by Spencer Jenkins he/him
spencer@queerkentucky.com
Grab the print edition of Queer Kentucky Volume 2
Throughout my career as a professional queer journalist, I have met a circus of people from every corner of the world. From famous Ru girls to trail- blazing activists and politicians; from Queer Eye’s Carson Kressley to comedy darlings Matteo Lane and Fortune Feimster; my career has provided me endless opportunities to meet and network with the gayest of gay. However, one will always stand out to me more than the rest because of their vulgar tongue, show-stopping charisma and undying love for the queer community.
Ethel Loveless, who has by all means earned “Mother!” status amongst Kentucky queers, is one of the sole reasons Queer Kentucky exists.
Queer Kentucky was in its infancy and Loveless wastwirlingtasselsonhertittieseveryTuesdayat the Limbo Lounge in downtown Louisville. During that time,“Titty Tiki Tuesday” was the antithesis of a mainstream drag show. Performances were raw, amateur, and sometimes sloppy. Part of the shtick was that performers wouldn’t know which song would be played for their performance. I’ll never forget the oh-so-blasphemous drag king dressed as a half-naked Jesus or the night I was introduced to Burlesque and Boylesque. As Andy Warhol was to Max’s Kansas City or Edie Sedgewick was to his factory, Loveless was to Titty Tiki Tuesday.
Limbo Lounge, owned by Olivia Griffin, was a Tiki- themed bar that the queers claimed rather quickly. Griffin moved to Kentucky from San Francisco in 2014 and realized Louisville had no tiki bar. She had spent her 20s experiencing the wonders of classic Bay Area tiki bars like Smuggler’s Cove, Forbidden Island, and Trader Sam’s, so she knew that Kentucky needed something of the like.The bar became a thriving hub for Louisville’s queer scene, and Titty Tiki Tuesday was a mainstay for the community. However, the bar closed at the end of 2022.
Every Tuesday seemed to embody a wild outtake from John Waters’ “Pink Flamingos” – and if you were around Limbo during this time, I know you know what I’m talking about. The bathrooms saw their fair share of sexy rendezvous and powder sniffing. If you were lucky, you’d have a chance to sneak off with one of the sailors hat-wearing bartenders or at least get a little smooch from them across the bar.We played with gender and we played with each other. A hedonistic queer haven? Maybe.
The soundtrack to the Waters’ movie never created about Kentucky fried queers in a dark dive was curated by two of my most precious queer comrades, DJ Spring Break (Duncan Cherry) and DJ Syimone.
And yes, the traveling tangerine queen, Ethel Loveless, was our naughty emcee.
Between 2018 and 2019, I was at Titty Tiki Tuesday every week selling T-shirts to promote Queer Kentucky.The Limbo and Queer Kentucky developed a symbiotic relationship and helped market each other through our respective platforms.
I will never forget the first time I saw Ethel. She stumbled into the Limbo a bit late (diva) and a little tipsy with her bright orange wig and tasseled pasties.
That night, while she continued painting on her face, no mirror needed, I walked up to
her in my shy and eye-wandering way and asked if she could give Queer Kentucky a little shout out and tell people to come buy our shirts and learn about us.
And this doe-eyed figure took one look at me, and said,“Hey, sexy, fuck yeah, I will!”
My night was made.
Even though we had never met and she had zero idea what Queer Kentucky was, she was down to uplift my project and me just because I had asked her to. Her eagerness to help a stranger affirmed me.That is how you create community.
As the show opened and I got my shout out, I could also tell Ethel had no idea who she would be introducing and how she would be emceeing that evening, but luckily DJ Spring Break had a cheat sheet ready to go for her.This would be the first night of many I would watch the collaborative spark between the two light up an entire room.
Once Ethel took a shot and cleared her throat, the show was on! The sensual, shrilly, and mildly nasal voice welcomed everyone to a night they would never forget.
I hadn’t had many queer nightlife experiences in my life until I began my journey with Queer Kentucky. I had no idea there was a community so vulgar yet so pure waiting to wrap me up in its arms. Ethel mothered me into a community every Tuesday night that year, and I’m not even sure if she knows that. I know that I am one of many that Ethel showed love and acceptance to, and I’m forever grateful.
Ethel is community.
Not only did this short moment in history set the foundation for my queerness and love for myself, but I also believe it was the foundation of a new generation of queers in Kentucky.
The Limbo and Titty Tiki Tuesday embraced the genderqueer and the curious. Trans identities weren’t questioned, but celebrated. We ignored bathroom signage and existed authentically without care. Lesbians, gays and everything in between and beyond thrived in one space without judgment. Titty Tiki Tuesday was one of the safest places I have ever felt in my life, and Ethel was there looking after us.
Tuesdays were magical and I’m lucky to have lived through this little blip of queer Kentucky history.
