Uncle Donald's Castro Street- MILK

UNCLE DONALD'S CASTRO STREET

M I L K
the movie

JANUARY 2008

These days CASTRO STREET is a beehive of activity. It's getting a facelift for a trip back in time to recapture the look of the 1970's. It's going to star in a movie! CASTRO CAMERA, Harvey Milk's photography store is back! TOAD HALL is back! So are DOUBLE RAINBOW and AQUARIUS RECORDS! These and many other storefronts from the past are making guest appearances. The aging CASTRO THEATER is bright and clean with new neon. The Castro sparkles once again!

Finally, after 30 years of procrastinating, Hollywood is making a movie about Harvey Milk. Gus Van Zant is the director. Sean Penn will play Harvey. James Franco will play Scott Smith, Harvey's lover and business partner.

The present occupants of 575 Castro, the location of Harvey Milk's Castro Camera, have agreed to vacate the premises temporarily so it can be redecorated as the camera store. They have done a good job of making it look like the original, both inside and out.

The Castro Theater was built in the 1930's and, like the rest of the Castro business district, has been looking tired and neglected lately. Thanks to the enthusiasm this movie is creating, the building is freshly painted and the neon lights have been repaired.

Toad Hall, the most popular Castro bar of the 70's, was located at 482 Castro Street. It closed in 1979. That location has become a part of Walgreens on the corner of 18th Street. 440 Castro which was formerly Daddy's and before that, Bear Hollow and then The Bear, has had a facelift to resemble the stonework and cedar shingle look of the original location. A Toad Hall sign has been installed that is nearly identical to the original.

I lived in the Castro in the 1970's and 1980's and was very active in the community. I knew Harvey Milk but I didn't understand like he did that we were making history. The "MILK" movie crew is working hard to recreate the 70's look of the neighborhood, but I can't imagine that they'll be able to capture the unique character of the community. The cultural and sexual revolution that accompanied the proud emergence of the gay community in the early 1970's will not be easy to describe realistically yet believably on film. We were so outrageous that the truth will sound like fantasy! The idealism, optimism, and sense of family have long gone from the Castro. Our successful struggle for equal rights put the Castro on the map as a tourist attraction. One-by-one, gay owned businesses were forced out by the real estate interests and were replaced by Walgreens and other big businesses. Harvey's store, Castro Camera, was one of the victims. In winning our battles for equality, we lost our neighborhood! I hope the movie is a success, but mostly I hope it is well done, honest, and accurate.
Uncle Donald

California Assemblyman Mark Leno of San Francisco has introduced a bill into the state Legislature that would make May 22, Harvey Milk's birthday, a California State Holiday.

For more information about the MILK movie, check out TOWLEROAD - a gay news and information blog. It is an excellent source for the latest news about "MILK", as well as political, entertainment, and other news of gay interest.