Gay Bathhouse - Notable Patrons

Notable Patrons

Justin Fashanu

The first openly gay British footballer Justin Fashanu (1961–1998) spent his last night in Chariots Roman Spa. His suicide was due to press reports that the US authorities were planning to extradite him and charge him with sexual assault (there was in fact no warrant). His suicide note claimed that the sexual encounter had been consensual and that the youth contacted police only after Fashanu refused to pay him blackmail.

Michel Foucault

The influential 20th century French Philosopher Michel Foucault (1926–1984) visited bathhouses in California in the 1970s and early 1980s. He died of AIDS-related causes in 1984.

Mikhail Kuzmin

Russian poet, novelist and composer Mikhail Kuzmin (1872–1936) is known to have patronized bathhouses. Some of the bathhouses in St. Petersburg at the time became known as friendly to gay men and provided "attendants," who might provide sexual services for a fee. In his diary, Kuzmin writes of one bathhouse visit: the evening I had the urge to go to a bathhouse simply to be stylish, for the fun of it, for cleanliness.

Harvey Milk

The openly gay American politician Harvey Milk (1930–1978) vowed to stop visiting gay bathhouses when he ran for supervisor in 1975.

Rudolf Nureyev

The Russian dancer Rudolf Nureyev (1938–1993) was known to frequent the baths in New York.