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The Mattachine Society then challenged the liquor rule in court and the courts ruled that gays had a right to peacefully assemble, which undercut the previous SLA contention that the presence of gay clientele automatically was grounds for charges of operating a "disorderly" premise. The New York Times ran the headline "3 Deviates Invite Exclusion by Bars" the next day. A sign in the window read, "This is a raided premises." The bartender initially started preparing them a drink but then put his hand over the glass, which was photographed. Raid sign (from Stonewall) exactly as it would have appeared at Julius' in 1966įrustrated, they then went to Julius, where a clergyman had been arrested a few days earlier for soliciting sex. They then targeted a Howard Johnson's and a bar called Waikiki where they were served in spite of the note with a bartender saying later, "How do I know they're homosexual? They ain't doing nothing homosexual." Secondly, they targeted a bar called Dom's, which was also closed. Mark's Place and Third Avenue in the East Village, Manhattan which had a sign, "If you are gay, please go away." The three showed up after a New York Times reporter had asked a manager about the protest and the manager had closed the restaurant for the day. The three first targeted the Ukrainian-American Village Restaurant at St. We are orderly, we intend to remain orderly, and we are asking for service." The three were going to read from Mattachine stationery "We are homosexuals. Dick Leitsch and Craig Rodwell, the society's president and vice president respectively, and another society activist, John Timmons, planned to draw attention to the practice by identifying themselves as homosexuals before ordering a drink in order to bring court scrutiny to the regulation. On Apmembers of the New York Chapter of the Mattachine Society staged a "Sip-In" at the bar which was to change the legal landscape. Despite this, gay men continued to be a large part of the clientele into the early 1960s, and the management of Julius, steadfastly unwilling for it to become a gay bar, continued to harass them. At the time the New York State Liquor Authority had a rule that ordered bars not to serve liquor to the disorderly, and homosexuals per se were considered "disorderly." Bartenders would often evict known homosexuals or order them not to face other customers in order to avoid cruising. īy the late 1950s, it was attracting gay patrons. The bar became a popular watering hole in the 1930s and 1940s due to its proximity to the jazz club Nick's in the Village. Vintage photos of racing horses, boxers and actors are on the wall include drawings of burlesque girls as well as an image signed by Walter Winchell saying that he loves Julius. Barrels stamped "Jacob Ruppert" are used for tables. Per the current owner, the establishment opened in 1864. Īccording to bar lore it was established around 1867 – the same year as the Jacob Ruppert Brewery in the Yorkville neighborhood. In 2016, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Newspaper articles on the wall indicate it was the favorite bar of Tennessee Williams, Truman Capote and Rudolf Nureyev. This action helped clear the way for gay premises with state liquor licenses. The April 1966 "Sip-In" at Julius, located a block northeast of the Stonewall Inn, established the right of gay people to be served in licensed premises in New York. Its management, however, was actively unwilling to operate as such, and harassed gay customers until 1966. It is often called the oldest continuously operating gay bar in New York City. Julius' is a tavern in Manhattan's Greenwich Village neighborhood in New York City, located at 159 West 10th Street at Waverly Place. Your hosts for this walking tour are Kyle Supley & Michael Ryan, creators of “Gay Bars That Are Gone,” an annual walk through downtown NYC honoring LGBTQ spaces of yesteryear.
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You’ll bar hop through stories of community, protest, artistic achievement, and plain old intrigue.Īll this, in the name of sparking a conversation about how to properly preserve and celebrate New York City’s “lavender landmarks” during one of the hardest times for nightlife venues in recent memory. Long the center of cultural evolutions and political activism, gay bars are critical locations to understand Queer history in America. Special Pride Week Edition! Gay Bars That Are Gone Tourįrom discos and dive bars to piano bars and cabarets, this tour looks at the shifting typology of the gay bar in New York City.