MC FILM and “Dishing with Mark & Carrie” Wishes Everyone a Happy New Year in 2015
Best wishes and thank you for the great memories in 2014. Mark and Carrie, Mr. Bill and Miss Amber
Niece of the Week: Divinity Everlasting
Lady Divinity moved to Tampa from Miami. She has performed at all the top clubs in Florida. Her daytime job is to look beautiful at Hamburger Mary’s in GaYbor. She greets everybody with a big beautiful smile.
You Just Can’t Make This Stuff Up!
Remember when you all were young children and you’d get caught doing something wrong by the squinting neighbor lady? This past week Miss Esme Russell was on her way to work, out of make-up and full of positivism, going to Hamburger Mary’s in Centro Ybor.
There in the 7th Avenue courtyard, which was all decorated for the holidays, were some kids trying to put rave posters on the big Christmas tree. Without any hesitation, Esme dropped her bags and ran up to the kids shouting in English, then Spanish, then both.
“Don’t be messing with the gays’ Christmas tree! You go home to your own houses and mess up your straight trees…. LEAVE THE GAYS’ TREE ALONE!”
The kids, stunned, went running down 7th Avenue after the scolding! I bet those kids will be talking about this for the rest of their lives! Leave the gays’ tree alone!
Enigma Lounge St. Pete’s Holiday Party
The first holiday party for Enigma Lounge in St. Petersburg was a success. Owner Ed Gonzalez greeted and thanked everyone at the bar’s entrance. “It has been an incredible year,” he smiled.
Though we have been gone from St Pete for a few years, we knew over half of the friendly patrons, and most were longtime friends and Mark and Carrie’s Dishing Column Nephews. Included were the smiling faces of Daniel Harris from Lucky Bar, who is also an actor at the new Gypsy Stage Productions theatre at the Flamingo Resort. Jeremy, bartender at Georgie’s Alibi, Keith (KC) who worked for MC Film for over 12 years, Brian Chant and Sam from the old Queen & I Restaurant were among the hundreds of other invitees. It was great to share the holiday frolic and spirit altogether.
The lounge located at 1110 Central Avenue opened just seven months ago. It’s open and airy and very clean with two bars and an outside patio window bar. Drinks and appetizers were the holiday gift tonight. Yummy and tasty!
The true assortment of entertainment from live bands to guest DJ/VJ celebrities kept the music moving. Congratulations to the friendly staff and bartenders of Enigma Lounge. Cheers.
NEW Baxter’s in South Tampa
A new group is taking over the old Baxter’s Lounge on Dale Mabry. The group includes Tampa Bay Hamburger Mary’s owner Kurt King and others.
The Baxter’s name has been in the Tampa GLBT gay bar scene since 1982. It is Tampa’s oldest gay bar. Starting just blocks south of Kennedy Boulevard on Dale Mabry, it then relocated to Britton Plaza, and returned to its present location in 1998.
Recently Baxter’s owner, Angelo Montanaro, passed away unexpectedly last Halloween week, but the bar stayed open.
The new group will be ushering in changes: remodeling, new flooring and paint and upgraded bathrooms are first on the list, we were told. Other changes are in the works. New events will be scheduled alongside continuing ones, and there will be added entertainment, including karaoke and new drag shows.
