Special Issues
50 years in 50 weeks: 1984: Bathhouse battles
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.
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.
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.
The April 10 tenth anniversary issue, at a whopping 68 pages, featured a disco dance event on the cover, and looked back on the 'Bay Area Reporter's first decade. Included was an expansive series of articles on gay theater companies.
The 1980 film "Cruising," starring Al Pacino, was the topic of a front-page story in our January 31, 1980 issue.
While News stories covered the May 21 White Night Riots, in lighter fare, drag theatre in 1979's Arts section included an interview, ads and a review of Divine's show, 'The Neon Woman,' while porn stars served as a lure to a members-only health club.
The Bay Area Reporter's May 24, 1979 issue reported on the riots that took place May 21, after Dan White was found guilty of voluntary manslaughter, rather than murder, in the November 27, 1978 assassination of gay San Francisco supervisor Harvey Milk.
While the Tom Robinson Band, then known for the inspiring folk-derived anthem, "Glad to be Gay," had a performance at the Old Waldorf (444 Battery St.), the venue's promoters used the ad to politicize their pro-gay presence.
This week's historical look at previous issues of the Bay Area Reporter goes to Harvey Milk's historic San Francisco supervisor win in 1977.
The B.A.R.'s June 23, 1977 illustrated cover, an ad for The Balcony bar, took a macho cartoonish focus with art by Chuck Arnett, who was known more famously for his mural on the wall of the Tool Box bar.
The 'advertorial' cover of the March 18, 1976 Bay Area Reporter did not include news of our nation's Bicentennial celebrations, but instead the hit production of 'The Rocky Horror Show' and inside a 2-page interview with Arnold Schwarzenegger.
This week's installment of our 50 years in 50 weeks feature recognizes the late state Senator Milton Marks, whom the B.A.R. long supported.
For this week's 50 years in 50 weeks feature, we turn to the August 7, 1975 issue that promoted the second annual Castro Street Fair.
1975 was a great year for B.A.R. covers, but the most legendary image of the year is assuredly that of Empress Doris riding an elephant down Polk Street for the annual Gay Freedom Day Parade. How did it happen? And why?
As advertised in the April 17, 1974 'Bay Area Reporter,' the EndUp's Jockey Short Contest, immortalized by Armistead Maupin in his best-selling 'Tales of the City' series, took place frequently at the South of Market nightclub.
This week goes back to 1974 and the MCC confab in SF,
January 24, 1973's issue of the 'Bay Area Reporter' features reportage on the Gaslight nightclub's legal battle to allow nude gogo dancers.
The B.A.R.'s wayback machine travels to 1973 for a look at the candidates for emperor and empress.
The Bay Area Reporter's 50 years in 50 weeks feature continues with this front page from September 20, 1972
The Covered Wagon bar hosted the 1972 Mr. Cowboy contest, but things didn't go well, as reported in the B.A.R.'s May 17 issue. Many in attendance were "stirred into a frenzy of accusations, charges and counter-charges of fraud, fake fix and cheat."
In honor of the Bay Area Reporter's 50th anniversary, we're culling from our archive to feature a different year of the paper each week.