At the West End of the Steel Bridge - 439 NW 3rd Ave. - Portland OR 97209
503.224.8446
Portland's Oldest Single-Location Gay Bar!

25 YEARS OF THE DIRTY DUCK

25 YEARS OF THE DIRTY DUCK

by Andy Mangels

originally written for Just Out newspaper, expanded for the website

In mid-March 2009, the Dirty Duck Tavern celebrated its 25^th anniversary under the ownership of Gail Kennedy. Opening the establishment doors to the gay community in January 1984, Kennedy didn’t dream at the time that she would eventually celebrate a quarter-decade and become Oregon’s oldest single-location gay bar. But the destiny of the bar was written in her blood, for two generations prior.

Kennedy’s grandmother, Erma Anderson, co-owned a bar named Dinty Moore’s at 924 SW Third Avenue, which didn’t begin as a gay bar, but became one under Erma’s management in the early 1950s.  Anderson employed her daughter, Margaret “Mama” Bernice, who in turn, sometimes brought her own toddler daughter, Gail, in to work with her. “My earliest memory of going there is being 3 or 4 in the 1950s, and visiting grandma there,” says Kennedy. She wasn’t allowed in the bar, but in those simpler and safer times, she would stand or play outside, and the gay clientele would give her nickels and quarters.”

“I don’t remember when there wasn’t gay clientele,” Kennedy recalls. The bar wasn’t officially gay in those days, but Kennedy doesn’t recall any raids or harassment. Still, she says that “they knew never to call the police.” Her family didn’t really explain the concept of homosexuality to her. “Mom used to talk about her gay friends, but I didn’t understand until I knew about sex.  Mama probably just said that they liked each other like some boys liked girls.  Simple explanations were always big in our house. It was never a big deal.”

Mama Bernice continued to work at Dinty Moore’s after it was sold to the man who would marry Gail’s sister, but when the bar closed, another bar owner opened up a spot called Mama Bernice’s. That establishment stayed open at 1228 SW Third Avenue from around 1964-1968, before the building was torn down for the Federal building. Bernice was quickly snapped up by another gay bar named The Other Inn at 242 SW Alder, where she would work until its closing in 1982.

During her time at the bars, Bernice and her family made special friends with an even more insular group of gay men: the men who wore leather. “We used to do picnics at Sauvie’s Island and I remember leather people there,” recalls Kennedy. At one point the leather crowd wanted to rent a bus for a trip, but wary of telling the leasors they were  a gay group, they claimed to be a bird-watching group. “Mama started calling them her “little bluebirds” after that,” Kennedy says. Eventually, David Hamilton, later better known as the drag Empress Mame, made up special tiny bluebird pins which Bernice would give to her favorites. The Other Inn was home bar to the Knights of Malta: Black Rose Chapter (founded by Ray Snively and Jim) from 1972 forward; in 1980, the Black Rose Leather/Levi Club was also founded there; a leather store named Victory Leather was even above the bar in the late 1970s.

By 1984, daughter Gail had married Don Kennedy, and had been raising her children, Dwayne and Dawn (the latter would become later became Miss Oregon USA 1992). Ever the dutiful daughter though, Gail Kennedy knew that her mother was chafing to be back at work. “Mama wanted me to own a bar. I never thought I would.  I bought it for her.” What she bought was a bar at 439 NW Third called Dirty Duck; the establishment had been opened as a bar since the 1940s, and had held that name since 1979, after a famous British bar on Stratford-on-Avon.

What it didn’t have was the colorful clientele that Kennedy and Bernice welcomed. The Dirty Duck Tavern officially opened as a gay bar in late January 1984, and even brought a familiar friendly element. “Mama said that all of her bluebirds had been so bad that they turned into dirty ducks,” laughs Kennedy. The Duck became the meeting place for leather and levi organizations, especially after the popular JR’s Cell closed at the end of that year.

The grand opening of the bar was in May 1984, and featured guest bartenders such as Bud Clark (running for mayor at the time) and Sanford Director (the “unofficial gay mayor of Portland”). Besides Bernice and Kennedy, other well-known names who worked the taps included Oncle Sydney, David "Mame" Hamilton, titleholder Gregg Sylvester, and John Seesholtz. Handsome bear Joe Garcia was a longtime fixture at the establishment, tending bar for over 15 years.

The Dirty Duck has seen its share of births. Groups founded there or who made it their home bar included the National Leather Association Portland Chapter, the Oregon Guild Activists of SM, and popular band Sneakin’ Out. The Cascade Bears, founded in 1992, made the bar their home, and its successor, the Oregon Bears, founded in November 1995, called the Duck its home bar until 2007.

It’s also seen its share of deaths, with the passing of Mama Bernice in February 1986 and the rise of the AIDS crisis, for which the Duck was at the forefront of fundraising. “I think it’s something we all needed to do to help,” says Kennedy. “The Duck has lived through the most devastating time and I’m very glad we could help. It’s our obligation. I’m glad we still can do that and have the space to do it.”

Although rumors of the Duck’s demise have swirled for years, due to the economic downturn, the city has told Kennedy that her lease will likely be safe for several more years.  “When we get thrown out, we’ll find another little bar on the corner because that’s what Mama likes.” In the meantime, Kennedy has applied for a full liquor license, and the bar is open 3-midnight on weekdays and 3-2 on weekends, with current staffers James, Steve, Don, and Gail pulling taps, and a historical display case set up on one wall to spotlight the past.

Having just held the 25^th Anniversary celebration, at which multiple community groups held events, Kennedy says that, “I was damn glad to see a lot of people still alive!”  Wistfully, she adds, “Most people don’t have a history like I have.  I grew up in the community. It’s part of my roots. Some of my best memories are of the gay community, because they were so good and kind to us. “

With three generations of gay bar experience backing her up, today, Kennedy sees the Dirty Duck as, “a friendly neutral place that people can come in, feel welcome and have a good time. I want the Dirty Duck to be everybody’s bar.  It’s not just my bar.  And thank you for allowing us to be there.”

— Andy Mangels is a best-selling author and DVD documentary producer. He also maintains and runs the Oregon Leather History Project. Visit www.andymangels.com and www.oregonleatherhistory.org

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