Shelly's Legwas the first openly operatedgay barinSeattle.It operated from 1973 until sometimec. 1978.
Founding
editShelly Bauman
editShelly Bauman was born in Chicago on July 23, 1947.[1]She studied dance there until she was 16, at which time she became arunawaydue to family tension.[2]She performedstripteasein Chicago, Hawaii, and Florida, moving toRainier Valley, Seattle,in 1968 to continue her profession there.[2]She quit dancing after the Bastille Day accident.[2]As a consequence of the accident she founded Shelly's Leg.
Bauman had an eventful life beyond that, surviving two fires and living in Florida and Hawaii as well as Chicago and Seattle.[1]She died in her home inBremerton, Washington,on November 18, 2010.[1]
Loss of leg
editOn July 14, 1970, at the SeattleBastille Dayparade inPioneer Square, Seattle,Bauman was in attendance enjoying the parade. At 10pm a parade consisting of aDixielandband, two cars, and an oldfire engineexited theSinking Shipto begin a performance.[3]Thewater cannonon the fire engine was set up to fireconfetti.[3]The cannon was fired, and somehow it did not shoot confetti, but rather a ball of wet paper which hit Bauman.[3]Bauman's lower abdomen was severely injured, and doctors were forced to amputate her left leg.[3]
When Bauman recovered, she pursued a lawsuit against the cannon operator, the parade organizers, and the city of Seattle.[3]Her case settled with her receivingUS$330,000.[3]She used this money to found anightclubwhich she named "Shelly's Leg".[3]
Nightclub
editBauman purchased a hotel inPioneer Square, Seattle,and in 1973 converted it into agay barand nightclub.[3]Bauman would attend parties there in her wheelchair.[4]
The dancing at Shelly's Leg came to an abrupt end at around 1am on December 4, 1975. A fuel truck carrying an attached tank trailer struck a guardrail and jackknifed on the slick asphalt of the lower deck of the nearby Highway 99 viaduct near South Washington and South Main streets. The trailer detached from the truck, hit a roadway column, overturned and split open, spilling a river of flaming fuel onto the cars of a Burlington Northern Railway train, some parked vehicles and the building housing Shelly's Leg. The wall of fire was so hot, it shattered the disco's windows. Everyone made it out safely through a rear door.[5]
Bauman and her co-proprietors were able to renovate the club using insurance money. Nevertheless, the club's popularity was permanently damaged by the incident. Ultimately, the club's final demise was caused by a financial dispute among the three owners that led to the club being padlocked by the Internal Revenue Service, and Shelly's Leg thus abruptly closed.[6]
The sign from the nightclub is now an exhibit atMuseum of History & Industry (MOHAI).[7]
References
edit- ^abcSGN staff writer (December 3, 2010)."Shelly Bauman, founder of legendary Shelly's Leg, dies".Seattle Gay News.38(49).RetrievedJanuary 10,2015.
- ^abcBurton, Lynsi (December 21, 2010)."Shelly's left leg – Founder of Seattle's first openly gay bar spent the last eight years of her wild, tragic life in Bremerton".bremertonpatriot.RetrievedJanuary 10,2015.
- ^abcdefghZwickel, Jonathan (September 26, 2014)."Get Down Tonight".cityartsonline.Archived from the original on October 4, 2014.RetrievedJanuary 10,2015.
{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^Lacitis, Erik (July 9, 2000)."Beloved Seattle".community.seattletimes.nwsource.RetrievedFebruary 8,2015.
- ^Beason, Tyrone (March 2, 2017)."On the eve of the Alaskan Way Viaduct's demolition, a look back at what we love – and love to hate – about it".The Seattle Times.RetrievedMarch 2,2017.
- ^Stevens, Jeff (November 13, 2014)."November 13, 1973: Shelly's Leg".The Seattle Star.RetrievedMarch 3,2017.
- ^McNerthney, Casey (December 6, 2010)."Woman behind gay bar, Seattle's first disco dies".seattlepi.RetrievedJanuary 10,2015.
External links
edit- Shelly's Leg,a four-minute video presented by Seattle'sMOHAI
- a historyproduced by the Northwest Lesbian & Gay History Museum Project