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The Comeback Seattle

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Coordinates: 47°35′04″N 122°20′02″W / 47.5845°N 122.3340°W / 47.5845; -122.3340
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The Comeback Seattle
Graphic logo with profiles of people and the text "The Comeback Seattle"
Photograph of the exterior of a building
The venue's exterior in January 2023
Map
Address1950 1st Avenue S
Seattle, Washington
United States
Coordinates47°35′04″N 122°20′02″W / 47.5845°N 122.3340°W / 47.5845; -122.3340
Owner
  • Floyd Lovelady
  • John Fish
Opened2022 (2022)
ClosedApril 30, 2023 (2023-04-30)

The Comeback Seattle was an LGBTQ-friendly bar and nightclub in Seattle's SoDo neighborhood, in the U.S. state of Washington. Described as a gay bar and queer sports bar, The Comeback hosted drag shows and RuPaul's Drag Race viewing parties. The short-lived bar opened in early 2022 and closed on April 30, 2023. It was co-owned by Floyd Lovelady, a former general manager of the gay bar and nightclub R Place, as well as John Fish.

Description

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The Comeback Seattle was a bar and nightclub on 1st Avenue in Seattle's SoDo neighborhood that catered to the LGBT community.[1][2] Writers for The Stranger described The Comeback as a gay bar, a queer sports bar, and a "gay-sports-dance bar ... that evolved out of" the gay bar R Place, which had operated on Capitol Hill.[3][4] The Comeback had go-go dancers, weekend dance parties, and a weekly drag show called "Lashes", featuring local and touring performers. A taco truck often operated outside.[5]

The space was approximately 9,000 square feet and had a seating capacity of 150 to 200 people. The building consisted of modular walls, a game area to play darts and pool, and gender-neutral restrooms.[6] The Stranger's Renee Raketty noted the large open space with an "impressive stage and long bar". She said the venue was ADA-compliant, "with all the public areas on the same floor", and said the space had a large prep kitchen, a walk-in refrigerator, an office, and other private areas.[2]

History

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Photograph of the interior of a building
Photograph of the interior of a building
The bar's interior, 2022

Co-owners Floyd Lovelady and John Fish[7] opened The Comeback in early 2022,[4][8] in a building which had housed the bar, event rental space, and nightclub Eden Seattle. Previously, Lovelady was the general manager of the gay bar R Place.[9] In 2021, Matt Baume of The Stranger said that with Lovelady managing The Comeback, he felt as if it was R Place's "spiritual successor".[6] According to Lovelady, The Comeback was meant to match the spirit and mood of R Place by bringing back old activities.[2]

The Comeback was Lovelady's first bar to own.[6] Following R Place's closure, he and Fish (a former patron) formed The Comeback Seattle LLC, acquired R Place's social media accounts, and became co-managing partners of The Comeback.[2][10] The SoDo location, approximately twice as large as R Place,[11] was proposed by the SoDo Business Improvement Association; Lovelady found SoDo appealing because of its relatively lower cost, central location, nearby parking availability, and limited noise restrictions.[7] R Place's head security host was hired to work at The Comeback.[2]

The Comeback's redesign was led by Andrew "Ace" Grant Houston[12] of House Cosmopolitan. Houston told Seattle Gay News that he was proud of his work, as the bar "represents the continuation of local Capitol Hill history in spirit".[2] The bar raised funds for the renovation via Indiegogo.[2]

In November 2021, Eater Seattle said The Comeback was planning to open in December.[13] In December, the business was hiring bar-backs, bartenders, hosts, servers, and other positions,[6] and aimed to host a grand opening on February 11.[14] In January 2022, The Comeback held a soft launch and moved the grand opening to mid-February due to supply chain issues.[7] Silky Nutmeg Ganache headlined "Lashes" in February.[8] Other events the bar hosted in 2022 included a ten-week drag competition called "So You Think You Can Drag",[3] an after party for a bar crawl held in conjunction with Pride Month,[15] and RuPaul's Drag Race viewing parties.[16]

The Comeback closed on April 30, 2023.[17] According to a social media post, the bar closed as a decision to "step aside" and let others influence the Seattle's LGBT community and scene.[1] The Comeback had a "blowout" liquor sale,[4] and the "Lashes" series was moved to Unicorn.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "What happened to The Comeback?: Rumors circulate surrounding the closing of the SoDo club". Seattle Gay News. Archived from the original on 2023-12-23. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "The Comeback: R Place rises again". Seattle Gay News. Archived from the original on 2023-12-23. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  3. ^ a b Baume, Matt; Burns, Chase; Keimig, Jas. "Finally, It's Showtime". The Stranger. ISSN 1935-9004. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  4. ^ a b c McCall, Vivian. "Slog AM: Special Session in Olympia, Chauvin's Partner Convicted, Judge Rejects Rep. Zephyr Reinstatement". The Stranger. Archived from the original on 2023-05-15. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  5. ^ "A First-Timer's Guide to Queer Nightlife in Seattle". The Seattle Times. The Seattle Times Company. 2022-07-14. ISSN 0745-9696. OCLC 9198928. Archived from the original on 2023-02-05. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  6. ^ a b c d Baume, Matt. "Here Comes The Comeback: New Queer Bar Eyes December Opening in SoDo". The Stranger. Archived from the original on 2022-11-30. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  7. ^ a b c Baume, Matt. "Another Nightclub Opens in SoDo". The Stranger. Archived from the original on 2022-12-05. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  8. ^ a b "The Comeback ushers in the era of "Homo-SoDo"". Seattle Gay News. Archived from the original on 2023-12-23. Retrieved 2023-05-23.
  9. ^ "As LGBTQ+ nightlife returns, will the scene be forever changed?". The Seattle Times. 2022-02-25. Archived from the original on 2022-11-22. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  10. ^ Regan, Holly (2022-03-02). "As Seattle's Gayborhood Migrates, Capitol Hill Queer Bars Fight to Remain a Refuge". Eater Seattle. Vox Media. Archived from the original on 2023-03-24. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  11. ^ "Former manager of R Place to open LGBTQ+ bar/club in SoDo". Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce. Archived from the original on 2021-10-22. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  12. ^ Burns, Chase. "Slog PM: A Comeback in SoDo, Two Geniuses in Seattle, and One Hannah Krieg!". The Stranger. Archived from the original on 2022-05-27. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  13. ^ Streefkerk, Mark Van (2021-11-10). "Island Soul's Sister Restaurant Arleana's is Coming to Kirkland". Eater Seattle. Archived from the original on 2023-05-15. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  14. ^ Tomky, Naomi (2021-12-31). "Dearly departed: The restaurants Seattle lost in 2021". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Hearst Communications. ISSN 0745-970X. OCLC 3734418. Archived from the original on 2023-05-15. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  15. ^ Streefkerk, Mark Van (2022-06-01). "How to Celebrate Pride Month at Seattle Bars and Restaurants". Eater Seattle. Archived from the original on 2022-06-01. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  16. ^ Burns, Chase. "RuPaul's Next Seattle Queen". The Stranger. Archived from the original on 2022-12-05. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  17. ^ "SODO BIA highlights unique opportunities, challenges that exist for businesses in the neighborhood". KING-TV. May 4, 2023. Archived from the original on 2023-05-05. Retrieved 2023-05-23.
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