79:“Because we can't go anywhere else, because as gay women we have been especially ghettoized here in Boston, and because the conditions at gay bars are by and large determined by the straight world, those in control know they can be as oppressive as they want. Jacques is terribly crowded and a fire hazard on weekends. Women entering the bar were subject to taunts by men, who not only up badly needed room but also got their kicks leering and propositioning the women here. Sanitary conditions hardly exist at all. We are effectively ghettoized, since dancing between members of the same sex and other behavior, which the law deems to call lewd and lascivious, are illegal.”
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neighborhood grew into an affluent residential area, residents complained of the noise and rowdy bar patrons. In the early 1970s, Jacques and The Other Side were the subjects of many police reports of prostitution, drugs, and violent crime in the area. The bars became a point of contention within the
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Nightclub operator Henry Vara opened the bar in 1938 under the name
Jacques Restaurant. By the mid-1940s it had become a gay bar. In 1967 Vara opened The Other Side across the street, taking over the liquor license of the Punch Bowl, another gay bar that had closed down. Vara was a prolific nightclub
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In the protracted legal battle, the Boston licensing board ruled in 1975 that the bars would need to relocate or lose their liquor licenses, a decision that was overturned by the
Massachusetts Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission (ABCC). The licensing board later ruled in 1976 that Jacques and The
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Through the years, Jacques has faced several threats to its existence. In 1965, city council member
Frederick Langone proposed that the area be "revitalized" and the bars bulldozed, stating, “We will be better off without these incubators of homosexuality and indecency. ... We must uproot these
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Following a number of police reports, in 1975, Henry Vara and Frank
Cashman, the operators of Jacques and The Other Side, appeared in hearings of the licensing board. Facing threats to the bars' licenses, Cashman alleged under oath that Deputy Mayor
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began hosting the drag burlesque show
Perestroika in 2006, which featured various drag queens each month. The bar's alternative drag show #NoFilter was listed as a 2018 Boston's Best winner by
92:, others argued that opponents of the bars merely objected to the poor, gender-nonconforming, and "trashy" gay clientele, and that the police were in fact the source of violence in the area.
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Other Side must move their closing hours from 2 a.m. to midnight. Jacques remained controversial among Bay
Village residents well into the 2000s and 2010s.
126:. In addition to drag performances, Jacques Cabaret hosts parties, karaoke nights, comedy shows and open mic nights, talent shows, and musical acts.
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in New York City, and several more bars in other states. Jacques
Cabaret has remained a family business throughout its history.
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demanded that the bar, as one of the only havens for gay women in Boston, provide better conditions for its patrons:
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owner, at one time holding the most liquor licenses in Boston; he was also the owner of the
Kenmore Club in Boston,
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gay community. While some sympathized with the Bay
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Penn, Evan & Pilataxi, Martin
Barrera. "A Queer History of Boston".
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got her start hosting her popular monthly burlesque show, Perestroika.
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296:"Pride and Progress: A Journey Through Boston's LGBTQ+ Safe Spaces"
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441:"Perestroika drag show celebrates six years and the holidays"
243:"Henry Vara Obituary - Visitation & Funeral Information"
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Jacques hosts multiple drag shows per week. Drag performer
416:"Feb 01, 1976, page 64 - The Boston Globe at Boston Globe"
392:"Oct 17, 1975, page 1 - The Boston Globe at Boston Globe"
368:"May 16, 1975, page 1 - The Boston Globe at Boston Globe"
344:"May 09, 1975, page 1 - The Boston Globe at Boston Globe"
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Jacques Cabaret's motto is "All roads lead to Jacques."
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had attempted to solicit a $ 50,000 donation to Mayor
465:"#NoFilter at Jacques Cabaret | Improper Bostonian"
294:Leventhal Map & Education Center (2023-09-13).
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
