Qtexas, Volume 1, Number 29, April 13, 2001 Page: 18
40 p. : col. ill. ; 28 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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I Ihere it sat, a slick, four-color, 4-
inch square brochure with shiny
chains and the big, bold word in
the middle - "PURPLE."
It was the official notice that
Dallas was about to have another big
party, so I consulted the calendar,
which happens to be clear that open-
ing weekend in May.
The next obvious matter:
Fashion. What to wear?
As I surveyed the racked rows of
cropped tanks, disco shoes, light-up
bodices and party pants, my eyes
glazed, and my brain began to pon-
der purple.
Seems simple enough - purple,
a mix between red and blue. You
know, colors that represent female
and male influences. Got plenty of
getups in those colors, but nothing
in between. "Why no purple?" I was
plum perplexed.
What do I know about pur-
ple? Color of nobility,
power, royalty and
luxury. Oh, and
church -- the
R o m a n
Catholic
Church,
to be
specif-
ic.
Now,
any given
fag in Texas
knows that J
Chris has surely
done his share of
sacrilegious deeds, but
somehow connecting purple to
partying hasn't clicked. My mind
recalls a childhood image, one of
Jesus' violet shreds hanging from a
crucifix along with a wiry crown of
thorns. Eeks! Not exactly the image
I hope to conjure while flailing
around half-naked on a dance floor
packed with hard, wet bodies.
Let's see - what else?
Recalling grade school, the word
'purple" comes from the Greek por-
phura, a species of shellfish.Somehow they used the little critters
in a very expensive process to pro-
duce purple garments fit for kings.
Thumbing through the hangers,
I kinda felt sorry for the poor little
sea creatures, sacrificed all in the
name of high royalty. Perhaps I'll just
go classic black.
No, this is PURPLE, and I'm
going appropriately. Screw the shell-
fish. I've been called a queen many a
time. And furthermore, any fool
knows you can't dye stretch lycra, no
matter how many coins your clutch
holds.
History also tells us that purple is
clearly gay. In the 1930s, the term
"lavender" became popular in
American lesbian circles as a collo-
quial term for other lesbians.
And of course, hankies in pur-
ple's various tones indicate fetishes
such as piercing, dressing in drag
and armpit play. Yeh, that's pretty
queer.
Content that I'd be okay in pur-
ple, I returned to the brochure of
familiar names and read further.
Over the next several days, bom-
bards of emails and phone calls
revealed more.
The list of DJs from across the
South, all being hosted by a hodge-
podge of Dallas nightspots, assuaged
my suspicions. This group really has
it together.
Since when have Dallasites
known nightspot owners like
Michael Morris, Jack Polachek and
Howard Okon to be more receptive
to the use of their venues by one
organization over the same week-
end? Coordinators are saying kudos
to the club kings who own Club
One, Throckmorton Mining
Company and The Brick, respective-
ly.
Purple peers note that the color
also symbolizes courage. It's a good
thing the group's members share this
trait, as Purple, Inc., which formed
last month, admits it has set some
rather lofty goals.
Their vision of bringing the "first
successful" weekend of events to
Dallas is steadily progressing. Now,
with venues and DJs nailed down,the efforts of a well-connected, well-
financed, well-oiled group of guys
are paying off. A round of house par-
ties hopes to secure deep-pocketed
hosts to ensure that a big purse can
find its way to the Resource Center
of Dallas, this year's beneficiary.
Corporate contributions by
Kenneth Cole, Bacardi, Whittall &
Shon, Wet and Spectrum Beverages
will alleviate the pricey production
costs. And with the recent addition
of fundraising powerhouse Keith
Willard, more commercial contribu-
tions will likely follow.
Willard, former director of
IMMUNOcise, a Resource Center
HIV wellness program, says he's
most excited about the finalized
lineup that just hit the Net at
wwwdallaspurpleparty.com. A pre-
view at JR.'s Bar & Grill will be fol-
lowed by Perversion, a leather party,
at TMC with DJs Blaine Soileau and
Eddie X of South Beach. Suenos fol-
lows at the Quadrangle's Silver
Room with Atlanta's DJ Kaon.
And the excitement doesn't wane
with a pass-holder's Purple Waves
pool party ending only four hours
prior to Purple Rain, slated for The
Brick. DJ Ralphi Rosario of Chicago
spins until 4 a.m. when he'll pass the
purple baton to Houston fave
Michael Tank up the street at Moby
Dick.
The finale, by no other name,
opens Club One's doors, which are
normally dark on Sunday. DJ Kio
Kio helms the tables with a not-to-
be-missed performance by Power.
Both are SoBe imports.
While there's no precise word on
what will bloom from all this purple
passion sweeping Dallas, predictions
are "it'll be lots of fun."
My guess: if indeed each shade
symbolizes something different, I
suppose we'll just have to wait 'til
the purple paint dries. In the mean-
while start searching for your best
lilac attire.
J Chris wishes Purple the best of
luck with their debut.Qtexas 13 April 2001
by j chris leeds
jAJ Chris leeds is
the guy who
snatched that to-die-
for purple outfit off
the rack just before
you could get to it.I
I
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Qtexas Publishing, LLC. Qtexas, Volume 1, Number 29, April 13, 2001, periodical, April 13, 2001; Dallas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc2124274/m1/18/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Special Collections.