Lucky After Dark

Gay and Lesbian Night Club Communities in Pittsburgh, PA (1960-1990)

Harrison Apple
Artist-in-Residence, Center for the Arts in Society, Pittsburgh Queer History Project

Invisibility still dominates the discussion of GLBT community formation in the 20th-century. Assumptions that "gay life" evolved in San Francisco, New York, or LA while smaller cities lagged behind or remained off-the-grid are rebuked by the example of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where a queer working-class underworld evolved in reaction to local conditions, opportunities, and restraints.

Harrison Apple, founder and curator of the Pittsburgh Queer History Project, and Dr. Tim Haggerty, senior curator, will be presenting a preview of the June 2014 exhibit “Lucky After Dark.” Utilizing an extensive archive of primary source material, collected by bar owners and community members from 1960-1990, we will navigate a fascinating history of taboo social worlds, criminal demimondes, and the emergence of a "gay and lesbian" community.

Tuesday, April 29; 4:30 PM
Giant Eagle Auditorium (Baker Hall A51)