This YouTube memorial video was posted on October 30, 2014 (click here).
by JIM MEKO
Robin Reichert, the proprietor of the Paradise Lounge at 11th and Folsom Street dating back to 1981, has passed away. No word as to the cause of death but survivors of the new wave revelry of that era are already making plans for a memorial service to be held on December 1 at the site of the former Transmission Theater next door.
Robin bought the place when it was still Febe’s, one of SoMa’s first gay leather bars, and as the AIDS epidemic decimated the original clientele, he transitioned the bar into one of 11th Street’s pre-eminent emporiums for live music.
Chris Issaks was one of the breakthrough acts that Robin helped to launch. The invitation describes him as “a huge personality and extraordinary impresario.”
As 11th Street undergoes another generational shift, the Paradise site is boarded up right now awaiting renovations that will turn the building into a three story salsa bar some time next year.
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