TLM hosts the book release for a new biography about Marilyn Chambers, whose X-rated breakthrough Behind the Green Door was made in the TL and completely reconfigured the pornography industry as well as public sentiment for smut. In Pure, Jared Stearns chronicles the pioneering entertainer’s untold life story. This program features the author in-person and in-conversation with Chambers’ daughter, McKenna Taylor.
Thursday May 9, 2024 | Doors/Pre-Show at 6:30pm | Program 7-8:30pm
At the Tenderloin Museum | 398 Eddy St. SF, CA 94102
Marilyn Chambers is a legend here in the Tenderloin. Her breakthrough to fame–the starring role in the groundbreaking X-rated film Behind the Green Door–was filmed in part and premiered at the Mitchell Brothers’ O’Farrell Theater. That flick’s followup, Resurrection of Eve, featured an orgy scene shot next door at the historic Great American Music Hall (itself a boundary pushing site during its time as burlesque pioneer Sally Rand’s Music Box). Chambers’ name practically lived on the marquee of the Mitchell Brothers’ infamous TL establishment (and others across the country) during the 1970s era of “porno-chic.” In 1985, she was booked by an SF vice-squad for committing a lewd act in a public place and soliciting prostitution, part of Mayor Feinstein’s anti-porn crusades.
With Pure: The Sexual Revolutions of Marilyn Chambers (Headpress, 2024), Jared Stearns has assembled the important and long-overdue account of Chambers’ life story, depicting a complex and hard working entertainer who navigated a new type of celebrity all while striving to find her true self. She was the embodiment of the free-spirited Seventies, the world’s most famous X-rated star, and an unappreciated talent whose work in adult films hindered her dreams of becoming a serious actress. Nevertheless, Marilyn was the first woman known primarily for her work in adult films to cross over to mainstream entertainment. She sustained a versatile three-decade career in entertainment, including roles in dramatic plays, a Broadway musical revue, her own television show, and the lead role in David Cronenberg’s film Rabid. But her success in adult films also proved to be her undoing. Marred by a violent relationship with her abusive husband-manager, Chuck Traynor, she developed the persona of a twenty-four-hour-a-day sex star. In the process, she lost her sense of self and spent much of her life searching for her true identity. With recollections from family and friends, many of whom have never spoken publicly, along with Marilyn’s own words, and never-before-published photos, Jared Stearns vividly captures the revolutionary career of one of the twentieth century’s most misunderstood icons.
Free, Suggested Donation ($10), or with a signed copy ($25) | Register via Eventbrite
TLM hosts a block party in Myrtle Alley–the outdoor space adjacent to The Compton’s Cafeteria Riot’s new venue at 835 Larkin–to gather our community, give friends & neighbors a chance to learn about play’s upcoming production, and request free/sliding community tickets, DJs, live music, and drag performances.
May 11, 2024 | 1-4pm
Myrtle Alley at Larkin St.
Perhaps you’ve heard that a new production of The Compton’s Cafeteria Riot play is in the works? Not only is the Tenderloin Museum bringing this immersive theater piece back to life, and we’ve been working to create a permanent home for the play in a long vacant commercial to create a dedicated venue and truly immersive environment for this powerful story. The space is located in the neighborhood where the eponymous riot went down, on a block of Larkin St. that’s having a resurgence of queer community and queer-owned business like Rosebud Gallery, Moth Belly Gallery, Dark Entries Records, and the Bob Mizer Foundation/The Magazine.
The Compton’s creative team has nearly completed the transformation of 835 Larkin St. into the Compton’s Cafeteria, and we’re ready to give people a sneak peek! Powered by a TLCBD Mini-Grant through the San Francisco Office of Economic and Workforce Development, Tenderloin Museum hosts an Open House & Block Party on the afternoon of May 11th, featuring live music and DJs, drag performances, info and artwork from our neighbors, as well as an opportunity to request free/sliding scale community tickets for when the play officially opens this fall.
ft. drag performances by Donna Personna, Shane Zalidvar, Collette LeGrande, Coco Buttah, & Mary Vice + live music by violinist Kippy Marks & DJ Josh Cheon (Dark Entries)
Free! All welcome!
Psyched! Radio SF, an independent non-profit radio station & prolific promoter of local live music with roots in the TL, hosts its first ever “Tenderloin Music and Arts Festival'' over Memorial Day weekend. TLM is proud to host a Psyched!-curated performance that spans darkwave, goth, minimal synth, and other punk-inflected, genre-defying sounds ft. EX-HEIR, 55 Castles and Bat Noise.
At the Tenderloin Museum | 398 Eddy St. SF, CA 94102
Saturday May 25, 2024 | 4-9pm
Founded by a diverse group of music lovers, Psyched! Radio SF is an independent 501c3 non profit DIY radio station that also produces live shows, DJ nights, films, music videos, live performances, and short films; Psyched! hums with a punk rock ethos and a hyper-local, community-forward zeitgeist that exemplifies the beauty and diversity of San Francisco’s underground. Many in the Psyched! crew live and maintain their artistic practice(s) right here in the Tenderloin, arguably the heart of SF’s underground, and over Memorial Day Weekend, this radical grassroots media outlet/community formation is producing its first ever “Tenderloin Music and Arts Festival,” a sprawling, neighborhood-wide counter-cultural happening that invites everyone to “unite through music, art, and community, celebrating resilience and advocating for change.”
The Tenderloin Museum is honored to take part in the Psyched!’s TL Music and Arts Fest, hosting an evening of live music that bridges punk rock and performance art through a mingling of darkwave, goth, and minimal synth esthetics. EX-HEIR, 55 Castles, Bat Noise, and Renee Black (DJ set) will perform at TLM for a special Saturday evening public program on the main floor of the museum. This show, like all of Psyched! TL Music & Arts Festival programming, is free and open to the public, supported by a mini-grant from the Tenderloin Community Benefit District by way of SF’s Office of Economic and Workforce Development.
Free! | Register via Eventbrite