The Empress Hotel (New Jersey)

Last updated

The Empress Hotel
Empress Hotel Asbury Park.JPG
The Empress Hotel (New Jersey)
General information
Location101 Asbury Avenue, Asbury Park, New Jersey, United States 07712
Opening1961
Owner Shep Pettibone
Technical details
Floor count4
Other information
Number of rooms101
Number of restaurants1
Website
Official Website

The Empress Hotel is a popular gay resort located in Asbury Park, New Jersey. [1]

Contents

The Hotel opened as a luxury resort for vacationing families in the 1960s. [2] It was a successful resort, attracting the likes of Judy Garland and Liza Minnelli. [3]

In 1980, the Empress was featured on the picture sleeve of Bruce Springsteen's hit single "Hungry Heart", which depicts a photo of Springsteen standing near a phone booth on the Asbury Park boardwalk, with the hotel visible in the background. Bruce Springsteen was an early employee of the Empress, where he worked a busboy during the summer of 1962.

By the summer of 1976, Asbury Park was in a state of decline, albeit the Empress Hotel remained a popular establishment. During a New York Times interview, the hotel's manager boasted: "all of our 101 rooms are taken!" [4] Unfortunately, by 1988 the hotel was struggling for business, and closed shortly after.

A strip club, Extreme Fahrenheit, opened in the building in 1993. It became notorious for drugs and prostitution, and was eventually closed because of lewd conduct. [5]

In 1998, Shep Pettibone bought the abandoned building and opened the Paradise Nightclub inside. [6]

The nightclub lured crowds of gay travelers away from Fire Island and instead to the beaches of Asbury Park.[ citation needed ] The hotel portion reopened in August 2004, [7] and is very popular among gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender travelers in New Jersey. [8]

In 2008 a dining establishment, the Ketchup Grill, opened inside. A clothing store, Esphera, catering to gay beach-goers, was added to the ground level in 2008 and is open during the summer months.[ citation needed ]

The hotel also features a gift shop, lounge, nightclub and outdoor pool.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gay village</span> Geographical area within a city that is inhabited or frequented by LGBT people

A gay village, also known as a gayborhood, is a geographical area with generally recognized boundaries that is inhabited or frequented by many lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBT) people. Gay villages often contain a number of gay-oriented establishments, such as gay bars and pubs, nightclubs, bathhouses, restaurants, boutiques, and bookstores.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Asbury Park, New Jersey</span> City in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States

Asbury Park is a beachfront city located on the Jersey Shore in Monmouth County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is part of the New York metropolitan area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Non-heterosexual</span> Sexual orientation other than heterosexual

Non-heterosexual is a word for a sexual orientation or sexual identity that is not heterosexual. The term helps define the "concept of what is the norm and how a particular group is different from that norm". Non-heterosexual is used in feminist and gender studies fields as well as general academic literature to help differentiate between sexual identities chosen, prescribed and simply assumed, with varying understanding of implications of those sexual identities. The term is similar to queer, though less politically charged and more clinical; queer generally refers to being non-normative and non-heterosexual. Some view the term as being contentious and pejorative as it "labels people against the perceived norm of heterosexuality, thus reinforcing heteronormativity". Still, others say non-heterosexual is the only term useful to maintaining coherence in research and suggest it "highlights a shortcoming in our language around sexual identity"; for instance, its use can enable bisexual erasure.

The NW 39th Street Enclave, also known as "The Strip," "The Gayborhood," "May-Penn," "39th & Penn" or simply "39th Street" is a prominent lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) district in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The area is located along NW 39th Street in the city's northwest quadrant, one block west of Pennsylvania Avenue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Washington Hotel</span> Hotel in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire

The Mount Washington Hotel is a hotel in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, United States, near Mount Washington. It was designed by Charles Alling Gifford. In 1944, it hosted the Bretton Woods Conference, which established the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT tourism</span> Tourism marketed to LGBT people

LGBT tourism is a form of tourism marketed to gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people. People might be open about their sexual orientation and gender identity at times, but less so in areas known for violence against LGBT people.

Mrs. Jay's was a popular bar and restaurant located in Asbury Park, New Jersey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Francisco Pride</span> Annual LGBTQ+ event in San Francisco, California

The San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Celebration, usually known as San Francisco Pride, is a pride parade and festival held at the end of June most years in San Francisco, California, to celebrate the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people and their straight allies.

Gay Doctors Ireland (GDI) is an organisation of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) physicians and medical students in Ireland. It was founded in Dublin by Conor Malone in 2010 as Ireland's first association for LGBT doctors.

Oxford Friend was an Oxford based LGBTQ+ charity which provided emotional support and counselling to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community of the city of Oxford and the county of Oxfordshire. The original volunteers were part of the local branch of the Campaign for Homosexual Equality (CHE). Listening services were provided by telephone, email, Facebook and instant messaging. The charity also provided training on LGBTQ+ issues for educational institutions and other organisations in and around Oxfordshire. Oxford Friend raised money via a grant from Oxford City Council, donations, and external training packages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT history in New York</span>

New York state, a state in the northeastern United States, has one of the largest and the most prominent LGBTQ populations in the world. Brian Silverman, the author of Frommer's New York City from $90 a Day, wrote that New York City has "one of the world's largest, loudest, and most powerful" LGBT communities", and "Gay and lesbian culture is as much a part of New York's basic identity as yellow cabs, high-rises, and Broadway theatre". LGBT travel guide Queer in the World states, "The fabulosity of Gay New York is unrivaled on Earth, and queer culture seeps into every corner of its five boroughs". LGBT Americans in New York City constitute by significant margins the largest self-identifying lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities in the United States, and the 1969 Stonewall riots in Greenwich Village are widely considered to be the genesis of the modern gay rights movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Joiners Arms</span> East London LGBT pub and nightclub

The Joiners Arms was an LGBT pub and nightclub on Hackney Road in East London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT culture in Philadelphia</span>

The development of LGBT culture in Philadelphia can be traced back to the early 20th century. It exists in current times as a dynamic, diverse, and philanthropically active culture with establishments and events held to promote LGBT culture and rights in Philadelphia and beyond.

New York has a long history of LGBT community building, activism, and culture which extends to the early history of the city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT culture in New York City</span>

New York City has been described as the gay capital of the world and the central node of the LGBTQ+ sociopolitical ecosystem, and is home to one of the world's largest LGBTQ populations and the most prominent. Brian Silverman, the author of Frommer's New York City from $90 a Day, wrote the city has "one of the world's largest, loudest, and most powerful LGBT communities", and "Gay and lesbian culture is as much a part of New York's basic identity as yellow cabs, high-rise buildings, and Broadway theatre". LGBT travel guide Queer in the World states, "The fabulosity of Gay New York is unrivaled on Earth, and queer culture seeps into every corner of its five boroughs". LGBT advocate and entertainer Madonna stated metaphorically, "Anyways, not only is New York City the best place in the world because of the queer people here. Let me tell you something, if you can make it here, then you must be queer."

This is a list of notable events in the history of LGBT rights that took place in the year 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT culture in Baltimore</span>

LGBT culture in Baltimore, Maryland is an important part of the culture of Baltimore, as well as being a focal point for the wider LGBT community in the Baltimore metropolitan area. Mount Vernon, known as Baltimore's gay village, is the central hub of the city's lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paradise (nightclub)</span> Gay nightclub in Asbury Park, New Jersey

Paradise is a gay nightclub in Asbury Park, New Jersey. It is known for its fundraisers and drag shows, most notable of which is the annual Miss Paradise pageant. The club is integrated with the Empress Hotel; both are owned by record producer Shep Pettibone. Paradise's 1999 opening is credited as one factor that improved Asbury Park's struggling economy and drew the LGBT community back to the city after a period of local unrest. The venue is a popular Jersey Shore destination in the summer, and it has received praise for its welcoming atmosphere. After several months of closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Paradise reopened its outdoor pool and bar area in summer 2020.

References

  1. "EMPRESS HOTEL". gay-destinations.com. Retrieved January 9, 2011.
  2. Lisa Lamb (2015). Asbury Park Revisited. Arcadia Publishing. p. 105. ISBN   978-1-4671-3363-0.
  3. "New York City's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender monthly webzine; New York Q News". www.newyorkqnews.com.
  4. JOE SHARKEY. "The Past Is Dead in Asbury Park, but the Future Is Arriving." New York Times
  5. "Coalition for a Better Waterfront - Jersey City Approves Windfall Gain for Developer who Swindled S&L; out of $ 16 Million". August 17, 2001. Archived from the original on August 17, 2001.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  6. "Gay Asbury Park". June 25, 2004. Archived from the original on June 25, 2004.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  7. "Gay Asbury Park". February 13, 2005. Archived from the original on February 13, 2005.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  8. Taylor, Elise (August 28, 2019). "The Jonas Brothers Played Their VMA Set at the Coolest Town on the Jersey Shore". Vogue. Retrieved January 27, 2020.

40°13′06″N74°00′06″W / 40.21838°N 74.00180°W / 40.21838; -74.00180