Hard to believe but in the 1980s Pittsburgh had 2 Red Light Districts one in Pittsburgh's North Side on Federal Street which had the Mini Ritz Adult Theater and infamous Garden Theater and the several block long one in Downtown on Liberty ave Liberty ave was full of Adult Theaters , Massage Parlors and Adult Book stores and ruled by one of the most colorful characters of the time Dante Tex Gill who was a women who dressed as a man and had a wife.
https://www.them.us/story/the-true-story-of-dante-tex-gill
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Unfortunately all this vice lead to a War between Dante her boss George Lee and the Pittsburgh Mob and resulted in a bombing with killed one masseuse.
I had a customer on liberty ave Ace Amusement owned by the colorful Character Larry Hirsch and one night while working fixing his alarm we had to evacuate when they found a bomb in the mens room in the Liberty Adult Art Cinema next door. The stupid ass bouncer . Brought the bomb in a cigarette pack out on to street before calling police. as we evacuated it was sitting on side walk and had a red blinking light. .
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| Ace Amusement was to the right |
After the war ended Tex Gill went to jail for tax evasion Mr Lee was Killed and the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust started buying up renovating and tearing down these seedy establishments .
The only remnants left today are the old Edison Hotel now known as a Blush Exotic gentleman's club and the adult book store at Smithfield street .
But what an exciting and interesting period it was.
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