{"id":138641,"date":"2020-05-21T08:25:51","date_gmt":"2020-05-21T12:25:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/sfs-oldest-gay-bar-to-close-after-55-years-but-owners-say-the-stud-is-not-dead\/"},"modified":"2020-05-21T08:25:51","modified_gmt":"2020-05-21T12:25:51","slug":"sfs-oldest-gay-bar-to-close-after-55-years-but-owners-say-the-stud-is-not-dead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/sfs-oldest-gay-bar-to-close-after-55-years-but-owners-say-the-stud-is-not-dead\/","title":{"rendered":"SF\u2019s Oldest Gay Bar to Close After 55 Years, But Owners Say The Stud is \u2018Not Dead\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

SF\u2019s Oldest Gay Bar to Close After 55 Years, But Owners Say The Stud is \u2018Not Dead\u2019<\/b><\/p>\n

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San Francisco’s oldest continuously operating queer nightclub, The Stud, is permanently closing its current location at Ninth and Harrison streets in SoMa amid the COVID-19 crisis. <\/p>\n

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After 55 years in San Francisco “The Stud” is closing pic.twitter.com\/68LpY4d1BW<\/a><\/p>\n

— Joseph Fenity (@fenity) May 21, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

“The Stud is the country’s only cooperatively owned LGBT venue and has been in operation for 55 years,” a 17-member collective that owns The Stud announced in a news release Wednesday. “Because of a lack of revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the historic bar will be announcing that they are permanently closing their location and will be holding a drag funeral to honor the end of an era of LGBT nightlife.” <\/p>\n

After initial reports suggested The Stud would be closing for good, co-owners said they plan to look for a new location. Originally situated on Folsom Street, The Stud has been at 399 Ninth St. for the last 33 years. <\/p>\n

Co-owner Marke Bieschke reports that the bar’s lease will be up at the end of the year anyway, and amid the COVID-19 crisis, it has been transforming into “a full-fledged virtual club.” <\/p>\n

“The Stud, the nightlife entity, is not dead,” Bieschke wrote on the news site 48 Hills<\/a>. “We’re still going to come back when this is over—a different space with the same lovingly outrageous vibe. … And after this is all over, a new permanent location, to help rebuild the city’s shattered nightlife scene—and continue the Stud’s rough-and-tumble legacy the only way we know how: with shots up and heels high.” <\/p>\n

More from the San Francisco Chronicle<\/a><\/em>: The move itself is not entirely surprising. The bar almost closed in 2016 due to a rent increase but was saved by a group of patrons who rallied and reworked the Stud as a cooperative. Among the city’s many gay<\/a> bars, the Stud has long had a reputation as a home for an alternative queer scene, one that is deliberately open to all. “On any given night you’ll see men<\/a> in leather, punks with pink hair and even women<\/a>,” read a 1980 article in Drummer magazine. “But the mix works fabulously and the Stud remains one of the dominant dance bars in a city famous for its discos and clubs.” Etta James performed there; Sylvester, Bjork, Lady Gaga and RuPaul too. Through the years, the Stud’s stage has been home to a wide range of experimental music and performance. And more recently, after the collective took control of the bar, it seemed to enter a new renaissance.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

The post SF’s Oldest Gay Bar to Close After 55 Years, But Owners Say The Stud is ‘Not Dead’<\/a> appeared first on Towleroad Gay News<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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SF’s Oldest Gay Bar to Close After 55 Years, But Owners Say The Stud is ‘Not Dead’<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n