Bar Rumors: It's not a rumor this time: the Gay 90s has been sold

Lavender Magazine has a basic article about the announcement. "According to [Gay 90s owner Mike] Bloom, the new ownership has assured him that the venerable Downtown Minneapolis landmark will remain what it has been for five decades: a bar serving primarily the gay community. As well, he relates, the present staff will remain in place after the transition, with the exception of Bloom and longtime manager Joey Yankovich, both of whom are retiring."

While reading that the Gay 90s would be undergoing an ownership change, one that many in the community say is much needed, it reminded me of the long standing feud between the Gay 90s and Lavender was only recently resolved. DeAnna Miller, owner of the now defunct Queue Press, was there when it happened:

One round went something like this: focusPOINT wrote a story suggesting that Lavender was involved in some sketchy accounting for one of the Pride block parties. The story was set up so that it was Lavender versus a bar called the Gay '90s. And it was clear that focusPOINT believed that Lavender had at least engaged in financial impropriety if not outright theft.

So Lavender, after trashing focusPOINT inside -- on the pages of -- their next issue, ran an ad on their own back page explaining that from now on, they would no longer cover anything at the '90s news, charity events, anything, nothing. You will never see the '90s in Lavender again. Then, I think, focusPOINT turned around and started beating up on Lavender's ad sales manager. It was really, really ugly. And personal.

That was back in 1998 or 1999, and the Gay 90s would not grace the pages of Lavender for another 10 years, until late last year when ads for the Gay 90s would begin to appear again.

Ah, the community drama.

Image via Flickr member Blese.