I moved to San Francisco in 2002, a time I like to call “between gold rushes.” The fervor and swagger of the first dot com boom had not so much burst as it had flown around the city like a balloon with the air let out, taking down everything it crashed into. San Francisco had ridden the dot com monster into the 21st century on a wave of optimism and massive change, and not unlike the original gold rush that created this place, more than just a handful of people ended up with obscene wealth. And then like anything too good to be true, it ended with a whimper, causing those who hadn’t managed to strike a vein of digital ore, left to pick up the pieces and create something of their own.

Adjacent to the icon Aunt Charlie’s, the Tenderloin District’s last working class drag bar, there’s a little-known name tucked away on the Turk Street sign between Jones and Taylor that simply says: Vicki Mar Lane. But who was Vicki Marlane, and why was a street named after her in her honor?

As 2024 winds down, we’re reflecting on another incredible year of sharing the stories, art, culture, and nightlife that make the Bay Area so unique. BrokeAssStuart.com wouldn’t be what it is without you—our community of readers, supporters, and believers in independent media. This year, instead of asking you to join Patreon

OFF MENU IS SPONSORED BY BENDER’S BECAUSE THEY ARE BADASS. DROP BY AND MAKE SOME BAD DECISIONS WITH SOME GOOD PEOPLE!   This originally appeared in my Weeknighter column for 7×7 I used to joke that Aunt Charlie’s Lounge was where old drag queens went to die. To be fair, I didn’t know much about

Here is something pretty exciting! This is the unseen San Francisco pilot of my TV show Young, Broke & Beautiful. This was the a sizzle reel we made for IFC and it was this that they saw and gave us a green light for.  It’s OBVIOUSLY a bit rougher than the

If you haven’t yet noticed the assemblage in Dolores Park, it’s not too late to strap on your chanclas and hustle on down and join the rest of the queer folk.  You will have already missed the elder-youth brunch, but not the chance to add your solidarity to your queer