Ziegfeld’s/Secrets entertainment complex, the dual-bar establishment that featured drag shows downstairs and nude male dancing on the upper level, has shut down, according to a post on the nightclub’s official Facebook page.
The D.C. bar, which had served the LGBTQ community for 40 years, relocated in the mid-2000s from southeast to southwest following the announcement of plans to build Nationals Stadium.
In the post, the club’s owners wrote: “Ziegfeld’s/Secrets regrettably has been forced to close our doors. We all have been honored to bring you the best in entertainment for 40 years. Regrettably, the option to stay and even have a closing event has been taken from us during this crisis. To the many dancers, drag queen, bartenders, DJs, and support staff over the years, thank you for making us one of DC’s best venues. Stay safe and healthy. Til next time….”
According to the D.C. Office for Tax and Revenue, the building was purchased on April 23 by Buzzard 1800 Half Street Property Owner LLC, a limited liability corporation whose address matches that of local real estate developer MRP Realty.
The Washington Business Journal reports that MRP Realty signed an agreement in 2016 to acquire several nearby properties, as well as the Ziegfeld’s/Secrets complex, and develop them into a 300,000-square-foot “multifamily-over-retail project.”
“It’s not like they just came out of the blue,” says Steve Dellerba in an exclusive interview with Metro Weekly. “This area has been slated to be developed for years — stadiums, condos, etc.” Dellerba, who co-owns the club with Allan Carroll, says they have been asked to completely vacate the building within three weeks. “I’m sorry that we can’t continue it,” he says, “but that’s what happens when you don’t own the building.”
Dellerba is disappointed that, because of the current state of the coronavirus pandemic, the club will not be able to hold a proper closing party. He is hopeful, however, that Ziegfeld’s/Secrets will be able to re-open in a new location at some point down the line. “But I don’t think the environment is right at this moment,” he says, pointing to the current state of the city’s stay-at-home orders.
Ella Fitzgerald, a local drag legend who headlined the venue’s weekly drag performances, also took to her personal Facebook page to thank longtime fans.
“I have just received a phone call that Ziegfeld’s/Secrets is officially closed for good!” Fitzgerald wrote. “I personally would like to thank each and everyone of you for your many years of loyalty, support and dedication to Ziegfeld’s/Secrets. May you always treasure the fun times that we shared for the last 40 years. We hope to see all of you on the other side of this pandemic. May God bless you, your family and friends.”
Dellerba is similarly grateful to the community, which has patronized Ziegfeld’s/Secrets for the past four decades.
“We appreciate all the support,” he says. “The people over the years that have done so much for the business in coming out and supporting it through everything. It’s been a good ride. We love you and we will miss you.”
Police arrested a former Jackson Police Department officer who allegedly killed his ex-boyfriend in a bloody attack at a Jackson, Mississippi apartment complex.
Police mounted a search for 33-year-old Marcus Johnson in connection with the murder of 25-year-old Carlos Collins, a registered nurse who hailed from Yazoo City.
Collins was killed on April 9 at the Tapestry Northridge Apartments, off Parkway Drive near Old Canton Road, in the northeastern part of Jackson.
According to WAPT, members of Collins family said police told them that Collins succumbed to gunshot wounds sustained during the attack, and that an axe was used during the murder.
Katy O'Brian has frozen mid-sentence, her warm expression fixed in time. It's the second time during a 45-minute Zoom call that technology has glitched.
"I don't know what's going on with my internet," she apologizes, returning to the call moments later. "It's crazy."
What is especially crazy is how Katy O'Brian's career has blown up over the past few years. From a stint in Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania as take-no-crap rebel Jentorra, to The Mandalorian, as comms officer Elia Kane, to her latest stint as Jackie, an aspiring bodybuilder who falls in love with Kristen Stewart's Lou in the vibrant, thrilling Love Lies Bleeding, O'Brian is leaving no corner of the cinematic cultural landscape unexplored. Later this summer, she'll be seen in the eagerly anticipated Twisters in a role designed for comic relief, she hints.
Pride flags are officially banned from flying above U.S. embassies.
The provision, part of a larger $1.2 trillion bipartisan spending bill to keep the government funded through September 30, was signed into law by President Biden on March 23.
Under the provision, no government funds may be used to fly or display any flag over any State Department facilities, unless that flag is the United States flag, a state or tribal government flag, an official agency flag, the POW/MIA flag, the Hostage and Wrongful Detainee flag, or -- as in the case of embassies -- the sovereign flag of other countries, reports NBC News.
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