Gay Group Bent On Preserving Laguna Beach Historic Boom Boom Room, San Francisco Gay Latin Bar Vandalized, Chris Egan Flaunts, Jake Gyllenhaal, Lance Bass, Tim Tebow Has Big Hands, Cristiano Ronaldo On His Knees

A group of gay activists are urging Laguna Beach, California officials to grant historic status to the building that once housed the Boom Boom Room at the Coast Inn, a famed gay bar that was closed in 2008. Steven Udvar-Hazy purchased the property in 2003, but shuttered the bar, where Rock Hudson was a fixture, and had plans approved by the city’s planning commission to renovate, transforming the space, built in 1928, into a ten suite boutique hotel with a rooftop pool, but no bar or restaurant. Udvar-Hazy had sought a K rating from the Laguna Beach Heritage Commission, but the board instead conferred a C rating, one that cites the significance of the building as a Spanish revival building. The bar originally catered to the Marines, and was called the Seven Seas, but over time evolved into the Boom Boom Room, a center for Laguna Beach’s thriving gay and artistic community. Fred Karger, whose organization Save the Boom first fought to keep the bar open, and is now fighting to preserve the space, said the Boom Boom Room “is a great source of pride, because this city was founded by gay artists.”

In San Francisco, the city’s only gay Latin bar was vandalized early Friday morning, someone scrawling swastikas on the walls, but the owner, refusing to notify police, painted over them. Edgar Lopez, manager of Esta Noche, in the city’s Mission District, said he found “Nazi symbols” but opted to paint over them without contacting the authorities, for reasons that remain unclear. Albie Esparza, a San Francisco Police spokesperson, said that “a swastika on a building is looked at as a hate crime. It is unacceptable and people should report it to the police. They should report it to the police because you never know if it will lead to something bigger in the future. If they are a target, any problems in the past. We need to know so we can do our investigation.” The co-owner of Esta Noche, Manuel Quijano, says he fears the bar was targeted because it is gay, and says he will meet with the other owner and the bar’s manager to decide whether to call the police in to investigate. However, with the evidence now removed, the investigation will have little to work with.

The next issue of Flaunt profiles Chris Egan, the Australian star of the upcoming film Letters to Juilet! co-starring Amanda Seyfried and Vanessa Redgrave, Egan beyond beautiful.

Jake Gyllenhaal spotted in West Hollywood Friday sexy in shades.



Lance Bass spotted Friday in Los Angeles.



Amateur circumciser and first round draft pick of the Denver Broncos, Tim Tebow, introduces himself Friday.



Cristiano Ronaldo, during a match Saturday between Real Madrid and Real Zaragoza, who assisted Madrid in winning 3-1, spotted making sexually suggestive gestures.