Tinderbox

  Let the Faggots Burn (Townsend), xxxv, 101, 242

  Lewis, Scott, 178

  LGBT:

  public events affecting, xxix

  and religion, xxv

  see also homosexuals

  Life, 110

  Lill, Winston, 113–14, 134, 135, 147

  Living Magazine, 184

  Long, Russell B., 199

  Lord Is My Shepherd, The, and He Knows I’m Gay (Perry), 27

  Los Angeles:

  Christopher Street West in, 53, 106, 109, 217

  Cockapillar in, 106

  Gay Day in, 221

  gay pride parade in, 27–28, 106–7, 217

  Griffith Park violence in, (1973), 107–8

  memorial services in, 174, 178, 217

  Los Angeles Times, 110, 118, 177

  Louisiana:

  politics in, xxiii–xxiv, 234

  sodomy law in, 61

  state safety standards, 225

  Louisiana Air National Guard, 105

  Louisiana Democratic National Committee, 171

  Louisiana House of Representatives, 234

  Louisiana Lesbian and Gay Political Action Caucus (LAGPAC), 235, 236–37, 241, 242

  Louisiana Office of the State Fire Marshal, 96, 178–80, 199, 204–9, 213–15, 219, 223–24, 225, 235–36

  Louisiana Purchase, 7, 40

  Louisiana State Museum, xxxv–xxxvi, 246

  Louisiana State University, 171

  Lumpkin, Robert, xxxiv

  Lynde, Paul, 63–64

  Mace, Roeling, 237

  Magill, Rich, xxxv–xxxvi, 242–43

  Manford, Morty:

  and activism, 111, 155, 174, 189

  death of, 240

  and memorials, 171, 202

  and Perry, 111–12, 155

  and Up Stairs Lounge fire, 111–12, 129, 135–36

  violent attack on, 111

  Man’s Country, Manhattan, 47

  Maples, Leon Richard, xxxiv

  Marcell, Marcy, 12

  March on Washington (1963), 130

  Mardi Gras, 29, 43, 50–51, 213, 222, 226, 227, 237

  Marriott Hotel, New Orleans, 46, 49, 62, 115, 120, 129, 144, 152

  Martin, Frank, 94, 95

  Martinez, Ed, 158, 172, 173, 227

  Mary, Milton, 79, 80, 86–87, 154

  Massachusetts, new laws enacted in, 221

  Match Game (TV), 63

  Mateen, Omar, xvii–xviii

  Matlovich, Leonard, 221, 231, 232, 233, 240

  Mattachine Society, 106

  Matyi, George Stephen “Bud”:

  closeted, 62

  interment of, 188

  as victim, xxxiv, 80, 143

  and Wagener, 62–63, 144, 188, 231, 241–42

  wife and family of, 62–63, 144, 188–89, 226

  Matyi, Shawn, 62

  Matyi, Tina Marie, 62–63, 144, 188–89, 226

  Matyi, Todd, 62

  Maye, Michael J., 111

  McAnear, Bettye, 14–15, 33

  McAnear, Bob, 14–15, 33, 96, 100–101, 120, 131

  MCC:

  attacks on congregations of, 247

  Board of Elders, 202

  and community organizing, 148

  expansion of, 27, 31, 34

  and fires of suspicious origin, 110

  founding of, 27

  and lesbians, 174

  and National Day of Mourning, 177

  Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches, xxv, 26

  McCarthy era, 29

  McCloskey, Bernard, 143–44

  McCloskey, Clarence Joseph Jr., xxxiv, 80, 143–44, 288

  MCC of Atlanta, 36, 103, 109, 140, 171, 201

  MCC of Denver, 177

  MCC of Indiana, 204

  MCC of Los Angeles “Mother Church,” 26, 53, 109, 110, 177

  MCC of Miami, 177

  MCC of Milwaukee, 177

  MCC of Nashville, 110

  MCC of New Orleans:

  after the fire, 126–31, 197–99

  air conditioner donated to, 20, 37, 126

  and antihomosexual prejudice, 157–60, 199

  and Baril, 35, 114, 127, 129, 150, 171, 198, 201–2

  congregants of, xxv, xxvii, 32, 34, 36, 123, 127, 128–30

  and Craighead, 26, 35, 36, 59, 124, 127, 128, 202, 203, 222, 237, 245, 250

  deacons of, 26

  and Everett, 35, 36, 102, 140, 222

  financial problems of, 202, 203, 217

  and fire victims, xxiii–xxiv, xxxvii–xxxviii, 198

  founding of, xxv, 23, 25, 26

  and gay activists, 197

  homosexuals welcomed in, xxxvii, 5, 21, 26, 27, 31, 57, 127, 151, 197

  and Larson, 5, 6, 23, 34–35, 140, 166, 190, 202, 203, 237, 250

  Magazine Street venue of, 34

  and media stories, 124

  and memorial plaque, 251

  memorial services for victims, 129, 157–60, 245–46, 250

  as mission, 202

  National Day of Mourning, 171

  overnight vigil in, 102

  and Perry, xxxvii, 26–28, 35, 53, 114, 126, 128–31, 143, 144, 197, 237, 245

  resurrection of, 246

  and St. George’s Episcopal Church, 34, 139–40, 157

  and Solomon, xxv, 23–26, 34, 129

  Sunday service, day of fire, 20–23, 37

  and Up Stairs Lounge, 12, 31–34, 59, 110, 222, 244–46

  MCC of New York, 177

  MCC of San Diego, 177, 178

  MCC of San Francisco, 177, 204

  MCC of Seattle, 178

  MCC of Washington, D.C., 143, 171, 177

  McCrossen, William, 88–89, 93, 131, 132, 214, 249, 252–53

  McDonogh, John, 29, 30

  McGovern, George, 132

  McMahon, Ed, 18

  McRae, Naoma, 66

  Medina, Adolph, 79, 91, 95

  memory, xxiii, xxviii

  Mendoza, Laisder, 30

  Mercury, Freddie, xxvii

  Merlo, Frank, 30

  Metropolitan Community Church, see MCC

  Metropolitan Community Temple, Los Angeles, 178

  Meyers, John, 29, 32–33, 61, 127, 141, 156, 159, 169, 192

  Miami:

  new ordinance in, 228, 230

  “Warehouse VIII Benefit” in, 198

  Michaels, Dick, 111, 189

  Midship bar, New Orleans, 70

  “Militant Homosexual, The” (Newsweek), 110

  military:

  homosexuals in, xxxiv, 51–52, 104–5, 115, 221, 238–39, 305

  Office of Special Investigations, 54, 105

  Milk, Harvey, 234

  Miller, Lynn, 25

  “millionaire bachelors,” 29–31

  Minneapolis, new ordinances in, 221

  Miss America (1959), 229

  Miss Fury (drag queen), 220

  Mississippi River, 7

  Mitchell, Duane (son), 36, 38, 67, 97–98, 181–83, 226

  Mitchell, Duane George “Mitch,” 34

  and Broussard, 6, 15, 35, 36, 38, 59, 60, 67, 75–76, 181

  children waiting at theater for, 97–98

  during the fire, 75–76, 77, 80, 129

  and MCC, 26, 35

  as victim, xxxiv, 101, 116, 181–83, 226, 250

  wife of, 35–36

  Mitchell, Stephen, 36, 38, 67, 97–98, 181, 183, 226

  Monroe, Albert, 75

  Montaigne, Michel de, 90

  Morality in Media of Louisiana, xxxii, 157, 170

  Moral Majority, 234

  Morgan City, Louisiana, 188

  Morial, Ernest “Dutch,” 135, 225–26, 235, 236–37, 240–41

  Morris, Dean, 76

  Morris, Henry M., 89, 91, 99, 131, 136, 146, 162, 228, 236–37

  Morris, Mary, 222

  Morrison, Chep, 29

  Morrison, Jacob, 29

  Moulin, Ruthie “the Duck Girl,” 9

  My Name Is Nobody (film), 40, 63, 186

 
“nancy,” use of term, 63

  Napoleon (hustler), 13, 16

  National Bureau of Standards, 223–24

  National Day of Mourning, 148–49, 151, 154–55, 157, 169, 171, 177, 231

  National Fire Protection Association, 194, 223, 224

  National Gay Task Force, 229, 230, 235

  National Leprosarium, 56–57

  National New Orleans Memorial Fund, 151, 154, 156, 190, 197–98, 201–2, 211, 228

  National Opinion Research Center (NORC), xxxii, 248

  National Organization for Women (NOW), 231

  Nelson, Roger, 24, 232

  Newbrough, Celeste, 196

  Newhouse, Eric, 123–24

  New Orleans:

  alligators in, 7

  Cajun culture in, 42, 43

  Carnival season in, 43, 50–51, 230

  Central Business District, 184

  Chamber of Commerce, 201

  City Council, 133, 243

  civil rights in, 133, 135

  Creole culture in, 15, 28, 29, 43, 247

  crime rates in, xxiv, 10

  downtown, 6–10

  economic losses in, 235

  French Quarter in, see French Quarter

  gay community in, xxviii, 4–6, 8, 16, 23–25, 28–31, 53, 112, 120–21, 123, 156–57, 169, 196–97, 221–22, 226–28, 232, 235, 240, 242–43, 245, 248

  historic fires in, xxxv–xxxvi, 228, 241, 251

  homosexuals suppressed in, xxxi, 23–24, 25, 29, 241–43

  Human Relations Committee, 123, 134, 146, 196–97, 204

  jazz funerals in, 9, 219, 247, 248

  krewes in, 50, 53, 227, 230, 237

  legal action brought against, 225

  legends of, 234

  maps, vi–vii

  Mardi Gras in, 29, 43, 50–51, 213, 222, 226, 227, 237

  melting pot of, 15

  Municipal Auditorium in, 230–33

  as oasis for homosexuals, 52

  Port of, 7, 46, 49, 89

  press passes in, 91

  Public Accommodations Ordinance (1969), 133

  public officials’ reactions to fire, 131, 132, 134–35, 146–47, 177, 196–97, 252

  revitalization plans for, 135, 147, 204

  Superdome, xviii–xix, 6, 222

  “Taskforce on Gay Problems,” 197, 204

  tourist industry in, xxxvii, 9–10, 227

  trolleys in, 37

  “uptown marriage” in, 28

  New Orleans Athletic Club, 8

  New Orleans Community Disaster Relief Committee, 148

  New Orleans Emergency Task Force, 129, 155, 178, 189, 190, 203, 204

  New Orleans Fire Department:

  arson investigation by, 96, 223–24

  bias and ignorance of homosexuality issues, 130

  Central Fire Station called to fire scene, 70, 78, 85, 88, 89

  and state marshal, see Louisiana Office of the State Fire Marshal

  New Orleans Jazz, 235

  New Orleans Police Department:

  arson investigation in, 95–97, 99, 112–13, 179–80, 192–94, 236–37

  bias and ignorance of homosexuality issues, 91, 96, 120–21, 130, 131, 136, 146–47, 156, 162, 237

  and Black Panthers, 123

  bribes paid to, 156, 186

  case abandoned by, xxxi, 188, 192–94, 199, 204, 208

  as corporate sponsor, 250

  dereliction of duty in, 206, 219

  mass arrest of homosexuals by, 23–24, 25

  and Nunez, 92–93, 97, 179–80, 184–86, 188, 193–94, 205–6

  and Up Stairs Lounge licensing, 16

  New Republic, The, xxiv, 248

  Newsday, 118

  Newsweek, 110

  Newton, Huey, 26

  New York:

  Christopher Street Liberation Day in, 53, 107, 110–11

  legal protections for homosexuals in, 48

  memorial service in, 177, 178

  military men in, 52

  Stonewall Inn in, xxix–xxx, 52–53, 107–8, 111, 119, 124, 151, 156, 177, 251

  New York Gay Synagogue, 151, 178

  New York Times, The:

  after the fire, 93–94, 110, 118, 119, 220

  and Anita Bryant, 230

  civil rights advocates in, xxx, 93

  Shaw obituary in, 217–18

  stories unreported in, 177

  use of “Gay” in, 265

  1970s, The: A New Global History from Civil Rights to Economic Inequality (Borstelmann), 122

  Nixon, Richard M., xxxiii

  NO/AIDS Task Force, 240

  Nola Express, 158, 172, 173

  Noland, Rev. Iveson B., 157–58, 170

  North Dakota, new laws enacted in, 221

  Nunez, Elaine Bassett, 216–17, 218

  Nunez, Mansel J., 43

  Nunez, Roger Dale, 41–46

  accused of arson, 92–93, 178–80, 193, 204–9, 223, 236

  after the fire, 92–93, 141–42, 150

  brain surgery on, 215, 218

  at Charity Hospital, 180

  and conversion hysteria, 212

  death of, 218–19, 223, 235, 252

  disability checks to, 212

  epileptic seizures of, 180–81, 207, 208

  foiled investigation of, 97, 184–86, 188, 193–94, 206–9, 212, 223, 235–36

  and Forest, 212, 214–15, 216, 218–19

  “I’m going to burn this place,” 66, 103–4, 105, 115, 170, 192–93

  and Ledet, 213–15, 216, 218, 252

  legacy of, 220

  marriage of Bassett and, 216–17, 218

  in the military, 43–44

  and Post Office, 213

  as probation absconder, 194

  run-ins with the law, 45, 194, 205–6, 215

  stories about the fire, 213–15, 219, 220, 252

  in Up Stairs Lounge, 64–67, 179, 193

  at Wanda’s, 78, 85, 92, 214

  Nunez, Rose, 43, 207

  Nunez, Shelton, 43, 142, 219

  Obama, Barack, xviii

  Office of Special Investigations (OSI), 54, 105

  Ohio, new laws enacted in, 221

  Old Ville Platte Cemetery, 163

  Operation PUSH, 130

  Oregonian, The, 117

  Orlando, Florida, Pulse nightclub shooting (2016), xvii–xviii, xix, xxxv

  Oswald, Lee Harvey, 8

  “Over the Rainbow” (song), 233

  “partner,” use of term, 4

  Pat O’Brien’s, New Orleans, 40

  Paul, Saint, xxvi, 23

  People United to Serve Humanity (PUSH), 130

  Perino, John, 184

  Perry, Troy, 228, 229

  after the fire, 145, 146, 148, 150, 151, 152, 166, 217

  and Baril, 201–2, 204

  and Bryant, 230

  and gay entrepreneurs, 155–57

  and gay pride, 109, 111, 245–46

  and Governor Edwards, 154–56

  and MCC, xxxvii, 26–28, 35, 53, 114, 126, 128–31, 143, 144, 197, 237, 245

  and memorial services for victims, 157–60, 164, 168–74, 178, 247, 249, 250, 251, 253

  and National Day of Mourning, 148–49, 151, 154–55, 157, 231

  and Up Stairs Lounge fire, 109–10, 111–12, 123, 131, 135–37, 139–41, 152, 195, 245–47, 248

  Pete’s Place, New Orleans, 50, 141

  Phillips, Wayne, xxxvi, 246

  Picayune, see Times-Picayune

  Pitre, Charlene, 250

  Place, Jane, 31

  Plaisance, Stanley, 13

  Port Orleans, New Orleans, 7, 46, 49, 89

  Post Office (gay bar), 212–13, 219, 227

  post-traumatic stress disorder, xxxvi, 202

  Preservation Hall, New Orleans, 40

  Press Club of New Orleans, 153

  Prytania Theater, New Orleans, 38

  Public Accommodations Ordinance (1969), 133

  Pulse nightclub, Orlando, xvii–xviii, xix, xxxv

  PUSH (People U
nited to Serve Humanity), 130

  Quinton, Linn “Rusty”:

  after the fire, 90, 95, 115, 129, 144

  before the fire, 4, 58

  during the fire, 78, 79, 80

  Rabin, Carl, xxviii, 99–100, 162, 190

  Rasmussen, Douglas “Buddy,” 102, 207

  after the fire, 92–93, 100–101, 149, 150, 170

  on day of fire, 3, 10, 11, 12–13, 19, 58, 64–69, 86, 103, 115, 179

  during the fire, 71–72, 74–77, 81, 87

  and Fontenot, 3–5, 6, 10, 14–15, 19, 58, 68, 72, 77, 81, 150, 163, 227

  and Larson’s ashes, 237

  and Post Office, 212–13, 227

  and Up Stairs Lounge, 11, 12–16, 17–18, 19, 32, 58–60, 65–66

  Rault Center, New Orleans, fire in (1972), xxxi, xxxii, xxxv, 132, 159

  Reagan, Ronald, 234

  Reed, Roy, 54, 93–94, 118, 119–20, 220

  Reilly, Charles Nelson, 63

  religion:

  and civil rights, 27, 130

  and homosexuality, xxv–xxvi, xxxii, 26, 27, 33, 130, 140, 150, 157–60, 163, 168, 194–96

  and politics, xxv

  Reynolds, Burt, 18–19, 63, 121

  Rice, Anne, 234

  Richardson, Rev. Bill, 23, 34, 140, 157–58, 249

  Rigaud, Claudine, 68, 113, 193

  Rios, Fernando, 53–54, 249

  Ritz-Carlton New Orleans, 249, 252

  Roe v. Wade, xxxvi

  Roman Catholics, see Catholic Church

  Rosenthal, A. M. “Abe,” 119

  Rosenthal, Ronnie:

  after the fire, 90, 101–3, 108–9, 112, 127, 139, 152

  before the fire, 36, 37–38, 39, 59

  during the fire, 75, 76

  and Everett, 5, 36, 39, 59, 60, 62, 74, 76, 90, 101–2, 115

  Royal Sonesta Hotel, New Orleans, 246

  Rushton, Bill:

  and activism, 200, 230–31

  Advocate pieces written by, 31, 124, 224

  coming out, 233

  and Courier, 11, 14, 122, 224

  death of, 240

  and fire reportage, 122, 124, 159, 187

  and Human Resources Committee, 196

  and Mardi Gras, 226, 230

  on Up Stairs Lounge, 14, 224

  Russo, Peter, 8

  Russo, Vito, 111

  Rustin, Bayard, 130

  Safari Lounge, New Orleans, 36, 161

  Sagarin, Edward, xix

  St. Ann Street, New Orleans, 50, 232

  St. George’s Episcopal Church, New Orleans, 23, 34, 129, 139–40, 157, 158, 249

  St. Louis Cathedral, New Orleans, 40, 232

  St. Mark’s United Methodist Church, New Orleans, 168–74, 177, 196, 231, 233, 240–41

  St. Pierre, Donald, 248

  St. Roch Cemetery, New Orleans, 237

  same-sex relations:

  condemnation of, xxvi, 61, 121–22

  marriage, 249, 253

  new laws related to, 221, 253

  San Francisco:

  Gay Freedom Day in, 53

  Gay Liberation Front in, 23

  legal protections for homosexuals in, 48

  memorial service in, 177, 178