t march fi. 1998
28
PROFILE
....................▼....................
From one good book to others
have to admit to a bit of bias in support of
Rick Spencer’s claim that his bookstore,
Gai-Pied, is committed to being a full-ser
vice resource for the gay male community.
Hick Spencer preaches community
The evidence rests on the shelves of his store
and with his deeds.
from a different kind of pulpit
I first met Spencer in April 1996, while 1
by R u p e r t K in n a r d
was laid up in the hospital recuperating from a
that coincided with stumbling across C.C.
Spencer is very pleased with the support
spinal cord injury. He had read about my acci
Slaughter’s, a gay bar. During his third visit to
he’s received from Holly Mulcahey, owner of
dent in Just Out and came by to personally
the bar he met the man of his dreams, Allen
It’s My Pleasure, a Portland book and gift store
deliver something I had ordered from his store
Forbes, a hearing-impaired man who would
that caters largely to a lesbian clientele.
weeks before. Along with exhibiting a wonder
become his lover for 10 years. Forbes passed
ful bedside manner, Spencer is exuberant
away of AIDS-related-illness in March 1995.
rowing up in North Carolina as a right-
when it comes to his dedication to going
Later that year, Spencer decided to start his
wing Christian, Spencer even spent time
beyond being considered simply a bookseller.
own business. The decision to open a book
behind a pulpit as an evangelist at age 17.
Spencer is the owner of Gai-Pied (pro
store won out over the possibility of opening a
But upon turning 21, he recalls, he began
nounced “gay pee-ay”), and makes his commu
coffee shop.
questioning everything.
nity presence known yearly with booths at
Though he had considered the Hawthorne
In 1984 Spencer received a Christmas pre
both the Portland and Vancouver Pride cele
area for his venture, Spencer says he feels for
sent that changed his life: a ticket to visit his
brations. And in order to better serve the com
munity, Gai-Pied has become a
part of the information super
highway with its new Web site
(www.gaipied.com).
Spencer seems proud of
building virtual bridges with gay
men from places as near as rural
Oregon to as far away as
Mexico, a market that he says is
rarely tapped. Spencer admits,
however, that his main goals for
Gai-Pied are to stay on top of
the most recent book and gay-
themed theatrical video releases
and to secure his clients’ special
orders. (Such orders usually take
three to seven days, depending
on the publisher.)
While some of the materials
available at Gai-Pied may
appeal to a wider audience,
Spencer is focused on serving
the gay male community.
“I believe Gai-Pied will
remain a men’s store,” he says.
“There have been requests from
some women to carry lesbian-
oriented material, but 1 don’t
think so.”
Spencer says he believes
that bookstores in most cities
try to combine lesbian and gay
literature. But Portland, he Rick Spencer fine tunes a display table under Sam’s watchful eye
says, is accustomed to separate stores.
sister in Portland. That visit, scheduled to last
tunate to have opened Gay-Pied at a crucial
“Men are more comfortable in an all-male
two weeks, has never ended. Spencer loves
time in the development of the small business
space as a community setting," Spencer rea
corridor on Northeast Broadway between 20th
Portland so much that he’s never returned to
sons. “My understanding is that years ago there
and 28th avenues. With the Metropolitan
North Carolina, where his 81-year-old,
was a store in Old Town that started as a men’s
Community Church of Portland and a number
staunchly conservative Christian father keeps
bookstore, but eventually added lesbian-
the home fires burning.
of gay- and lesbian-owned businesses nearby,
About a year after settling in the Rose City,
oriented material and ended up closing down.
the area is welcoming to gay folks. Another
I like to focus on men only, to do justice to
Spencer says, he came to grips with the possi
plus: parking is plentiful. Within two or three
bility of his being gay. A realization, he says,
what is available.”
months of Gay-Pied’s grand opening, a liaison
i
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C E R T I F I E D
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(503)225-1359 2701 NW Vaughn, Suite 424 Portland, OR 97210
from the mayor’s office stopped by to check
out the new business and to offer support.
As further proof of his willingness to put
extra energy into the service he provides,
Spencer was able to turn the only ordeal he
has faced since the stores opening into a posi
tive experience. For a time there were prob
lems with some street youth hanging out in
front of the store and hassling customers. The
police response was disappointingly slow, he
says. Taking matters into his own hands,
Spencer says he opened a dialogue with some
of the youth and was able to answer questions
they had about being gay. He reports that he’s
had very little trouble since.
Spencer says he was able to gain the kids’
respect and impressed upon them that he
“didn’t choose to be gay.” He finds his most
rewarding conversations with them involve
issues about accepting people for who they are.
He is currently working with
two fledgling groups for queer
youth, trying to stock relevant
materials, and often talks to
young people who wander into
the store.
Though Spencer presently
lives in Vancouver, he says he
would like to move to a neigh
borhood closer to Gai-Pied.
Always looking to improve his
store, Spencer hopes to add on
that coffee shop and has devel
oped a club for frequent book
buyers.
“If you buy 12 books over
time, you get the 13 th free,” he
explains. “And we’re the only
store in the area that offers
hardcover book rentals.”
Gai-Pied also welcomes
trade-ins for credit and is work
ing on a video-rental discount
program.
Spencer confesses a belief
in trying to use his business to
make a difference in the com
munity. He says the point he
stresses to young people is
“What good is life if you only
choose to work for money?”
And he continues to make
sure his actions speak louder
than his words.
■ Author and former Portlander T om
NUSSBAUM will read from and sign copies of his
new book, Completing the Course, from 1 to
2:30 pm Saturday, April 18, at Gai-Pied
Bookstore, 2544 N E Broadway. For more
information, call 331-1125 or e-mail
books@gaipied. com.
"W e'd like to get to know you"
A special introduction; Mention you saw tins ad in Just Out and
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