Purr-fect pianism

Concert pianist Jeremy Denk, who recently appeared with the San Francisco Symphony under Michael Tilson Thomas to tackle Bartok’s Piano Concerto No. 2, is also a formidable intellect and blogger (“Think Denk”). In a fascinating piece for The New York Times earlier this year, he made the case for Frederic Chopin as the most catlike of Romantic composers.

Denk asserts that Chopin’s genius depended upon “a catlike understanding of which notes hold

on and which let go,” “suspending dangerously on a single note or pair of notes, and then, once a foothold is established, leaping to a new harmony as if it were nothing” – as a cat will leap from, say, kitchen counter to floor.

Of the composer’s characteristic bass notes, Denk writes, “The foundation, the deepest note, is felt as light, pillowy: a perfect analogue to cat’s paws, the sense of grace and lift from below.” The paw that refreshes.

His essay goes on to compare Chopin’s “catlike subtlety” to the bombastic virtuosity of another 19th-century pianist-composer, Franz Liszt, who “had many virtues but was almost never as subtle or tasteful as Chopin: He was an enthusiastic, friendly dog, often too eager to please.” Lots to chew on for lovers of cats and classical music, this kind of intellectual conjecture is catnip to the likes of Out There.

Poster boards

San Francisco Art Exchange (SFAE) is currently showing original artworks used to create the film posters for Hollywood films released between the 1960-90s. They include the painting used for the production of the movie poster for “My Fair Lady” in 1964, starring Audrey Hepburn & Rex Harrison.

Also on offer are the original paintings used for the posters for Academy Award-winning films “Camelot” (Richard Harris & Vanessa Redgrave), “Cool Hand Luke” (Paul Newman), “The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean” (Newman), “Mame” (Lucille Ball), “McCabe and Mrs. Miller” (Warren Beatty & Julie Christie), “Deliverance” (Burt Reynolds, Jon Voight), and “Night Moves” (Gene Hackman).

Film posters themselves have a collector’s market, but the original paintings and illustrations used to create the posters are rarely offered for sale. Interested collectors should contact info@sfae.com to receive a full prospectus with pricing.t

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Theatre>>

October 12-18, 2017 • Bay Area Reporter • 19

Musical headliners

EXPLORE THE GAY WORLD

by Richard Dodds

A

nd the Tony Award for best performance by an actress in a leading role in a musical goes to – all three headliners in the latest Broadway @ the Herbst series. Previously based at the Nourse Theatre, the new season of concerts and conversations will star Jessie Mueller, Kelli O’Hara, and Faith Prince with pianist and Broadway raconteur Seth Rudesky taking these leading ladies through the stories and music of their careers.

Jessie Mueller, who won her Tony Award in 2014 for playing Carole King in “Beautiful,” will open the series on Oct. 19. Following her run in “Beautiful,” Mueller was back on Broadway in “Waitress” featuring songs by Sara Bareilles, so expect songs from those two shows as well as “Carousel.” She is slated to star as Julie Jordan in a 2018 Broadway revival of the Rodgers and Hammerstein classic.

Another R&H classic, “South Pacific” earned Kelli O’Hara a Tony Award in 2015. O’Hara will be at the Herbst Theatre on Jan. 28, and the possibilities of her repertoire run deep just among the musicals for which she was nominated for a Tony. They include “The Light in the Piazza,” “The Pajama Game,” “The Bridges of Madison County,” and “Nice Work If You Can Get It.” Faith Prince took home her Tony Award in 1992 for her performance of Miss Adelaide in the revival of “Guys and Dolls.”

Coming to the Herbst on March 18, her songbook will draw from her Broadway appearances in “Falsettoland,” “Little Me,” “Bells Are Ringing,” “A Catered Affair,” and Seth Rudetsky’s very own “Disaster!”

Tickets to individual performances ($50-$100) and discounted series tickets are now on sale. Call (415) 392-4400 or go to cityboxoffice.com.

Prince of Denmark

No, we’re not talking about Hamlet here, who’s currently in residence at ACT’s Geary Theater,

Jacqueline Harriet

Jessie Mueller, who won a Tony Award playing Carole King in “Beautiful,” will open the Broadway @ the Herbst series on Oct. 19.

but the actor cast in the title role in “The Prince of Egypt” for TheatreWorks. Diluckshan Jeyaratnam is a Danish actor of Tamil descent, and he is playing Moses in the world premiere stage adaptation of the animated feature that opens Oct. 14 at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts.

The 26-year-old Jeyaratnam was still a student at the Danish Academy of Musical Theatre when he was chosen by songwriter Stephen Schwartz and director (and the composer’s son) Scott Schwartz for the musical after auditioning via Skype from Denmark.

That may seem a faraway place to be looking for an actor to play Moses in the Silicon Valley, but the actor will be reprising the role in both English and Danish when the musical is mounted in April at the Fredericia Theatre in Denmark.

Before landing the role, Jeyaratnam was best-known as a “YouTube sensation” for his covers of pop tunes

sung both in English and Tamil that he began posting in 2015. As an undergraduate, he studied design and marketing. “But after graduation, I asked myself, ‘Do I really want to work as a media designer the rest of my life?’ Very quickly, I realized that my passion was music,” he told the Thamarai website that reports on the international Tamil community.

“To be honest, when it happened, I couldn’t really understand what was happening,” he said of landing the role of Moses. “I did have a longterm dream of doing something like this, but it was a dream for maybe 10 years down the road.”

Dreamworks released “The Prince of Egypt” in 1998, which became the highest-grossing nonDisney animated movie at the time, and the stage version emerged after frequent requests from regional theaters and school groups to mount a theatrical version. Developed at the Bay Street Theatre in Sag Harbor, where Scott Schwartz is artistic director, its first full presentation was scheduled for a free outdoor concert that was abruptly canceled last year after a controversy arose over the ethnic makeup of the cast.

“The Prince of Egypt” will run through Nov. 5. Tickets are available at (650) 463-1960, or go to theatreworks.org.

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Play makers

Kevin Berne

Diluckshan Jeyaratnam, a Danish performer of Tamil descent, is playing Moses in the world premiere of the new musical “The Prince of Egypt” for TheatreWorks.

Two staged-reading series are starting their new seasons in the coming days: PlayGround, with six Monday-night programs at Berkeley Rep, and 3Girls Theatre Company, with eight monthly readings at the Phoenix Theatre.

PlayGround launches its season on Oct. 16 with an evening of 10-minute plays written around “In the Beginning,” a topic revealed to the 36 members of its Writer Company just four days before a finished piece was due. The top six plays chosen each month inspired by a different topic receive professional script-in-hand readings, leading to full productions for those selected for the Best of Playground festival at the end of the season. Tickets at playground-sf.org.

Eight full-length plays by 3Girls Theatre’s resident playwrights will receive staged readings in its Salon series, with Elizabeth Flanagan’s “Harry and Maura” opening the season on Oct. 15. The play is the story of a recovering alcoholic and gambling addict who tries to pull her unstable father into a scheme to pay off her debts with what she is certain is a sure-fire bet. Tickets to the 3Girls’ Salon Reading Series are free, but online registration is required at 3girlstheatre.org.t

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<< Theatre

20 • Bay Area Reporter • October 12-18, 2017

Interventions & complications galore

by Richard Dodds

them. But to describe that second act in any detail would send the spoiler-alert system into overdrive.

San Francisco has seen two of O’Hara’s most prominent works: “Insurrection: Holding History” at ACT, and “Bootycandy” at Brava Theatre Center. Both took on the complications of being black and gay in America, but a gay angle is only an incidental element in “Barbecue,” which is more keen on exploring racial dynamics, but in a way that leaves it to the audience to examine its own reactions over any agenda.

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n the first page of a little notebook, I made scribblings about the dialogue, characters, and situations in the first half of “Barbecue.”

On the second page, intended for Act II, there is nothing but blank space. Robert O’Hara’s play now at San Francisco Playhouse is nearly impossible to review without making unconscionable revelations.

While the first act has situations worthy of exploring, the second act pulls out the rug from beneath

The play, first seen in New York in 2015, opens as a family that can only described as white trash gathers in a lesser city park (set by Bill English), ostensibly for a barbecue. Balloons blown up to the size of lemons by a chain-smoking character are strewn about while her siblings make a loud but skeptical effort at creating a festive environment. Despite the characters’ various dependencies on booze, weed, painkillers, and more, the barbecue is actually a ruse to draw another sister to an intervention for drug and alcohol addictions that trump anything the interveners may have.

The characters are humorously drawn with trailer-park dysfunctions and colloquial linguistics. At one point, the oldest sister, the one with depleted lung capacity, stirs herself from a lawn chair to bellow at her offstage grandson, “If you don’t stop boppin’ your head up in and out of my goddamn sunroof, I’m gonna come over there and slap the fuck out of you with a hammer till I see the white meat.”

It’s the kind of rancidly ripe dialogue with easily achieved comic intentions. But just as Barbara, the miscreant sibling, arrives unawares for the intervention, the stage plunges into darkness. When the lights come up a few moments later, everything in the park setting is the same, right down to the sprinkling of undersized balloons and the trashy clothes that the characters have been wearing. Except that the clothes are now filled by black actors bearing the same character names, who continue the misbegotten intervention in a vernacular black equivalent of the white-trash talk of the preceding scene.

The playwright could be challenging us to compare our reactions to the racial flip as behavior is parallel but colored differently.

Jessica Palopoli

Kehinde Koyejo, left, Edris Cooper-Anifowoshe, and Adrian Roberts play skeptical siblings drawn into an intervention for an out-ofcontrol sister in “Barbecue” at San Francisco Playhouse.

And while it might seem like a onetrick device, it is not what it seems.

The first of several head-spinning twists, it’s the only one that will be revealed here as the play moves so far away from where it started. The experience doesn’t much change any character’s view of the world, and without that bit of dramatic evolution, “Barbecue” remains basically a comedy with serious moments, ending with a big gag.

Margo Hall and Susi Damilano sharply play the two super-addict Barbaras, who are silent in the first act but dominate the second in a tense meeting in which they

reveal their true colors as well as a bit too much of the play-making machinery. Hall is also the savvy director of the large black and white ensembles made up of too many brightly drawn performances to list. They all help to make “Barbecue” more than a potluck, but what it is actually serving up will have to be called mystery meat.t “Barbecue” will run at San Francisco Playhouse through Nov. 11.

Tickets are $20-$125.

Call (415) 677-9596 or go to sfplayhouse.org.

Birthday party for Leonard Bernstein

EVERYTHING

you needfor Halloween

y b p Sto s ' ff i l C

479 Castro Street

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cliffsvariety.com

by Philip Campbell

A

merican mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard is a big hit in Northern California. Her memorable appearances with the San Francisco Symphony and well-received San Francisco Opera debut as Rosina in “The Barber of Seville,” alongside numerous gigs with San Francisco Performances, have earned the lovely New Yorker a solid local fan-base. Her fall season has been especially active, thanks to ongoing birth centennial tributes to Leonard Bernstein and La Leonard’s enthusiastic involvement. Her recent recital at Herbst Theatre, which started San Francisco Performances’ 2017-18 season, was part concert, part cabaret, and all-Bernstein, too.

The easy-going affair showed Leonard has the richly beautiful tone and instinctive mixture of innocence and wit to believably inhabit almost any Bernstein song.

She also has exceptionally attractive stage presence that suits everything from Wendy’s sweet expression of her crush on Peter Pan (“Peter, Peter”) to Walt Whitman’s moving words in “To What You Said” from “Songfest.” Her fresh good looks added a delightful sense of self-awareness to a vivacious “I Feel Pretty” from “West Side Story.”

Some of the concert felt a little like a work-in-progress, but with sturdy and perceptive support from piano accompanist John Arida, the evening flew by with great charm.

There were more than a few moments of startling emotion as well.

The audience certainly had a good

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Courtesy SF Performances

American mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard.

time from start to finish, showing satisfaction with hearty and repeated applause.

Leonard performed Bernstein’s “Arias and Barcarolles” as recently as September, with bass-baritone Ryan McKinny and Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house when she sang the brief but perfect little gem, “Greeting.” To hear it again, so soon thereafter, in the more intimate Herbst, with only a piano to back her, the composer’s simple “Greeting” to the birth of a child was even more touching.

By contrast, the group sing-along of “Somewhere” from “West Side Story” was bloated and way too sentimental. Still, the audience joined with gusto, and no one could ever say Lenny wasn’t occasionally willing to wear his heart on his sleeve.

It’s still a wonderful song, and judging from the response, Ms. Leonard

may count more than a few trained singers amidst her following.

The program was divided into thematic sections: “Lenny on Love,” “Bernstein for Kids,” “Bernstein in My Mind,” and finally, “Lenny & Leonard Say Goodbye.” Each part contained serious pieces (opera and art songs) and some of the more instantly accessible show tunes.

Bernstein’s mastery of genres was apparent throughout. Even when writing serial music, his voice was irrepressibly (and amusingly) recognizable. “My Twelve Tone Melody” (written for Irving Berlin’s 100th birthday) proved Isabel Leonard can match Lenny for versatility with styles.

The recital’s minor weaknesses were compensated for by an air of breezy enjoyment. I thought pianist Arida deserved at least one solo, but his obvious rapport with Leonard underlined the pair’s contagiously friendly mood. They excelled in cheery and wistful songs from “On the Town” and “Wonderful Town,” and he added strong support in more somber material. If the evening proved a little less than the sum of its parts, it was still a good party, a fitting addition to Bernstein’s ongoing birthday do, and a good opening of the San Francisco Performances season.

Late-breaking news: Isabel Leonard will be back in San Francisco Nov. 24-26. She is replacing Susanna Phillips in San Francisco Symphony performances of Mahler’s Fourth Symphony, conducted by MTT at Davies Symphony Hall. More info: sfsymphony.org.t

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Fine Art>>

October 12-18, 2017 • Bay Area Reporter • 21

AMNH/Courtesy CAS

The dsungaripterus was a distinctive-looking pterosaur (artist’s conception).

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Pterosaurs

From page 17

Are these the dinosaurs of my dreams, of my childhood? Or have dinosaurs been kidnapped by scientists and rendered inaccessible to my childish mind? Unable to pierce the arcane mysteries of the lab, have I any hope of communing with my erstwhile love? This ontological tizzy was sparked by a visit to “Pterosaurs: Flight in the Age of Dinosaurs,” at Cal Academy of Sciences through Jan. 7, 2018.

I think I can say without fear of contradiction by science Nazis: Silent-p pterosaurs were flying reptiles, not dinosaurs, who thrived globally during the dinosaurs’ heyday, from 220 to 65 million years ago, when they all went suddenly extinct. Their memory lingers on in fossils, relics turned to stone via mineralization over millennia.

These fragile, incomplete, random traces are collected, preserved, and analyzed by paleontologists elucidating a coherent story of the planet’s prehistory. Everything authoritatively said about pterosaurs is consensus-based speculation by these experts, eager to thrust their arcane obsessions upon you.

Pterosaur simulacra on display at Cal Academy hover uneasily at various degrees of separation from the fossils left behind by actual animals. One real pterosaur fossil, a cross-section of bone, once hollow but now filled with crystals, is not proudly labeled as such but encased in a dark column near the exit door.

Next in line to true relics are plastic casts of fossils, hard to see behind highly reflective Plexiglas. Next come lovely skeletons, extrapolated from various specimens and guesswork, hanging out of reach beneath blinding lights. Next are full-scale painted models, suspended above the cluttered hall, as speculative as they are brightly colored.

Physical objects are paired with signs capriciously glued to the floor, printed on fabric panels, placed vertically beside casts or horizontally before them, thigh-high and ill-lit.

Evoking a high-school science fair, these mosaics of text, diagrams, and photographs vie for your attention like a series of well-meaning interruptions. What do you know and when do you need to know it? After

an hour or two foraging scientific tidbits like hors d’oeuvres, you still might not be able to articulate a definitive sentence about pterosaurs.

Too many media, shiny surfaces, and factoids can defeat the brain’s attempts to assimilate and synthesize.

Ironically, electronic media promise more depth. Three short videos suggest the wealth of experience represented by fossil remains.

Co-curators Mark Norell and Alexander Kellner, with consultant Michael Habib, enthuse about the first avian vertebrates (before birds or bats) and the largest animals ever to fly. The physics of flight and the wonders of fossilization are given their due. The hog’s share of the hall, however, is filled by three big-screen flight simulators whose motion-sensors let your inner or outer child chase bugs through the primeval forest, or hit the water in search of fish. Fossils cannot compete with that level of trickery.

“Pterosaurs” was produced in 2014 by the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, perhaps the world’s greatest dinosaur collection. This travelling show was designed for a space twice the size of Cal Academy’s temporary exhibit hall. Even minus some of the show’s modules, it’s a cramped jumble under badly focused, lowhanging track lights that glare and create shadows. Absent any apparent organizing principle, freestanding thematic chunks jostle in non-hierarchical simultaneity. Consequently, the complexity of these still mysterious creatures induces not awe but ontological chaos.

My excitement at seeing “Pterosaurs” was exceeded only by my distress at not being able to absorb all the prehistoric secrets teasingly referenced. I was in the presence of a construct triply alien: extinct species serving a scientific agenda suborned by spectacle. However cute the displays, scientists are always trying to prove something.

The miracle of flight hovered near, but there were cladistic hoops to jump through. Darwin was the 500-pound pterosaur in the room, his theory of evolution still being argued. The tension between relic, replica, reconstruction, and reality made my head swim. They do serve good lemonade on the terrace.t

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<< Film

22 • Bay Area Reporter • October 12-18, 2017

Spooky fare at the Castro Theatre

by David Lamble

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he balance of October at the Castro Theatre feels like a long introduction to Halloween, a pagan holiday with many devotees in the neighborhood. Among the treats are a day (10/15) devoted to the classic 30s Frankenstein film trilogy.

The 21st Arab Film Festival, a showcase for Arab-content narrative features and docs, kicks off with “Solitaire,” Sophia Boutros’ feature about a young woman mourning the wartime death of her beloved brother. (10/13) “Frankenstein” (1931) With Bela Lugosi, Boris Karloff. Adapted from Mary Shelley’s 19th-century novel.

A classic mad scientist recklessly seeks to create a humanlike creature to serve him. Dr. Frankenstein carelessly fits the creature with a criminal brain, which quickly leads to murder and worse. A surprise hit, with a box office take of $1 millionand-a-half when movie tickets were a dime. One of the reasons for its appeal was the skill of its director James Whale, a tortured gay man whose story is told in Bill Condon’s 1999 bio-pic “Gods and Monsters.”

“Bride of Frankenstein” (1935) The monster acquires female companionship, a career jumpstart for Elsa Lanchester, and a franchise is born.

“Son of Frankenstein” (1939) Made without Whale, ushering in a period when the scientist and his monster would be available for hire to the top bidder. Stars Basil Rathbone as Baron Wolf von Frankenstein, Lugosi as bearded hunchback Ygor, and Lionel Atwill as Inspector Krogh. (all 3: 10/15) “House of Horrors” (1946) Star Rondo Hatton suffered from a disfiguring disease that made his monster-movie turns especially convincing. Here he’s “The Creep-

er,” a mad killer doing the bidding of an unscrupulous artist.

“The Spiritualist” (1948) This late-40s look at spiritual mediums benefits from a great B&W look and a richly romantic subtext: young wife seeking to contact young dead husband.

“The Soul of a Monster” (1944) This short “B” feature (61 mins) depicts the fate of a dying doctor, saved at the last minute by a mystery woman. (all 3: 10/16) “Dirty Dancing” (1987) The late Patrick Swayze is a heartbreaker as a sexy dancing instructor at a 60s Catskills resort. Jennifer Grey is the young lass swept off her feet in this Oscar-honored (Best Song) soap.

“The Lost Boys” (1987) Openly gay director Joel Schumacher directs this Santa Cruz Boardwalk-set boys-and-vampires camp fest, with a perfect 80s cast highlighted by Corey Feldman and Corey Haim. (both 10/17) “Shadow of a Doubt” (1943) Alfred Hitchcock directs Joseph Cotton in a twisted family thriller set in WWII-era Santa Rosa. Cotton is the too-friendly uncle who arrives in town leaving a trail of victims in his wake. Cotton’s teenage niece starts to suspect that Uncle Charlie is a twisted piece of work who must be brought to justice.

“Smile” (1975) Michael Ritchie’s classic satire set around a young women’s beauty pageant. Co-stars a young Bruce Dern. (both 10/18) “Under the Skin” (2013) Set in urban Scotland, this odd thriller has a beautiful woman (Scarlett Johansson) roaming the streets of Glasgow to pick up young men for bad purposes. Tips the male/female relationship on its head and allows the woman to be the predator.

“Enter the Void” (2009) Very weird Gaspar Noe murder tale set in a mysterious Tokyo nightclub.

Long, not for all tastes, but certainly different. (both 10/19) “The Old Dark House” (1932) This early James Whale-directed thriller is a kind of preview of his work on the Frankenstein films, including the use of Boris Karloff.

“The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (1974) RIP screening of the late Tobe Hooper’s classic slasher masterpiece, based on events that transpired in Wisconsin. Texas just sounded edgier. (both 10/20) “Suspiria” (1977) Dario Argento explores murder at a German ballet school.

“Phantom of the Paradise” (1974) Brian De Palma concocted this rock version of “Phantom of the Opera.” Paul Williams stars. (both 10/22) “Murder by Contract” (1958) Vince Edwards stars in this neglected fictional study of what prompts a man to kill for money.

“The Crimson Kimono” (1959) Sam Fuller explores an LA stripper’s murder, revealing a hidden side of the late-50s Southland. (both 10/23) “Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!”

(1965) Russ Meyer’s exploitation piece can be viewed 10 ways to Sunday as a spoof or what-have-you. It’s best to just enjoy this raunchy ride as a campy pop jolt.

“Female Trouble” (1974) Early John Waters slapdash comedy with Divine in her most over-the-top attack on middle-class respectability as Dawn Davenport. (both 10/24)

“Touch of Evil” (1958) Orson Welles’ last Hollywood dip is a noir parody with Welles delicious as the overweight retired dick brought back to crack a case. Janet Leigh, Ray Collins and Charlton Heston head up a top-drawer supporting ensemble that gives this B&W thriller the feel of a lost Perry Mason episode.

“The Trial” (1962) Welles’ sublime take on the Kafka story about a young man (post-”Psycho” An-

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thony Perkins) on trial for a crime that’s never explained. (both 10/25) “Aliens” (1986) James Cameron directs this lostin-space sequel, with a very good Sigourney Weaver trying to survive a gaggle of space monsters.

“Near Dark” (1987) Katherine Bigelow helms this creepy romantic dive into a world where the creatures are never called vampires. (both 10/26) “The Manchurian Candidate” (1962) Frank Sinatra, in his best screen turn, is a posttraumatic-stress-recovering Korean War vet who entertains dark suspicions about an aloof war buddy, the socially retarded Lawrence Harvey.

Harvey’s parents are on a dangerous mission to secure a right-wing party’s presidential nod. The film’s outlandish plot turns on an astonishing flashback sequence where it’s revealed that Harvey’s character is a ticking human time-bomb under the control of a sinister North Korean op. Yes, it’s as fresh as today’s headlines, and a great way to endure our current Korean stalemate.

“The Invasion of the Body Snatchers” (1956) Don Siegel’s original science-fiction classic is still an important and scary film statement on political conformity and threats from alien forces.

Kevin McCarthy stars as a helpless observer who watches friends and neighbors turn into zombies in service of unseen sinister forces. This melodrama, which carried an anticommie subtext during the McCarthy era, still feels timely when the evildoers may have actually seized the White House. (both 10/30)t

The post-book library

by Erin Blackwell

T

here’s a bittersweet sensation in seeing that word DISCARD stamped on a perfectly good albeit perhaps somewhat unfashionable book. I feel I’m holding important pieces of intellectual history in my hands that should still adorn library shelves. But perhaps public libraries have better things to do than stockpile books, even though that is by definition and tradition their purpose. Isn’t it more important for people to access the Internet and find a job? Frederick Wiseman’s new documentary “Ex Libris: The New York Public Library” catches one of the great collections in the midst of an identity crisis, starting Friday at the Roxie.

About two-thirds of the way through the 197 minutes of “Ex Libris” my conscience was pricked and I stopped streaming on my laptop to hop a trolley and return a pile of DVDs, some of them overdue.

San Francisco’s is a much smaller version of New York’s sprawling system, with its glamorous and venerable flagship branch on Fifth Avenue, complete with neo-classical columns, marble steps, and lounging lions. The problems are the same, though. Inheritor of the 19thcentury’s passion for documentation, collection, and edification, what’s a library to do with all those pesky books now that electronic media have colonized our brains?

Producer-director-editor Frederick Wiseman, 87 going on 88, staked his claim to most uncompromising documentarist with his first film, “Titicut Follies” (1967), a narrationless montage of crimi-

shown are individuals staring at screens. Street shots of NYC function as an eye-wipe. Make of it what you will.

Wiseman’s a bit of a wise guy, his sense of humor not immediately evident, deduced only in retrospect, and most clearly present in his first film. He’s crazier than the lunatics in Scene from Frederick Wiseman’s new charge of the asylum. documentary “Ex Libris: The New York If you submit to his Public Library.” insanely long, random, repetitive, captionless, annoying barrage of nally insane patients at a gruesome samplings, you will be forced to grotesque institution, banned until think your way out of the indeci1991. Fortysome films later, he is pherable amalgam of hints, clues, himself an institution. An avatar vestiges, and misdirection. He ain’t of the documentary as art-form no Agatha Christie, he won’t solve independent of the basic instinct to it for you. When insufferable Dutch inform, he claims for his samplings architect Francine Houben says, of other people’s realities the prestige “Libraries are not about books,” I and coherence of the novel. He’s not wanted to scream. That’s my perthe go-to guy for an argument, an sonal Rorschach keepsake. analysis, or a fact. He’s a filter-feeder, At minute 147, the picture of a and viewers will follow his footage white-bearded patriarch appears willy-nilly where it takes them. alongside the quote, “A social So it is that “Ex Libris” teaches revolution in America is a necessary us nothing about the history of complement to the political revoluNYPL, nor the stakes nor players intion of 1776. Should not such revovolved in the recent radical rethink lution or reformation come to pass, and rehaul of its branches. We are, the future of American cannot fail however, allowed to witness interto be a copy of Europe at the presminable swatches of bureaucratic ent time – the community divided blab sessions between the municipal into two great classes: a horde of government’s guy and the library labrigands monopolizing all the addies, all nameless. If only they were vantages of society, and a multitude criminally insane. These are intercut of landless, profit-ridden slaves, dewithout rhyme or reason with longprived of even the name of citizens.” shot, real-time clips of random liGeorge Julian Harney (1817-97) is brarygoers connecting with visiting again relevant, only this time the experts at job fairs, concerts, celebbrigands have gone digital.t rity lectures, and story times. Also

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Film>>

October 12-18, 2017 • Bay Area Reporter • 23

Mill Valley Film Fest’s grand finales

by David Lamble

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he final four days of the 2017 Mill Valley Film Festival (10/1215) offer an array of award-season film fare at venues across Marin County. Here’s a quick preview of 10 to watch.

“Wonderstruck” Director Todd Haynes spins the parallel tales of a young boy in the Midwest and a young girl in New York 50 years ago as both seek the same mysterious connection. The film reunites Haynes with Julianne Moore, their fourth outing after “Safe,” a cautionary fable about a woman poisoned by toxic chemicals (1995); “Far from Heaven,” an homage to 50s director Douglas Sirk (2002); and “I’m Not There,” in which six actors provide impressions of poet-musician Bob Dylan (2007). (Smith Rafael Film Center, 10/13) “Lady Bird” This Sacramentobased drama from first-time director Greta Gerwig focuses on a Cath-

olic high school senior, Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson (Saoirse Ronan), attempting to navigate the confusing world of college applications. (Rafael, 10/15) “Summer 1993” Spanish director Carla Simon tells a young girl’s story as she visits an uncle. Six-year-old Frida’s parents have succumbed to AIDS, and the story explores the emotional journey Frida must complete to cope with her grief. In Spanish with English subtitles. (Sequoia, 10/13; Rafael, 10/15) “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” In this darkly comic drama, a grieving mother (Frances McDormand) leases three message boards outside her small town aimed at provoking the police chief (Woody Harrelson) into finding the person who murdered her daughter. Things come to a boil when the chief ’s deputy (Sam Rockwell), an immature momma’s boy, is drawn into the case. Directed by Oscar winner Martin

McDonagh. (Larkspur, 10/15) “The Shape of Water” From master storyteller Guillermo del Toro comes an otherworldly fairy tale set against the backdrop of 1962 Cold War America. In the hidden highsecurity government lab where she works, Elisa (Sally Hawkins) is trapped in an isolating routine.

Everything changes when Elisa and co-worker Zelda (Octavia Spencer) discover a secret classified experiment. Rounding out the cast are Michael Shannon, Richard Jenkins, Michael Stuhlbarg and Doug Jones.

(Rafael, 10/15) “Call Me by Your Name” Luca Guadagnino’s film unfolds over a glorious Northern Italian summer in 1983. An Italian falls for an American student who arrives to live and study with his family. Together they share music, food, and romance.

James Ivory and André Aciman adapt the latter’s novel. With Armie Hammer, Timothée Chalamet and Michael Stuhlbarg. (Sequoia, 10/12;

Courtesy MVFF

Julianne Moore in director Todd Haynes’ “Wonderstruck.”

Larkspur, 10/14) “The Current War” New docudrama on electricity from filmmaker Alfonso Gomez-Rejon provides a thumbnail history lesson on how

the lights came on, showing how three inventors – Thomas Edison (Benedict Cumberbatch), George Westinghouse (Michael Shannon) and Nikola Tesla (Nicholas Hoult) – brilliantly married technology to human dreams and desires. (Sequoia, 10/15) “Quest” Filmmaker Santiago Rizzo presents a true story from the streets of 1995 Berkeley. Mills, middle-school kid and burgeoning graffiti artist, is floundering until he meets a sympathetic teacher. (Larkspur, 10/14; Rafael, 10/15) “Radiance” Japanese director Naomi Kawase’s tale unites a woman who describes films for visionimpaired fans and a photographer who’s gone blind. In Japanese with English subtitles. (Rafael, 10/13; Sequoia, 10/14) “Fourth Movement” SF’s own indie Rob Nilsson fashions a sound and visual treat celebrating the diverse strands of life in the Tenderloin. (Rafael, 10/14)t

Suburban sexual exploration

by Brian Bromberger

Mrs. Fletcher: A Novel by Tom Perrotta; Scribner, $26

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estselling author Tom Perrotta has been called the Steinbeck of suburbia, and the Jane Austen of 21st-century sexual practices.

He focuses his razor-sharp eye on cultural mores, dissecting their hypocrisies with genteel humor.

In the end, order is restored to the burbs. Hollywood has produced several movies based on his books, the most recent being the popular HBO series “The Leftovers.”

His new novel “Mrs. Fletcher” is cleverly constructed, compulsively readable and adept at creating suspense out of everyday living. This novel has tantalizing moments, but because of a conformist ending, the reader may feel unfulfilled.

Eve Fletcher, a 46-year-old single mother divorcee, is taking her only son, Brendan, to Berkshire

State University, a party school.

Brendan is a handsome, athletic lout who, even after breaking up with his girlfriend Becca via text, hungover from a night of drinking, is willing to receive a farewell blow job from her. Eve overhears their play and is distressed by his put-down of women (“Suck it, bitch”). She wants to talk to him about it, but he sleeps on the ride to campus and immediately bonds with his roommate Zack, as they plan on drinking, shagging, and videogaming the semester away.

While Eve is the executive director of the Haddington Senior Center and likes her job, she is a lonely empty-nester and soon tires of watching “Friends” reruns and reading Facebook posts (“It had been a lot easier to be a loser before social media, when the world wasn’t quite so adept at rubbing it in your face, showing all the fun you were missing out in real time.”) One night she receives an anonymous

naughty text, “U r my MILF. Send me a naked pic.” Googling what MILF means (Mother I’d Like to Fuck), she is introduced to the world of amateur Internet porn featuring sexy middle-aged women. Eve starts

to make new friends, enrolling in a community college course, “Gender and Society,” taught by transgender professor Margo Fairchild. She becomes infatuated with her younger employee Amanda at work, and Julian, a skateboarding classmate her son’s age.

Meanwhile, Brendan (his story is told in first person, Eve’s in third person), wounded by his parents’ divorce and jealous of his father’s new family, assumes women will be at his disposal. Instead he repels his fellow students with his chauvinistic white privilege. He becomes increasingly isolated and flounders in his courses. He is attracted to Amber, a socially conscious woman. They have sex, which the porn-addled Brendan turns rough and degrading, leading to a public shaming. He quits college and returns home to Eve, who is just starting to appreciate her newfound freedom.

The book mostly succeeds as a

sexual awakening of a middle-aged woman. Porn becomes the entryway for her to explore her erotic desires. Porn has the opposite effect on the insensitive Brendan, leading to behavior that turns off women.

Eve and Brendan’s stories alternate throughout the book, and Eve is the more adventuresome, learning to see gender and sexuality as a spectrum rather than a binary. Both explore their identities and make bad choices along the way to hilarious effect, as they muddle their way to happiness, suburban-style.

Perrotta is focused on how we think about sex, how we deal with our unruly desires, and how the Internet has reshaped American dating. Perrotta’s most developed character, Margo Fairchild, might be one of the most self-actualized transsexuals in contemporary literature. If only Perrotta had been as daring with Eve, who flirts with lesbianism but never quite gets to the finish line.t

some initial confusion) eventually adored and devoured by readers locally and far-flung, and soon made Maupin a household name.

The author spares no detail in sharing his adoration for and dalliances with Rock Hudson, describing how heartsick he was

upon learning of Hudson’s AIDS diagnosis in 1985.

Maupin’s memoir is honest, connected, and ever-thankful for the family he relates to most, which includes author Christopher Isherwood, actor Ian McKellen, and actress Laura Linney.t

Sentimental journey

by Jim Piechota

Logical Family by Armistead Maupin; HarperCollins, $27.99

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t’s a busy time for Armistead Maupin, beloved author, ringmaster of the “Tales of the City” series, and recent returnee to his home city by the Bay with husband Christopher Turner. His memoir “Logical Family,” an honest, smoothly-written, intimate affair dedicated to Turner, arrives fast on the heels of a justreleased and quite marvelous documentary on his life called “The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin.” When enjoyed together, they form integrative companion pieces alongside the beloved “Tales” series of books.

Throughout frank yet affably written chapters, Maupin, 73, warmly reflects back on his upbringing as the son of bigoted parents growing up in conservative 1940s North Carolina, aware of his burgeoning sexuality, yet not willing to sacrifice pleasing his father for the kind of sexual freedom he truly craved. Together with his best friend, the author spent the summer before college “romancing the Confederacy” at the North Carolina Civil War Centennial Commission preserving battle provisions before

entering law school. Bored with the curriculum and unconcerned with mediocre grades, Maupin abandoned that endeavor in favor of another of his father’s wishes for him: the armed forces. But a stint as a U.S. Navy officer in Vietnam failed to stem the tide of his homosexuality, which emerged even as his time in the armed forces waned.

Though the memoir’s timeline is a bit jumpy, the anecdotal memories Maupin shares coalesce beautifully into a rich tapestry sewn through

with youthful innocence, simmering activism, and the kind of boldness and resolve necessary to survive the heartbreak and unstoppable sorrow permeating the height of the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s.

Arriving in San Francisco in the early 1970s, the author began creating his “logical family,” a term he derives for the group of loved ones “that actually makes sense for us.” Settled in the Bay Area, he immediately ventured toward a gay bar where men were “slow dancing to Streisand under twirling colored lights, as if that were the most normal thing in the world.” He then grabbed a copy of this publication, which, back then, was “a gay handout whose initials conveniently spelled out the word bar,” and quickly became adept at “pickup sex” after scoring an apartment on Sacramento Street a block away from the cruisy bushes of Lafayette Park. He soon branched out to enjoy the bathhouses generously sprinkled from North Beach to the South of Market district.

Maupin’s writing career took off after he’d been commissioned in 1976 by the San Francisco Chronicle to write six weeks’ worth of episodes of the character-driven serial series “Tales of the City,” a love letter to San Francisco that was (after

<< Music

24 • Bay Area Reporter • October 12-18, 2017

Queer eye for the gay auteur

by Tim Pfaff

S

ometimes I miss the days when your favorite singer came through a stage door and the painted set flats wobbled. It wasn’t all that bad, and you didn’t waste an entire evening trying to decide which extra was “best in bar.” Soprano stalking is becoming a lot harder than it used to be, though I’m not giving up yet.

I wrote a while back about the French coloratura soprano Sabine Devielhe, who has since gone from strength to strength, singing Rameau dazzlingly, Bach meltingly, and currently, her signature Queen of the Night at Covent Garden to raves and raptures. On a live telecast from the 2016 Aix-en-Provence Festival, she sang Beauty in a staged production of Handel’s 1707 cantata “Il Trionfo del Tempo e Disinganno.”

I bailed because, at 3 a.m. my time, I thought I was starting to hallucinate. Devielhe, in her third trimester in real life – and made up to look like Amy Winehouse – was her predictably musically and dramatically devastating self, but the grunge world she inhabited was becoming too much to take.

It was, you could tell right away, a production by Krysztof Warlikowski, the Polish gay sensation of edgy European theater and reliable despoiler of standard opera. Hooray for Warlikowski if he’s doing important gay stuff, but he’s vandalized three of the operas that mean the most to me – “Lulu,” “Die Frau ohne Schatten” and “Die Gezeichneten” – collecting raucous boos at curtain calls that tell me I’m not alone.

But the Handel bugged me. When it was recently released on DVD (Erato), I succumbed. And I held on – really, I did – until the break between the two parts, when, in a favorite trick of his, Warlikowski interpolated a film interview, with Jacques Derrida rambling on about cinema as “phantome.” But I run ahead of myself.

Back when Americans were still crying “Eurotrash,” one standard complaint about “modern” opera productions was that they added non-singing characters to scenes in which they were at best distractions. That remains Warlikowski’s stock in trade. King of distraction, chef regisseur of the nobody, in this “Il Trionfo” he outdoes himself.

In this druggy demimonde, his favorite habitat, there are misfit miserables, people bleeding for the hell of it, and floozies – flotillas of floozies. But his principal walk-on – far too demure a word, but there you are – is a fetching young man (you can see the numinous him on the cover) in low-waisted jeans and a tank top, both of which come off in short order.

Criminally, he’s not specified in the list of “figurants,” but he’s as central to the show (and, I confess, to my return to the production) as the rightly acknowledged Danny Olsen as the butt-naked, aquarium-

kerfuffle got the team and their fledgling film noticed.

As far as being on the vanguard of New Queer Cinema, “I feel that the whole notion was invented after the fact and is a little reductive,” demurs Vachon. “I’ve always made the movies I want to make. I’ve had good and bad brushes with the LGBTQ community. I’ve made movies they’ve gotten behind and those that, frankly, they haven’t. I’ve always felt frustrated about what makes a movie a queer film. Is it the content? Is it the sexuality of the director? Is ‘Brokeback Mountain’ a Courtesy SFFILM queer film even though the two actors weren’t Producer Christine Vachon. gay and neither was the director, or does it get a free pass because it’s so Haynes + Vachon

From page 17 strong and compelling?”

A refreshingly direct and Their latest progeny, “Wonderindependent-minded producer struck,” which will also be shown, with nearly 100 films to her credit, tells parallel tales of youngsters on Vachon was behind “Boys Don’t individual quests; one coming of Cry” (1999), a quietly devastating age in the 1920s, the other orphaned adaptation of the Brandon Teena and looking for his father in the story directed by Kimberly Peirce.

1970s. “I knew it was something Hilary Swank was never better than Todd would have a real field day as the vulnerable young transgender with,” recalls Vachon. “At this point, man who, in his search for love, was after working together for almost viciously murdered shortly after he 30 years, I have a sixth sense of turned 21, a victim of homophobia, what’s important for him to do his jealousy and male dominance at its best creative work. What he does ugliest. It’s shown on the same prois so delicate and difficult, and I’ve gram as Haynes’ “I’m Not There,” developed a strong empathy for his an unorthodox, gender-bending process and an ability to protect it.” bio-pic about Bob Dylan, the elusive Fittingly, the three-week series, musician whose rock star personas mounted by SFFILM and SFMOare embodied by a half-dozen acMA, launches with “Poison.” A trio tors including Heath Ledger and a of intercut, overtly gay-themed stoshape-shifting Cate Blanchett. rylines loosely based on the writings Of all their productions, “Safe” of Jean Genet and shot in a variety (1995) faced the most challenges of styles, the controversial film was in getting made. It starred Julianne met by a barrage of pornography Moore as a woman who goes from charges hurled by right-wing couptight ideal housewife to agoraalitions who hadn’t seen it. The phobic invalid in 1980s suburban

swimming Gold in the Rhine in the Decca Danish Opera “Ring.” (Sadly, a YouTube fail.) When Warlikowski’s dude is covered in just a sheet, you know it’s only a matter of time before – yes, if you’re a pro with the Pause button, he’s all there – but, as so often, it’s really just a tease.

Habitually, Warlikowski’s stage is telling a story, or stories, wholly extraneous to any in the libretto.

I’d tell you this one if I knew what it was, but with Warlikowski’s I seldom do. Somehow he gets his casts involved in his metastories at the most minute, intense levels, so it’s all you can do to pay attention to the music, which, amazingly, the singers perform as if the shenanigans were no big deal.

I didn’t know, for example, that I wanted to see Devielhe brush her teeth, or throw up into the center-stage ceramic sink after Time (flavor-of-the-month tenor Michael Spyres in truly remarkable voice) rubbed her pregnant belly – and I still don’t. But let me close by saying it was the least of the shocks. It took every shred of attention to stay focused on the Time-Disillusionment (these are characters) duet, hypnotically sung by Spyres and the incomparable Venetian mezzo Sara Mingardo.

What could not be overlooked, or unheard, was countertenor Franco Fagioli’s so-named Pleasure. I actually remember when you could count on one hand the number of

Los Angeles, with the AIDS crisis as an unspoken subtext. Audiences were perplexed when it first came out, but since then it has enjoyed a long and fruitful life. “Every single movie is its own kind of epic,” concedes Vachon. “It almost didn’t get made, and then it did. It almost didn’t get out there; then it did. To be honest, none of them was all that fun to make. They’re more fun when they’re done, and they’re really fun when people like them.”

For the series Vachon and Haynes each selected an eclectic group of films that had moved them or made a fateful imprint. Haynes chose two suspenseful Hitchcock classics, “The Wrong Man” and “Strangers on a Train,” that play on a double bill; Russ Meyer’s trusty old chestnut “Beyond the Valley of the Dolls”; and Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s

“Lola.” He also picked Douglas Sirk’s triple-hanky 1950s melodrama “All That Heaven Allows,” which most certainly figured into Haynes’ own homage to suburban angst, “Far from Heaven.”

Vachon admits that, as a kid, her filmgoing tastes were driven by whether or not she liked the title.

She was 12 when she saw “Cabaret,” which “profoundly affected” her with its historical context and the sexuality it depicted. Among her other selections: “Sweetie” and “A Girl’s Own Story,” a pair of early works by Aussie director Jane Campion; Peter Jackson’s pre-”Lord of the Rings” outing “Heavenly Creatures” (1994), featuring a 19-yearold Kate Winslet in her film debut; and “The Night of the Hunter” (1955), Charles Laughton’s terrifying Southern Gothic fever dream in

t

countertenors performing staged opera, and not in all those years have I heard a more ghastly sound issue from the human throat.

It’s the greater the pity that Pleasure has the most famous aria, which Handel re-wrote with some regularity, now best known as “Lascia, ch’io pianga” from “Rinaldo.”

This wonderful cantata, brilliantly played

by Le Concert d’Astree under Emmanuelle Haim, is from 1707, the year of Handel’s first Italian opera “Rodrigo,” and one of the signal achievements of his astonishing two-year sojourn in Italy. “Il Trionfo” was composed, to Cardinal Pamphili’s libretto, for a performance in Rome that would not have been staged and would surely not have included female singers.

As I watched the Warlikowski, I first thought how far it had come from its 1707 Vatican origins. Then, recalling the news of the presentday Vatican, Ratsinger and beyond, I wondered if it might not have been, instead, historically informed.

Devielhe, for the record, is splendid as Ismene in the vastly less perverse Theatre des ChampsElysses production of “Mithridate” (the opera seria Mozart wrote when he was 13), also with Spyres and Haim and company (Erato). This piece could make its way back into the repertoire.t which Robert Mitchum is evil incarnate. A predatory thief and killer masquerading as a preacher, he seduces and murders a mother, then pursues her young children through the countryside after they flee. His portrayal, the stuff of nightmares, has scarred many a childhood. “It blew my mind,” Vachon remembers.

“Few films went to the places it did.”

And perchance, is there a dream project on the horizon? “It’s whatever I’m making next. If there’s a story I want to tell, I usually figure out a way to do it.”t Modern Cinema plays Oct. 12-29 at SFMOMA’s Phyllis Wattis Theater. Christine Vachon will attend the screenings of “Wonderstruck” (intro, Q&A) and “Heavenly Creatures” (intro) on Sun., Oct. 22. sffilm.org.

<<

Courtesy SFFILM

Russ Meyer’s chestnut “Beyond the Valley of the Dolls” was an influence on director Todd Haynes.

26

27

Truly, Julie

29

Arts Events

Leather Vol. 47 • No. 41 • October 12-18, 2017 Ana Grillo

www.ebar.com V www.bartabsf.com

The Golden Age of

Bambi Lake The return of the legendary nightlife performer

by David-Elijah Nahmod

B

ambi Lake has worn many hats during her colorful life.

Decades ago, when she was part of San Francisco’s queer arts scene, she performed with the legendary Cockettes. Bambi has also been a transgender street hustler, a porn actor and a solo cabaret singer.

See page 26 >>

Bambi Lake in 2014.

On the Tab

S

it up front, sidle up to the bar, pull up to the bump er.

However you get the re, go out, be out.

n page 28 >> Listings begin o

Fri 13

Cubcake @ Lone Star Saloon

{ THIRD OF THREE SECTIONS }

Gooch

Oct. 12-19

<< Cabaret

Dan Nicoletta

<<

Bambi Lake

From page 25

In 1989 she wrote “The Golden Age of Hustlers,” a haunting piano ballad that recalls the long-ago days when Polk Street was still a gay enclave, a seedy haven where pretty young hustlers plied their trade.

Many of the boys shared burgers at The Grubstake, one of the last remaining venues of that era still in business. The song serves as a sad reminder of a San Francisco which no longer exists.

“I saw the best bodies of my generation sold, bartered, and destroyed by drugs and prostitution,” Lake wrote, as she recalls the pretty young men who sold their bodies and the “dumb men” who paid their rent.

“It’s a very layered song,” Lake said, in a phone interview with the Bay Area Reporter, as she prepares for her October 15 show at Oasis.

“It’s cautionary, it’s confessional; it’s a love song to a boyfriend I had.

It’s the tragedy of hustlers, and the glamour. It covers a lot of ground.”

Lake, who gained a reputation for performances that could be wild

Chris Carroll

Larry-bob Roberts

Angels of Light Free Theater

26 • Bay Area Reporter • October 12-18, 2017

Upper Left: Bambi Lake performing at the private home-theatre of Cara Vida on Linden Street in 2012.

Upper Middle: Bambi Lake in an outdoor performance on May 20, 1972 at Douglas Playground Park in San Francisco, with the Angels of Light. Lake played the courtesan onagata Agemake in Peking on Acid, an adaptation of the Kabuki play Sukeroku, as part of the first Kaliflower Inter-communal Free Fair.

Upper Right: Bambi Lake in 2010.

Left: Bambi Lake (right) dances with a muscular hunk as a showgirl in the 1976Cockettes show Femme Fatale.

and survival through the AIDS pandemic that killed most of her friends, and thousands in the San Francisco queer community.

Over the decades, Lake developed a reputation as a seasoned performer in her own right, in between dark times of homelessness and addiction. She was performing in cabarets even during her time as a sex

worker. Her new show, she says, will be a look back upon that era.

“All through this little show there is a direct line all the way back to The Cockettes,” she said.

There will be other Cockette connections throughout the evening.

Lake’s opening act will be veteran composer Scrumbly Koldwyn, who was the Cockettes’ piano man.

or wistful, eventually recorded an album in 2005, Broadway Hostess.

The 1996 small press memoir, The Unsinkable Bambi Lake (co-written with author and Dog Eared Books manager Alvin Orloff) proved her remarkable storytelling skills.

Lake noted that New York-based singer/performance artist Justin Vivian Bond, who came to fame in San Francisco, performs “The Golden Age of Hustlers” at nearly every one of Mx’s shows. Bond has sung the song all over the world.

Silas Howard, the former Tribe 8 guitarist-turned documentary filmmaker, made the short film Sticks & Stones: Bambi Lake in 2014. The film includes archival footage of a few of Lake’s nightclub shows, and an honest depiction of her struggles with ad- Flyers for various Bambi Lake shows in the late 1980s and early 1990s. diction, homelessness

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Koldwyn will be performing his new piece, “Cirque du Scrumbello,” a gender-bending retro cabaret featuring members of Thrillpeddlers.

That ensemble, acclaimed for Grand Guignol vaudeville-style shows, and extended runs of Cockettes show revivals, was ousted from their longtime stage at The Hypnodrome in February 2017.

When Lake takes to the Oasis stage, she’ll be accompanied by her long-time pianist and pal Birdie Bob Watt. She said that her audience can expect to hear “obscure songs from the 1930s.”

“This is all music which goes back to The Cockettes,” she said, recalling her late friend John Rothernel. “John lived with Sylvester. He was very grand and did amazing things. He didn’t worry about sounding like a woman; he just belted it out. He and Peter Minton would get together and do solo shows. I started collecting the music after John died.”

Lake added that Rothernel inspired the stage persona she adopted for herself.

“Connie Champagne does Judy Garland,” she said. “Veronica Klaus does Peggy Lee. I do John Rothernel.”

Lake hopes that her audience will join her on a journey into San Francisco’s past, whether they recall the old days, or are curious to see a bit of living queer theatre history.

“Take the history,” she said. “I want them to see that the songs I’m doing are more than a cabaret act. I want them to see the interplay between me and Birdie.”t You can see Bambi Lake and her friends on Sunday, October 15, 8pm at Oasis. 298 11th St. $20-30. sfoasis.com

Truly, Julie William Sauerland’s show hits all the high notes

by Jim Gladstone

“M

y dream role,” says countertenor William Sauerland, “Would be to play Larry Poppins, the gay nanny.”

And while that particular “Something About Mary” isn’t likely to be staged anytime soon, Sauerland will helm a jolly holiday of his own at Feinstein’s at the Nikko on Thursday, October 19. The former Chanticleer member, internationally acclaimed soloist, and Artistic Director of the Oakland-East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus will present his first-ever official concert tribute to Julie Andrews, complete with plenty of audience sing-alongs.

“I was listening to Julie Andrews before I could even talk,” says Sauerland, 35, who grew up on an Ohio dairy farm and currently lives in Hayward, where he’s the Director of Choirs and Vocal Music at Chabot College. “She was my grandmother’s favorite singer and her records were played non-stop around the house.”

“I can’t even remember the first

time I watched The Sound of Music on TV. The Wizard of Oz, I can remember my first time, because before that I wasn’t allowed to watch it because it was scary. But the Sound of Music; it’s like it was always there.

It was ambient.

William Sauerland

“In sixth or seventh grade, the choir teacher at my school noticed my voice and asked me if I studied with a voice teacher. And I said ‘Julie Andrews.’ True story.”

While Sauerland soon had legit voice teachers of his own and began singing classic choral and operatic music professionally from the age of 12, his Andrews fandom never let up.

“As an adult, I’ve been to maybe 15 different Sound of Music singalongs,” he says. “I’ve gone here in San Francisco, New York, Portland, Seattle. I just went to one at the Hollywood Bowl, and it was just amazing to hear 16,000 people really belting those songs.

“It’s not necessarily my intention, but when you’re a trained singer sitting in the movie audience among non-trained singers, the minute you open your mouth, people notice.

So as soon as I see that people recognize I’m a professional, I feel like they’ll be slightly disappointed if I don’t hit those high notes at the end of ‘Climb Every Mountain.’

“First and foremost,” Sauerland

says of his cabaret debut. “I want to get people to escape into those childhood memories of their old Julie Andrews LPs. “But I’m an educator and a conductor!” he adds. “Even more than singing, I love to get other people singing!”

Among those other people are the transgendered, who Sauerland is focusing on in his pursuit of a doctoral degree at Columbia University.

He is researching the experience of transgender singers and their voice teachers.

It’s a topic with particular resonance for Sauerland, who finds opera and musical theater “extremely gendered and very sexist.”

When he was applying to conservatories as a teenager, an esteemed vocal music professor suggested that Sauerland should sing baritone, suggesting that the natural alto he’d sung in for years ‘might be unhealthy.’

“Voice instructors have historically taught as masters, shaping their students rather than collabo-

rating with them on what should be a joint project. What does the student want and need? For some trans singers, matching their voice with their sense of identity is very important to them.”

In the end, says Sauerland, in addition to advocating for trans singers, he hopes that his studies can help inform changes in vocal pedagogy overall.

“In some regard, every voice teacher serves as a personal counselor,” he says. “While a trans individual may be going through a heightened period of dysphoria, every 18- or 19-year-old who goes into voice training is at a time in their lives where they’re trying to figure out who they are.”

Sometimes Maria is not a problem to be solved, just a situation to be accommodated.t William Sauerland performs at Feinstein’s on Thursday, October 19 at 8pm. $14-$35 ($20 food/drink min.). Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason St. feinsteinsatthenikko.com

Fri 13 Stitch Fetish SF @ Center for Sex & Culture

October 12-18, 2017 • Bay Area Reporter • 27

Arts Events October 12-19

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Arts Events>>

C

olorful interpretations of reality in art. Don’t be too superstitious on Friday the 13th to not go out and see some. Good luck!

Edited for space.

For full listings, visit www.ebar.com/arts

Thu 12 Ain’t Too Proud: The Temptations Musical @ Berkeley Rep New musical by Dominique Morisseau based on the lives of the popular R&B vocal quintet. $28-$85.

Tue, Thu-Sat 8pm. Wed & Sun 7pm.

Sat & Sun 2pm. Thru Nov 5. 2015 Addison St., Berkeley. www.berkeleyrep.org

Conversations With Gay Elders @ YBCA Filmmaker David Weissman ( The Cockettes, We Were Here ) cohosts a screening of an episode from his new project about elder gay stories.

Oct. 12 at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, 7:30pm, www.ybca.org ; Episode 3, Oct. 26 at Contemporary Jewish Museum, www.thecjm.org).

Litquake @ Multiple Venues The 18th annual literary festival includes readings, workshops, parties and more featuring acclaimed authors and new talents. Thru Oct. 14, with the closing night Lit Crawl at dozens of venues along Valencia Street and nearby. litquake.org

Our Future Ends @ CounterPulse Clement Hill Goldberg’s bittersweet satire blends wildlife/extinction and queer/gentrification themes with lemur puppets, stop motion animation and choreography. $20-$35. Artists talks with Honey Mahogany Oct. 19, closing reception Oct. 21. Thu-Sat 8pm. Thru Oct. 21.

80 Turk St. www.counterpulse.org

OUT/LOOK and the Birth of the Queer @ GLBT History Museum

Workshops and panels addressing poverty and marginalization in the Bay Area and beyond. 1800 Market St. www.sfcenter.org

New exhibit about the groundbreaking LGBT quarterly based in SF from 1988 to 1992; curated by E.G. Crichton, with a special commemorative new edition for sale. $5. 7pm. Oct. 12 panel discussion with contributors to the magazine (7pm). Oct. 19, 7pm: Butch Lesbians of the 20s, 30s and 40s Coloring Book party (Stacked Deck Press).4127 18th St. glbthistory.org

Classic & New Films @ Castro Theatre

Author Events @ Dog Eared Books

Oct. 12: SF Moth Grandslam, storytelling 8pm. (www.themoth. org). Oct. 13: Arab Film festival opening night, Solitaire (7:30pm).

Oct. 14: InForum with Sir Richard Branson (6pm). Oct. 15: Disney’s Moana sing-along (12pm); classic horror films Frankenstein (3pm, 8pm), Bride of Frankenstein (4:30, 9:30) and Son of Frankenstein (6pm).

Oct. 16: noirish House of Horrors (6:30), The Spiritualist (7:50) and The Soul of a Monster (9:20). Oct. 17: Dirty Dancing (7pm) and The Lost Boys (8:55). Oct. 18: Shadow of a Doubt (2:45, 7pm) and Smile (4:45, 9pm). Oct. 19: Under the Skin (7pm) and Enter the Void (9:05). 429 Castro St. www.castrotheatre.com

Oct. 12 Perfectly Queer Rainbow Reading: Authors Lynne Barnes ( Falling Into Flowers) Kate Carroll de Gutes ( The Authenticity Experiment ) and Kate Jessica Raphael ( Murder Under the Fig Tree ). 7pm. Oct. 16: Lewis DeSimone reads from and discusses his third novel, Channeling Morgan, a biting gay satire. 7pm.

Oct. 19: After-Hours Social, with witchy treats, booze, Tarot readings, a scavenger hunt and fun. $10.

10pm-12am. 489 Castro St. www.dogearedbooks.com

Economic Justice Month @ LGBT Center

Imaginary Comforts @ Berkeley Reprtory Subtitled The Story of the Ghost of the Dead Rabbit, Daniel (Lemony Snicket) Handler’s deliciously dark comedy celebratesthe manic phase of family grieving with a lapine hallucination. 2025 Addison St., Berkeley. www.berkeleyrep.org

Small Mouth Sounds @ Strand Theatre American Conservatory Theatre presents Bess Wohl’s acclaimed Off-Broadway comedy about the wellness industry and spiritual gurus, set in a woodsy retreat center. $14-$90. Tue-Sat 7:30pm.

Wed & Sat 2pm. Thru Dec. 10. 1127 Market St. www.act-sf.org

Fri 13

Hamlet @ Geary Theater

The Wizard of Oz @ NCTC

American Conservatory Theatre’s production of Shakespeare’s tragic masterpiece, starring Obie-winning Tony-nominated actor John Douglas Thompson. $15-$85.Tue-Sat 8pm.

Sat & Sun 2pm. Thru Oct. 15. 415 Geary St. www.act-sf.org

Stephanie Temple’s youth theatre adaptation of the classic L. Frank Baum tale about Dorothy’s magical visit to Oz. $10-$15. Sat & Sun 2pm & 4pm. Thru Oct. 15. 25 Van Ness Ave, lower level. www.nctcsf.org

Remembrance and Resistance: Dia De Los Muertos @ SOMArts Cultural Center 18th annual Day of the Dead exhibit, with 25+ installations and multimedia works by more than 60 participating artists. $12-$15. TueFri 12pm-7pm. Sat 11am-5pm. Sun 11am-3pm. Thru Nov. 9. www.somarts.org

Stitch Fetish SF @ Center for Sex & Culture Opening reception for a group exhibit of more than two dozen artists’ works in crotchet, stitch, embroidered and fabric art, all with a kinky theme. 7pm-10pm.

Thru Dec. 2. 1349 Mission St. www.sexandculture.org

This Bitter Earth @ New Conservatory Theatre World premiere of Harrison David Rivers’ commissioned drama about an interracial gay couple, and political and racial tensions in modern America. $25-$50.

Previews; opens Sept. 30. Wed-Sat 8pm. Sun 2pm. Thru Oct. 22. 25 Van Ness Ave., lower level. nctcsf.org

Women’s Open Mic @ Plymouth United Church of Christ Reading for women (only), 6:30pm potluck, 7:30pm show, featuring singer-songwriter Beth Elliot. $7$10. 424 Monte Vista, Oakland. plymouthoakland.org

Sun 15

Tue 17 Derriere Le Mirior @ Jules Maeght Gallery Group exhibition of covers from the historic French art magazine, including prints by Alexander Calder, Ellsworth Kelly, Joan Miró, Alberto Giacometti and others.

Tue-Sat 11am-6pm. Thru Jan 15.

149 Gough St. julesmaeghtgallery.com

Queer Words @ Folio Books Authors Lori Ostlund and Anne Raeff discuss their literary works and recent travels through China; Wayne Goodman hosts. 7pm. 3957 24th St. www.foliosf.com

Dennis Cooper, Eileen Myles @ Mcrosky Mattress Co.

Various Events @ Oakland LGBTQ Center

The gay lesbian authors discuss their writing as part of the Communal Presence: New Narrative Writing Today conference. $5-$10. 7pm.

1687 Market St., 3rd floor. www.communalpresence.com

Social events and meetings at the new LGBTQ center include film screenings and workshops. Oct. 17, 6L30pm: Racism Under the Rainbow, a forum and workshop addressing racism in the LGBT community. Bruthas Rising, trans men of color meetings, 4th Tuesdays, 6:30pm. Film screenings, 4th Saturdays, 7:30pm. Game nights, Fridays 7:30pm-11pm.

Vogue sessions, first Saturdays.

3207 Lakeshore Ave. Oakland. oaklandlgbtqcenter.org

SF Hiking Club @ Mt. Tam Join GLBT hikers of the SF Hiking Club for a seven-mile loop hike on Mt. Tam with spectacular views over the Pacific. Carpool meets at Safeway sign, Market & Dolores, at 9am. (510) 926-9220. sfhiking.com

Sat 14 Art & Pumpkin Festival @ Half Moon Bay The annual gourd, art and food festival takes over the small tourist town, with huge and small pumpkins, live music, food, drinks (beer & wine) and autumnal festivities. 9am-5pm. Also Oct. 15.

Main street, downtown Half Moon Bay. www.miramarevents.com

Sun 15 Whatever Happened to Susan Jane? @ Roxie Cinema

Barbeque @ SF Playhouse Robert O’Hara’s biting play about suburban bliss, racism and family interventions gets a Bay Area premiere. $20-$125. Tue-Thu 7pm.

Fri & Sat 8pm. Sat 2pm, Sun 2pm.

Thru Nov. 11. 450 Post St. www.sfplayhouse.org

Community Connections @ Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts GAPA Foundation’s annual LGBTQ and API community gathering celebrates innovators and upcoming activists with scholarship and grant recipients; business/fabulous attire suggested. $20-$250. 2pm-5pm.

2868 Mission St. bit.ly/2yc48pp

Sister Act @ Julia Morgan Theatre, Berkeley The rousing musical based on the popular film about singing nuns gets a local production by Berkeley Playhouse. $22-$40. Thru Oct. 22.

2640 College Ave., Berkeley. www.berkeleyplayhouse.org

The Kipling Hotel @ The Marsh, Berkeley Don Reed’s acclaimed solo show about being the son of a pimp struggling through his college days. $20-$100. Sat & Sun 5pm, thru Oct. 22. 2120 Allston Way, Berkeley. www.themarsh.org

Whatever Happened to Susan Jane? @ Roxie Cinema Special rare screening of Marc Huestis’ wild and historic satirical queer drag cinemic cult favorite, with Lulu, Coco Vega, members of the legendary theatre group The Angels of Light, Rodney Price, Silvana Nova and others; also, films

by Abigail Child, Cecila Dougherty and Curt McDowell; part of Communal Presence: New Narrative Writing Today. Free. 12pm. 3117 16th St. www.roxie.com

Mon 16 Diego Gómez @ Strut The Hard Femme Ex-Men, a new exhibit of superhero queer art by the prolific local artist and drag queen (Trangela Lansbury). Thru Oct. 470 Castro St. designnurd.blogspot.com

Unearthed @ California Academy of Sciences Exhibits and planetarium shows with various live, interactive and installed exhibits about animals, plants and the earth; new exhibit, $20-$35. Mon-Sat 9:30am-5pm.

Sun 11am-5pm. 55 Music Concourse Drive, Golden Gate Park. 379-8000. www.calacademy.org

Nonprofit Expo @ Eureka Valley Rec. Center OurTown SF’s annual expo for local LGBT nonprofits to showcase their services. Free. 12:30pm4:30pm. 100 Collingwood St., in the gymnasium. ourtownsf.org

The Mineola Twins @ The Exit on Taylor

Ain’t Misbehavin’ @ Gateway Theatre

Revelations @ de Young Museum

Cutting Ball Theater’s production of Paula Vogel’s satire about the women’s movement and the rise of conservatism. $15-$45. Thu 7pm. Fri & Sat 8pm. Sun 5pm. Thru Oct. 29.

277 Taylor St. www.cuttingball.com

The rollicking Fats Waller musical revue is performed by 42nd Street Moon’s ensemble. $15-$35. Wed & Thu 7pm. Fri 8pm, Sat 6pm, Sun 3pm. Thru Oct. 29. 215 Jackson St. www.42ndStMoon.org

Revelations: Art from the African American South (thru April 1, 2018) and amazing modern and historic art. Free/$15. 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive, Golden Gate Park. www.famsf.org

Will Durst @ The Marsh The witty comic performs his new solo show, Durst Case Scenario, with plenty of barbs at Hair Furor, aka Trump. $20-$100. Tuesdays, 8pm. Thru Nov. 21. 1062 Valencia St. www.themarsh.org

Wed 18 Archie Rand @ Contemp.

Jewish Museum The 613, an exhibit of the artist’s paintings depicting each of the 613 Jewish texts for ethical and religious behavior. Also, Lamp of the Covenant: Dave Lane. Lectures and gallery talks (Fridays 12:30pm). Free (members)-$12. Fri-Tue 11am-5pm, Thu 11am-8pm (closed Wed). 736 Mission St. 655-7800. thecjm.org

Smack Dab @ Dog Eared Books Dana Hopkins and Larry-bob Roberts cohost the eclectic open mic reading series, this month with featured author Gina Stella dell’Assunta (howtohaveabody.tumblr.com). 8pm.

489 Castro St. dogearedbooks.com

Thu 19 Butch Lesbians of the 20s, 30s and 40s Coloring Book @ GLBT History Museum Book party for the new book from Stacked Deck Press. $5. 7pm. 4127 18th St. www.glbthistory.org

Nick Aitken @ The Academy

Wed 18 Gina Stella dell’Assunta at Smack Dab @ Dog Eared Books

The fashion photographer’s exhibit, Paper Dolls: A Deck of Playing Cards, (local celebrity portraits) at the new barbershop & lifestyle lounge. 2166 Market St. www.nickaitken.net To submit event listings, email events@ebar.com

<< On the Tab Magnus Hastings

28 • Bay Area Reporter • October 12-18, 2017

Sat 14

Session/House Party @ Powerhouse

Bay Area Cub Contest @ Lone Star Saloon Benefit for the Alliance Health Project/Project Open Hand, with cubs competing for the titles, raffle prizes, The Boys of Bearlesque and Jell-O shots,. 3pm-7pm. 1354 Harrison St. www.lonestarsf.com

Dungeons & Drag Queens @ Club Six Comfort & Joy's Touch party gets kinky, with festive SM drag encouraged; stage acts Miss Rahni Nothingmore, Grace Towers, kink master Mark Sade; DJs Ruben Mancias, Bugie and Trever Person. $15-$50. 10pm-5am. 60 6th St.

Lips and Lashes Brunch @ Lookout Weekly show with soul, funk and Motown grooves hosted by Carnie Asada, with DJs Becky Knox and Pumpkin Spice. The yummy brunch menu starts at 12pm, with the show at 1:30pm. 3600 16th St. lookoutsf.com

Sat 14 Mr David Birthday Blowout @ The Stud

Lit Crawl @ Valencia Corridor Venues The sprawling multi-reading event closes out Litquake, the annual literary festival; the time slots, 5pm, 6:30pm and 8pm. enjoy LGBTthemed events at Martuni's, the Balm, Lone Palm, and other venues. litcrawlsanfrancisco2017.sched.com

Living Colors @ Green Room Our Future Ends @ The Stud

Thu 12

After-party for the opening of Clement Hill Goldberg's new lemur puppets queer show at CounterPulse, with pizza, drah acts and DJed dancing (www.counterpulse.org). 9pm-2am.

399 9th St. www.studsf.com

AAA Girls @ City Nights

Queer Karaoke @ Club OMG

Drag stars Willam Belli, Alaska Thunderfuck and Courtney Act perform their new comedy show as part of their North America tour. $39 and up. 9pm. 715 Harrison St. aaagirls.net After party at Oasis, (10pm-2am). 298 11th St. sfoasis.com

After Dark @ Exploratorium The hands-on science museum's adult cocktail parties include drinks, music, and a lovely Bay view. Oct. 12: Agave pairings in cocktails. $10-$15.

6pm-10pm. Embarcadero at Pier 15. exploratorium.edu

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Live! @ Oasis

KJ Dana hosts the weekly singing night; unleash your inner American Idol ; first Thursdays are Costume Karaoke; 3rd is Kinky Karaoke 8pm.

43 6th St. www.clubomgsf.com

Red Hots Burlesque @ Little Boxes Theater The saucy women's burlesque show revives The Return of the Revenge of the Night of Go Deep Lube Wrestling, the queer and woman's saucy sloppy strip show in pools of well, lube! $10$15., $40 and $250 VIP packages.

8pm doors, 9pm show. no photos!

1661 Tennessee St. www.redhotsburlesque.com

Rice Rockettes @ Lookout

The return of the campy parody of the vampire-hunting high school student and her pals. $25-$35 ($200 VIP tables, too). Thu 8pm. Fri & Sat 7pm.

Oct. 31. 298 11th St. sfoasis.com

Local and visiting Asian drag queens' weekly show with DJ Philip Grasso. $5. 10:30pm show. 3600 16th St. www.lookoutsf.com

Comedy/Fire Assist Benefit @ Ashkenaz, Berkeley

Enjoy hard rock and punk music from DJ Don Baird at the wonderfully divey SoMa bar. Also Fridays. 7pm-2am.

1369 Folsom St. 431-4695. hitws.com

Monthly comedy show, with a poilitical edge from Scott Blakeman, Yayne Abeba, Aundre the Wonderwoman and Lisa Geduldig. $15-$20. All proceeds benefit relief efforts for Napa and Sonoma fire victims and evacuees. Ashkenaz Music & Dance Community Center, 1317 San Pablo Ave., Berkeley. ashkenaz.com

Litquake @ Multiple Venues The 18th annual multiple-event literary festival includes readings, workshops, parties and more featuring acclaimed authors and new talents. Thru Oct. 14, with the closing night Lit Crawl at dozens of venues along Valencia Street and nearby. litquake.org

The Monster Show @ The Edge The weekly drag show with host Sue Casa, DJ MC2, themed nights and hilarious fun. $5. 9pm-2am. 4149 18th St. at Collingwood. www.edgesf.com

Operatronica @ Mezzanine SF Opera Lab presents another fun nightclub and opera music show, with talented young singers performing with a hybrid of club grooves. $20-$40.

9pm. 444 Jessie St. sfoperalab.com

Rock Fag @ Hole in the Wall

Tubesteak Connection @ Aunt Charlie's Lounge Disco guru DJ Bus Station John spins grooves at the intimate retro music night. $5. 10pm-2am. 133 Turk St. at Taylor. www.auntcharlieslounge.com

Fri 13 Asylum @ F8 Queer (un)lucky night dance party features insane beats from Trax Only (New Orleans) featuring Mark Louque, Brett LaBauve and Kathi Kneiss, with Mark O'Brien (Polyglamorous) & Yvine (Blank). $8. 10pm-4am. 1192 Folsom St. http://bit.ly/2fYnVC8

Boy Division @ Cat Club Thriller tunes and horror pop video and music tributes ( True Blood, American Horror Story) all night at the New Wave queer dance night; costumes encouraged, Gary Numan concert tix giveaway; DJs Xander, Tomas, Donimo and Starr. $5-$8.

9:30pm-3am. 1190 Folsom St. at 8th. sfcatclub.com

Cubcake @ Lone Star Saloon Paul Goodyear plays grooves at the popular sweets and bears night. 9pm2am. 1354 Harrison St. www.lonestarsf.com

Friday Nights at the Ho @ White Horse Bar, Oakland Dance it up at the historic (and still hip) East Bay bar. 9pm-2am. 6551 Telegraph Ave. whitehorsebar.com

The annual GLBT Historical Society gala raises funds for the museum, archives and programming; Marke Bieschke and Alex U Inn cohost, with performers Honey Mahogany and Breanna Sinclairé; silent auction queer items (vintage photos, art, travel packages), cocktails, and a fourcourse meal. $150. 6pm-9pm. War Memorial Center 401 Van Ness Ave. www.glbthistory.org

Jason Godfrey spin (7pm-10pm), followed by the groovy bachelor pad night with DJ Mohammad. $5. 10pm2am. 1347 Folsom St. www.powerhousebar.com

Mr David Birthday Blowout @ The Stud Smooth Operator: slow jams, smooth vibes with DJ Hoku Mama Swamp (7pm-11pm), then a celebration of Mr. David Glamamore's birthday with three drag shows, dancing and depravity (plus DJ Josh Cheon). $5$10. 10pm-4am. 399 9th St. www.studsf.com

Sun 15 Blessed @ Port Bar, Oakland Carnie Asada's fun drag night with Carnie's Angels Mahlae Balenciaga and Au Jus, plus DJ Ion. 2023 Broadway. www.portbaroakland.com

Broni Mitchell Show @ The Stud Psychedelic drag show with Laundra Tyme, Scarlett Letters, and Creme Fatale. 10pm-2am. 399 9th St. www.studsf.com

Disco Daddy @ SF Eagle Classic Hi-NRG dance floor grooves with guest-DJs CarrieOndisco and Paul Goodyear. $5-$7. 7pm-2am. 398 12th St. at Harrison. www.sf-eagle.com

Domingo De Escandal @ Club OMG Weekly Latin night with drag shows hosted by Vicky Jimenez and DJ Carlitos. (Comedy Open Mic 5:30pm).

7pm-2am. 43 6th St. clubomgsf.com

GlamaZone @ The Cafe Pollo del Mar's weekly drag show takes on different themes with a comic edge. 8:30-11:30pm. 2369 Market St. www.cafesf.com

Friday Night Live @ El Rio Enjoy the weekly queer and LGBTfriendly live acoustic concerts. $5pm.

3158 Mission St. www.elriosf.com

Hella Gay Comedy @ Club OMG Queer joke night, with host Nasty Ass Bitch. $15. 7pm. 43 6th St. www.clubomgsf.com

Julia Fordham @ Feinstein's at the Nikko The British singer-songwriter returns (after sold out shows at the intimate nightclub), with Happily Ever After, her new show. $28-$60. 8pm. Also Oct. 14. ($20 food/drink min.) 8pm.

Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason St. www.feinsteinsatthenikko.com

Sat 14

Latin Explosion, Club Papi @ Club 21, Oakland

Pound Puppy @ SF Eagle

Hip Hop and Latin grooves event, with 3 dance floors, gogos, drag acts, and special retro DJed grooves. $10-$20.

9pm-4am. 2111 Franklin St., Oakland. www.club21oakland.com

Lick It @ Powerhouse Lance Holman's eigth anniversary of the leather night, with dJ Blackstone. $5. 10pm-2am. 1347 Folsom St. www.powerhousebar.com

Uhaul @ Oasis The hot women's dance party and queer DJs Koslov and AV. $20. 10pm2am. 298 11th St. www.sfoasis.com

Vibe Fridays @ Club BnB, Oakland House music and cocktails, with DJs Shareef Raheim-Jihad and Ellis Lindsey. 9pm-2am. 2120 Broadway.

(510) 759-7340. www.club-bnb.com

Vivvy's Grand Opening @ The Stud Spookstress Mega Show, with horrorthemed drag, hosted by VivvyAnne ForeverMORE. $5-$10. 10pm-4am.

399 9th St. www.studsf.com

FBFE

Edited for space.

For full listings, visit www.ebar.com/bartab

t

Mother @ Oasis Heklina hosts the fun drag show with weekly themes. Oct. 14 is a Trannyshack retrospective of the best acts! $15-$25. 10pm-3am (11:30pm show). 298 11th St. www.sfoasis.com

Mr. SF Rubber @ SF Eagle Competition and step-down for the year's reigning rubber man. 6pm-9pm.

398 12th St. at Harrison. www.sf-eagle.com

The Playground @ Club BNB, Oakland Revamped night at the popular hip hop and Latin dance club. Oct. 14: live show with Siir Brock. $5-$15. 9pm to 4am. 2120 Broadway. (510) 759-7340. www.club-bnb.com

Pound Puppy @ SF Eagle The cruisy boozy night returns, with gogo studs, DJs Taco Tuesday, Kevin O'Connor and Ambrosia Salad. $10.

9pm-2am. 398 12th St. sf-eagle.com

The Golden Age of Bambi Lake @ Oasis The veteran nightlife icon sings with fellow queer cabaret performers Scrumbly Koldwyn & Cabaret Company, Kitten on the Keys, Alvin Orloff and Birdie Bob Watt. $20-$30.

8pm. 298 11th St. www.sfoasis.com

Jock @ The Lookout Enjoy the weekly jock-ular fun, with DJed dance music at sports team fundraisers. 12pm-1am. NY DJ Sharon White from 3pm-6pm. 3600 16th St. www.lookoutsf.com

Queer Tango @ Finnish Hall, Berkeley Same-sex partner tango dancing, including lessons for newbies, food and drinks. $5-$10. 3:30pm-6:30pm.

1970 Chestnut St, Berkeley. www.finnishhall.org

See page 30 >>

t

Leather>>

October 12-18, 2017 • Bay Area Reporter • 29

Smell the f’ing roses

Rich Stadtmiller

Left to right: Matt Bunch, President of Queer Leather Association Sacramento; Pup Ranger, Mr. Santa Clara County Leather 2017; and Minxy Jeni, Ms. Alameda County Leather Corps 2017; all expressing camaraderie and happiness on the recent Golden Gate Guards leather cruise.

by Race Bannon

W

arning; this is a rough column for me to write. About two weeks ago I lost someone incredibly close to me, Robb Meese, a remarkable man. His sudden passing truly devastated me as well as everyone in his sphere of intimates, family and friends.

I was in an extremely bonded, loving, kink relationship with this man.

When his partner, Alec Braithewaite, an equally remarkable man, notified me of his passing I was at Folsom Street Fair.

Upon hearing the news, I quickly left the fair, in tears. As you can imagine, it’s been a rough couple of weeks. It’s been an emotionally bumpy ride back to some semblance of normalcy.

So, why am I telling you this?

Robb was a leatherman. Leather, and the kink that percolates within that world, was for him an extremely important part of not only his sexuality, but also his identity and social and familial connections. He simply loved leather and the men who wore it.

He also had the knack for seeing the good in our scene, perhaps more than I do sometimes. My tendency can be to nitpick and dissect the goings-on in our scene, often to minutia. Sometimes that’s a good thing and our scene needs it. But far too often, I and others seem to wallow in the negative.

Robb didn’t do that. He tended to consistently see the wonder, beauty and joy of the leather scene. Amid its faults, he instead chose to focus on the positive, that which made him happy. I always marveled at how he viewed the leather commu-

nities with a sort of awe and wonderment.

Lately, I’ve seen a lot of negativity in our leather and kink scene. Some of it’s founded. Some of it’s simply the ramblings of people with an axe to grind. Regardless, such negativity takes its toll.

In honor of Robb, here’s just a sampling of some of the negativity I’ve heard in the past few months along with what I consider their counter positive sides.

“The bars don’t have enough leather in them.”

Yes, true, and that’s not likely to change except when people who want such environments get off their butts, gear up, and go to those bars and organize their geared-up friends to go with them. And even then, enjoy what we do have while making them even better.

“This titleholder or contest [insert your title or contest complaint of choice].”

Regardless of one’s view of leather contests, they’re supposed to be fun and an enjoyable communal experience. The far too frequent bitching, much of it done online, isn’t typically productive or helpful.

“There is no leather scene. The apps killed it.”

Sure, much of cruising culture has moved from bars to online and apps, but there’s still a busy social scene that awaits. Get out and enjoy it. Also, hookup apps, and especially social media such as Facebook, have enabled kink event organizers to promote and organize their events with little to no cost. In the past, how many groups could afford to buy advertising for their events?

Now they can spend their money on parties and programs and not on

expensive marketing efforts.

“The leather street fairs aren’t gay enough anymore.”

The truth is, they’re still plenty gay. If one embraces just how gay they still are you can have an awesome time.

“There are no more good dungeons, so we can’t have any fun.”

San Francisco has two excellent active dungeons, but yes, you’re likely to have to often be creative about where you might play. Besides, never forget that most kinksters play at home; still a good place to play. Focus on the play and connection itself, not the location.

“The young ones don’t know what they’re doing and don’t respect the old traditions.”

Honestly, I’ve encountered few young kinksters who don’t respect others, including us older folks.

And the young ones coming into the scene are learning things more quickly than in my initial leather days. Cut them some slack, and remember traditions change over time.

I could go on.

This rant isn’t meant to squelch real discussion about those things in our scene that can be improved. Of course, that’s needed. However, the rise in the negativity I’ve seen lately, often given a larger audience due to social media’s megaphone effect, needs to be reined in and channeled to more positive pursuits.

When you read or hear someone spout negativity, take a moment to discern if it’s valid, and even if it is, determine if the level of ire is warranted. Engage your bullshit and drama filters too and turn them on high. Parse out what’s important to focus on and let go of the rest.

We’re so damn lucky in the Bay Area (and in so many places) to have an amazingly diverse, robust and active leather and kink scene.

Let’s focus a bit more on the positive and less on the negative. You would honor Robb Meese if you did so.

Kink Resources Now that I’ve gotten it off my chest to encourage you to smell the roses in our scene, while still working to make it even better, let me offer you a small gift.

I maintain a group for kinky gay men on Facebook called Race’s Bar that serves as a place where local and visiting gay men into leather and kink can find out about certain kink-focused events. One of the things I also do in that group is maintain a resources list in PDF format.

The resources list contains abbreviated information about clubs, bars, retailers, kink-friendly mental health and medical care providers, and much more.

If you would like a copy of the current version of this document sent to you, I offer it as a gift to you in the interest of fostering a strong and vi-

Rich Stadtmiller

Left: Angel Garfold (left), WILL (Women’s International Leather Legacy) 2013, and Q Wilson (right), International Ms Bootblack 2008, expressing sheer joy at Donna Sachet’s recent titleholder brunch.

Right: Local kink notables, Daddy Robert (left) and Erik Will (right), expressing complete and utter fun and joy at the SF Eagle.

brant local set of kink communities.

Send me an email (to race at bannon dot com) and I will send you the latest file. Depending on the number of requests I get, it may take me a while to return the email, but I promise I will.

Also, I would like to encourage anyone who would like to create such a resource list for their own local kink constituency to do so.

I’ll even send you my source Word file to help you get started with

yours. I think such resource listings are vital to encouraging the health and happiness of our leather and kink communities. Let’s do that together.t

For Leather events, visit ebar.com/bartab Race Bannon is a local author, blogger and activist. You can reach him at www.bannon.com.

<< On the Tab

30 • Bay Area Reporter • October 12-18, 2017

<<

On the Tab

From page 28

Sundance Saloon @ Space 550 The Country-Western line-dancing two-stepping dance night. $5. lessons at 5:30pm, dancing til 10:30pm. Also Thursdays. 550 Barneveld Ave. www.sundancesaloon.org

Sunday's a Drag @ Starlight Room

No No Bingo @ Virgil's Sea Room

Naked Night @ Nob Hill Theatre

Mica Sigourney and Tom Temprano cohost the wacky weekly game night at the cool Mission bar. 8pm. 3152 Mission St. www.virgilssf.com

Strip down with the strippers at the clothing-optional night. $20. 9pm.

729 Bush St. at Powell. 397-6758. www.thenobhilltheatre.com

Pillows @ Powerhouse

Underwear Night @ Club OMG

Glamamore's drag and crafts party.

9pm-2am, $5. 9pm-2am. 1347 Folsom St. www.powerhousebar.com

Spanglish @ Club OMG

Donna Sachet often hosts the weekly fabulous brunch and drag show. $45.

11am, show at noon; 1:30pm, show at 2:30pm. 450 Powell St. in Union Square. 395-8595. www.starlightroomsf.com

Swagger Like Us @ Oasis Cool for the Summer daytime hip hop party. $5. 3pm-8pm. 298 11th St. www.sfoasis.com

Spanish and English drag shows and dance music with DJ Carlitos. $5-$10.

9pm-2am. 43 6th St. clubomgsf.com

Underwear Night @ 440 Strip down to your skivvies at the popular men's night. 9pm-2am. 440 Castro St. 621-8732. the440.com

Tue 17 Game Night, AHS @ SF Eagle

Mon 16 Happy Hour @ The Cinch Happy hour at the historic neighborhood bar. 5pm-8pm. 1723 Polk St. www.cinchsf.com

Karaoke Night @ SF Eagle Sing along, with host Beth Bicoastal, prizes, local celeb judges, and $2 draft beer. 8pm-12am. 398 12th St. www.sf-eagle.com

Musical Mondays @ The Edge Sing along at the popular musical theatre night; also Wed. 7pm-2am. 2 for 1 cocktail, 5pm-closing. 4149 18th St. at Collingwood. www.edgesf.com

Board games, card games and cheap beer. 4pm-2am, plus weekly viewings of American Horror Story: Cult (8pm11pm). 398 12th St. at Harrison. www.sf-eagle.com

Hysteria Comedy @ Martuni's Open mic for women and queer comics, with host Irene Tu. 6pm-8pm.

4 Valencia St.

Karaoke Night @ The Stud Sing Till It Hurts with hostess Sister Flora; 2 for 1 happy hour, no cover.

8pm-2am. 399 9th St. studsf.com

Playmates or soul mates, you’ll find them on MegaMates Always FREE to listen and reply to ads!

San Francisco:

(415) 692-5774

www.megamates.com 18+

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Weekly underwear night includes free clothes check, and drink specials. $4.

10pm-2am. 43 6th St. clubomgsf.com

Wed 18

Thu 19

Comedy Showcase @ SF Eagle

Dom Gelin at Comedy Returns @ El Rio

Kollin Holtz hosts the open mic comedy night. 5:30pm-8pm. 398 12th St. at Harrison. www.sf-eagle.com

Girl Scout @ Port Bar, Oakland The weekly women's happy hour and dance night with DJ Becky Knox. 6pm10pm. 2023 Broadway. www.portbaroakland.com

Juicy @ Club OMG Weekly women's event at the intimate Mid-market nightclub, with DJ Micah Tron. 9pm-2am. 43 6th St. www.clubomgsf.com

Miss Kitty's Trivia Night @ Wild Side West The weekly fun night at the Bernal Heights bar hosted by Kitty Tapata.

No cover. 7pm-10pm. 424 Cortland St. 647-3099. www.wildsidewest.com

Pan Dulce @ Beaux The hot weekly Latin dance night with sexy gogo guys, drag divas and more, with Club Papi's Frisco Robbie and Fabian Torres. $7. 9pm-2am. 2344 Market St. www.beauxsf.com

Thu 19 Circle Jerk @ Nob Hill Theatre Porn stud Brogan Reed leads the very interactive sex play party (before his Oct 20 & 21 stage shows). $10. 9pm.

729 Bush St. at Powell. 397-6758. www.thenobhilltheatre.com

Comedy Returns @ El Rio

Gay Vampire Sex Trivia @ The Stud

The monthly comedy night with a queer edge features Nate Blanchard, Dom Gelin, Jill Maragos, Chelsea Eiben and host Lisa Geduldig. $7-$20.

8pm. 3158 Mission St. elriosf.com

Get a jump on queer bloodsucker knowledge at the game show party, with sex toy prizes. 7pm-10pm. 399 9th st. www.studsf.com

The Dong Show @ Oasis

Keshet's monthly Happy Hour at different bars. 7pm. 2937 Mission St. keshetonline.org

New monthly show with drag kings, host Fudgie Frottage and DJ Tweaka Turner. 10pm. 298 11th St. www.sfoasis.com

Gala Under Glass @ Conservatory of Flowers The Dracula Ball celebrates Halloween and the new alluring Dracula orchids (6:30pm, $350-$500). Gaslamp Fantasy After-Party designed by Daybreaker’s Mustafa Khan and Carina Hisser of Entire Productions, featuring Justin Martin of Dirtybird, live music by Tumbledown House and Cello Joe (9:30pm-12am, $75).

100 JFK Drive, Golden Gate Park. conservatoryofflowers.org/dracula

Nice Jewish Boys @ Evil Eye

Queer Latinx Social Club @ SF Eagle Monthly event, with Latin music.

5pm-8pm. 398 12th St. at Harrison. www.sf-eagle.com

William Sauerland @ Feinstein's at the Nikko The East Bay Gay Men's Chrous conductor performs his unique solo show tribute to Julie Andrews. $14$35. 8pm. Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason St. feinsteinsatthenikko.com Want your nightlife event listed?

Email events@ebar.com, at least two weeks before your event.

Personals The

Massage>>

SEXY ASIAN $60 JIM 415-269-5707 SENSUAL FULL BODY MASSAGE 415-350-0968 MEN TO MEN MASSAGE

I’m a Tall Latin Man in my late 40’s. If you’re looking, I’m the right guy for you. My rates are $90/hr & $130/90 min.

My work hours are 10 a.m. to midnite everyday. Patrick call or text 415-515-0594.

See pics on ebar.com

“You can only realize change if you live simply. Once people want enormous excess, you can hardly do social change.” ­­— bell hooks

Models>> FABULOUS F**K BOY – Model looks 6’ 150# 27yrs, 8” uncut beautiful tight yummy ass. Smoky sexuality erotic male nympho. Hndsm hedonist. Str8, gay, married men at yr apt, hotel, mansion! Greek god Nick 415-290-2639. Leather fetish fantasy roleplay kink dom sub group scenes mild to wild. Pretty boy with a dirty mind, romantic & unforgettable! $400/hr, $2000 overnight negotiable.

People>> HOT LOCAL MEN

Browse & Reply FREE! SF - 415-692-5774 1-888-MegaMates Free to Listen & Reply, 18+

t

Shining Stars>>

October 12-18, 2017 • Bay Area Reporter • 31

Shining Stars Steven Underhill Photos by

Litquake @ The Make Out Room

A

mong the many events at this year’s 18th annual Litquake, one of the more hilarious may be Pounded in the Ear: An Erotic Tribute to Chuck Tingle, at the Make Out Room on Sunday, October 8. Excerpts by the wacky author of strange gay fantasy erotica were read by Wonder Dave, Baruch Porras-Hernandez, Allison Mick, Irene Tu, Jesús U. BettaWork, Natasha Muse, and Marcus Ewert. Litquake continues through October 14, with the closing night Lit Crawl at venues along Valencia Street and nearby. www.litquake.org More photo albums are on BARtab’s Facebook page, www.facebook.com/lgbtsf.nightlife.

See more of Steven Underhill’s photos at StevenUnderhill.com.

Read more online at www.ebar.com

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For headshots, portraits or to arrange your wedding photos

call (415) 370-7152 or visit www.StevenUnderhill.com or email stevenunderhillphotos@gmail.com

October 14th Saturday â&#x20AC;˘ 6PM Co-Chairs Marke Bieschke & Alex U. Inn

The Green Room San Francisco War Memorial Performing Arts Center

The Board of Directors of the GLBT Historical Society congratulates the recipients of our annual awards to be presented at the Living Colors Gala.

The 2017 History Makers Award In Memory of Gilbert Baker (1951-2017) Artist, designer and creator of the rainbow flag.

Photo by Daniel Nicoletta

The 2017 Clio Award Amy Sueyoshi Historian, community leader and author.

Photo by Mia Nakano

The 2017 Willie Walker Award Emily Rosenberg & Darlene deManincor Philanthropists and community leaders.

Photo courtesy of Elisabeth Cornu

Thank you to all the generous sponsors of the 2017 Living Colors Gala.

CSAA Insurance Group, a AAA Insurer

studsf.com

Jason Tester & Sasha Aickin | Becky Escamilla & Aimee Chang

And many thanks to all our members and donors who help keep queer history alive year-round though our archives and museum.

Archives & Research Center 989 Market Street, Lower Level San Francisco, CA 94103 (415) 777-5455 The GLBT History Museum 4127 18th Street San Francisco, CA 94114 (415) 621-1107 glbthistory.org