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Blue Moon

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About Me

EVERY TUESDAY NIGHT is the Bum One Hotel DJ's at 8 PM.
EVERY WEDNESDAY NIGHT is Angry Joey's Open Mic. Signup at 8PM.
EVERY SUNDAY NIGHT is the Mt. Non-fiction Sessions at 8 PM
LIVE MUSIC CALENDAR
THURSDAY SHOWS START AT 9 PM
FRI-SAT SHOWS START AT 10 PM
*** NEVER A COVER -- ALWAYS FREE LIVE MUSIC! ***
For booking information, please click here .
THU 05.08
TRIPLE FORTE
NEUTRALBOY
GUESTS
FRI 05.09
RIPSPACER
INDECISIVE RHYTHM
SEEING BLIND
SAT 05.10
PC LOAD LETTER
THE ENDEAVORS
THE HIGH DIVIDE
THU 05.15
RAD TOUCH
WATCH IT SPARKLE
GUESTS
FRI 05.16
80:20
IN LAKE CH’
SAT 05.17
SMILE BRIGADE
GUESTS
THU 05.22
THE BRAXMATICS
DECATEUR BUFF
FLASHES OF QUINCY
FRI 05.23
RED RAPTURE
UBIK
FOREFATHERS
SAT 05.24
DEVIL’S FOOD (Alice Cooper tribute band)
BASTARD SONS OF THE NUGE (Ted Nugent cover band)
NINE MILE IRIS
THU 05.29
COCO COLA
MUte ErA (from Minneapolis)
GEIST & SAMUEL JOSEPH
FRI 05.30
VELVET DRIVE
THE HARBORRATS
SAT 05.31
A POST GRUNGE EVENT!
LOZEN
GREEN RIVER THRILLERS
X’S FOR I’S (from Portland)
THU 06.05
THE NORTHERN
THE CONDITION
FRI 06.06
THE HARD WAY
THE PARENTS
GIFT BASKET
SAT 06.07 *** 9PM ***
THE HOPSCOTCH BOYS (*** LAST SHOW EVER ***)
THUNDERBIRD MOTEL
QUADRILLION
THUNDER
THU 06.13
MINDLESS THUGGS
present:
THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI
Live score for a dead film
plus special guests
FRI 06.13
13th GRADE
BRIAN KENNEY FRESNO (from Fresno, CA)
SCHUDGE
SAT 06.14
An evening with THE SHMOES
THU 06.19
OLYMPUS
WIN WIN
FRI 06.20
HOLY NAME DROPOUTS
3-WAY SWITCH
MOTORIK
SAT 06.21
HALOPHILE
GIN BETTY
THU 06.26
WAH WAH EXIT WOUND (Tour kickoff show!)
GUESTS
FRI 06.27
IVAN THE WHEEL
THE VAGUE PROPHETS
ARTLESS FICTION
SAT 06.28
KULI LOACH
THU 07.03
NEON NIGHTS
GUESTS
SAT 07.05
CHANGE VS. COMFORT (CD release show)
GUESTS
FRI 07.11
WILD ORCHID CHILDREN
THE GATLING GEES
THE RAGGEDY ANNS
SAT 07.12
DAGMAR’S BIRTHDAY starring:
THE ROYAL BEAR
PARIS SPLEEN
GUESTS
THU 07.17
BILLY JOE & THE DUSTY 45’s (playing two sets!)
SAT 07.19
THE 39 STEPS
GLASS ELEVATOR
NOAH PARRIOTT
THU 07.24
JACQUELINE LEIGH
FORGET ME NOTS
WED 12.24
THE FIFTH ANNUAL BLOWDOG & SNEEZY MIDNIGHT MASS AND CHRISTMAS PAGEANT
ABOUT THE BLUE MOON (from historylink.org)
Seattle's Blue Moon Tavern first opened its doors at 712 NE 45th Street near the University of Washington on or near April 15, 1934. Founded by Hank Reverman, the tavern was an instant hit with students who, under state law, had to trek one mile from campus to buy a beer. During the 1950s and 1960s, subsequent owners Jack and Jim David and, later, Stanford Poll (1940-2000) welcomed an assortment of radicals, artists, writers, journalists, beatniks, hippies, and wannabees. Poets Theodore Roethke (1901-1963), Richard Hugo (1924-1982), Carolyn Kizer (b. 1925), Stanley Kunitz (b.1909), and David Wagoner could often be found at the bar, along with famous visitors such as Dylan Thomas (1914-1953) and Allen Ginsberg (1926-1997). After a long decline in 1970s, the Blue Moon rose anew under management by Three Fools, Inc. In 1989, it was threatened with demolition. Although a popular preservation campaign failed to secure the Moon official landmark status in 1990, developers were persuaded to spare the tavern and it continues to pursue its eccentric orbit to the present day (1999).
Shortly after the repeal state and federal laws prohibiting the sale of alcoholic beverages, Henry J. Reverman took his college trust fund and invested to create a new tavern in the shell of a former garage near the corner of 8th Avenue NE and NE 45th Street. Reverman and his partner, Monty Fairchild, dubbed it the "Blue Moon" after purchasing a large neon sign from the nearby Blue Moon Cafe. They opened for business in mid-April 1934.
State law then banned alcohol sales within one mile of the University of Washington Campus, and the Blue Moon lay just over the line. It was an instant success with students, particularly members of the UW football team. Reverman hired local boxers Freddy Steele (1907-1990), Cecil Payne (1906-1959), and "Doc" Snell to keep order.
Monty Fairchild sold his interest in the Moon and founded the Rainbow Tavern just a few doors away. Reverman in turn sold the Moon to Maude Walsh (1906-1968) and Vera McCracken in 1940. (He used the proceeds to found the Lake Union Air Service.) Under the new owners, the Blue Moon was one of the rare bars outside of the Central Area to serve African American servicemen during World War II.
In 1950, brothers Jack and Jim David took over the Blue Moon and welcomed a growing coterie of artists, writers, political radicals, and "beatniks." The tavern's reputation among the avant garde was secured by the frequent patronage of poets Theodore Roethke, Richard Hugo, Carolyn Kizer, and Stanley Kunitz, among others. Dylan Thomas, James Farrell, and Allen Ginzberg (possibly also Jack Kerouac) visited when passing through Seattle. The tavern also provided a haven for UW professors such as Joe Butterworth who were caught up in the McCarthyist purge led by the Canwell Committee.
Jim David sold his share to his brother Jack in 1959. In turn, Jack sold the Blue Moon to Stanford Poll and Dr. Paul Chilton in 1966. They enlarged the tavern to make room for the hordes of hippies and New Leftists who began to supersede the Moon's traditional clientele of beatniks and Old Leftists. The Blue Moon became famous (or infamous) as a clubhouse for Seattle's emerging counterculture. Former Communist Stan Iverson (1927-1985) reigned as its unofficial maitre 'd.
Restaurateur Jerry Kingen attempted in vain to gentrify the Moon in 1970. He sold it to a former bartender, "Fast Eddy" McWhinnie, in 1974. Lack of capital and an increasingly ugly drug scene contributed to the Moon's long descent.
The tavern was rescued from certain eclipse in 1982 by "Three Fools, Inc.," comprising partners Gustav Hellthaler, Robert Morrison, and John Caldbick. Two years later, in 1984, the Blue Moon was refurbished for its 50th anniversary and won a new generation of customers.
Stan Poll negotiated a long lease that he thought would protect the tavern and sold his interest to Chilton. Clouds appeared in 1989 when Chilton sold the Blue Moon's building to Westlake Capital, which announced plans to replace the tavern with a new retail/condominium project. A spirited public campaign was mounted to block demolition by convincing the City of Seattle's Landmarks Preservation Board to designate the Blue Moon as a cultural landmark. The effort secured broad public and media support, but landmark designation failed on a tie vote on March 7, 1990.
Tavern supporters and neighborhood leaders did not relent, and Westlake Capital principals were genuinely moved by the outpouring of public affection for the Blue Moon. Thanks in large part to the efforts of Hans Aschenbach, president of the Roosevelt Neighborhood Alliance, the parties concluded a settlement on May 4, 1990, scaling back the proposed development and extending the Blue Moon's lease to 2034 -- which, barring disaster, will mark the centennial of its founding.
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My Interests


SOME KIND WORDS ABOUT THE BLUE MOON

"The scariest bar in Seattle." -- Tom Scanlon, Seattle Times

"I hear that place is a dump." -- Ricker, KISW-FM

"This place is a total stinking dump." -- Gustav Linden, Seattle WA

"If you've seen the bar in the first Star Wars movie, this is as close as it gets in real life." -- Anonymous, pubcrawler.com

"There seems to be a large majority of homeless drunk people who really need to wash their balls and asses." -- Clay "Stinky" Eldrege

"Look, I majored in History, crew [sic] up in California, and consider myself a very open minded person. But even walking by the Blue Moon just makes me cringe." -- Johnny H., yelp.com (again)

"Incidentally, you probably know that the Blue Moon Tavern is famously the one-time hangout of Theodore Roethke. While this lends the place a certain infamy, the place is still a dive." -- Mike Pope

"Kerouac, Ginsberg, Dylan Thomas and Tom Robbins all drank here. The current patrons don't seem like they'll win any Pulitzers or shatter the world with original thinking because they're too busy just sitting around just having a beer. It's a dive." -- Maria C., yelp.com

"When Seattlest Dan and Seattlest MVB were in there recently we hadn't been sitting for ten minutes before some woman from Alaska dumped the contents of her purse on our table and sprayed us with cheap perfume. She got 86'd about 20 times and every time she returned she'd show up at the table looking for her phone and her coat." -- Dan Gonsiorowski, seattlest.org

"Supposedly, the city has gotten pretty sick of it and is trying to shut the place down. Usually I'd have a soft spot in my heart for places of Historical significance, but in this case, I say turn tear it down and put up a Jamba Juice." -- Johnny H., yelp.com

"If you children spend half as much time practicing as you spend writing on this wall, you might actually get good enough to not be stuck playing shitholes like the Funhouse or Blue Moon" -- graffiti in Jambox bathroom

"I bought a candle with a picture of Hendrix on it from a homeless guy at The Blue Moon. I realize now that it probably was stolen, but I was drunk at the time." -- Mark Ward, Gear Driver rock band

"The blue moon sucks, stinking ratinfested bumhaven shithole." -- Chris Townsend, "musician"

"At the Blue Moon, it seems like the doorman should ask for proof of medical insurance, as well as ID." -- Tom Scanlon (again)

"...the "winner" [at Conor Byrne's open mic] gets to 'open' for some crappy two-fruit band ('Blowdog and Sneezy' or whatthefuggever) next Wednesday at the Blue Moon tavern. The Blue Moon, by the way, is not a gig you take when things are going well.... So yeah, I win the dumb thing and figure that I'm supposed to open the show for no money and no freebies at the Blue Moon. Last Place got an envelope filled with the overwhelming relief that they don't feel a weird obligation to open for Blowhole and Chewy at a bar that has a Lost and Found for livers and hope." -- Geoff Lott, comedian

"i think the best part of the evening was watching the trendies from UW wander in, have their credit cards rejected(cash only), and scamper out after gulping down their drinks with scared looks on their faces. consider yourselves warned ladies, you will probably feel uncomfortable here alone. oh and the bathroom.... have you seen "Trainspotting"? remember the scene with "the filthiest toilet in Scotland"? feel like reliving it in Seattle?" -- Zachary P., yelp.com

"...you deserve to be shot. Fuck you Blue Moon" -- Little Rusty from the band Knucklehead

"who knew they would be a bunch of tight asses at the blue moon..fucking lame." -- All Time High

"[I]f you are ever thinking of going to Blue Moon to drink... don't!" -- Katt, The Nunchucks

"FUCK YOU FUCKIN BLUE MOON AND YOUR FUCKING PASSIVE-AGGRESSIVE SELF-IMPORTANT EGOCENTRIC PRICKS OF STAFF" -- Ashlar (whoever he is -- King Of The Cap-Locks, maybe?)

"I'm very sure that those who told me about it are right in it being the oldest bar in the area. It shows. It's populated by people who are most definitely not enjoying life." -- Ian S., yelp.com

"A spectral display of delightful flavors in which all colors become twelve. The pastoral chicken is to die for! Also, don't miss the turtle bisque with essence of fennel - a real party for the palate. The service was exemplary, plaudits are in order. The ambiance is regal, majestic, yet still is grounded and hardly pretentious. Plus, I got bung by toothless crackwhore. Highly recommended." -- a certain Tom H., yelp.com

I'd like to meet:

a baby in a cage

Music:



Photos gleefully swiped from soundonthesound.com

Movies:

No, this was not the bar from the Jodie Foster stomach churner The Accused. We don't even have a pinball machine (anymore.)

Television:

A plasma widescreen with all of your favorites: ESPN, ESPN2, Fox Sports and the Arts Channel (seriously!) We've also got the soccer channel and, believe it or not, we'll be featuring some games for all of you hooligans. Bash 'is noggin!

Books:

Plenty. There's books here everywhere, everything from Stephen King paperbacks to encyclopedias to old computer manuals to those Readers Digest condensed novels to both the 86 and 87 editions of the Guinness Book to the occasional smut and even some Sweet Valley (I shit you not) High. I recently took home an odd find called The Book Of Negro Folklore. Oh, my God! This book could have only been printed in 1958, filled with old folk tales, oral histories, lyrics to spirituals, black magic spells (!), a dictionary of jive (!!!) and so much more, 700 pages that seem very politically incorrect. It was pulled from the shelves of Tenyaha Junior High in Fresno, CA. How did it get here? Like everything else on our shelves, I have no idea. Take a book, leave a book.

Heroes:

Sha Na Na

My Blog

Booking Information / About This JJ Guy

 BOOKING A SHOWBy popular demand, an easy to use reference:E-mail me via this myspace page.No, really, it's that simple as long as you follow these simple guidelines:-- First of all, don't bo...
Posted by Blue Moon on Mon, 05 Mar 2007 11:01:00 PST

The Fine Art of Commentary (And Other Disasters)

So I get this e-mail the other day&.Wait, let's go back a bit.  I wanna get this story right.  So last Friday, our bartender Mary (yes, the chick on our sign) and I were looking through the ...
Posted by Blue Moon on Thu, 08 May 2008 05:37:00 PST

Postscript to My Last Blog

Good God.  He responded.  Or it was ghostwritten by whoever does the Weekly’s Ask An Uptight Seattleite.  I can’t tell.  It goes like this:Hi Jason,I appreciate your re...
Posted by Blue Moon on Thu, 10 Apr 2008 12:23:00 PST

Advice to Aspiring Musicians Pt. 2

So I get this e-mail:Jason, this is XXXXXX. Two Blue Moon long-term patrons are involved in this project, the other person being XXXXXX. And I have entertained informally in there for twenty years, an...
Posted by Blue Moon on Tue, 08 Apr 2008 01:36:00 PST

Last Week This Week

THU 20 MAR 2008PRESS START TO ROCKVENUS VERSE"This night is going to go down in history."No, I don’t say this.  Why would I?  There aren’t many people here tonight, but it’...
Posted by Blue Moon on Fri, 28 Mar 2008 04:59:00 PST

Catching Up

CATCHING UPSo&.The reason there has been no new blog activity is that I've been sick. In fact, I couldn't even stay for the whole show the Saturday previous to this last one. Speaking of which, this...
Posted by Blue Moon on Tue, 11 Mar 2008 04:19:00 PST

02.23.2008 Conservative Dad, Another Perfect Crime, Sisterwife

SAT 23 FEB 2008CONSERVATIVE DADANOTHER PERFECT CRIMESISTERWIFESo after the show  which was good and well-attended but not many people were drinking  I see this scruffy dude come in.  He's proba...
Posted by Blue Moon on Tue, 26 Feb 2008 03:40:00 PST

02.22.08 Open Choir Fire, Chores, Gazebo Of Destruction

FRI 22 FEB 2008OPEN CHOIR FIRECHORESGAZEBO OF DESTRUCTIONTrue story: twenty years ago, I was a fifteen-year old high school loser, overweight and underfriended.  You know where I'd spend my Frida...
Posted by Blue Moon on Sun, 24 Feb 2008 05:07:00 PST

02.21.08 Gryphon, Screen Test

THU 21 FEB 2008GRYPHONSCREEN TESTSo there's this idiot hanging out tonight, a scruffy kid who is either hopped up on the uppity-ups or is just an irritating jackass.  I can't tell, but I see him ...
Posted by Blue Moon on Fri, 22 Feb 2008 03:41:00 PST

Oh, Yeah. Last Weekend

Better late than never....THU 14 FEB 2008ZOE MUTHSAZERAC & DERBYTHE END TIMESHappy Valentine's Day, everybody.  I love you all so much that tonight is devoted to mostly heartbreaking music.Wh...
Posted by Blue Moon on Fri, 22 Feb 2008 05:41:00 PST