Crazy Nanny's

Crazy Nanny's

Location: 32 7th Avenue South, New York, New York, USA

Opened: 1990s?

Closed: Ceased to be lesbian bar around 2004

The former Crazy Nanny's

From Club Planet:

Crazy Nanny's - Like no other Lesbian bar in New York, is the reason it is always jam-packed. Friendly and lively, as well as casual and fashionable. Crazy Nanny's is a diverse place to enjoy a game of pool downstairs and dancing upstairs. It is like a lesbian fun park, trivia night, karaoke nights, and drag queen performances and of course DJ's.

City Tips says the following:

Lesbian hangout
Flannel-shirt wearing lesbians of all ages and shapes mix it up with pretty young women at this West Village bar and dance club, recognizable by its pink exterior. Inside it resembles most other neighborhood bars, but with a definite edge. The great DJs, strong drinks and homey atmosphere make it an ideal place to shoot pool and wait for the women of your dreams. Drinks are cheap and there is no cover charge.

A June 2004 article in The Villager reported that Crazy Nanny's had "recently" gone "hetero," and at any rate, all other gay bar sites report that it is closed--though as usual, no date is given.

As to when Crazy Nanny's opened, this June 1998 article in the Observer mentions Crazy Nanny's in passing, so it was obviously around then.

The Hideaway

The Hideaway

The Hideaway

Location: 1756 Central Avenue, St. Petersburg, Florida, USA

Opened/Closed: Mid 1990s -2014

Notice how all the same lame excuses are trotted out regarding the loss of womyn's space. Basically that all you girls should be happy with a nomadic party scene that pops up now and then. Who needs dedicated space? Who needs community you can actually find when you need it? Just be content with basically being homeless, stateless, with a "community" that's chaotic and incoherent. It's the cool thing now! (At least for lesbians. Nobody else would accept this deal as cool.)

From Watermark Online:

Overheard in Tampa Bay: Oldest lesbian bar in Florida shuts down

By : Anonymous

January 15, 2014

The oldest lesbian bar in the state shuttered its doors on Jan. 13, ending an era of more than 20 years on St. Petersburg’s Fourth Street. But that doesn’t necessarily mean the bar is done. The Hideaway, and it’s neighboring boy bar, Haymarket Pub, went out with big bashes and announced that while the land and buildings may have been sold, the spirit of the bars could keep the party alive at a different location. That location, however, has yet to be announced. Facebook pages for both of the hot spots hint at a resurrection in the future, and the faithful seem to be ready to support the renaissance whenever and wherever it may appear.

The Flame

The Flame

The Flame

Location: 3780 Park Boulevard, San Diego, California, USA

Opened/Closed: 1984-2015

Yet another lost lesbian space we somehow missed from last year.

From San Diego Uptown News:

Park Boulevard nightclub The Flame is sold

Posted: October 9th, 2015

By Ken Williams | Editor

The Flame — a landmark lesbian bar that opened in 1984, and then changed hands 20 years later — was sold this week to a Hillcrest developer.

James Nicholas of Clownfish Partners, who bought the vacant property at 3780 Park Blvd. from seller Donny Duenas for $1.9 million, told San Diego Uptown News that he will be turning the single-story structure into a multi-use project by adding six apartments and a central courtyard.

Nicholas said he plans to “restore the façade” of the vintage building and keep the iconic sign. “It will stay on the building and get restored to its former glory,” he vowed.

Members of the LGBT community have been worried about saving buildings that have historical significance. Nicholas said The Flame building has never been designated as historical. “There is currently a study being done to see if it is, in fact, historic,” he said. “If it is designated as historic, I would love to have it acknowledged on the building.”

The “Hillcrest History Timeline” published on HillQuest’s website offers this tidbit about the old nightclub:
“1984 — The Flame, an old supper club on Park Blvd (named after a fire destroyed the first restaurant, The Garden of Allah), reopens as a lesbian bar. It changes ownership twenty years later, after being purchased by the owners of Numbers, a watering hole across the street. The Flame changed ownership again in 2010.”

The seller’s brokerage firm, Location Matters of Del Mar, stated in a news release that Duenas had operated The Flame since 2008. Mike Spilky of Location Matters handled the sale and Paul Ahern of Location Matters will oversee the leasing of the cocktail lounge.

The developer said the 6,098-square-foot lot is already zoned for multi-use, so the addition of six apartments won’t require rezoning. Nicholas explained where the apartments will be built in relationship to the existing building, which has 7,800 square feet and a basement.

“They will be within the existing structure above the new cocktail lounge that will be reduced in size to 2,000 square feet and behind the new cocktail lounge and will go up a total of three stories, two more than the ground floor,” Nicholas said.

Until a tenant is signed for the cocktail lounge, there is no telling whether the bar will remain LGBT oriented. The developer said he has no preference.

News of the sale of the vacant property quickly drew praise from several community leaders in Hillcrest.

“I am happy to hear that there is movement on this property. New residential is always a good thing in Hillcrest,” said Ben Nicholls, executive director of Hillcrest Business Association.

“I am enthusiastic to have the property continue as a nightlife and entertainment destination. I do hope that the new owners seek out a creative entertainment concept that fits with the new hip feel of Park Boulevard,” he said.

“The days of the Flame being a ‘hole in the wall’ are over. Whatever happens, I am confident that the iconic signage and LGBT cultural influence will feature prominently at that location.”

Luke Terpstra, chair of the Hillcrest Town Council, welcomed the property’s sale.

“This part of Hillcrest has really been improving over the last couple of years and this is good news when a business can reopen and breathe neighborhood life again,” Terpstra said. “It does not need to be a gay business, just a successful business that serves the community at large.”

This stretch of Park Boulevard, south of University Avenue, is part of the city’s Egyptian Quarter. The Flame, however, does not reflect that style of architecture. But the area is seeing a mini building boom with the construction of the Mr. Robinson loft building at the corner of Park Boulevard and Robinson Avenue. Executive chef Brad Wise will be opening TRUST restaurant in the new building.

—Ken Williams is editor of Uptown News and Mission Valley News and can be reached at ken@sdcnn.com or at 619-961-1952. Follow him on Twitter at @KenSanDiego, Instagram at @KenSD or Facebook at KenWilliamsSanDiego.

Heraean Games

An artist's interpretation of ancient Olympia. [Photo: Public Domain]

Heraean Games

Location: Olympia, Greece

Opened/Closed: 776 BC-?

Selection from Atlas Obscura:

When Ancient Greece Banned Women From Olympics, They Started Their Own
Sadly, historians lack good documentation on the badass Heraean Games.

by Lauren Young

August 10, 2016

Much like their modern counterpart, the Olympic Games in ancient Greece wasn't exactly a level playing field for women. It's true that women of all ages were allowed to enjoy the festivities and exhilarating athletic events in cities throughout the Peloponnese states, including Delos and Athens. But the Games in Olympia in the land of Elis—the city where the Olympics originated—retained its traditional, sacred ban of women. Elis decreed that if a married woman (unmarried women could watch) was caught present at the Olympic Games she would be cast down from Mount Typaeum and into the river flowing below, according to Greek geographer and travel writer Pausanias.

During these ancient times, women lived much shorter lives, were excluded from political decision-making and religious rites, were forced into early marriages, and then gave birth to several children. Despite the societal inequalities and oppression, women in Greece wanted to play—so they started their own Olympics called the Heraean Games.

“Every fourth year,” Pausanias wrote in 175 A.D., “there is woven for Hera a robe by the Sixteen women, and the same also hold games called Heraea.”

The Heraean Games, a separate festival honoring the Greek goddess Hera, demonstrated the athleticism of young, unmarried women. The athletes, with their hair hanging freely and dressed in special tunics that cut just above the knee and bared their right shoulder and breast, competed in footraces. The track shortened to about one-sixth the length of the men’s was made up in the Olympic Stadium. While women were not allowed to watch the men’s Olympics, it’s uncertain if men were barred from these all-female races.