(In the first installment of a series, roving correspondent/ photographer Kristen Tobiason revisits and documents the scenes of our youth. Today, a daylight visit to “Gay Denny’s,” 2008!)
Denny’s on El Cajon Blvd.: A night-time hang-out spot? I don’t see many hipsters hanging there today. Maybe pimps and their respective employees … but for us it was another after show/party place to kill time and wait for the sun to come up.
I recall sitting in front of a plate of hot French fries with a side bowl of brown gravy, cigarette in hand … Across from me, you might find Tom Ward with his classic shaded spectacles, Chris Negro wearing his black revolutionary coat, a couple of Gravedigger V members, Jerry Cornelius, Denise, Alena … among many others.
Denny’s would get packed. And after the Studio 9 dance club let out next door, the New-Ro, eye liner-wearing-kind-of-guys would invade. Or San Diego Skins would show up, and there might be a fight. …
It was a total scene. Wow. Back then there was a non-smoking section! And it was only a couple of tables and usually empty. Not smoking in restaurants (or airplanes) is a change that I can totally live with.
— Kristen Tobiason
Great job, Kristen. The photo brings it all back home.
I love the way they’re sprucing up El Cajon Blvd. with the neighborhood lamppost banners.
But wait… did you ask for your coffee “with”?
What was the fate of Studio 9? I can’t even Google it — that fabulous den of iniquity seems to have disappeared entirely from the historical record!
Actually, for real — is there currently anything in the neighborhood that does (or would) attract night owls like our younger selves? Back in the day, there was Studio 9, Rock Palace … It’s too late at night for me to remember the other clubs down that stretch of asphalt, but I know there were some. What’s shakin’ around there now, besides the banners Paul mentioned?
Denny’s really got crazy after a while… If you parked in their parking lot and didnt immediately get out of your car, the manager would instantly appear and shine a cop’s flashlight in your face. I spent many hours there… you could just show up and almost always run into someone you knew.
Dance club type people would refer to Studio 9 as “Studio” … I imagined it was a big dance club. Then I went there once with a girl I knew, and it was just a tiny room.
I spent way to many late eves at Denny’s. I went into Studio 9 once I think with Dave Klowden. Not sure why we went in there.
Just curious how many people spent hours at Denny’s and only ordered a coffee.
Dave Ellison: Gay Denny’s was the only night eatery on our route with its own security guard — this blocky little woman in a uniform who’d patrol the parking lot and restaurant.
Sergio was constantly in a war of nerves with the Denny’s team. He spent more time getting kicked out of there than anyone I knew! I think he spent more time getting kicked out than he did inside. I remember the night he told the waitress, “I want a slice of your breast,” which was certainly supposed to be provocative but I think came out a little more Richard Ramirez than even Sergio intended. I had a hell of a time talking us out of that one!
You and I hung there pretty often … I liked dining with Dave Ellison because he was unlikely to do anything that would get us kicked out. 🙂
Mark Mullen: I mentioned elsewhere Jerry Cornelius’ recipe for ketchup soup: When low on cash, he’d only buy hot water, then create this revolting mix of ketchup and Saltines and pepper. (I think I bought him food just to get him to stop!)
Low on cash
You needed Chris Negro.
He would walk into 7-11 and walk out with FREE beer for us, then he would climb into the dumpster at the Mc D’s by Denny’s and get us nuggets and burgers that passed their time allowance.
Not kidding
>>>> I liked dining with Dave Ellison because he was unlikely to do anything that would get us kicked out.
haha…I can remember being told to never come back at least three times.
Didnt they finally make a rule that you couldn’t just order coffee? I seem to remember something like that.
I think that’s where the french fries/biscuits with gravy came in. Then you’d have endless cups of coffee with your order that would last you all night.
This was mentioned on another thread, but wasn’t Denney’s the lair of famous waitress Rose Rose?
Hey Cyndie- Rose E. Rose ruled the wall-walking pies at the fabulous (and now defunct) Topsy’s, a bit further west…
I know exactly why I dragged you into Studio 9, Mark. It was because I wanted to watch “Wild” Wendy Fonarow dance. I was recruiting her to dance on stage (in a cage?) at a TTHs show that was supposed to have go-go dancers--can’t recall what the show was. She was a geeky math & anthropology star at UCSD by day, disco goddess by night. She is now an anthropology prof. at Glendale Community College & the author of “Empire of Dirt,” a book that looks at indie music culture through an anthropological lens and characterizes it as ritual.
I also (barely) remember another time i drank an entire bottle of peppermint schnapps in the Denny’s parking lot, and somehow wound up on the floor of the bathroom of Studio 9, before being carried out & tossed onto El Cajon Blvd. by two bouncers. Good times.
>>>Actually, for real — is there currently anything in the neighborhood that does (or would) attract night owls like our younger selves?
Matthew, I think it’s interesting that when we were underage, the whole San Diego music scene seemed to revolve around underage kids. Right about the time everyone I knew turned 21, they opened the Pink Panther, followed by the Casbah… at that was the end of underage music scene hangouts. You’d still see scooter clubs hanging around Gelatto a little bit, but not like it was when we were underage. I dont remember going to any local band shows in all-ages venues either after that time.
Dave Ellison: Bingo! This is what I was getting at with my question for Barney Firks about the late-’80s scene he was so involved in. My perception is that it was a little older … that it was more guys who’d been underage with us in the early ’80s coming of age in the late ’80s and playing more over-21 venues.
Did this reflect a real demographic shift in San Diego? That big regional housing sprawl in the ’60s and ’70s brought lots of little kids to town who grew up to be … well, us! Were we kind of a localized baby boom that went on to dominate night life in town for a while?
Dave Klowden: Can we get Wendy the go-go anthropologist on here? A fellow anthro wonk would be most welcome to research the fetishes and taboos of our little cargo cult! 🙂
in 1987 convair split town and overnight 110,000 good paying jobs went with it. i think the early 80s were the last dying breath of the old school defense based san diego economy and just like weimar the time between was a transition period and therefore a more relaxed attitude from the powers that be allowed for a youth entertainment culture to if not thrive at least exist. How could they let it be any other way? back then there was nothing to do but finger bang each other and drink someones parents booze so anything that would get kids out of that scene was considered the lesser of two evils i suppose. These days kids are happy with computer friends, cell phones and god knows what else and dont require the immediate connection to the actual living breathing world that we did. The homogenization of america that we see today, what with every city in country being more or less the same place took shape in the late 80s as did the greed and lack of concern for humanity that is also a hallmark of today. it breaks my heart too.
Toby—
well put. Ditto to the “corporate garbage”. We boycott it as much as possible in our household. Especially television. I’ve become acutely aware of what I put in my brain, as well as my body these days. We had to work a lot harder for gratification that’s for sure. Make an effort and have minimal expectations. Kids today expect a huge payoff. But I think that will change. Everything does.
Somebody mentioned the wall of pies at Topsy’s? I had the worst dessert of my life from that case. It was deep dish apple pie summed up as a bowl with hot apple sludge with a layer of flavorless gummy “dough” draped over the top OF THE BOWL. You can see- I still haven’t recovered.
Kristen: Unless I’m very much mistaken, our own Mr. Rinck favored Topsy’s deep-dish apple pies, which do match your description to a T … He certainly advocated loudly for the knockwurst Reubens!
As I recall, Mr. Rinck also favored the “open heart surgery” cherry pie at Nappy’s (up by College).
That hotel was The Red Fox right? Now it’s been yuppified and is called something lame -- something “seasons” or ?
The piano bar “The Red Fox Room” on the side was a popular hipster hangout for years. Maybe it still is.
Here’s the Red Fox Steakhouse, which the Daily Aztec loves to bits in this review.
Hipsters, are we still copacetic with the Red Fox?
The Red Fox Room became a hangout in the late 80s, and became really popular in the 90s. The woman who played piano and sang had been a professional jazz singer and piano player for her entire life. I read that she died recently. I can’t imagine who they would have gotten to replace her. Studio 9 was in that hotel? I dont remember it that way, but I was only there the one time. I know it was a block or so east of Dennys.
I liked those Topsy’s apple pies! You guys probably didnt enjoy them because you forgot to get ice cream on top.
Hipster I ain’t, so I can’t vouch for Red Fox — but I’m fond of Albie’s Beef Inn (no, not an adult film title) in Mission Valley.
Topsy’s! Nappy’s!
Anyone go to Johnny’s #6 on University and 30th? It featured the tabletop juke machines and I remember a Tourette’s-afflicted hash slinger working away at the grill. Not pleasant food but dirt cheap.
For late night sugar rushes, how about the long-gone 24-hour Buford’s Candy Circus (owned and operated by real working clowns) in O.B.?
Paul Brewin: Oh, we have much more than you ever wanted to know about Buford and his colossal candy circus here in this Weird SD thread. No one told me it was 24 hours, though!
A 24-hour, junk-food freak show — with clowns?? How were we not here all the time?
Dave Ellison: I agree with your recollection that Studio 9 and the hotel were two very different structures. Studio 9 was a squat one-story stucco box, IIRC.
Patrick: I’m glad your sister is out of “the life”! 🙂
I think the woman at Johnny’s was a waitress. “Shit! Shit! Shit!” …really loud, the entire time you were having breakfast. You could hear her all through the restaurant. I remember the breakfasts being pretty good, but all I ever ordered was eggs… kinda hard to mess that up.
Wait--we talked about the hotel before within another thread--Hotel Lafayette, I believe, was the name. I’d remembered the club as being the Roxy--and that the room had featured live music in the Big Band era--the name at that time (1930s / ’40s) was the Mississippi Room. The Red Fox Room was (and I hope still is) at the other end of the symmetrically-shaped, block-long old fashioned low-rise rather luxe (once-upon-a-time) hotel. So what I think I now am realizing / remembering is that the Roxy and Studio 9 were the same venue in different years. I think “Studio” closed and was reopened as the Roxy--or am I losing my mind here? Or could it even have happened in the other order? Roxy then Studio 9? Another question would be, why Studio and why 9? In terms of naming the thing, I mean. Perhaps it’s a reference to something I don’t know, am ignorant of. I’d enjoy it if it were, say, a reference to “A Clockwork Orange” or something, like one of the musical group names of the age, the synth-pop act Heaven 17. Now there’s an act whose record I can guarantee was spun at Studio 9! Maybe it was studio 9 just like it was once plan 9. Anyway, the proximity to Studio definitely contributed to the Denny’s phenomenon, as did, in another way, the proximity of--what was it?--the Eagle? Another local landmark, as I recall, was Dave’s Flower Box. I actually did buy a bouquet there a couple of times. In fact, I send now an electronic flower of the mind to all the women of 1980s San Diego whom I loved, and there may have been several. In addition, one to any of those who may have thought I was cute in some way, if there were any. Let me place this imaginary garland in your hair. Courtesy of Dave’s Flower Box. I imagine the asphalt in that parking lot is freaking hot right now, though it’s not August yet. Which brings me to: anyone barefoot on asphalt in San Diego right now--probably at the beach, though you might be anywhere--I salute you!
Who was the impresario of Studio 9?
IIRC, it was gayer than most of mainstream San Diego in the early ’80s but far more mainstream than most of the gay bars — hence the ripples in the space-time continuum it created in the air around Denny’s. (I doubt that any late-night eateries in SF or NY during that era would have earned the superlative “Gay,” since it woulda been sort of redundant!)
How’d all this fabulousness end up on that stretch of El Cajon Blvd.?
Where else could a guy score bad Catholic school girls at 03:00 AM on a Tuesday. Gay Dennys, that’s where.
Oh man-- I just read further on--that’s got to be right, Studio was up the street from the hotel. But at any rate, I’ve revealed the source of the confusion: the short-term existence of a second, would-be similar club located in the former Mississippi Room. All of this stuff we’re talking about takes place in about a three or four block span of El Cajon Blvd., but those blocks are pretty damned long as I recall, with plenty of boring parking lots to get past. No doubt it all looms as larger in my memory because I was only four feet tall back then.
Strangely, everything was on the south side of the street--unless (as I never did) you were going to Bob’s Big Boy or Rudford’s.
Studio was east of Denny’s I guess, and the Hotel Lafayette, Roxy’s and Dave’s Flower Box and so on were west, toward Park Blvd.
If I continue to screw up, forgive me, I’ve been gone a long time…. Meanwhile, inhale a large breath before scaling this next sentence:
Several years later the new, aesthetically-inferior Chicken Pie Shop would move to this strip (but further east) when the original, glorious, immortal location in Hillcrest had to be closed due to the likely existence of an almost pure evil in this world, which occasionally reveals it’s face.
In the old city within a city, you could’ve just traveled from joint to joint, changing the vista just enough to keep some interest going, and being sustained by the ruins of the postwar formica-and-vinyl aesthetic. I suppose that when we weren’t broke or submitting to homework or attending a house party or rehearsing with a band and so on that that’s pretty much a description of what we did--while usually seeking to find the humor in the context or in the situation presented (or by our friends’s antics within it).
I probably miss the Pie Shop’s old space more than many because of my 1985 job at the Guild, which was just a few doors down on 5th Ave. I am also nostalgic for the TWO bookstores right there, Quel Fromage (THE daytime coffeehouse at one time, whereas Gelato Vero was the spot at night--or until closing time, anyway). There was a short-lived coffee and gelato spot circa 1985 or ’86 that was just off University, a half block north of University and west of 5th. I met members of the Event there before they were the Event, or while they were just forming. Mike Therieau is the one I remember from that meeting, though I think three of them were there. Probably Ben and the guitar player, whose name will only return to me as soon as I shut down the computer here. Can’t remember the name either of this short-lived coffee and gelato joint--which had no relation to Gelato Vero except perhaps as a copycat! It was also much smaller than Gelato Vero--almost no seating.
Denny’s was a late night (or even ’til dawn as has been noted) happening, but at other hours there were (or came to be) other landmark places, and so there were kind-of “rounds” you might make. When the new, purpose-built coffeehouse JAVA opened downtown, that became another one. The proprietor there was an important figure, but I guess that is yet another story! And I’d need help with that one.
Speaking of coffeehouses, I did sometimes make the La Jolla scene (but knew no one) by driving whatever old thing I was driving up to the Pannikin. I recently read Herb Gold’s 1995 book BOHEMIA, a survey of the dispersal of old-time (if you will) Bohemia throughout late-20th Century America. Herb was in his sixties or so and has a lot of on-the-spot connection to stuff from the fifties through seventies. He makes it to the Pannikin and thus San Diego County at least figures in his book somehow. At least La Jolla had a couple of jazz clubs--“Elario’s, high atop the Summerhouse Inn”--but was it even still there by 1995? It was definitely an ’80s phenomenon, if not late ’70s. In the early ’80s, there was a place called the Blue Parrot, and I recall hearing some classic “West Coast” jazz wafting out of there. It was right above the Cove.
I was always a more-or-less a tourist in La Jolla, but I recall that even La Jolla had it’s diner. It was still there in 1999--I went there for a breakfast a few times. It offered a classic American breakfast with absolutely no fiber.
Which reminds me--someone must speak of The Huddle sometime. David Klowden took me there. But with that I’ve left behind that foray to the north and returned to the Hillcrest & Mission Hills area….
I just remember Club ID in the old Mississippi Room once a month on a Monday night. It was a big and beautiful venue with a large circular bar in the front room and a huge dance floor in the back. Was Studio 9 across the street and a little closer to Park, like near the current Live Wire bar?
I still visit the Red Fox Room when visiting SD. The dining room and bar thankfully have not changed at all, but I miss Shirley Allen (R.I.P.), the long-time regular singer and piano player there. I tell people who are visiting SD that the best old restaurants (with classic decor) are the Red Fox, Albie’s, the Turf Club, the Bali Hai, and the Imperial House.
wow. Tom Ward, you wrote a novel. good stuff! I still go to The Huddle.
I specifically remember Studio 9 being an aqua blue building a couple doors east of Denny’s. AND I remember Keith Lockhart with flaming red hair and eyeliner sitting with the S9 crowd. Japan anyone?
Oh the good ol’ days, full of skinny scary skanks, and fresh cooked crystal meth, straight from Lemon Grove.
oh hell yeah!
Pat, I briefly worked at one of those “cord-boards,” too, like your sister did--but not for long; only a semester, at the age of twelve. It was in seventh grade in 1979 at Gompers Secondary School, where I took part in the voluntary bus-ing (can’t spell it bussing, can we? And busing would look short for abusing), late ’70s integration efforts. There were some interesting figures at that school a couple of grades ahead of me: Pat Works, Jerry Cornelius, a certain related figure named Chris, and a few others whom I didn’t really meet but would recognize later by sight when we all turned up again a few years later in a different context, that of The Scene. Anyway, I had one semester of being the switchboard operator--as if it were a class, but I guess they may have termed it Work Experience or something. It was like being drafted into child labor; I don’t think saying “no” was an option, and I wasn’t really mature enough for the role.
I recall that it was first thing in the morning, and a hellish torture for me because I felt anguished about the length of time people would have to wait on the line. I was always shy about the phone anyway, when even younger and it was just a matter of seeing if a playmate was available. Well, you had to ring manually after connecting the line, you couldn’t do everything at once, and when multiple lines lit up at once, it was a bear to keep up. You felt that you could get into TRouble if people began to drop off the line. It must be a clue to my psyche that I internalized so much failure from the whole experience. Also that I couldn’t muster any not-caring, which might have been a better attitude had I realized the whole thing would be replaced very, very soon. I was simply serving as free labor to run an antiquated, superannuated system, but I often felt as if I were coordinating communications for the desperate struggle to save Paris before the battle of the Marne in 1914. “My God, hello, I’m sorry, I’ll ring them again! I can’t understand why the British Expeditionary Force is failing to answer it’s phone! Let me try them again, and I’m sorry you’ve been waiting so long.” Click. Ring by hand. New Light. Plug In. “Mr. President? Yes, I know the Boches are twenty five miles away, or it’s equivalent in kilometers. Yes, allow me to connect you to General Gallieni immediately . . .” . Give the Principal and Vice-Principal direct lines and let’s be done with it!
Gompers Secondary was the “Magnet School” for math & science, and I remember that at the same time the switchboard was breathing it’s last there was also--on the experimental, instructional level--some kind of local intranet or whatever; in 1980 and in the context of a class there I recall that we selected user names that corresponded to some kind of electronic mailbox--internal e-mail. I opted out of the math & science idea and left Gompers in 1981…and today am relatively poor and definitely unemployed (for the moment), yet working with computers constantly anyway! But I’d probably do it all over again.
Tom Ward said: >>Another local landmark, as I recall, was Dave’s Flower Box.
Tom:I was standing next to Dave’s Flowers when I took the picture of the Denny’s sign. The original building is boarded up and closed down. It’s hard to compete with those online flower websites. Sad thing. You can’t smell the flowers when you buy them on the web. Kind of like vintage clothes off of ebay. Where’s the experience?
Gelatto’s is still the cool kid hangout. In fact, it’s the hangout for the kids who are too cool for the cool kids. Example: I go in and notice that they are playing the Velvet Underground but when I mention it they are like “yeah? is it? whatever.” and they are the only one there so you know they put it on -- these kids are so cool they can hardly talk.
San Diego has always had kind of a “big fish -- small water” thing going.
The other coffee joint was Java. Didn’t go there much.
Sigh. And Quel Fromage. They had really good coffee -- not the swill that you get at SD independents nowadays or the corporate coffee crack at Starbuck -- just good coffee. and yummy croissants. It was heavenly to kick back on their balcony with a cup of joe and a good book.
Piret’s on Goldfinch & Washington had delicious coffee too. My boyfriend and I lived two blocks away and in the morning we would go to Pirets and get warm raisin rolls with lots of butter and coffee. Pirets had great atmosphere too. It was fancy-shmancy but noone cared if you stolled in wearing jeans and a t-shirt. Another great restaurant that bit the dust in San Diego.
On my last swing by Hillcrest, I was saddened to see that Quel Fromage had given way to an Afghani (?)* restaurant, but I was pleased that City Deli keeps doing its thang. Wendell Kling reminded me that I first exposed him to kasha varniskas at the City Deli, thus beginning a lifelong romance.
Hey! This may be why he was recently married by a rabbi! Wendell? Was it the kasha?
*Afghani food is yummy, btw! Tom Ward and I almost dined on it t’other day.
I’m in a Denny’s right now in Bloomsburg, PA — they still have smoking sections here, so it smells old-school. I’ll order some fries with gravy and think of you!
Is Denny’s Rockstar Menu a Sign of the Apocalypse?
Birdy was the old lady who would always be on the lookout for people smoking cloves . she said she was alergic to them but really I think she just hated them . My friend Scott Sellars would always torment her with his clove smoking antics and we would get kicked out for another night till she forgot what we looked like the next night .
I managed to get into more than one fight in the parking lot there as well . Lots of cranked up skins used to show up to bust up the dance crowd from studio 9 and we would always get caught up in the mix . More than a few times we would meet in that parking lot to go battle along side with the mods to go fight the skinheads in presidio park .
Most of the time they wouldn’t show up or would show up after we got tired of waiting around and the big fight would never actually happen .
Dave GI and I used to sit in the parking lot across the street ( 31 flavors ) and I would play guitar with him and chris negro ( playing the harmonica badly ) singing birds and other generic 60’s hits along with some adolescents and agent orange .
He told me once that i had a ” great knowledge of 60’s music , for a punk ” . I took that one to the grave with me as one of the all time coolest things anyone ever told me at the time .
Does anyone remember Louie Niles and Jay Redhawk from Telaviv ( sp) . . . Trudy Trulove and I dated for a while and we bought stock in those fries with gravy . I guess she moved to NY at some point and apparently is in the bar / entertainment field .
Myself and Scott along with Mike Christian , Lou Niles and 1/2 dozen others owned that parking lot till the sun came up on more than a few nights .
Dean is right, Club ID was the one in the Mississippi room, at the Lafayette Hotel. Studio 9 was just a couple doors up from Denny’s, it is some sort of auto place now. The Lafayette spaces got gentrified after they filmed some scenes from “Top Gun” there, and got an infusion of cash. The Red Fox Room is still going strong, with a very broad cross section crowd. The hotel does have a cool policy with their swimming pool, you can swim there for free on weekdays, and for a fee on the weekends, even though you are not a hotel guest. I can’t believe there has been scant mention of Rudford’s in all the food related posts. I always preferred the food there, and the waitresses were all characters. My family, and I have eaten there often since we returned to SD> I remember getting kicked out of there once (I think with Carla, and maybe Pat), when we had a little pop up ghost Halloween toy sprung off the table, and the waitress screamed at us that we were Nazis or KKK, or something.
All ages music is not dead in SD. I can’t speak for the intervening years, but there are many places to see music. Besides the bigger venues like Epicenter and SOMA, the Che is still going strong. I have been there a dozen times in the last year. There are also regular shows at house “venues” like the Yard and the Slaughterhouse. A month ago, when I was out of town, my daughter had The Sess playing in our living room, at 3:00 AM (a chip off the old block). I think once you hit bar age, a lot of people lose track of the alternate spaces. Although I frequently feel like the geezer at some of the shows I attend with my kids, the energy is much better than attending shows attended by self absorbed hipsters, who spend the show shouting over the band, and spilling their drinks on me.
I forgot to add another memory from that time and area. Dorothy Norton used to work at the Baskin-Robbins by Denny’s, and used to save up the empty whipped cream cans throughout the day, for post work entertainment. We would also make Guinness floats, after the place was closed for the night.
Stobbe and Grealish together again! I feel like I just got back from a trip to Mexico, parked my bike out front (I’ll probably dump it later trying to get it off the center stand), and walked in the door of the Normal Street pad. Jane’s Addiction is playing, Stobbe is showing off the stun gun he liberated from a bouncer (Studio 9?) last night, there are pink OLP roller skates on his bedroom floor, of course Jay is there, and for some reason I start calling one of the chicks hanging out (Chandra or Rachel) “resin ball”. Bert and Darren stumble in after me, they’ve just been at the apartments across the street knocking on the wrong door to settle a score (Startled resident: “Who’s there?”,… Darren “Lamont Sanford! Bring you’re ass out here!”). A few minutes later, the sun is setting and we’re all hanging out on the front porch, spilling over onto the lawn, the cops roll by looking for two guys, a black dude and an indian, who were involved in a disturbance across the street…
Was it legal for the bouncer to pack even a crappy Taser? Hard to believe that was kosher.
It’s like the anecdote we’ve heard here when Social Spit getting Maced at the Blind Center gig … Seems like (from my adult perspective) the ostensible authority figures were further over the legal line than the youngsters they were supposed to be corralling.
When these topics come up on Che Underground, I realize there was a lot of strong-arm stuff I sort of took for granted as a kid that makes me nuts when I revisit it as a parent!
Study question: While I’m sure Mike didn’t describe his evening to his folks (nor would I have), what would you do if you found out your kid had been zapped by some bouncer? Personally, I’d flip the hell out!
I have a 9 month old son and wonder that aloud often . if only my parents had even the slightest idea of some of the shit I was up too .
I’m sure it was illegal for him to have that tazer , but once that cat was out of the bag all hell broke lose .
Much love, Mike Stobbe! Actually, my earlier post was a conglomeration of many memories at your old party HQ, although they may have all happened the same day. I was wondering if you were drinking at that point, as it was kind of a significant fact. You were the hard-partying straight-edge guy for so long….
Yes, indeed! I would really love to see that photo, as I don’t have any from that time frame, and no one believes I could put that much time or energy into anything, much less my hair. The proof is in the pomp. That was probaly that night I was dunkenly hitting on that girl (remember that one time?) and Nick was egging me on. Glad to hear you’re doing well, too, Mike!
Find the Johnson
girls in the alley
unknown set of legs, Sonya, Angie & Leighton at the 35th street porch
hey lets see some boobs . . . whoops wrong boobs !
Jay arrives with a bottle of festivities
Most excellent work, sir!
Hey Mike,
Isnt that the two Beverlys in that picture, Beverly Fitzgerald and Beverly…uh…I forgot her name?
Steve: Yes Steve the two Bev’s. One being my ex-girlfriend Ms. Fiztgerald. The other Bev lives in England now.
Poor Beverly-Not-Fitzgerald! Can someone reattach this girl’s last name?
Dylan,
I think Ms. Fitzgerald was also my girlfriend once too. You know come to think of it she was also Stobbe’s. She had two brothers Trent and Dave.
The other Bev was really nice. She waitressed at City deli. She had a baby to Scott Honor?? Is that right? Dammit What was her last name?
Dylan,
You know I think Ms. Fitzgerald was my girlfriend also…and Stobbe’s too. Wow, she was popular.
The other Bev was very nice. I think she had a child to hat Scott honor guy and she waitressed at City Deli in Hillcrest. She was a sweetie. Dammit! What was her last name?
Hey, How did I do that?
Steven: The Other Beverly is too cool to describe just once!
It’s fun to see these photos. I recognize Amy Muirhead and Eleesa Enos in the uncaptioned photo of three girls (from Mike Stobbe at 10:16 on the 23rd). Schaefer cans in foreground. Is that one of the Bevs in the middle? I do not know who that third gal is. Or the guy to the far right. Mike?
Steve: Thats right you did date her for a short time. I dated her for a long time. two years?. Mike dated her after that.
I am not sure what was better Bev calling me a “useless bastard”, or her mom asking me “are all american’s were as dumb as you ?”, god I loved that girl.
The other Bev was one of the coolest, sweetest people to walk the earth.. I will get her name. I have a good photo of her and Josh Entrichen some where.
Don’t sweat the sobriety Steve it aint easy.
Tom: The two Bev’s are the red heads.
Oops then, Dylan, my ID’ing was not quite right! But Eleesa at least I’m sure of. We spent a lot of time together 1985 / ’87. She may be lurking on this list--or will be at some point. So bonjour Eleesa!
Definitely much too hasty, I see it now. Dylan, I don’t think I have you on myspace. Find me next time you’re on there, IF you’re on there! Or search for the Nashville Ramblers….
Tom here’s another picture of Eleesa and Jeremy , is the girl in the middle the girl in question ?
Eleesa went on to marry Gar Wood who was in Fishwife and has been in several pretty good bands here in San Diego since . They have since then broken up . .
Gar Wood also had a home studio. Really cool guy. I recorded there with Chris Squire, Dave Dick, Dave Gardner and Brian Van de Wetering in the last band I was in before leaving S.D., like 7 years ago….
No, that’s someone else yet, who is incredibly familiar! I’ve been gone so long, even names that should be familiar are elusive. This girl in the middle--I can hear her voice in my head, but can’t give you the name today.
We should all write what we know on the back of our photos before we get any older!
Matt, Mike, yes Eleesa and Gar Wood were a married couple throughout the nineties. The studio was at their place, which was on two levels as I recall. Studio in the basement, I guess. I remember Eleesa felt at some point that he wasn’t charging enough for his expertise and facilities and time. She may have been right! It’s hard to be a businessman when your clients are all your friends. Gar’s stuff seemed right in the swing of nineties indie from what I know (I was too busy inhabiting retroland), and his bands were popular in the local scene and outside too, to some extent, and toured some, even nationally--not tha long ago. But I’m getting beyond what I know here. So reel it back.
They had met while both were associated with Gordon & Smith--Gar through skateboarding, Eleesa through her career in design and the apparel industry. Eleesa came from the scene but was beginning to look to a wider world at about this point. She was best friends with Karen Shelver in the old days, but somewhere in here Karen made that San Francisco trip (possibly with flowers in her hair). When Karen is back from her round-the-world trip we’ll probably hear some stories and see some pictures. It’s worth remembering that a major 1985 party happened out at Eleesa’s family place in Lemon Grove. I think we touched on that one in another thread, but I know for a fact there is a pile of photos of that somewhere that we have not yet seen.
I attended Gar and Eleesa’s wedding and recall that one of the memorable facets of it were iconoclastic radish boutinieres. Someone must have a photo of that somewhere too, as weddings are always riddled with photographers and snapshot takers.
Eleesa, we’re only talking about you because we love you and remember you very fondly. I don’t mean to tell your story for you--but your photo came up.
My question about Gar Wood might be, did his parents know they were naming him after a famous constructor of wooden speedboats, a la Chris-Craft? If so, not a bad figure to be named after. Perhaps there’s a family connection.
Oh wow…….this is a walk through time.
Denny’s we couldn’t live w/out, it plus it was the only place to go unless going home. The french fries were great with gravy and also tarter sauce and LOTS of pepper!!!
Red Fox Room we still go there for dinner sometimes…..I love it!
Stobbe I remember hanging out at your house (partying all night long)and you were doing tatoos however, I dont think you did them in a shop…I wanted to redo my tatoo on my hip (spider) and you made it into a skull….just a drawing.
Matt I see your face popping up in the bottom of that pic.
Sad about Keith Lockheart (RIP), I ran into Jeff about 9 or 10 yrs ago…does anyone know if he is okay?
Where is Michelle Krone? Jody Davis…anyone know?
Alena , I was tattooing out of my house for maybe a year & a half after I worked at the shop behind Funland on State & Broadway downtown . Not too long after that I got the job I have now with Avalon Tattoo .
If you still want to redo your spider , let me know . I have a little more time under my belt at this time and could help you out no problem !
I go to Red Fox pretty often as well . . . it still has so much cozy / trashy ambiance . My wife loves that place . We went on numerous dates there when we were just dating and spent many drunken nights trying to get a cab to take us home from that place !
Alena, I’m glad you’re here. I was paying tribute to you in some other thread awhile back. I was also pleased when we ended up with each other on myspace sometime ago. I hope I’ll eventually see you in San Diego, but I never visit. Will you come to hear Ron and Carl and I? We may finally do a San Diego show around New Year’s if the stars align.
Mike, what’s up with the picture you titled “girls in the alley,” above? Looks like it failed to thrive somehow.
Funny, I wrote Ron’s name and with a typo (until I corrected it) it came out “Rona.” Like “Rhona”? If only Ron had a second career as a gender illusionist…. He was never into an androgyny thing, which is one way we know he’s not Mick Jagger. I’m thinking of that cover art for the 45 of “Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby, Standing In the Shadows.” Bill Wyman doesn’t look too bad, right? 😉
Who is talking in this clip?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKJCDmXjsQw
Hi Mike, I may just take you up on that.:) Oh my goodnss what a beautiful baby. I am going to post my girls in a few minutes.
Tom that sounds SO fun and I would love to see you 3 play! Pls tell Carl & Ron “hello”.
Hope to see you all soon!!!
*A
Tom that image was a type-oed first attempt at the image right under it .
Alena , I’m at the shop Mon through Thurs , if you get serious about it , let me know .
oops . . . ” the shop “meaning Avalon Tattoo II on Adams Avenue
Hey all,
Was this the same Gar Wood who built speed boats in the 20’s and 30’s that were the envy of bootleggers on the Great Lakes? If so he was far too old for that pretty young lady, even back in the 80’s.
Stobbe,
I am back from Chicago and will be in touch for that meal and drink(s).
oh shit , that got me laughing out loud . . . Darren remember ” hey look at homies feet ” in the 7-11 down the street from my house . . . ?
Shit man I didn’t know that was your first orgy ?!?!
Glad I could help out , just another lost weekend on 35th street !
Mike, please refresh my memory of “Hey, look at homies feet”. It sounds amazing and I’m sure I’ll remember once you jar my swiss cheese brain. Oh and yep, first orgy! Fun as hell and further notched my belt. I think I have like 2000 notches now but then it was mind blowing!
Hahahahahahahahaha! Now I remember! Classic! Man, we were like a block to 7-11. I wan never a granola kind of guy but can’t a dude walk to the store with his Fred Flinstones?!!! “Fiddle Faddle”!!!!!!
Memories man!
Hello hipsters, thank you Tom for the nice words and partial personal history. FYI I have remarried to an really great man, Paul. We have a 7 year old son Kirby. We live in LA in the SFV, yes like oh my god I am a Valley Girl like fer sure…..
Now back to the blog….the girl in the middle in the photo with Jeremy and I is a girl named Rachel. She is a bit younger then I and I do not remember her last name, she dated a guy named Steve. And yes it is true, I have stacks of photos I will try to get on the site soon. I have Adam Ave. shots, the party in LG, the New Sounds that was not, as well as others. This is my first time at blogging ( is that a word?) so I will try to keep up….
E
Hey Mike Stoby, congrats to you and Amy!!!! I hope all is well with your little guy and family. I wanted to thank you for having an hangout house like you did, I often did not have a place to go and could not or did not want to be at home. It was good times, watching cool flicks and awaiting a repo to stop by. E
oops sorry for the spelling of your last name, Mr. Stobbe. Too much coffee this morning.E
Eleesa , good to hear that you’re doing well , and nice to see you here .
Scan those pictures !
DANGER! DANGER, WILL ROBINSON! A Phoenix upstart Denny’s has appropriated the “Gay Denny’s” moniker.
This is unacceptable!
From the article:
“It certainly has nothing to do with the ambiance of a late-night diner, where you sit at your table and eat and don’t talk to anyone you didn’t arrive with. The vibe here is social to an extreme; as many people are walking around rather than sitting down, and you feel like you can start a conversation with a stranger. It’s insistently, manically friendly. Late-night diners typically have an air of quiet menace, but here the carnivore atmosphere has given way to a carnival atmosphere.
“Surprisingly, there doesn’t seem to be any social apartheid between freaks and straights. A fat goth girl in a black-and-red-velvet cape chats to a couple of guys in tee shirts and jeans. A guy wearing black lipstick and lace gloves sits talking to a woman who looks like an elderly cheerleader. He looks about 18, perhaps one of the Dark and Misunderstood at ASU. She’s in her 40s, youth replaced with peroxide. I imagine she has a picture on her dresser of her in her cheerleading days, and the dress still hanging in her closet. As the guy talks and swishes and waves his hands, she laughs loudly and leans over the table at him. . .
“The atmosphere is vibrant with hormones, alcohol, nicotine and French fries. People yell to each other, reach for each other with arms or tongues. Overseeing it all is a waitress in her 30s who looks as straight as straight can be, and acts as though she’s serving in an ordinary diner. She greets her regulars with the same maternal air, regardless of age or freakishness.”
Sounds all too familiar. Good for Phoenix. They could use a little merriment.
I’ve always thought of Phoenix as San Diego with all the fun squeezed out.
Sounds like a bit of a “pick-up” Denny’s, kinda like the Marina Safeway aka “Dateway” up here. Yech. Yeah, Phoenix is where a lot of SDers go so they can buy a house. Ok, so you’ve got a house, but then what? Miserable, stifling heat. You’re basically a prisoner in that house. No thanks.
Marina Demographic Statistics:
White: 86.51%
Asian: 9.56%
Hispanic (of any race): 3.87%
Black: 0.51%
American Indian: 0.15%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander: 0.09%
Some other race population: 1.05%
Two or more races population: 2.13%
Probably THE whitest hood in all of SF.
(Sorry, I know this an SD-themed blog, but sometimes a little SF seeps in.)
>>I’ve always thought of Phoenix as San Diego with all the fun squeezed out.
roasted out. cooked. the fun drys out like a stick of beef jerky. does cactus have fun?
people move to Phoenix to be close to their dying relatives.
although, creativity comes from remote places. meat puppets and sun city girls came from there. and there is taliesin. I love the John Waters quality of a Phoenix Gay Denny’s amidst the population of white golf pants,don’t you?
Did anyone else catch the way the writer refers to the woman in her forties as “elderly”? Ouch.
Ouch. Yeah, that hurt. Just read over that one. 😉
I do have to say, in defense of AZ, I remember going to Tucson when we were kids to see the grandparents for Xmas. We stayed out in their Airstream trailer. To this day, I SWEAR I saw Santa & his sled going down the street. In the snow. Snow in the desert—I thought THAT was such a trip. Perhaps Grandma was cooking with Peyote buttons? We do have some Cherokee in our blood. Anyway, never saw Santa in good ol’ SD.
Oh! And also the cacti. Some of them had names. I clearly remember “Pinocchio,” so aptly named for his very long proboscis. I think he’s dead now.
Tucson’s not Phoenix! (Lucky Tucson.)
So I re-read the article, and I have a new theory: Phoenix 2008 is San Diego 1983.
If we drive past Gay Denny’s Phoenix, we’ll catch a glimpse of our younger selves waving behind the windows.
Well then, if that is the case, I’d say a road trip is in order!!! Man, can you imagine going back in time to the Ché days, knowing what we know now. 😉
:: Time travel. Courtesy of your friendly Gay Denny’s Phoenix ::
Cool! I’m driving to Phoenix right now to see what my younger self’s natural hair color is.
Totally Kristen! Let’s see…brown, dark brown, light brown, black w/ bangs (Bettie Page *R.I.P* phase), Ronald McDonald orange (when I tried to take that black and make it blonde—don’t EVER try that @ home). They say that your true hair color is when you were 5. (If that’s the case, my hair was very light brown w/ blonde streaks.) To get back to that original color, you’re supposed to take a photo of you at this age to the hairdresser and have them match it. (Still haven’t done this yet.) Of course my 15-yr-old daughter has exactly my natural color. I guess I could just take her with me. 🙂
Sorry boys if this hair talk is boring. Any of you color your hair? For the gray or just something different. I’ve always wondered ’bout that.
I get my ears waxed. If I didn’t, I would look like an Ewok.
OH Matthew! You just had to mention that!? Ok, another request to add to the Ferret one, PLEASE let your hair grow out. Ewoks are the cutest! I know, most people were annoyed by them. But not me. Wanted to live in their treehouses and chant their little ditties. I could get you a bear costume to round out the character. 😉
Blake! So good to see you here. You were one of a kind and a poet. I’ve seen pictures (thru my sis) of your family and they are BEAUTIFUL. Can we be friends again?
Blake good to see you here , and congrats on the family .
I’ve got a one year old boy and it really does make you wonder where that time has gone !
Anybody heard from Mike Gomez???
Hi Shawna, I haven’t heard from Mike since the late 80s.
Hi Dean,
This is way too cool, I don’t think we have seen each other for like 20 years? How are you?
>>How’d all this fabulousness end up on that stretch of El Cajon Blvd.?
In the late 60s through the late 70s-early 80s University Avenue from 5th through Park was a row of gay bars and cross-dressing theatres with burlesque queen shows. Denny’s was the after-hours place.
all of this..Saigon Palace and presidio and el cajon blvd and hillcrest talk
man it makes me think of “Roxy West”..wich at one time was where “Club ID” was, We Played “Roxy West” twice ..it was cool..it seems wherever we played involved a big mirror..either behind or to the side…there was this other place too..”Subic Bay”..they would get you drunk and tell you after you played that you drank your pay
I’m eating at Friendly’s in Pennsylvania. I can’t get my family to eat at Denny’s this road trip … Because the last time, it SUCKED.
Has Denny’s gotten worse? Or were we less picky?
BTW, jury’s out on Friendly’s. It looks a little like Farrell’s but smells a little like butt.
Denny’s is good for the money in Emeryville (near Oakland). And one of the few eateries open late. They closed the one in Japantown, S.F.
“A little” is still too much, thank you.
I think the food at Denny’s is the same as always, but ambience-wise they’re just like ever other chain coffee shop.
I’m at Denny’s near Cleveland this morning!! Anyone want anything?
I brought Dunhills.
The atmosphere at gay Denny’s was unique.
2 eggs over medium with hash browns, rye toast, orange juice, and tea, please. Some things should never change. Thanks for the invite, Matt. Enjoy the road trip!
Actually, the Denny’s in Emeryville closes at midnight. Gimme a break! And they get 2 stars in Yelp -- as I recall that’s the lowest score I’ve ever seen.
There are hardly any late night eating places in the bay area. I think this is the only large city with almost nowhere to eat late. I know of only one 24 hour place in SF, it’s always packed and the food’s not that great. In the East Bay there is just one 24-hr coffee shop (near the 23rd Ave bridge in Oakland nr. Alameda). What’s up with that?
In LA they have a 24-hour fine dining restaurant (Pacific Dining Car), plus scores of other 24-hour coffee shops, taco stands, hamburger stands, hot dog stands, etc. It’s not fair.
I hate those new Denny’s Diner signs that replaced the old googie signs. They’re NOT diners! They’re coffee shops. Go to the East Coast and they’ll show you what a real diner is (if there are any left), or watch the movie Diner.
I know, the Bay Area kind of rolls up the sidewalks at night. Rudy’s Can’t Fail Cafe, a little rock ‘n’ roll diner (does it qualify Dean?) that serves beer and wine in Emeryville is open ’til 1am. In S.F. there’s that place on Church near Market with the neon lighting and black and mirrored interior that’s expensive, not very good and has creepy ambience, but they’re open 24 hrs. And there’s Little Orphan Andy’s in the Castro. Isn’t Grub Steak open late too?
>>I know, the Bay Area kind of rolls up the sidewalks at night.
Always my biggest frustration with SF, yes. By contrast, New York is a ton o’ fun 24/7, but …
A. I just can’t do it no more! And
B. The last train back to our town runs before midnight. I can make it from Penn Station to Maplewood in ~30 minutes, but I am at the mercy of the train schedule.
>Go to the East Coast and they’ll show you what a real diner is (if there are any left)
Yeah- the East Coast still has real diners. I just went to a great 24-hour Greek/American one with about 12 choices of specialty grilled cheese sandwiches. And towering cakes. That you can order with ouzo if you want. And waitresses who look like sculptures of ringlet-haired goddesses. That’s a freakin’ diner.
Denny’s- is it’s own entity. Like Pringles are all right if you don’t expect them to be potato chips.
Guess you got to live in the City to play in the City. BART stops at something like 12:30, effectively excluding staying for the last set at a drinking establishment. And yeah, the burnout factor. One advantage to not drinking though, there’s always a designated driver around.
East Coast Diners -- yeah, we still have lots of them! Some still in old train cars, some 24 hour joints, some upscale nouveau cuisine a la old time diner favorites. i.e, Salmon Eggs Benedict, Meatloaf made with Guinness, chicken pot pies, ( sorry SD)…
Our favorites are the ones that still have early bird specials two eggs toast coffee $2.00.
Also, in RI we have New York System Diners which may or not have anything to do with New York. Egg Creams, Hot Weiners w/celery salt and mustard. Providence has a lot of diners with Souvlaki and Gyros too.
Our, (Providences), oldest diner has been pulled down from Federal Hill to downtown by horses every night for 100 years…Haven Bros.!!! A MUST see when in town.
“Kristen Tobiason Says:
July 14th, 2008 at 5:37 pm
Toby—
well put. Ditto to the “corporate garbage”. We boycott it as much as possible in our household. Especially television. I’ve become acutely aware of what I put in my brain, as well as my body these days. We had to work a lot harder for gratification that’s for sure. Make an effort and have minimal expectations. Kids today expect a huge payoff. But I think that will change. Everything does.”
It’s all those damn “my kid was kissass of the week at POS Elementary” bumper stickers. They get a friggin’ reward just for making a poo-poo. Seriously, a very different animal nowadays…
nobody gave me a reward when I made one. i feel cheated! can i have one now? seriously, I am going to make a sticker that says my son took a bigger shit than yours, with an accompanying solid brass potty trophy.
I remember going to Studio 9. And there was the Baskin Robbins Ice Cream place up from the Denny’s where the mods would hang out.
You totally forgot rudfords and nitelife bar
Wow this brings back some great memories……….
Studio 9/Dennys
Stratus
Rock Palace
Tijuana
Presidio Park
Friday night house parties in Bonita/Chula Vista
Club Zu
7 dayz a week 1982-1986
Much Love to you all…………………
Richie Tull
AKA Smiley
This was a HUGE part of my life in the 80s. So were the gay bars of San Diego. If anyone has pix from 70s/80s of Diablos, The Apartment, WCPC, Or the one on University that had drag queens PLEASE contact me! MORNAFAN93@GMAIL.COM
The bar in the Mississippi room in the mid-late 80s was Sorinos. Run by a big, loud, guy named…..Sorino! Also, if anyone has photos or video of the drag queens Ernestine Sands (Steve Rousselle), or Toni Ray (James Curtis) please let me know. Thanks!
The current Casbah location was a lesbian bar called The Club. Then it became a leather bar called The Bulc!
OMG! OMG! This soooo takes me back!!!!!!
Gay Denny’s on El Cajon Blvd? We all used to catch The Rocky Horror Picture Show at Midnight, down in OB at the Strand, then migrate to Denny’s for brecky…pre Mod days! We (the Roosters) played at the hotel many times!
We were in our 30s then, and now my kids are in their late 20s!
Now I live in the Rockys in Colorado (where there are NO Denny’s gay or other!) If I want a bloody SLURPEE, I have to drive 500 miles to Denver! Talk about culture shock!
Denny’s always meant Eggs, toast, and Hash browns, and if you were in the cash? A chocolate Malt with extra malt powder.
When we were there, there wasn’t much of a scene going, but Jimmie and I used to dine after his gig at the Comedy store.
Hi-
Just curious: whatever happened to Jimmie Rooster? I met him in 1981.
thx
Studio 9 has been a dental office for years now. I remember Kelly the ‘bartender’ and Del the blond dancing queen tranny (was told she passed away a few years ago). Remember the pool table in the back and smoking patio added in the front added later.
I remember Jay and Rene redhawk they were the Mad Max punks we hung out a lot also I dated Barney Firks in the early 80 s and remember so many mentioned Chris Negro Scott and Mike also does anyone remember Del he/ she was a regular at studio 9 and rudfords I also hung out with SDSH do you remember chuy , Arturo Aguirre and Taz who is now a girl go figure and how about the dancing skeletons mods with out there cowels on there scotters there are so many I could mention and so many I forgot to time we should start a Facebook chat about that period the Adams avenue theater Wabash Hall skeleton club boys club. Always going to presidio on the scoots I’m giving up my age by saying remember The Battalion of Saints !! George is still alive and giging