“Finally, I’m about to get lucky!” I thought. But no, it was Stuart Black himself.
Who the hell is Mr. Black, anyway? If you go out at night, you’ve undoubtedly heard of him.The name’s tongue-in-cheek. Mr. Black is a perpetual after-party, a late-night club tradition for muscle men, twinks, downtown misfits and party animals of all stripes.You get there late and stay even later. “Mr. Black is the gay club that straight kids go to,” a promoter pal told me.
Mr. Black has been closed for a month or so but now has a permanent home after being a roaming party for almost a year.You can get your freak on at the newly renovated space at 199 Bowery.
Mr. Black first opened in January 2006 at Broadway and Bleecker, but in September 2007 the NYPD raided the joint and busted 32 people under the nuisance abatement law, claiming staff and management were aiding and abetting drug use in the club. “It was best to leave,” Black said. “They always go after what’s popular.” Gay clubs tend to be targeted, according to word on the street. Black says Manhattan has become a “hostile environment” for clubs. “If anything I could have retired from New York City nightlife and taken my blueprint to other parts of the country with half the stress, but I love what New York has to offer.” Indeed, Black hopes to open a weekly party in Boston and has already started a party at Bardot in Los Angeles.A one-off in Chicago may be next.
One-Half Nelson is one half of the Saturday hosts, Amazonian in a low-cut black jump-suit, outer-space shades and his trademark, a crazy hat—in this case, an oversized black number with a purple fox fur on top. “I’ve worked with Mr. Black for years,” he proclaimed. He abruptly jumped up onto the white leather banquette, posing with sexy scenester Jackie Birdy.
“You’re Gerry Visco?” Sophia Lamar asked me, her auburn hair twisted into a knot. “I thought you were a man!” “You’re a Scorpio?” she asked. “No way!
I’m a Cancer,” I replied, ruining her theory. “I’m a Gemini, I see things,” Lamar said.“You called me a club kid in an article, but I’m so much more. I’m a model, a singer, I’ve done a lot.” I apologized.The columns are short, I said. “That’s why I called you ‘the elegant Sophia Lamar,’ I replied. “Well, you’re right about that,” she told me.
