dsn Misfits
Assuage
the Rage?
Continued from page 19
I can’t,” he says, citing his attorney’s order.
As for the current status of Swerdlow’s life,
he says he’s looking for part-time work— thus
far to no avail— and writing a novel.
“Gone with the Wind will become G ay with
the Wind,” he laughs.
yan knows he’s got his work cut out for
him as the owner of Misfits.
P
First, he concedes Swerdlow continues
to have a loyal fol
lowing among some
queer youth.
“Lanny is wor
shipped,” he says.
“It’s pretty stressful
and it is like walk
ing a fine line.”
Second, Ryan’s
business and person
al style is vastly
different from
Swerdlow’s. For
example, Ryan says
he has voluntarily
agreed to a curfew
call in his club
alerting underage
patrons a few min
utes before the city’s
curfew takes effect.
He’s alienated
some by zapping
Hollyrock, as well as choosing the name
Misfits.
“Some of the kids feel it’s a slam at them,”
he admits. “But I don’t think being a misfit is a
bad thing.”
Indeed, he notes, “queer” used to be consid
ered a derogatory descriptive; now it’s
embraced by many in the gay, lesbian, bi and
trans communities.
Nudity and graphic displays of sexuality
were sometimes incorporated into performers’
acts at Swerdlow’s clubs. That kind of stuff is a
no-go at Misfits, says Ryan, who also has a
“zero tolerance” drug policy.
During the grand opening weekend held
Aug. 7 and 8, one performer flashed a little tit,
and “that person will never perform [at Misfits]
again,” Ryan says.
n a particular Thursday evening at
Misfits, Pete Ryan looks pleased. He’s
proud to show off how he’s changed
Lanny Swerdlow’s Evolution, a k a the Rage,
into his own club.
People are starting to drift in, though it’s
still early. A nondrinking lesbian group should
arrive any minute, Ryan expects. They come
to Misfits, says Ryan, because they appreciate
the alcohol-ftee environment.
Another change is Ryan’s office, half of
what was once called Hollyrock. Ryan turned
half the room, which previously offered differ
ent music than the main dance floor, into his
office. T he other half now offers an area to sit
near the dance floor.
I
Ryan stresses that he’s enacting these poli
cies because he’s striving to create a safe, fun,
healthy and inoffensive environment for his
patrons: "I want to give this club back to the
community."
Despite the changes, the layout remains
generally intact, as does— perhaps most impor
tantly— the music.
The omnipresent icon Darcelle XV, a gay
nightclub owner herself, performed during the
grand opening.
“I think the club will play an important
role,” she says. “It keeps kids off the street and
gives them a place to get together....
Unfortunately, in 1998,1 don’t think any place
can be kept totally drug free, but hopefully it
will attract a higher balance of people who
don’t do all that stuff.”
Maria Council of the Imperial Sovereign
Rose Court also performed. Council, 34, says
she “grew up going to the City.”
“And I have to admit, sometimes I felt like
poor service from
a limo company.
According to
Ryan, as part of a
birthday surprise
for his partner, Pat
Arnold (whom he
repeatedly refers to
as his “other
h a lf’), he request
ed “two things: a
Lincoln and a
driver who was
gay-friendly.”
Much to his
dismay, Ryan says,
a Mercury Marquis
pulled up, driven
by a “very unap
pealing man” who
Pete Ryan
kept peeking at
the duo during the ride.
“I paid about $300 for that
lousy service,” he says. “I decided
then to start my own company.”
T he Pantheon fleet features
chauffeur-driven six- and
10-passenger limos— including a
custom-made baby acquired from
the Pointer Sisters that includes a
three-way vanity. One Pantheon
package is called “A Night with
Darcelle,” which includes a ride
to and from Darcelle XV s club in
Old Town, door cover, dinner and
a group photo.
Council says Ryan donated
Pantheon services to escort per
formers to Peacock in the Park,
the annual queer drag bash in Washington
Park.
“It was quite gracious,” she notes.
Ryan and his brother, Jerry, have also estab
lished the Still People Foundation, designed to
raise funds for spinal cord injury research.
Ryan explains that Jerry was in an auto
accident a few years ago, leaving him paralyzed.
Recounting the incident still brings tears to his
eyes.
“You know, I just want to give something
back,” he says, later adding, “I know how
quickly life can change. I want to do what I
can while I can.”
■ M isfits C afé «S i D iscotheque is located at
333 S.W. Park Ave. in Portland. For more infor
mation, call 242-2899.
it was unsafe, given the drugs and drinking,”
she says. “I didn’t feel any of that [at Misfits].
No longer were there those nooks and crannies
and dark spots where that kind of activity
could happen."
She adds, “I truly believe Pete has the kids’
best interest at heart and wants to help main
stream them into the adult community.”
Meanwhile, Lt. C liff Madison of the
Portland Police Bureau says the department
looks forward to “keeping the lines of commu
nication open with the new owner.”
or his part, Ryan will tell you he loves peo
ple and enjoys helping out when he can.
He’s also a doer.
Two years ago, he founded Pantheon
Limousine Service. He did so after getting
F
Ryan says Hollyrock attracted a “G oth ”
element. T h e cliché holds that these are the
brooding kids dressed in black. They don’t
lend themselves to easy definitions. Neither
do they lend themselves to winning any favors
with Ryan.
“T h e first change I made was to shut down
Hollyrock,” says Ryan, explaining that he
thought it was a magnet for dmg traffic and
that the space hardly paid for itself with the
clients it brought in.
He offers an anecdote of a customer look
ing for dmgs at Misfits: Ryan says this cus
tomer, after soliciting a large number of other
young club-goers and coming up dry, congrat
ulated Ryan on his strict anti-dnig policy.
“T hat really made me feel proud,” recalls
Ryan.
Other patrons have remarks about the
changes as well. Joshua Bullock, 20, is a bisex
ual from Portland who frequented the Rage
and Evolution. W hile Bullock offers that he’s
not into the “drug scene,” he doesn’t think
there ever was much of a problem with dmgs
at die club, or that the situation has changed.
And he misses Hollyrock. He also misses some
of the old patrons.
“A lot of the regulars have stopped com
ing,” he says.
Kevin McIntosh, a gay 18-year-old from
Portland, agrees that the loss of Hollyrock is a
big difference ftom Evolution, but he also
points out a change for the better: cleanliness.
McIntosh agrees with Bullock that a lot of
Evolution regulars have chosen not to patron
ize Misfits.
“I know a lot of people who stopped com
ing— a lot o f people loved Lanny,” says
McIntosh, implying that some would see
patronizing the site in a post-Swerdlow era as
an act of betrayal.
Similarly, McIntosh himself is a big fan of
Swerdlow. But that doesn’t stop him from lik
ing new owners Ryan and his partner, Jerry,
too.
“I think they’re awesome guys," McIntosh
admits. “They’ll do an excellent job support
ing gay youth.”
And it’s the youth Ryan says he has in
mind when enforcing his tough anti-drug line:
“I have no tolerance when [drug use] can shut
down the future for gay kids in Portland,"
warns Ryan. “You’re affecting future genera
tions.”
■ Reported by Will O’B ryan