Girls In The Night...
All
Girl Productions was founded on a long boring Saturday night
in September of 1988 in South Beach Miami, Florida. After doing
laundry, ordering pizza, hanging out the window of her South
Beach apartment watching the women go by trying to figure out
who was and who was not, Marketing Coordinator for King Motor
Company "Would be" Promoter - Lisa Cox yearned to simply go out
and DANCE! Much to the dismay of Cox, a recent import from New
York City by way of the Bahamas, there was simply not one
nightclub within 3000 Miles that offered a high energy, safe,
sexy, environment for women that dance for women. Fort
Lauderdale offered a little bar called "The Otherside", and
south Miami had a club called Cheers. Both clubs targeted for
WGF exclusively, so if you were Latin, African American, and
from any other ethnic background, you stood in the corner, and
hoped you might meet someone that didn't look at you as if you
just landed from a lesbian planet in another galaxy.
Cox rapidly grew tired of going back to New
York every other week to get her party on. Frustrated with going
to Boy Bars, and bored with girl watching out of the window, Cox
decided, "If I can't find a party, I'll make my own! At that
time, the only experience Cox had was for promoting straight
parties for her sorority in college and organizing special
events for King Motor Company. Cox called upon life long friend
and Mentor Angie Oliver, a graphic designer/newspaper publisher.
Oliver agreed to help Cox with a few stipulations: No
stereotypical images of Lesbian women, and no marketing that
targeted women based on their race, or profession. All Girl
Productions would have to be for all women. Cox vowed to follow
her mentor's lead, and abide by Oliver's wishes. Angie Oliver
agreed to create the imaging and promotional materials for the
first event.
Combining Oliver's design skills and Cox's
marketing background would prove to be a huge success! The newly
formed promotion company chose a piece of vintage artwork for
it's first advertising campaign; it was an illustration of a
woman. The Woman was extremely sexy and there was no way to
discern whether she was Anglo Saxon, African American, or Latin,
which was perfect!
Where did the name Girls in the Night come
from?
Strange enough behind the woman on the first
flyer for All Girl Productions, was a 1957 movie marquee that
read:
"Girls in the Night"
While All Girl Productions was prominently
displayed on the flyer, the women of Miami picked up on the
Girls in the Night movie title and began to refer to the first
event as "The Girls in the Night Party".
The first event had little over 150 women. It
was not a discouraging number. It marked excitement with the
prospect of creating the first Lesbian Production Company on the
South East Coast. Lisa Cox reported to work the next day, came
out of the closet she hid in for 10 years, packed up her desk,
and set out to promote the next event 7 days a week for 30
days.500 women turned out for the next event and the Girls in
the Night Fever was on! Girls in the Night exploded! Local and
national newspapers and magazines wanted to write all about the
super girl party with the Lipstick Lesbians from every ethnic
background that existed. The events became so popular; the boyz
started showing up by the hundreds. Standing by the rules that
Oliver outlined from day one, gay boyz were always welcomed to
Girls in the Night events, allowing men to attend the parties
did not sit well with some of the clientele. Thus, the first
expansion of Girls in the Night was born: The Wee Hour Boyz.
In its first year Girls in the Night boasted
an attendance of well over 1200 patrons per event! The
attendance at the events quickly was became 60% female and 40%
male. After a little strategy session with Oliver it Cox decided
to try to give the men their own party so that the original
mission of the organization was not lost. Cox would stay true to
providing entertainment for women, without alienating our gay
male counter parts, by creating a brother organization for the
boyz. At 4:00am when the Girls party ended the Boyz parties
began! The boyz would party into the WEE hours of the morning;
So Oliver dubbed the men's parties "The Wee Hour Boyz! The first
member of the Wee Hour Boyz Juan Camilche headed this division
up. Girls in the Night quickly created other divisions that
would address all the entertainment needs of our members:
Girls in the Day - Day time events
i.e.: Horseback Riding, Picnics, Girls in the Day does the
Movies, "Girl Talk" - Bi-Monthly discussion group.
Girls in the Night Community Group -
volunteer services for hospitals, counseling, and Working with
the gay and lesbian youth groups in Miami.
Girls in the Night NEWS - G.I.N. News
is an award-winning magazine. Vivian Galliena turned a pasted
together little gossip rag into the talk of the town! With our
expansion goals, the magazine was put on the shelf due to lack
of financing and time, but the year 2002 will see the little
magazine that could jump and the shelf, and return to the hands
of our members BI-monthly.
The Women's Club - Viva Lé Elegante! Upscale events
produced bi-monthly. An evening at the "Women's Club" includes a
elegant dinner, live ballet or jazz dance performances, and live
music. When the clock strikes midnight, the women hit the dance
floor and it's on!
Fundraising --
Girls in the Night enjoyed over a decade of success in Miami. We
produced everything from events with underground swimming pools,
to the first topless event in the country for women. Our
attendance has included the clientele of Madonna, Dennis Rodman,
Versace, and numerous female celebrities that we won't name. The
accomplishment and division of All Girl Productions that we are
most rewarded by is our Fundraising Division. In our 14-year
History (Herstory) we have raised over $250,000.00 for over
75-community service and AIDS organizations. A Girls In The
Night fundraiser provided the seed money for the first Lesbian,
Bisexual, and Gay Community Center on South Miami Beach.
Turmoil Strikes --
Whenever you read the about us portions of any
BIO, it's usually boasts highlights of the organization. The
founder of G.I.N. has asked me to tell the whole Girls in the
Night Story. Girls In The Night has faced its fair share of
scandal and turmoil. With all the media attention and the
overwhelming growth, Girls in the Night has bounced back from
near ruin, numerous times. From the Lesbian Club Wars to
Nightclub takeovers, G.I.N. has faced every type of foe
imaginable. At on time, the rumors being spread about weakened
even the founder of our organization's views about all the hype
written in The New York Times, Interview Magazine, Details
Magazine, Allure Magazine, OUT, and a laundry list of 200
Newspapers and Magazines. Arrogance and lack of focus would soon
turn an attendance of 1200 to 200, thus financially draining the
organization. Fortunately, the members of Girls in the Night did
not give up! After all they were the members, and if it were not
for them there would be no Girls in the Night! The entire Girls
in the Night Organization survived due to the loyalty of its
members.
Turn Around -- In
1996 Hurricane Andrew hit Girls in the Night directly in the
face. Several women lost their homes and the city was crippled.
Without even realizing it, the members of Girls in the Night
formed a posse. Twenty-five of us divided up addresses and went
to the homes of as many members as we could. Our DJ Shibumi
(First Female DJ for GIN) sheltered about 9 of us. We bused the
women out of Miami into Fort Lauderdale that next weekend for a
party. The cover charge was: Food, Clothing, and Cash Donations
for the Girls in the Night Members that lost everything. There
was so much food and supplies donated that we had water and food
to provide for over three shelters! 1,100 women were in
attendance that night! It was our first successful event in over
11 months. In Girls in the Night fashion, we partied until 5:00
am! When those women got back on that bus, we all knew what
Girls in the Night is truly all about! Since that momentous
event (Hurricane Andrew), we have met numerous obstacles and
head on attacks from rival promoters. We have learned to take
the high road no matter what the cost. Now our membership
continues to grow daily. As Cox still says today, "If we can
survive Andrew, we can survive anything!" And we do.
Future -- Girls
in the Night's immediate goals are to expand and develop our
National presence. We now have over 20,000 members worldwide!
With the induction of our Website, our list grows every day. We
have numerous projects currently progressing, our first being
returning home to Miami to re-affirm our presence in the
community for LGBT. After a 2˝ -year break, the women of Miami,
our founding chapter, want their Girls in the Night back!
Our targeted expansion includes Chapters in
Chicago, Detroit, DC, Houston, and Memphis. Soon please stayed
tuned, and get on the list, or there's no telling what you might
miss! Girls in the Night might just be rolling through a venue
very near to you!
Contact Girls in The Night:
All Girl Productions
2625 Piedmont Road
Atlanta , GA 30324
(404) 312-2056
™
