Arts & Entertainment
Queery: Charger Stone
The Bear Happy Hour organizer answers 20 gay questions

When Nicholas Baatz was told not to re-enlist in the Marines as heād planned after being outed in 2005 ā his tour was up in five months and he claims it would have taken military brass longer to have him kicked out under āDonāt Ask, Donāt Tellā ā it was a crush that forced him to rethink his career path but he sees it now as a roundabout blessing.
āI thought about re-enlisting once they got rid of āDonāt Ask, Donāt Tellā but I really love what Iām doing now and where life has taken me, so I donāt want to give that up,ā he says.
Baatz, known as Charger Stone in D.C. bear circles, runs D.C. Bear Crue which has several events but is mostly known for its 6-11 p.m. weekly Friday evening happy hour at Town (dcbearcrue.com). He also manages Unleashed Massage Studio in Northeast Washington.
Baatz came out after a two-year marriage to a woman failed. He and partner Scott Gunn, a cop in Anne Arundel County he met in 2011, plan to get married next May. Baatz proposed at Bear Happy Hour.
The 32-year-old Groton, Conn., native lives in Hyattsville, Md., with Gunn and their three Great Danes and one German Shepherd ā Angel, Lucky, Misty and Tommy.
Baatz spent time in Japan and Iraq during his military years. He enjoys his motorcycle and cleaning in his free time (āIām a little OCD, so I canāt relax unless everything is in its placeā). He plans to graduate in the fall from DeVry University with a degree in technical management.
(Blade photo by Michael Key)
How long have you been out and who was the hardest person to tell?Ā
My first boyfriend outed me to my family and outed me to the Marine Corps. That was in 2005. The hardest thing was admitting it to my mother. Once she knew, I didn’t care who else did.
Who’s your LGBT hero?
I met a lot of people who have done great things for the community, but I don’t actually have anyone in particular.
What’s Washington’s best nightspot, past or present?
Bear Happy Hour has always been home since I came out. And I’m proud to have been able to manage that event for the past three years.
Describe your dream wedding.Ā
When I think about Scott and I getting married, it’s not the wedding itself I think about. I think about the people who would be there. I would love for my very conservative Baptist family to be there to support me. Not because they think being gay is OK (because they will never believe that), but just to support me in the fact that I’ve found someone I want to be with for the rest of my life. Unfortunately, though I’m closest to my mother more than any other family member, I doubt she will even be there for it.
What non-LGBT issue are you most passionate about?
I think we as a community spend so much time focusing on “our rights” or the attitude that we are “owed” something, that we forget the simple things like just treating each other with respect.
What historical outcome would you change?
In 2005 when my first boyfriend outed me to the Marine Corps I had no idea what to do. I had a few months left on an eight-year contract and they told me to not reenlist or they would kick me out under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” If I knew then what I know now about the support structure for the LGBT community in the armed forces, I would have stayed in. But I was scared, alone, and had no one to go to for help. I didn’t know anything about the community back then. The flip side to that is that if I would have stayed in I wouldn’t be where I’m at now and I wouldn’t have met my fiancĆ©, or owned two small business, or be running the Bear Happy Hour. So I guess maybe I should be thanking him?
What’s been the most memorable pop culture moment of your lifetime?
Oh god, pop culture ā most memorable? I would have to say no clue. Love the music, ignore the people.
On what do you insist?
I insist that people stay in between their own white dotted lines on the road and use their blinkers when changing lanes. I have no problems getting out of the car and explaining to you why I think you shouldn’t have a driverās license at the next red light.
What was your last Facebook post or Tweet?
Facebook: “Apparently (so I overheard) real men drive Miatas.”
If your life were a book, what would the title be?Ā
“Rumor Has It: This one time ⦔
If science discovered a way to change sexual orientation, what would you do?
Not a damn thing.
What do you believe in beyond the physical world?Ā
I grew up in a Baptist church and was heavily involved in the church until I was 24. I guess you could say I am a questioning Christian. I believed all my life that being gay was wrong, and here I am. So what else is wrong?
What’s your advice for LGBT movement leaders?
Be better at it than the opposition.
What would you walk across hot coals for?
I’d do it for a couple million.
What LGBT stereotype annoys you most?
That for some reason being gay equals “I am a big black woman stuck in a twink’s bodyā¦. GUUUUURRRRRL!!!” Of course we perpetuate the stereotype so we should be blaming ourselves for it.
What’s your favorite LGBT movie?
“A Dirty Shame”
What’s the most overrated social custom?
Putting the seat down on the toilet. Honestly ā you’re a big girl, you can put it down yourself.
What trophy or prize do you most covet?
I don’t really care too much about trophies or prizes. I have a few but I couldnāt really care less.
What do you wish you’d known at 18?
Invest in Apple and Living Social.
Why Washington?Ā
I was stationed at Marine Corps Base Quantico when I was outed. I found support in the bear community so I made D.C. my home.
Music & Concerts
New dance single pays tribute to Town Danceboutique
Local musicians pen āTownā in honor of shuttered club

The closing of the LGBTQ nightclub Town Danceboutique in the summer of 2017 was heartbreaking to local musician Bryce Bowyn. He and his Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter friend Lexie Martin decided to honor its legacy in their new single, āTown.ā
For Bowyn, who moved to the District about a decade ago to attend school at American University, the memories he has from Town Danceboutique are endless. And when it closed, it was a massive loss to Bowyn and many others.
āIt was such a cool space,ā Bowyn said. āIt was just disappointing to see a place that brought so many people together become part of the landscape again.ā The building Town Danceboutique used to be housed in is now home to upscale apartments and a CVS.
Town Danceboutique was a formative place for Bowyn and Martin, and it was Bowynās first experience in an open and accepting LGBTQ environment. His favorite memories at the club were always on Halloween, he said. Patrons, including Bowyn, would go all out with their costumes to look their very best.
Bowyn and Martin met while they were both in the musical theater program at American University. Despite their years-long friendship, āTownā is the first song they have written together. They sat down over FaceTime and got to work. It was Martinās idea to pay homage to Town Danceboutique, and the song follows the story of pre-gaming, going out, and hitting the dance floor.
But the single also serves as a hype song for going out in any city, at any place.
āIt was important to me for the song to remain relatable and accessible,ā Bowyn said. āSo the whole foundation of the chorus, āLet’s go to town,ā can either mean Town Danceboutique, or painting the town red and having the night of your life.ā
Bowyn started writing and producing his own music in 2018. He released an EP titled āA Rosy Retrospectā in 2022, and most recently released a single āA Bridge Burned Downā in June. His music is inspired by late 2000s pop and ā80s synthpop, influenced by stars like Madonna and Charli XCX. Lexie Martin released her self-titled EP in 2019 and most recently came out with her single āSUPERPOWERā in 2021.
Bowyn has been a lifelong pop music enthusiast. He distinctly remembers watching Britney Spears perform āOops!ā¦I Did It Againā at the MTV Video Music Awards when he was a kid and thinking āThat was what I wanted and what I was set to do in life.ā
āMy heart was always with pop music,ā Bowyn said.
āTownā is available now for streaming on Spotify, Apple Music, and Soundcloud.
Movies
Bernal shines as real-life gay wrestler in āCassandroā
A polished, engaging film about a real-life figure that carries message of hope

For most Americans, any knowledge of the Mexican wrestling style known as lucha libre is probably limited to what they gleaned from the 2006 Jack Black comedy āNacho Libre,ā which (it should go without saying) is not a movie that anyone should consider āfactual.ā
Now another movie about the subject has arrived, and this time itās not an anything-for-a-laugh fantasy but a biopic about a real luchador who rose to international fame in the 1980s and remains one of the most celebrated and popular figures in Mexican professional wrestling to this day.
The luchador in question is SaĆŗl ArmendĆ”riz ā better known to his fans as āCassandroā ā and the eponymously titled movie about his ascendency begins streaming on Amazon Prime Video Sept. 22 after a limited theatrical release on Sept. 15.
Directed by Roger Ross Williams (who may not be a household name but has the distinction of being the first Black director to win an Oscar, thanks to the 2009 win of his āMusic by Prudenceā for Best Documentary Short), āCassandroā stars Gael GarcĆa Bernal ā a longtime ally who became a queer fan-favorite thanks to his work in films like āY tu mamĆ” tambiĆ©nā and āBad Educationā ā as the openly gay ArmendĆ”riz and tells the story of his rise to fame in direct defiance of the culturally reinforced homophobia that permeated the professional environment of his field. Set in the 1980s, it follows the future superstar from the early days of his career, tracing his steps as he forges a path to success as an exótico ā a wrestler who assumes a flamboyant persona based in queer (and largely homophobic) stereotypes ā while simultaneously rising above the stigma of his sexuality and his impoverished upbringing to become a pioneering force in LGBTQ+ acceptance within the deeply traditional Latino culture to which he belonged.
Like most biopics, it also focuses on the personal: much of the filmās first half is dominated by the relationship between ArmendĆ”riz and his mother, Yocasta (Perla De La Rosa), a professional āgood-time girlā whose acceptance of his queer identity is absolute yet tempered by her fear for his well-being. There is also a long-running thread about his desire for approval from his father ā a married man with a ālegitimateā family in which he is decidedly not included ā and the pattern in his personal life of repeating that same dynamic in romantic relationships with lovers like closeted big-name luchador āEl Comandanteā (RaĆŗl Castillo) and an apparently fluid but firmly āon the DLā associate named Felipe (Benito Antonio MartĆnez Ocasio, aka Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny for those unfamiliar with his ārealā name) who clearly meets more than just his need for a reliable supplier of cocaine ā it is the ā80s, after all ā while maintaining a strict-if-not-quite-convincing āno homoā stance.
Ultimately, though, as presented by first-time narrative feature director Williams (who co-wrote the screenplay with David Teague after previously covering ArmendĆ”rizā story in the 2016 documentary short āThe Man Without a Maskā), āCassandroā is driven by a narrative about overcoming and reclaiming the pejorative cultural tropes around queer sexuality and turning them on their ear as a means toward fully inhabiting queer identity. Blessed with a relatively supportive mother ā a plainly-implied career sex worker who is depicted as much as a kindred spirit as she is a maternal figure ā and comfortable enough in his own skin to flaunt his ādevianceā in the public eye, the filmās version of ArmendĆ”riz moves through a clearly defined arc toward self-acceptance on his own terms.
Much of this is mirrored, of course, in the tale of his accelerated rise to stardom, in which he wins the hearts of lucha libre fans enough to subvert the accepted formula that the exótico is always the loser, and reinforced by the ways in which he responds to the various long-term relationships in his life ā some nurturing, some toxic ā as his career trajectory helps him to recognize his own worth. In this way, āCassandroā becomes a true-life tale of queer affirmation, the saga of a person who overcomes hardline traditional expectations and deep-rooted social prejudice to use his own queer identity as an avenue to personal empowerment.
That, of course, is exactly what it sets out to be: itās an unabashedly pro-queer narrative that brings the highest level of professional artistry into the mix, using it to convey that subtle blend of aloof observation and emotional engagement that can sometimes win viewersā hearts and minds.
In recognition of that artistry, the foremost acknowledgement must go to Bernal, who turns in a career-highlight performance as both ArmendĆ”riz and his over-the-top titular alter-ego, which requires an impressive display of physicality in addition to keen emotional intelligence. The actor is more than capable on both fronts, and while it would frankly be nice to see one of our queer heroes portrayed in a mainstream film by an actual queer actor, itās hard to complain when the actor is someone like Bernal, who finds within his own lived experience the authenticity to make it all ring true. Kudos are also deserved for both De La Rosa, who establishes an emotional core to the story that endures even after she leaves it, and openly-queer actor Roberta Colindrez as the trainer (and friend) that helps āCassandroā conquer the world of professional lucha libre wrestling by literally flipping the script.
Still, though there is clearly a heartfelt desire to inspire behind the movieās portrayal of its heroās unlikely rise to glory, āCassandroā doesnāt quite deliver the kind of unequivocal āfeel-goodā validation for which it aims. Thereās something rote about the story as itās told to us; ArmendĆ”rizā success seems a foregone conclusion, and his personal struggles ā though impeccably acted and depicted with sincerity ā feel somehow manufactured for the sake of a desired emotional response. Thereās a sense of āHollywoodā about the filmās approach, a deliberate framing of the material which makes this real-life success story seem much too easy, its subjectās struggles too much like tropes to deliver the kind of authentic satisfaction the movie clearly aims for. Built on familiar formula, it all feels a little too predictable to ring true ā especially for a saga centered in such a messy, wild-and-wooly environment as professional lucha libre. Yes, it inspires, but much of that is accomplished by playing to sentiment, by what seems a deliberate effort toward building and reaffirming a legend rather than revealing the real human experience behind it, and many details of Armendarizā real story are left out ā a suicide attempt, a struggle with substance abuse, even the origin of his iconic stage name as a tribute to a brothel-keeper of whom he was fond ā that might have made for a less-sanitized and much more interesting story.
Such quibbles, however, are probably a moot point for most viewers; while āCassandroā might feel a little too hollow to satisfy completely, itās a polished, entertaining, and engaging film about a real-life figure that should ā and does ā carry a message of hope and transcendence for queer audiences.
Why would we ever complain about that?
Sports
Celebrating sports history: DC Gay Flag Footballās 25th season
Head of Districtās premier league says itās āgroovinā to its silver anniversary

What started when gay football fans got together in the 1990s to play their favorite sport is now a D.C. institution with 270 players in 20 teams spread over three fields, playing in both fall and spring.
āGet off the bench,ā shouts the slogan on the leagueās website. āGet in the game!ā
The D.C. Gay Flag Football League turns 25 years old this month and is considered not only the premier league of its kind in the District, but is recognized across the country for its players, organization, and spirit.
āThe way we run our league and the way we compete make us stand out relative to the rest,ā DCGFFL Commissioner Logan Dawson told the Washington Blade.
For those who donāt know flag football from any other kind, the difference is easy to spot: Thereās no contact allowed. As the rules say, āThat includes tackling, diving, blocking, and screening. Instead, players wear flags that hang along their sides by a belt. To ātackleā the person in possession of the ball, the opposing team needs to pull one or both of their flags off.ā There are a lot more rules, but thatās the one that really sets it apart from tackle football.
The sport itself dates back to World War II and its origins have been traced to Fort Meade, Md.
Whatās the secret to the leagueās longevity? āI think we attract and hold on to great athletes who are highly competitive, not only on the field, but also, in our professional and personal lives,ā he said. Dawson, 32, plays flag football as well as manages the league. Heās currently single, but says his first love is the weather.
āI knew in second grade that I wanted to be a meteorologist,ā said Dawson, who moved to the District to be a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
A prolific swimmer since high school, he came out as he started grad school at Purdue University in Indiana in 2012. In an op-ed appearing in Outsports in 2014, Dawson wrote about competing in his first Gay Games in Cleveland along with a group of other gay swimmers from Colorado, and left that experience determined to join a gay sports league.Ā
He found it in the fall of 2018 in the DCGFFL, the same year the leagueās Generals team won Gay Games XVIII. The league supports up to five travel teams, which take part in annual tournaments nationwide. It also hosts a summer tournament each year in Rehoboth Beach, Del.
āThere’s a good amount of participation by people who played in the league from the very early days,ā Dawson said. āI think we’re just in the sweet spot, where we have a lot of the original participants, a lot of new players, and weāre just kind of grooving right now.ā
The first group gathered at Francis Field near Dupont Circle in 1994. Three years later, another group formed to play just steps from the Washington Monument Mall. They came together in 1998 to form what is now the DCGFFL.
āFor the majority of those seasons, we mainly had one division that played that was co-ed,ā said Dawson. āThis is our second season that weāve had a Womens+ Division made up of [cisgender] women, trans and nonbinary individuals.ā The Womens+ teams are called the Senators.
Jayme Fuglesten is director of the Womens+ Division and has played in the league in most seasons since 2011.
āThe DCGFFL has been a major part of my adult life,ā she says. āI came out while playing in the league in no small part because of the love and support of this community.ā
Why does she think the league has been such a success to have lasted 25 years?
āI think the league has been so successful because of its focus on inclusion and community,ā she says. āI remember being so surprised in my early years when JJ and so many others would just come right up to me, hug me, and welcome me. And that really hasn’t changed in the 20+ seasons I’ve been around. It also continues to grow and respond to the needs and desires of our players. One example of that is the new Womens+ division, which gives an additional space for people who identify as womens+ to play and cultivate stronger relationships.ā

Next month, the DCGFF will send both Generals and Senators to Gay Bowl XXIII in Seattle. āThatās going to be the first time weāre going to have two Womens+ teams at the Gay Bowl,ā Dawson told the Blade. āItās reflective of the new generation of the league.ā
Earlier generations had trouble attracting new players. As the Blade reported in 2019, what had been a steady number of 20 to 22 teams dropped dramatically to 14, its lowest roster since 2011. The leagueās leadership turned it around with new recruiting events, new sponsors, changes in their social event locations, changes to their player draft and a change of venue for league play beyond Carter Barron fields in Rock Creek Park in Northwest Washington.
Brentwood Hamilton Park in Northeast Washington is now home to the recreation division and Randall Field south of the Capitol is the leagueās third venue.
Just like every facet of society, from coast to coast, what happened next hit the league hard. āCOVID happened in spring of 2020,ā recalled Dawson. āEverything shut down, and we did not play for what amounted to three full seasons for a year and a half.ā
But once the world emerged from quarantine and lockdowns, flag football players started flocking to the DCGFFL. āWeāve had probably over 150 new players join our league in the last two years,ā he said.
One thing is certain, said Dawson: Despite the name, not everyone who plays in the gay flag football league is LGBTQ+.
āIt’s a really great community. Thereās a straight couple thatās married and will be soon having a child in the next month or so,ā Dawson said. āThey met playing in the league, just like weāve had gay couples who meet in the league and eventually get married and have children.ā
Prominent among the leagueās many sponsors is the NFL hometown team, the Washington Commanders. āThey are highly supportive of us, not just financially, but also publicly supporting what we are, and our mission,ā Dawson said.
This current NFL season is the first since 2021 without an out gay player on the gridiron. Thatās when Carl Nassib became the first active pro football player to come out as gay.Ā

While Dawson said, āIām sure there are more out thereā who have not yet come out, Nassibās retirement makes this anniversary of the DCGFFL even more significant.
āItās unfortunate people still feel they cannot be out while theyāre playing and doing what they love, but thatās the reason why something like the D.C. Gay Flag Football League is so important,ā he said. āTo show that there are gay and trans athletes who exist and love playing sports.ā
The league plans to celebrate its 25th anniversary with a dance party and silent auction at Penn Social on Saturday, Sept. 23 starting at 8 p.m. Check the website for ticket information.
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