A Spirited Evening in Manhattan on Wednesday August 17th

New York, NY: Spirits will rise in midtown Manhattan at 7:00 PM on August 17th during the Mae West Birthday Gala at Bill’s Gay Nineties when Joe Franklin, Louise Lasser, and other entertainment industry VIPs gather to pay tribute to Mae West [1893-1980], who performed live in vaudeville and on Broadway as well as in movies.

Earlier, however, spirits of a different sort will be aroused when Dr. Lauren Thibodeau conducts a séance in this haunted mansion on East 54th Street. Built in 1888, and always owner-occupied, there is a full house shared by the living [Barbara Bart and the staff of Bill’s Gay Nineties] – and the undead: two playful girls clad in white dresses along with other noisy entities.

Restaurant manager Aldo Leone, whose work keeps him on the first and second floor, had not known about the ghosts – until recently. But bartender Rich and Elizabeth, a longtime waitress who exercises on the third floor, see and hear these supernatural inhabitants regularly.

On August 17th, it will be interesting to see who shows up, said JOE FRANKLIN, who will discuss his friend Mae West after a mini-performance of “Courting Mae West” and a full program of lively Prohibition era entertainment. Since Bill’s Gay Nineties is an original New York speakeasy, strolling Cigarette Girls and other prohibited delights will be on hand.

Tickets to this fundraiser are available via PayPal.
Information is online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com