I’ve written a great deal about the great Gaiety Burlesque and the Show Palace and the Kings Cinema in my novels of gay erotica, especially in my best-seller, THE ROPE ABOVE, THE BED BELOW, written under my pen name of Jason Fury. The Gaiety had fabulous boys, a type for every taste. The small theater encouraged an intimate vibe with your fellow audience members. The dancers were so close you could see their sweat dripping down their bodies. The music was great because of a superb sound system. If you were down, you felt like jumping up and dancing, esp. if the song was “I Love the NIght Life,” and “Good times,” by Chic. There was never any sexual activity in the audience but the Apollo Lounge—“where boy meets boy”—was a great chance to chat with your favorite dancers and watch them exchange phone numbers (this was before cell phone) with their wealthy admirers. Mayor Guilliani was responsible for shutting this flesh emporium down along withall the other gay meccas that once throbbed non-stop for us admirers and pursuers of hunky go-go boys! And only a few blocks away were the swanky Adonis Cinema and the 55th Street Playhouse—all mentioned in my fiction before the AIDS epidmic destroyed all these pleasure pits.
I immortalized the fabulous Show Palace in my best-selling novel, The Rope Above, the Bed Below, writing as ‘Jason Fury.’ I’ve mentioned it many times in my other novels. This was my favorite gay hangout during its heyday and I watched its downfall after the big AIDS scare of the l980s. I loved its unbridled hedonistic vibes, it’s out-and-out enjoyment of nudity, sex, etc. When it shut down, it definitely marked an end to NYC’s reign as the leader of gay pride and gay fun.
I’ve written a great deal about the great Gaiety Burlesque and the Show Palace and the Kings Cinema in my novels of gay erotica, especially in my best-seller, THE ROPE ABOVE, THE BED BELOW, written under my pen name of Jason Fury. The Gaiety had fabulous boys, a type for every taste. The small theater encouraged an intimate vibe with your fellow audience members. The dancers were so close you could see their sweat dripping down their bodies. The music was great because of a superb sound system. If you were down, you felt like jumping up and dancing, esp. if the song was “I Love the NIght Life,” and “Good times,” by Chic. There was never any sexual activity in the audience but the Apollo Lounge—“where boy meets boy”—was a great chance to chat with your favorite dancers and watch them exchange phone numbers (this was before cell phone) with their wealthy admirers. Mayor Guilliani was responsible for shutting this flesh emporium down along withall the other gay meccas that once throbbed non-stop for us admirers and pursuers of hunky go-go boys! And only a few blocks away were the swanky Adonis Cinema and the 55th Street Playhouse—all mentioned in my fiction before the AIDS epidmic destroyed all these pleasure pits.
I immortalized the fabulous Show Palace in my best-selling novel, The Rope Above, the Bed Below, writing as ‘Jason Fury.’ I’ve mentioned it many times in my other novels. This was my favorite gay hangout during its heyday and I watched its downfall after the big AIDS scare of the l980s. I loved its unbridled hedonistic vibes, it’s out-and-out enjoyment of nudity, sex, etc. When it shut down, it definitely marked an end to NYC’s reign as the leader of gay pride and gay fun.