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Abstract

Back Stage and Key West were two Philadelphia queer establishments that anchored the brunch and cabaret performance scenes from 1974-1997 and 1982-2008, respectively. The collection contains advertisements, ephemera, photographs, and press from both businesses. The bulk of the collection comprises material from Back Stage, and paints a picture of the enduring necessity of nightlife and queer spaces as anchors in the community for building joy, power, and connection.

Abstract Jack Van Alstyne, born ca. 1938, known to his gay friends as "Cheezit," was the son of Howard C. Van Alstyne and Marion G. Fox Van Alstyne. He lived in Camden, NJ for much of his life. His collection includes a scrapbook of Philadelphia and New Jersey gay life of the 1960s through 1980s; grouping of ca. 75 photographs of Philadelphia and New Jersey drag queens and gay men, owned by John Brown, known as Marilyn; photographs taken by Alstyne of gay men in Rittenhouse Square, summer of 1953;...

Abstract

Darrell Keith Griffith (1959-2012) was an AIDS activist and founder of the website CruisingForSex.com. The collection is divided into two series: Personal materials and AIDS activism. The personal materials date from 1983 to 2012, the year of Griffith's death. The series on AIDS activism covers Griffith's years of involvement in the social justice movement, 1985-1992.