The October 13, 1988 issue of the Bay Area Reporter had two interesting stories on the front page.

The lengthier arts section in the October 29, 1987 B.A.R. focused on the boom in 'gay and lesbian' literary subjects and reviews, from lesbian theater history to the work of James Broughton and a then-new author, Christopher Bram.

One of the Bay Area Reporter's most famous covers greeted Pope John Paul II in 1987.

Determined to pick some prominent arts event from 1986's Bay Area Reporter issues, what stuck out more prominently was the high number of phone sex ads.

The Bay Area Reporter celebrated its 15th anniversary and the 17th observance of the Stonewall riots in our June 26, 1986 issue, which also marked San Francisco Pride.

Seven years after he shot and killed gay San Francisco supervisor Harvey Milk and mayor George Moscone, the end came for Dan White when he died by suicide October 21, 1985 in the garage of his family's home in the Excelsior district.

Our weekly search for the year's best item stopped still for a fascinating two-page interview with the late great Sylvester. The feature served as an advance to his now-legendary Feb. 4 One Night Only concert at The Castro Theatre.

In 1984, the AIDS epidemic was raging and some officials in San Francisco thought that if the city closed bathhouses, which were frequented by gay men, the spread of the disease could be slowed.

Let's gander at a June 23 interview with Tom Ammiano, gay comic and later, politico and memoirist. Writer Scott Treimel's ruminative feature focuses on the politics of Tom's "sissy" stand-up style.

Bay Area Reporter founding publisher Bob Ross was appointed to the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway, and Transportation District Board of Directors.

1982 saw the Bay Area Reporter moving to a weekly format, which provided twice as much fascinating coverage, including the year's best in arts, and a popular Dog Show on Castro Street with an appearance by Shirley MacLaine.

The 1982 San Francisco Lesbian/Gay Freedom Day parade took a tragic turn when 19-year-old Darryl Anderson was killed when he fell under the wheels of a float.

As Frameline celebrates its 45th anniversary, let's look back at coverage of their fifth anniversary in late June 1981, and the adult film advertised on the next page.

The Bay Area Reporter first mentioned what became HIV/AIDS about a month after the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's notice on June 5, 1981.