Continental Baths

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In the late 1960s, Steve Ostrow opened the famous Continental Baths in the basement of the landmark 1903 Ansonia Hotel, New York City. Famous for its lavish accommodations, the Continental Baths was advertised as being reminiscent of "the glory of ancient Rome."<ref name="bath status">Maer Roshan. "30th Anniversary Issue / Larry Kramer: Queer Conscience", New York Magazine, April 6, 1998.</ref> The impressive features of this bathhouse included a disco dance floor, a cabaret lounge, sauna rooms, an "Olympia blue" swimming pool, and clean, spacious facilities that could serve nearly 1,000 men, 24 hours a day. One gay guide from the 1970's described the Continental Baths as a place that "revolutionized the bath scene in New York." An added attraction at the club was the first class entertainment provided by performers such as Melba Moore, Peter Allen, Cab Calloway, The Manhattan Transfer, John Davidson, Wayland Flowers and Bette Midler<ref name="bette">SkyMovies. "Bette Midler Biography", thebiographychannel, May 14, 2006.</ref>, who began her career by performing there with Barry Manilow<ref name="bman">Laurie Wheeler. Manilow, Barry. Continental Baths appearances. Retrieved on 2006-06-04.</ref> in 1972. Despite Midler's constant complaints about "that goddam waterfall," her poolside performances were so successful that she soon gained national attention, beginning with repeat performances on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.

Unfortunately, the Continental Baths suddenly lost much of its gay clientele by 1974. The reason for the decline in patronage was, as one gay New Yorker was quoted, "We finally got fed up with those silly-assed, campy shows. All those straight people in our bathhouse made us feel like we were part of the decor, and that we were there for their amusement."

By the time 1974 had ended, patronage was so low that Steve Ostrow had decided discontinue the lounge acts. He focused, instead, on resurrecting his business by making the baths coed. He even advertised on WBLS, but to no avail. In the end, Ostrow closed the Continental Baths for good. The facility, however, was reopened in 1977 as a heterosexual swingers' club called Plato's Retreat, but it was shut down by the City of New York at the height of the AIDS epidemic<ref name="platoshut">Suzanne Golubski & Bob Kappstatter (1986-01-01). The New York Daily News article: "Swinging doors shut".</ref>.

In February 1969 the Continental Baths was raided by the New York City Police. Twenty-two patrons were arrested, identified by one undercover towel-clad policeman who identified the men who offered to have sex with him or actually had had sex with him. This happened again in December of the same year, when police entered the Continental Baths and arrested three patrons and three employees, charging them with committing lewd and lascivious acts and criminal mischief, respectively.

Some memorable features of the Continental Bathhouse was the secret light warning system that tipped off the patrons when the police were there. There was also a VD clinic, a supply of A-200 in the showers and K-Y Jelly in the sweets dispensing machine.

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