![gay bar new orleans fire gay bar new orleans fire](https://d3u63wyfuci0ch.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/28151707/46226815_10156232930936785_807247723282563072_n.jpg)
Gay bar new orleans fire movie#
Mitchell's children were visiting from out of town and watched the same movie seven times as they waited for their father's return. Both died in the fire, their remains found clinging to each other. MCC assistant pastor George "Mitch" Mitchell managed to escape, but returned in an attempt to rescue his partner (they considered themselves married based on a civil ceremony they had two years previously), Louis Horace Broussard. His charred remains would be visible to onlookers for hours afterward, recorded in many pictures taken of the front of the building in the aftermath of the 16 minute fire.
![gay bar new orleans fire gay bar new orleans fire](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2018/07/05/arts/05upstairslounge2/merlin_140594160_29212a35-bbfe-411d-a9b7-e223db48c3ff-articleLarge.jpg)
![gay bar new orleans fire gay bar new orleans fire](https://southfloridagaynews.com/images/2020/V11iss25/lgbtfireWM_624_2020.png)
Gay bar new orleans fire windows#
Reverend Bill Larson of the MCC removed an air conditioning unit from the bottom of one of the floor to ceiling windows and was attempting to get out when the upper pane of glass fell on top of him, pinning him to the window frame half in the building and half out. The flames on Boggs were extinguished by the owner of a neighbouring bar, but he died on the 10th of July (16-days later), from third degree burns to 50% of his body. Luther Boggs was one who came through the window in flames after pushing his female friend through the gap. Several people managed to squeeze through, some still burning when they reached the ground below. Others saw the floor to ceiling windows as the most promising means of escape despite the fact that there were safety bars on the windows with a 14 inch gap between them to prevent dancers from breaking through the glass. Rasmussen immediately led some twenty patrons out of the back exit to the roof, where the group could access a neighbouring building's roof and climb down to the ground floor. Boggs opened the door to find the front staircase engulfed in flames, along with the smell of lighter fluid. Īt 7:56PM, a buzzer from downstairs sounded, and bartender Buddy Rasmussen, an Air Force veteran, asked Luther Boggs to answer the door, anticipating a taxi cab driver. After the drink special ended, about 60 to 90 patrons remained they listened to pianist George Steven “Bud” Matyi perform and discussed an upcoming MCC fundraiser for the local Crippled Children's Hospital. That night’s beer bust, from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm, attracted approximately 110 patrons. The MCC was the United States' first national gay Christian fellowship, founded in Los Angeles in 1968 the local congregation had held services in the UpStairs Lounge's theatre for a while. Members of the Metropolitan Community Church, a pro-LGBT Protestant denomination, were there after service. The club was located on the second floor of a three-story building at the corner of Chartres and Iberville Streets. The View Upstairs takes the audience on an exhilarating journey of seduction and self-exploration, celebrating the lives of those forgotten, while featuring a soulful, rock and jazz score.On Sunday evening, June 24, 1973, over a weekend when Christopher Street “Pride” celebrations took place in seemingly every major American city but New Orleans, the regular "beer bust" drink special attracted its usual blue-collar gay crowd to the UpStairs Lounge. On June 24, 1973, an arsonist set fire to the UpStairs Lounge, a gay bar in New Orleans’ French Quarter, killing 32 people, making it the worst attack on the LGBTQ+ community until the 2016 massacre at The Pulse nightclub in Orlando. As Wes meets the larger than life lounge regulars, he learns what has been gained and lost in the fight for equality, and how the past can help guide all of us through an uncertain future. Serving as a home, a church, and a gay dive-bar, the UpStairs Lounge was its own kind of paradise. He’s magically transported to its glory days: the UpStairs Lounge in 1973. The View Upstairs opens in present day when Wes, a young fashion designer buys an abandoned space in the French Quarter of New Orleans.