The City of Dallas has lost one of most iconic clubs ever. Dallas has lost some of the legendary culture of the Legendary Lizard Lounge nightclub.
The Lizard Lounge is closing after 28 years of business.
The iconic Dallas venue is closing after 28 years of being in business. Owner Don Nedler announced on Facebook that The Lizard Lounge is closed permanently.
“The cost to maintain the business during the shutdown was overwhelming,” Nedler said in his post.
A Twitter account called TexasEDMFamily also started a thread asking people to share photos and videos of concerts at the club. Many are disappointed in the closing as the “salon lady” got money from right wing activists but the support was not there to keep a club open.
Lizard Lounge is closing, but the hair salon lady in Dallas Shelly Luther raises over 500K on GoFundme for defying an executive order, i hate it here.!
‘End of an Era’ As @Lizard__Lounge in Dallas closes after 28 years
— GayLBTQ Dallas🏳️🌈 (@dfwgay) May 9, 2020
Legendary #LizardLounge #PurpleParty https://t.co/jPxVQ9M3qh show your fav times at the church and the amazing nights has at the lounge in the thread pic.twitter.com/lQ3xFhh2oL
The Lizard Lounge, which is located at 2424 Swiss Ave, used to be open weekends and would host DJ’s and EDM artists on a regular basis. It was one of the only after-hours clubs that would stay open until 4am and that was a big deal for those that wanted to dance like they do in bigger cities such as NYC. Station 4 is now one of the only after hours clubs left.
One of our greatest memories of the Lounge were going there when we were 17 because it was 17 to enter at the time and 21 to drink. It was such a big club with two levels and multiple rooms to dance in with a patio that had an amazing view of Dallas. It also had Goth Nights called The Church Sundays and some Wednesdays that were an incredible night you could hear soul music from Depeche Mode, Erasure, and industrial dance music. -GayDfW
This isn’t the end yet for house music nightclubs in Dallas as it does continue to own It’ll Do Nightclub which has been doing live streams with DJ Red Eye and guests and EDM clubs such as Stereo Live may remain open. Then again we do not know how far this will consolidate the bar and nightclub industry.
In the Facebook post, Nedler took the time to thank his employees, calling them the “best in the business.” He also thanked every person who ever visited the bar.
“Thank you to everyone who enjoyed an evening, celebrated a special event or just came by for a drink and some great music. I’ve loved every minute of it and I’m not gonna lie, this one stings.”
Hundreds of people have since commented on the Facebook post, thanking the Lizard Lounge for its memories.
Nedler stated at the end of his Facebook post that he does have plans for the future.
.@Lizard__Lounge is closing, but the hair salon lady Shelley Luther in Dallas raises over 500K on GoFundme for defying an executive order. Sad day for Dallas.
— Vip4me❌ (@vip4me) May 9, 2020
“There will be a tomorrow and we have a plan for the future. The world we knew has changed and we had to change to survive. I’ll post more info about our future plans soon. Till then, thanks for the memories and we’ll see you soon.”
Blake Baker former President at Purple Foundation – Dallas Purple Party commented:
As you may know, Lizard Lounge is closing it’s doors permanently. This is a devastating loss to the Dallas dance scene and to the gay community as well. I knew there were going to be some venue casualties due to the shutdown and uncertain future of nightlife, but this one hurts. Lizard Lounge was one of the first nightclubs I went to when I turned 18 and I had many fun and crazy nights there. My working relationship began with them over a decade ago. They were the first club to let Purple Foundation – Dallas Purple Party have a big weekend night. It’s generally rare for a “straight club” (I use that term loosely) to give a gay event a Friday or Saturday night because they don’t want to disrupt their normal business. But Lizard Lounge gave us a chance and welcomed us with open arms. For several years, Purple held their Friday night opening party there and they were instrumental in Purple’s success. They also hosted the Friday event of Purple’s Pride events for several years, helping put Dallas on the map as far as pride dance events go. The rooftop party we did there was incredible. Simply put, Purple would not be the massive success it is today without them. Because of my long working relationship with them, when I started producing my own events for Baker + Calagna, Lizard Lounge was the first club I reached out to. And again, they gave me a chance. They helped us refine our concept for Release and gave us the opportunity to try something totally new. It was a big risk on their part and still they supported us every time. Over the last decade and dozens of events, much of the staff became like a family. I’ve worked with them longer than any other club. They were always excited for our parties and made us feel at home. They gave us a safe space we could count on and for that I will always be grateful. I am sad today reliving all the amazing times we had. A venue and staff like Lizard Lounge is a rare find and they will be missed. Thank you Don, Leo, John, and the entire staff.
We have lost many iconic night places in the area such as Club One in Deep Ellum, Midtown Spa, and now Lizard Lounge. Post your memories of these on our Facebook or Twitter pages!
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