1968: Pre-Stonewall Rebellion
at
The STONEWALL Inn
Williamson and Sonia Jane at The Stonewall
[Photography by a special Stonewall photographer]
New York, NY - The Stonewall Inn, New Year's Eve, December 31, 1968. This is the only known existing photo taken inside The
Stonewall Inn. It is one of the few booths that were in the
club. The exact location inside the club is in the second
room -- the dance room -- against the right side wall of the club.
Don't
let the linen tablecloth give you the right impression. Only
thrice
a year on certain holidays, namely Thanksgiving, Christmas
and New
Year's Eve, the Mafia-owned Stonewall Club "went all
out" and "did the
right family thing". Some think that it was also done on Easter
Sunday, which is a possibility.
On these special occasions, to
bring a lasting and real sense of "family" to the Gay
patrons, they actually had
an 'authorized' photographer --
for those who wanted to have their photo taken at The
Stonewall. As a matter of reality at that time, virtually
all patrons of any Gay
establishment scooted in the opposite
direction of any camera. Flash bulbs were mostly a must to
avoid.
However, the Gay couples and the fag' n' hag duos,
such as Williamson Lee Henderson and Sonia Jane Attkiss, pictured
above at The Stonewall on New Year's Eve in 1968, loved it!
It was a happening that many of us looked forward
to as a happy souvenier from the place
we loved. The cost was $10 per picture. You paid the ten
bucks in advance before the picture was taken. This was not The
Copa! We never understood then (we
do now) how the club was able to present you with your
cardboard-framed
picture within about an hour. Williamson
and Sonia even bought photo copies -- also at $10 each --
for their
mothers. Little did the moms (and many other relatives) know that
the straight-looking couple were at a forbidden Gay dance club in the
notorious Greenwich Village and were simply Gay friends posing.
Naturally, the Stonewall Club made a
nice profit
on all of this -- as they did with the coat check, the jukebox, the bar, of course, and even
the wishing well! Otherwise, they would never have done it. It was the
moneys! With the Gay clubs, besides the most up-to-date
fashion styles, the most colorful outfits and the koolest dance
moves, the Mafia owners could always count on a Gay profit!
