Time seems irrelevant this year. Was the WAVE Awards celebration last week or last March? It’s hard to tell in 2020. Having said that, It was a month or so ago that I first got word that the Parliament House was in danger of closing.
“It must be that time of year,” I said to myself. It was nothing new and the Parliament House always came out on top. Unfortunately, they did not this time.
It’s an old trope to suggest the LGBTQ community likes to eat its own. An argument can certainly be made that this is the case when it comes to the Parliament House. Naysayers bombard social media almost relishing in the demise of the popular watering hole, calling it a dump and throwing shade at the owners and management team.
I can agree that at times the business seems to struggle and there were obvious signs of that throughout the property. While there is no denying there were issues, to the haters out there I say the Parliament House was an important, positive life-changing spot for many people.
I have so many good memories of being there, many more forgotten memories — let’s not forget I was a black out drunk — and some memories I’d like to forget. My first memory took place in the early-mid-90s and that time my friends and I became part of the Miss P show.
I had a friend in from out of town and he wanted to do something crazy, so Parliament was the obvious choice. We wandered into the drag show with no idea who Miss P was or what we were about to see. At some point Miss P looked at our table and asked why we weren’t drinking. “Are you too young?” she asked. “No,” I replied. “We are too poor. College students.”
She then offered to buy us a round of drinks if I grabbed her crotch, and standing center stage hiked her dress all the way up. As if to call her bluff, I reached out my hand, palm up. “Oh honey, if I’m buying your table drinks then you’re coming backstage and digging under these panty hose.” Everyone laughed and we didn’t get a round of drinks.
Let’s jump forward a decade to 2005. At this point I’m working at Watermark and on the board of the Metropolitan Business Association. Central Florida Pride had failed to take place during the month of June and the MBA stepped up to work with Joe Saunders at UCF to create a National Coming Out Day pride event called Come Out With Pride.
The organization held a pep rally of sorts at the Parliament House’s Footlight Theatre. Patty Sheehan made an impassioned plea for donations, to which Susan Unger rose to her feet and shouted, “I pledge $10,000.” Everyone was shocked, especially Don Granatstein. She had just saved pride. I will always remember this moment as who Don and Susan were. They always opened their doors to local organizations. They cared about our success as a community.
There are so many people that are in my life because of the Parliament House. This is where I met Miss Sammy for the first time, as referenced in my last Publisher’s Desk. It’s where I met Michael Wanzie, Doug Ba’aser, Darcel Stevens and a gaggle of twinks who called themselves the Blue Boys. It’s where I saw Carol Lee and Miss Sammy perform a Lucy and Ethel sketch that was arguably the funniest sketch comedy I have ever seen. It’s where I saw David Lee’s Hedwig for the first time, and where my friend Jason Donnelly met his future husband Chad Lewis. It’s where I fell in love with Blue Star who had the generous soul to put me in her VarieTEASE show “Shee-Haw.” I know I bore the hell out of her telling her how much that meant to me, but why not one more time. Thank you, Blue.
My last memory of Parliament House took place this last week when I went with Dylan Todd to take photos for this issue. We stood outside the fence, looking in at what had once been the great place of my youth. We were joined by a stranger who was there to take his final look at a place that had meant so much to him. I’m sure something will come along and be everything the Parliament House was to this community, I just wanted to take this opportunity to say thank you Parliament House for being so important to so many people. Thank you, Don and Susan and the staff for all the memories.
In this issue of Watermark we share the stories of some of Parliament’s drag entertainers. In Orlando news we focus on the changes of the Flagler County school board and in Tampa Bay we talk to Jennifer Webb to reflect on her service and look into what’s next.
We strive to bring you a variety of stories, your stories. I hope you enjoy this latest issue.
