in Joe’s studio when he asked, “Oh, did your little brother stop by the Eagle?” Joe replied, “Yes he did. He thinks it’s haunted.” The guy slowly turned to look at Joe, mouth agape, and asked, “How did he know?” Apparently, it’s quite haunted, but the activity’s only noticeable when the bar’s empty. Seeing as St. Louis is a haunted old city, I began looking for local ghost stories and there’s no shortage of them. Chances are you’ve had evenings of dancing and debauchery in rooms once used to embalm the dead. You’ve likely enjoyed a beer while sitting against a wall that entombs a colorful old drag queen – and you’ve probably laughed with friends in a building that, when the party’s over, takes on a dark and sinister vibe – a place where custodians have been tormented to the point of madness. I began my research in the city’s oldest neighborhood: Soulard. On a Sunday evening, I sat side by side with Clementine’s owner Gary Reed in a quiet corner of his restaurant. I came inquiring about Midnight Annie, the old drag queen in the wall. Initially, he seemed surprised by the topic, and then simply asked, “What would you like to know?” Midnight Annie, AKA Owen Pride Roach, died on April 6, 1995 at the age of 73. Gary befriended her when he bought the bar back in the 1980s and recruited her for their first drag show. To make the event more of a draw, Gary billed it as “Midnight Annie’s Final Performance.” Of course, it wasn’t, really. She performed her crazy numbers where she’d howl at the moon for many more moons.
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October 2013