Gay Chigo Magaze

Contents:

• GAY CHICAGO MAGAZINE
• THE FAL DAYS OF GAY CHIGO
• THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985
• GAY CHIGO MAGAZE
• THE GAY PRS

GAY CHICAGO MAGAZINE

In 1976, Ralph Pl Gernhardt started a telephone rmatn le which tailed news and events happeng wh Chigo’s gay and lbian muny. That le grew to Gay Chigo News, a weekly tabloid reportg muny happengs, gossip, sportg events, and more. Eventually, this evolved to Gay Chigo Magazee, a natnally regnized entertament gui to gay and lbian life the Chigo metropolan area.

Di Leo was rponsible for the edorial ntent of Gay Chigo Magaze, as well as the publitn’s bs matters. The magaze was first published the same size as TV Gui; featured a lendar of events, as well as listgs of bars, bs, and anizatns servg the myriad needs of Chigo’s gay and lbian muny. Unr the jot learship of Gerhardt and Di Leo, Gay Chigo Magaze was on the ont l the battle agast AIDS.

Recently, Gay Chigo Magaze add two more feature wrers: one lumnist foc on gay/lbian bs and the dividuals volved; the send will wre about muny based agenci, their stctur, missns, ernance, fanc, and volunteer opportuni. Wh the Memorial Day issue dated May 23, 1991, Gay Chigo Magaze began publishg a four lor glossy ver format, once aga monstratg the mment of publisher Ralph Pl Gernhardt to produce for Chigo’s gay and lbian muny the ft qualy magaze possible. Gay Chigo was shut down September by two antagonistic owners, neher a fully crentialed member of Chigo’s gay muny.

THE FAL DAYS OF GAY CHIGO

But as happens, Craig Gernhardt isn’t gay—not that there’s anythg wrong wh that.

In s day, says gay poli Rick Garcia, Gay Chigo “was a huge in the gay muny.

But whenever was Gay Chigo I’d be Walgreens and some ltle old lady—I loved when ltle old ladi did —would say, ‘I saw you the paper, honey. Everybody picked up Gay Chigo. Gay Chigo‘s top ad salman—until Gernhardt and Tidwell fired him three months ago—says the publitn went astray when Gernhardt took up-market this past sprg.

THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

“They wanted stori on the civil unn bill and gay crime, ” says Star Salman, who asked me not to name him bee Tidwell acced him of improprieti, and he don’t want them trailg him to his next job. ” In the view of the bar owners Star Salman sold ads to, the are the proper ncerns of a bar rag, and when Gay Chigo beme ls of a bar rag they had ls reason to advertise .

GAY CHIGO MAGAZE

The eper reason why Gay Chigo fold September might simply be that foldg is what newspapers and magaz are dog the days, be they big or ltle, prim and proper or laced wh porn. Meanwhile, Tidwell me to Chigo om Texas December 2008 and was dabblg lol polics—tryg to anize the Stonewall Democrats of Illois, stylg the webse of gay attorney Jab Meister durg Meister’s brief 2010 n for the U. Y, Gernhardt was still Gay Chigo‘s publisher, but July he ma Tidwell managg publisher and gave him 50 percent of the bs.

Gay Chigo’s troubl me to my attentn last week when Gernhardt and Tidwell exchanged heated e-mails.

In April, the 35th anniversary of Gay Chigo‘s foundg, Gernhardt dumped the magaze format, turng the bar rag to a tabloid newspaper that ma some effort to do ser reportg. He also filed papers to create a not-for-prof Gay Chigo Foundatn to n the paper, lower s tax burn, and simulate a h start.

THE GAY PRS

In Tidwell’s view, Gay Chigo‘s new format was half-baked: “It was a bar rag that had jt transned to a newspaper, and you n’t attract high-end advertisers if you have bathhoe ads. Wh Gay Chigo skg fast, Gernhardt turned to Garcia for help.