Images(2)

Sign, Identification

Object number2020.62.4

MediumWood; Metal; Paint; Varnish(?)

Credit LineGift of Delta Foundation

DescriptionRectangular wooden sign. Front is painted red-brown and has applied wooden letters across center that are painted red and spell the name of the bar. Rectangular notch out of top center of sign. Left and right sides are irregular and not straight. Reverse is exposed wood in varying shades of brown. Nails and staples protrude from reverse.DimensionsHeight x Width x Depth: 31.25 × 47.875 × 1.5 in. (79.4 × 121.6 × 3.8 cm)
InscriptionsFront has applied wooden letters across center that are painted red: "HOLIDAY".
Historical NotesSign from The Holiday Bar. The Holiday Bar was once one of the only gay bars in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, located on Forbes and Craig Street in Oakland. The bar was frequented by Andy Warhol in the 1950s when it was a beatnik coffee shop. Anti-gay sentiments in the outside world created a solidarity inside Holiday, where gay rights activists gathered for protests. In 1983, Holiday offered free drinks to anyone who participated in the Pitt's Men Study, a federally funded investigation into HIV/AIDS. The bar soon began to draw in straight as well as gay people toward the end of the 1990s. In 2007, the owners sold the property to Carnegie Mellon University, which tore down the building for future expansion plans.

Related institution Holiday Bar

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