Remembering Mike Stone of The Warehouse...
Better Dayz. The Warehouse. The Playground. These words have become synonomous with the history of black gay and lesbian club-life in New York City. Unfortunately, the original man behind much of the magic has passed on. I first met Mike back in 2002 at a panel I was on at the Bronx Art Gallery's fantastic exhibit "The DL in Contemporary Art." He was incredibly sweet to me. I'll always remember it. Here's a letter I received via email earlier today about the passing of this legendary figure:
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It is with my deepest regret that I must inform you of the untimely passing of the most legendary club promoter and impresario Mike Stone. Mike, renown in the 70's and 80's for his extravagant party events at the infamous Studio 54 in Manhattan, moved on from this world, Monday night, September 19. A pioneer in a new genre of business called nightclub promotion, it was Mike Stone who put the hugely successful Bonds International on the map along with so many other notable clubs in New York City over the last three decades. To present it in terms of familiarity for the younger generation, it was Mike who first organized and developed both the Warehouse parties in the Bronx and the Playground in Manhattan. He was also responsible for the legendary Better Days. If there is but one consolation in his tragic passing, it is that he no longer must endure the pain of his long-standing illness and we can be assured that he is now in a much better place. May his legacy long be remembered and cherished by the thousands who have enjoyed his talents over the years and be honored and respected by the many promoters who will follow in his footsteps.
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Arrangements have been made for a memorial and final viewing Saturday, September 24 at St. Augustine Presbyterian Church, 838 East 165th Street at Prospect Ave., Bronx, NY from 11am to Noon and service from noon at 2pm. Please stayed tuned as I will in short order present to you, in conjunction with other notable promoters, a very special all-out commemoration event in his memory. Indeed, Mike wouldnt have it any other way....
rest in peace -- he was an excellent DJ
Posted by
Clay |
9/23/2005
He is certainly in a better place...this is indeed a sad moment..
The Warehouse was my first GAY club experience...Many wonderful memories of mine are attached to that place...
He helped create an atomosphere where young men could escape..if even for a couple of hours..the stress and drama of their day to day lives..
Thank you Mike...
Posted by
Quaheem |
9/23/2005
Thanks for posting this, Frank! I remember Better Days and its successor, Midtown 43, which I was at the night a shooting took place there--and the club wasn't much longer for this world. Mike Stone, thank you, and may the gods bless you always for the possibilities you created for so many of us, for so many, truly better days!
Posted by
John K |
10/02/2005
I will always miss Mike Stone, i remember back in the 80's when i was working at the club.. Mike Stone just came up to me and compliment my outfit he was so sweet...My kids are 18 and they never met Mike Stone but they know him in heart coz i have always spoke about him, his productions and music...i never understood housemusic but Mike Stone made me understand it and feel it deep deep in my soul...i live in midtown and when ever i pass by Studio 54 or the site where bonds international was all i remember is Mike Stone....Rest in Peace!
Posted by
AnneMsDvA |
3/07/2007
mike stone, wow! i worked with him and ken carpenter along with freddy starr and a few others. he was the best, we spent many of night getting twisted and having fun. i am now much older and with family but just thought i would google his name and came up with this. i knew he had passed but tried to keep som much of my past alive. i like it a lot better (the world) then what it is now.
Posted by
Anonymous |
5/25/2009