A 1975 bar rag, 'Where the Action Is' - whose only claim to fame is that one of its contributors was a 21-year old newcomer named Jesse Monteagudo - listed 13 mainland bars and 6 Beach bars. In his 1972 directory, 'The Gay Insider USA,' author John Paul Hudson (writing as John Francis Hunter) listed 15 gay or mixed pubs and clubs in the mainland (including Coconut Grove and Coral Gables) and 8 queer watering holes on the Beach. In fact, there were more gay watering holes in Miami Beach - and certainly in the Miami mainland - than there are today. The legal drinking age was 18, which made things very convenient for a young gay man who was just coming out.Ī gay kid had many places to choose from in 1974.

Not only were there far fewer raids than before, but local laws that made it a crime for 'known homosexuals' to be served liquor or congregate in a tavern were overturned. As my fictional alter-ego, Joe Martinez, said in one of his adventures, 'Miami was a candy store for a young gay guy just out of the closet.' With no AIDS in sight, and most venereal diseases treated with a simple shot, it was 'the golden age of gay sexuality.' It was also a golden age for Miami-Dade County's lesbian and gay bar scene. Miami in the 1970's was a great time to be young and gay.