The Cock is a gay dive bar in the East Village neighborhood of

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. It is noted for its

exhibitionist Exhibitionism is the act of exposing in a public or semi-public context one's intimate parts – for example, the breasts, genitals or buttocks. The practice may arise from a desire or compulsion to expose themselves in such a manner to group ...

atmosphere and popularity as a cruising destination. Opened in 1998, the venue has been described by ''

them. ''Them'' is an American online magazine, online List of LGBT periodicals, LGBT magazine launched in October 2017 by Phillip Picardi and owned by Condé Nast. Its coverage includes LGBT culture, fashion, and politics. History In 2017 Picardi, ...

'' magazine as "a rarified taste of old New York and the cruisy gay scene that existed

here Here is an adverb that means "in, on, or at this place". It may also refer to: Software * Here Technologies, a mapping company * Here WeGo (formerly Here Maps), a mobile app and map website by Here Technologies, Here Television * Here TV (form ...

in the '80s and '90s". In the late 1990s and early 2000s, it experienced frequent police raids under Mayor

Rudy Giuliani Rudolph William Louis Giuliani (, ; born May 28, 1944) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 107th Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney General from 1981 to 198 ...

's anti-nightlife crackdowns. The Cock has relocated twice, and its 2015 move along Second Avenue was met with opposition by nearby residents and

Manhattan Community Board 3 The Manhattan Community Board 3 is a New York City community board encompassing the Manhattan neighborhoods of Alphabet City, the East Village, the Lower East Side, Two Bridges, and a large portion of Chinatown. It is delimited by the East R ...

. Two other attempted moves, in 2014 and 2021, were blocked by the community board. Critics characterize the bar as "filthy", "seductive", and "alluring", noting that it is an unusual find in the United States and bears resemblance to European

red-light district A red-light district or pleasure district is a part of an urban area where a concentration of prostitution and sex-oriented businesses, such as sex shops, strip clubs, and adult theaters, are found. In most cases, red-light districts are particu ...

establishments.

Description

The Cock is one of a few remaining cruising spaces in New York City, and photography is prohibited inside. The interior consists of two levels, with the basement serving as a

dark room A darkroom is used to process photographic film, to make prints and to carry out other associated tasks. It is a room that can be made completely dark to allow the processing of the light-sensitive photographic materials, including film and pho ...

. '' New York'' magazine describes the venue as having "a rollicking backroom sex scene", while the main room features theme parties,

go-go dancers Go-go dancers are dancers who are employed to entertain crowds at nightclubs or other venues where music is played. Go-go dancing originated in the early 1960s at the French bar Whisky a Gogo located in Juan-les-Pins. The bar's name was taken ...

and DJs. The bar's street presence is minimal, marked only by a

neon sign In the signage industry, neon signs are electric signs lighted by long luminous gas-discharge tubes that contain rarefied neon or other gases. They are the most common use for neon lighting, which was first demonstrated in a modern form in Decem ...

of a rooster. It is owned by Allan Mannarelli, a straight proprietor who also operates Albion, a bar in

Kips Bay Kips Bay, or Kip's Bay, is a neighborhood on the east side of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is roughly bounded by East 34th Street to the north, the East River to the east, East 27th and/or 23rd Streets to the south, and Third Aven ...

, and who used to manage Superdive, a now-closed establishment in the East Village.

History

Background and early years

The Cock opened in 1998 and was originally on Avenue A in Manhattan. Since then, it has relocated twice: first to 29 Second Avenue and then slightly northward to 93 Second Avenue. In its early years, the venue hosted

shows organized by promoter Mario Diaz. According to ''New York'' magazine, " hesordid acts and general carefree air... ttractednot only horny young men but also plenty of spectacle-seeking celebrities," including

Christina Aguilera Christina María Aguilera (; ; born December 18, 1980) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and television personality. Known for her four-octave vocal range and ability to sustain high notes, she has been referred to as the " Voice of ...

Boy George George Alan O'Dowd (born 14 June 1961), known professionally as Boy George, is an English singer, songwriter, DJ, author and mixed media artist. Best known for his soulful voice and his androgynous appearance, Boy George has been the lead singe ...

and

George Michael George Michael (born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou; 25 June 1963 – 25 December 2016) was an English singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the most significant cultural icons of the MTV generation and is one of the best-selling musici ...

. The bar was raided frequently during

's tenure as mayor of New York City. That "anti-nightlife" era saw "cops and inspectors... swarming the Cock as often as twice a week, ticketing for anything they could find". The venue was temporarily shuttered in 2000 for being a

public nuisance In English criminal law, public nuisance was a common law offence in which the injury, loss, or damage is suffered by the public, in general, rather than an individual, in particular. In Australia In ''Kent v Johnson'' the Supreme Court of the ...

. After the business reopened, it ran into legal trouble when patrons continued to smoke indoors after the 2003 statewide smoking ban, but its only formal citation was dismissed.

2010s

Crowd at The Cock bar NYC 2013 Shankbone

Mannarelli attempted to move The Cock from 29 Second Avenue to Avenue B in 2014, but

rejected his application after learning that the venue would offer "

drag show A drag show is a form of entertainment performed by drag artists impersonating men or women. Typically, a drag show involves performers singing or lip-synching to songs while performing a pre-planned pantomime or dancing. There might also be so ...

s, 'art performances', and

meat pie A meat pie is a pie with a filling of meat and often with other savory ingredients. They are found in cuisines worldwide. Meat pies are usually baked, fried, or deep fried to brown them and develop the flavour through the Maillard reaction. Ma ...

s". The following year, the bar successfully relocated up Second Avenue, into a space formerly occupied by

Lit Lounge Lit Lounge was a nightclub in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. The two-floor complex housed a concert venue, lounge, dance floor, and Fuse Gallery, an art exhibition space. Lit Lounge was noted as a major venue for N ...

. This move was met with resistance by the East Fifth Street Block Association, which opposed new venues in the nightlife-saturated neighborhood, and the community board, which attempted to block the bar's liquor license. Displeased residents of nearby dwellings organized a "Block the Cock" campaign. Throughout the 2010s, The Cock was managed by

Nashom Wooden Nashom Benjamin Wooden (October 9, 1969 – March 23, 2020) was an American performing artist. Wooden was a member of the electronic dance music band The Ones and performed as a drag queen under the stage name Mona Foot. Biography Wooden was bo ...

, a fixture of the New York City nightlife scene who performed in drag as Mona Foot and was a member of

the Ones The Ones are an American electronic dance music group. Their 2001 hit single " Flawless" peaked within the top ten of the charts in Belgium and the United Kingdom. The trio consisted of three male vocalists Paul Alexander, JoJo Americo, and ...

. Wooden also worked there as a bartender. During the same period, pornographic actor Boomer Banks began his career as a go-go dancer at the bar.

2020s

In January 2020, there was a reported slashing outside The Cock's entrance. Police responding to the incident entered the premises, and they issued summonses for sexual exposure by the venue's go-go dancers. The following month, Mannarelli attempted to change The Cock's liquor license to that of "a nightclub with live music and dancing". The state liquor authority (SLA) denied this request, but Community Board 3 approved it. This caused the SLA to admonish the community board and warn it that it would be held responsible for any future problems at The Cock. Like other New York City nightlife venues, The Cock shut down temporarily during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. Ahead of its reopening, Mannarelli applied to transfer the establishment to an address on Rivington Street. This was met with protest by area residents, and Community Board 3 struck down the request. Mannarelli resolved to reopen the 93 Second Avenue location during New York City's 2021

Pride week LGBT pride (also known as gay pride or simply pride) is the promotion of the self-affirmation, dignity, equality, and increased visibility of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people as a social group. Pride, as opposed to sh ...

, at which time it was announced that the bar would require proof of vaccination against COVID-19 for entry. A May 2021 ''

Queerty ''Queerty'' is an online magazine and newspaper covering gay-oriented lifestyle and news, founded in 2005 by David Hauslaib. As of June 2015, the site had more than five million monthly unique visitors. History ''Queerty'' was founded by David ...

'' article indicated that, later in the year, Mannarelli intended to "spruce up an unused space nside that locationand open it as the Celebration Room" in honor of Wooden, who died of a suspected case of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

in March 2020.

Reception

The Cock's reputation with patrons and critics is one of a raunchy, uninhibited space; some comment that it contrasts with the "corporate sterility" of New York and that similar venues are not common in the United States. Of the bar's current location, ''New York'' magazine said: "Despite the new space, he barretains its penchant for irony-laced depravity." Alexander Cheves of ''

'' magazine called The Cock "the last filthy gay bar in New York", and he stated, " ere is—alarmingly—no other bar like it in the city and very few bars like it left in the country." ShermansTravel places The Cock among "the best gay and queer bars in Manhattan", branding it "the most cruise-y of all the gay bars in the city". In a list titled "The Absolute Best Gay Bar in Manhattan", Mike Albo of GrubStreet.com ranked The Cock second with the following remark: "Rough-edged, covered in band stickers, and carved with little weird nooks and dark corners, this place is like a filthy, seductive, alluring alleyway." '' Time Out'' magazine, which placed the bar 14th on its 2022 compilation of "the 24 best gay bars in NYC", wrote that the venue "is just the sort of dark, sketchy dive where you can unleash your inner sexy beast. The dearth of uptown attitude (or any apparent concern for cleanliness) pulls artists, musicians, writers, fashionistos , tourists and closeted rebels, all of whom can appreciate a little dirty fun." ''

Politico ''Politico'' (stylized in all caps), known originally as ''The Politico'', is an American, German-owned political journalism newspaper company based in Arlington County, Virginia, that covers politics and policy in the United States and intern ...

'' called The Cock "the neighborhoods most notorious gay bar".

References

External links

* {{LGBT in New York 1998 establishments in New York City Dive bars in New York (state) East Village, Manhattan Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the LGBT community LGBT drinking establishments in New York City