Page 10, High Gear

Festive Halloween: Cleveland '81

By JEANNETTE

Halloween is, certainly, one of the most festive times of the year for me. It is, after all, one of the two biggest gay holidays, the other being New Year's Eve. I had an exhausting weekend covering all of the events and I'm glad that this weekend only happens once a year!

The weekend started on Friday with a costume show at 620 where Grandma and Her Nurse, Sr. Mary Stud, and a green Indian were prize winners. Emcees for the show were Lady Z, Orca, and Lola.

Exedra's decor was' changed to fluorescent green and orange wall and ceiling hangings, resembling a cave, for their Freakers' Ball. Their best costume winners were Divine, Miss Piggy as a witch, and Mona Desmond's look-alike. Miz D hosted and performed some of her standards.

On Saturday, knowing that I would be dazzled from running all over town, I wanted to have a quiet, peaceful dinner. I got the surprise of my life, however, when a large bum-

blebee escorted a friend and me to our table, and, if that wasn't enough, our waiter was a giant tea bag! Dinner was far from quiet and peaceful; have you ever talked to a tea bag and not laughed? I couldn't stop, laughing that is long enough to relax.

The GEAR Foundation and Buckeye Rainbow Society for the Deaf transformed the Gay Community Center into a mystical place and provided an early starting point for many who attended. In addition to plenty of food and drinks, the merriment of a magic act added to the festivity.

. My next stop was to the First Annual Pig Mother Ball. This was a party hosted by Club Cleveland, and, let me tell you, the "spread was unbelievable!" I truly regretted having eaten dinner. There was so much food, I can't begin to describe it all. The costumes here were quite extravagant, including Christina Crawford, Divine, clowns, a red cowboy, and more.

Vaults' Costume Contest was

next and was hosted by the one and only, Totie. The contestants were presented to the audience and the best were chosen on the basis of creativity and originality. Black Dracula, Divine, and a genie were the winners.

Moving right next door to Traxx, I was quite amazed at the number of people who came out for their Freakers' Ball. There were over 80 contestants who paraded around the packed dance floor, and, honest to God, these people spared nothing on their costumes. The best of the bunch were The Andrews Sisters, a black KKK member, and the Headless Horseman. Totie had quite a time emceeing this "show," especially when a dirty old man sprayed her from head-to-toe with shaving

cream.

My getaway car then whisked me off to Keys just in time for their pageant. Because of the many mirrors, Keys' use of candle-lit jack-olanterns created a stunning spectacle of light. Pageant winners were Ceil, Pope John Paul II, and Oreo

cookie.

After a few short hours of sleep, I was prepared for the final event of the weekend, New Dimensions' Black Party, held on Sunday. This party was the culmination of two nights of finalist-choosing and was the first time that Halloween events were held over a three-day period here in Cleveland. Mona Desmond hosted the finals and performed two of her numbers. Winners here were Miss Piggy as a witch, the Grand Vizier from Taming of the Shrew. and the Wicked Witch of the West.

Cleveland's Halloween of 1981 was quite breathtaking; there were not so many costumed partyers as in previous years, but those who did wear costumes had some of the best and most original that I've ever seen. I'm still very tired from traipsing about, but I had a lot of fun covering all these events. My only regret is that I was unable to be at all the bars at once. Next year, though, I will start out at the places I missed this

year.

Photo: John A. Barrick