In the late 1970s, when Toronto’s gay nightlife was still largely underground, there was a tiny cruising bar tucked away behind the bustle of Yonge Street called Dudes.
Opened around 1977 by activist Roger Wilkes—a founder of the York University Homophile Association—and his partner David Payne, the bar sat in an alley behind the Parkside Tavern near Yonge and Wellesley, then the center of Toronto’s gay social life.
At the time, the city had only a handful of gay venues. Bars like the St. Charles Tavern, the Manatee, and the Quest formed a loose nightlife network where queer Torontonians could finally gather more openly after decades of secrecy.
