14. Sit and Spin
Naturally all this sidewalk action attacts attention, and people driving by slow down to take a long look before it suddenly hits them that these are all GAY people out there on the street and some of them freak out and put their big black shoes on the accelerator. One car that slows down . . . is filled with Salvadoreños who know a party when they see one . . . Then all of a sudden Vaginal Creme Davis comes burstin’ out the door, all 7 feet–plus of black Amazonian drag queen wearing nothing but panties and a bra and a big wig hat, shrieking, "I gotta get out of here!" The Salvadoreños take one look at that, and they’re off faster than a cruise missile. That’s Sit and Spin for ya — always in your face, nowhere to run and no reason to . . .
From "Getting Down With the Third Sex," by Craig Lee, July 20, 1990
15. Dragstrip 66 Dragstrip 66, the oodles-of-fun new club where, in case you couldn’t tell by the name, they celebrate dressing in drag — even down to having a
Hillary Clinton and
Tipper Gore look-alike contest. The fliers said, "Dress Like a Mess, Get In for Less," and apparently the whole place took that into consideration, because although there were some truly stunning queens around, most of the crowd, in various stages of drag, undress and just plain old mess, looked pretty insane . . . DJ
PAUL V.spun fab ’60s and ’70s tunes . . . We spotted
Chili Peppers Flea and
Anthony;
Falling James of
Leaving Trains, resplendent in a Pucci minidress;
Vaginal Davis;
Shevelva;
Peter DeStephano of
Porno for Pyros;
Mr. Dan;
Lance Loud;
Richard Velasco;
Sean de Lear (who was wearing overalls, but wouldn’t be caught dead without his false eyelashes!) . . .
L.A. Dee Da, January 15, 1993 (Pleasant Gehman) 16. Hai Karate
Check Your Briefs: Oh, the excitement and glamour of awards night. The crush of drop-dead gorgeous hopefuls all vying for that ultimate honor — recognition by their peers. We’re not referring to the tired old Oscars, sweeties, but to the Undies, the first annual L.A. underground awards show, presented by Hai-Karate at the Garage . . .
The Low Life, March 29, 1996 (Kateri Butler)
17. Spaceland
Air Conditioning for the People: . . . Too hot to coop up in the sizzling sweatbox we call home, too expensive to sightsee in our enormous gas-guzzler. Fortunately, we’re just a stroll away from trendy Spaceland, so we hoofed it over to check out The Low and Sweet Orchestra. Spotting a limo idling outside, we expected to see Brad Pitt, perhaps the band’s foxiest fan — he’s attended a number of their gigs. Instead, we glimpsed the King of the Alternageeks Michael Stipein the corner. We’re not sure if the REM deity was losing his religion, but he was quietly engrossed in conversation. And even though he was on the guest list plus entourage, he paid for everyone — what panache! But a far more unlikely sight was the legendary two-fisted drinker Donny "Two Beers" Popejoywandering about clutching a single cocktail. These are sober times for the aging punk set . . .
The Low Life, May 10, 1996 (Kateri Butler)
18. Sin-a-matic
Heaven Can Wait: It was literally a knock’-em-out Epiphany for some onlookers last Saturday night at Sin-a-matic (which seems to be one of the most imitated clubs in town these days), where Ron"The Holy Eunuch" Atheyand Vaginal "St. Salicia Tate" Daviswowed the fetishistas and 818/714 touristas with their work-in-progress gospel-techno rock opera . . . Ron reached a blood-spurting climax using flesh hooks and wickedly long spinal needles — in ways we’re too squeamish to reveal — on Crystal Cross and Pigpen. We’re sure the applause would have been even louder at the end, but unfortuately a number of people fainted and had to be carried out of the club. Talk about your cutting edge!
The Low Life, April 26, 1996 (Kateri Butler)
19. Cherry
The Glamour the Merrier: Miss Joey Arias. Miss Sherry Vine. Miss Candis Cayne. Miss Raven-O. Miss Girlena. New York’s dream team of queens dragged their boas out here to help hot-cha host Bryan Rabincelebrate the second anniversary of Cherry. And did those girls kick up their heels — all 10 inches of ’em — especially when they belted out "Hey, Big Spender" in a giddy group encore! As "Spellbound" as we were
by chanfloozie Sherry, we were also riveted
by watching the rebirth of pogo as DJs Mike
Messex and Joseph Brooksspun the hordes into a hyperhopping frenzy. To "Bohemian Rhapsody"! . . . We bet most of the thrashing throng remember the Queen hit from Wayne’s World. There was a lot of hair-tossin’ happening . . .
The Low Life, November 22, 1996 (Kateri Butler)
20. Club Sucker
Lollipops and Toeses: There were more than just bulbs flashing at the Garage when very, very va-voom MC Vaginal Davisand DJs Frank
Rodriguez and Dale Johnson hosted their first annual Sucker summer party. We hit the new Seattle scene (as the media has dubbed Silver Lake clubland — yawn) shortly after entertainer Bambi Lake had given an offstage anatomy lesson that proved she’s all woman — and all man . . . Do grab a copy of the Sucker mag double issue, featuring Timothy McVeigh as the "Before They Were Stars" centerfold — he’s packing more than a little dynamite.
The Low Life, August 2, 1996 (Kateri Butler)
