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A conservative Republican who had been a member of the city commission since 1971, he was elected mayor in 1975. This news came as a shock to Fort Lauderdale’s mayor E. It cited the number of arrests of young male hustlers who were drawn to the area by the presence of the hotel. It also highlighted Marlin Beach and its gay clientele, noting the hotel’s national advertising campaign and its reputation as a popular gay resort hotel. It noted the many problems, particularly the large population of “street people” and drifters. However in late November 1976, the Fort Lauderdale Beach Improvement Association, the civic group charged with trying to increase the tourist business issued a report on the conditions of the beach. Neither the city nor business leaders condoned or even knew about it. Like other hotels on the beach, the Marlin Beach quickly became run down and lost its glamour.Īll of this occurred under the Fort Lauderdale establishment’s radar. With them came a large population of panhandlers, “street people,” hustlers drifters and druggies. Fort Lauderdale’s beach area became the destination of spring break students and others looking for beaches, warm weather, parties and cheap hotels. As a result South Florida tourism began to decline. The opening of Orlando’s theme parks stole the family trade. With jet flight becoming popular, tourists began to discover newer fresher places like Las Vegas, the Caribbean and Hawaii. However the 1960s were not kind to the Fort Lauderdale Beach and the Marlin.
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Both the hotel, and the dining room window were featured in the 1960 movie “Where the Boys Are” that established Fort Lauderdale as the place to lay in the sun in the day and party at night. Just across AIA from the (the place where Beach Place is today) it had over 105 rooms, a stage and dance area two restaurants, and a courtyard with a large pool One of the restaurants was downstairs and had a large aquarium type window onto the pool, allowing diners to enjoy their meals while watching the goings-on under the water in the pool. While some gay men and lesbians opened up early guesthouses and most hotels did not blink when two men or women rented a single room, it was the opening in the mid-1970s of the Marlin Beach Hotel as America’s first explicitly gay resort hotel that explicitly marked Fort Lauderdale as a gay tourist destination.Ĭompleted in 1952 the Marlin Beach was the jewel of the Beach’s hotels. The warm weather and beautiful beaches also made Fort Lauderdale a perfect destination for the growing lesbian and gay tourist trade. Since then, although there were occasional bar raids and arrests for “lewd behavior” in the parks or along the beach, the resort economy and culture of Fort Lauderdale created a relatively relaxed scene. When the report was released its major outcome was to indict a well know local crime figure for gambling.
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The Fort Lauderdale News ran a multi-part series on homosexuality in Broward noted for its lack of sensationalism and tepidness. In 1967 there was a well publicized Grand Jury investigation about crime and homosexuality in Broward. In the 1954 when Miami went through a brief period of “moral panic” about the city’s gay bars, public officials in Fort Lauderdale assured the citizens that there were no threats and they had the situation under control. And gay owned local businesses like photographers, printing shops and restaurants began to to advertise openly.įor the most part the emerging gay presence was ignored by the larger heterosexual community. Bars such as Tacky’s and the Everglades provided popular social meeting places. Organizations like the Metropolitan Community Church provided one of the earliest gathering places where lesbians and gay men could come together and worship. Riverside and Sailboat Bend, with its Key West ambiance, were the first neighborhoods with sizable concentrations of lesbians and gay men. 33301-2293.Although the LGBT community has been a part of the Fort Lauderdale even before it became a place on the map, it was only in the 1970s that it emerged as a visible community. Please send such information to Joan Brazer, Entertainment Department, Sun-Sentinel, 200 E. News concerning local entertainment events and performers is welcome. Joan Brazer writes the Nightlife News portion of this column.
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Drink specials and a free buffet are offered inside the nightclub and outside at the Tiki Bar. Monday through Friday happy hour at Bermuda Triangle, 219 S. Starting Monday, there is a 4:30 to 10 p.m. the first Tuesday of every month Songwriter's Night occurs at Sonny's Stardust Lounge, 5181 Powerline Road, Fort Lauderdale, and you're invited - either as a participant or spectator. Have an original country tune to try out on an audience? Start practicing. The club has an ocean view and features live entertainment and dancing Fridays and Saturdays. Cocktail Cafe is the newest name for the nightspot upstairs from Frankie's Italian Restaurant, 3428 E.