Where has Laguna’s gay dynamic gone? – Orange County Register

Contents:

• REMEMBERG A LEGACY OF GAY BARS
•  CALIFORNIA LBIAN AND GAY BARS, RTRANTS, LODGG, PRI EVENT, BS MAPS
• GAY LAGUNA TRI TO EMERGE
• 10 GREAT GAY BARS ORANGE COUNTY (AND LONG BEACH)

REMEMBERG A LEGACY OF GAY BARS

For s, Laguna Beach had a large gay bar on Ma Beach and later the Boom Boom Room at the Coast Inn. Luckily a gay man owns our much smaller and only remag gay bar, the Bounce, and has ma recent chang wh more improvements g. Ma Beach was home to the big “gay” bar, Dant, which would orr 500 s of Budweiser alone for holiday weekends.

Legend has that Michael Michaels, the wonrful owner of the Ltle Shrimp, asked Carl Smh and his wife to dner and told them they should turn the South Seas bar at the Coast Inn to a gay bar bee unlike the Shrimp, was big enough to acmodate the gays. He had been a prs agent for Judy Garland and cleverly spread the word that the South Seas was turng gay on a summer, holiday weekend.

John sold to two gay men and over the years people me om around the world to go to Wt Street Beach and the Boom Boom Room.

 CALIFORNIA LBIAN AND GAY BARS, RTRANTS, LODGG, PRI EVENT, BS MAPS

So for s, even when Laguna had half the populatn has now, thoands om the lbian, gay, bisexual and transgenr muny traveled to Laguna and spent lns and got a tan at the beach and a beer at our statn gay bar and stayed overnight at hotels all over town.

GAY LAGUNA TRI TO EMERGE

Thankfully the world has evolved and although gay bars will always be need, wanted and loved, ’s now not unnscnable for everyone, no matter of who they love, to party, drk and enjoy the night together, unr the same roof. There was a time when Laguna Beach had s staple gay bars, which were a much need prence durg their reign of the beach cy, and s very possible that the future, more will make their way back to Laguna Beach, but until then, the cy is filled wh optns galore.

In 1926, a liquor store and a hardware store opened on the rner of Pearl Street and Pacific Coast Highway, and 1946 beme s current namake The Seahorse, which was actually Laguna Beach’s first gay bar. For many years, operated as a secret waterg hole for the lol gay muny until was eventually turned back to retail as Laguna Auto Parts…and now ’s back to s origal roots. It was bgo night at Ma Street Bar & Cabaret, Laguna Beach’s last gay club.

Gay bars around the natn have been disappearg, a trend attributed to greater social acceptance of gays, changg enomic forc and evolvg technology.

10 GREAT GAY BARS ORANGE COUNTY (AND LONG BEACH)

Laguna Beach, particular, has had many obuari wrten for s once-thrivg gay scene. Skyrocketg real tate pric have kept young gays out of the cy and led a number of tablished gay rints to sh out and move to other ci, such as Palm Sprgs. Now Cooley has to see whether the improvements will pay off – whether gays still want a place to ll their own.

Whether a ty gay bar Laguna Beach n still thrive. Laguna Beach was once spoken of the same breath as Wt Hollywood, Fire Island and Provcetown, if a miature versn of those more famo gay enclav.

The Wt Street Beach was – and still is – renowned among gay vatners. Wh walkg distance of the spot was a one-block district that boasted a handful of gay bars and rtrants – Ltle Shrimp (which later beme Woody’s); Coast Inn, which hoed the legendary Boom Boom Room; and Ma Street Bar & Cabaret, which also went by Bounce. Bob Gentry, who served on the Cy Council om 1982 to 1994, was one of the first openly gay mayors the untry.