Knoxville520.com

Downtown needs a way to bring the gay community back to the city centre. With the demise of Lord Lindsay’s infamous Thursday nights, and the Electric Ballroom’s demographic switch to Goth over the last few years, the only gay draw left for downtown is to hit Sapphire on the weekends. And Sapphire’s not even particularly gay. It’s just a real nice place to go. Of course, there’s always The Carousel II on Fridays, but you have to be a chain smoker or a Jerry Springer fan to truly enjoy it. (By the way, I can’t wait for its sequel, The Carousel III: Hot Powell Nights.)

Which brings me to my point. The new gay center of Knoxville is that little section of Bearden lovingly referred to by the street that intersects it: Homberg.

Why Homberg? A gay bar under fresh ownership, a plush Studio 64-ish club, a theatre that just did back-to-back gay-themed shows, a porn shop, a Starbucks, and the best Sunday brunch in town. How could it get any queerer?

Kurt’s, long known for its cheap beer and fierce lesbian pool-playing, recently switched hands to new owners, Becky Varner and Tracy Smith. In a recent Out & About article, Varner describes the down-home atmosphere of Kurt's as being like a "Cheers for Queers," and plans on keeping the bar's vibe the same while incorporating more frequent Karaoke and drag shows. On Saturday the 23rd, Kurt’s will celebrate a grand re-opening with a party named, I kid you not, The Pirates Mutiny Party: Curse of the Pearl Necklace. Come dressed in sexy pirate wear, get your timbers prepped to be shivered, and, as always, practice safe plank-walking.

On the very same street as Kurt’s is the Black Box Theatre, home to the Actors Co-op. The Co-op just finished runs of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, the tranny glam-rock musical, and Unidentified Human Remains, an adult gay-themed thriller. Up next for the Co-op is another of their successful Whippersnapper productions for kids, Robin Goodfellow. Robin will be directed by company member Maureen Stanley and will run from October 6 to 29. The next main-stage show is the Alan Ayckbourn comedy Absurd Person Singular, directed by the former artistic director of the Morristown Theatre Guild, Micah-Shane Brewer. It opens November 30.

In case you’re still staying home on Thursday nights, wishing Harold were buying you drinks on the Lord Lindsey patio, then you should know that the new place to be seen is at The Fairbanks, where a trio of DJs are working hard to get your designer shoes grooving. Five dollars at the door, “Out” night at The Fairbanks gets you a night with two different dance floors. The front atrium blasts progressive electronica, while the main floor churns out a blend of house, electronica, and hip-hop. If you’re not in the mood to dance, then sit and watch the drag show, starting at 11:30.

Still have doubts about Homberg’s gay-itude? Across the street you can have a fabulous meal at Big Fatty’s, and digest your food while you shop for porn next-door at West Knox News. AND just a mile or so down Kingston Pike is Rainbow Club West, home to the best drag queen in East Tennessee, Angel Collins. Until you’ve seen her do Dolly, you really haven’t lived.

And as for the coffee and brunch destinations? From my personal observations working at the Bearden Starbucks, you’d have to be in Orlando during Gay Days to have gayer surroundings. (Trivia: The Bearden Starbucks is quite possibly the Closest Starbucks in America to a Double-Wide Trailer. That’s Knoxville dichotomy for you.) For a delicious and hip Sunday brunch, head over to Gourmet’s Market, but get there extra early if you want to avoid the avoid-the-church-crowd crowd. Or just be fashionably late, and sit and enjoy your bottomless cup of coffee while you wait on the patio, taking in all the fabulous surroundings of this, Knoxville's Castro. Whatever your destination, right now Homberg is the place to get your gay on. Until the Sunsphere starts spinning, of course.