Bathhouses

Often considered the most popular entertainer of the 20th century--his extravagant performances set still-unchallenged attendance records--Liberace (dubbed "Mr. Showman" in tribute to his flashy theatricality) sued a London columnist in 1956 for implying he was gay. He won.

The landmark Crescent Bath House in Lake Elsinore is on the market at $795,000. Built in 1887, the multi-hued Turkish bathhouse was the brainchild of architect Frank Ferris and business partner Franklyn Heald. To attract travelers arriving from points east, it was set across the street from the train station. An eclectic blend of Victorian and Moorish Revival styles, the exotic structure features spires on the roof and arches that frame the windows and doorways. Currently in use as an antique store, the building is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Los Angeles County supervisors Tuesday finalized regulations requiring bathhouses and sex clubs to obtain health permits -- a move that will make it easier for authorities to shut down facilities that don't meet stringent new rules. The new regulations require that so-called "commercial sex venues," which are frequented by gay and bisexual men, be inspected quarterly and pay annual fees of $1,088 each.

In his twilight years, Zhang Shan has simplified his daily schedule to the bare essentials: Wake up, eat breakfast, walk to Shuangxing Bathhouse and undress. The bathhouse, on the southern outskirts of the Chinese capital, is a remnant of a time long past when homes here lacked plumbing and all bathing was communal. The bathhouse was also a social gathering point where men flocked to sweat, talk politics and relax. But now, local authorities with an eye toward redevelopment appear intent on demolishing what is believed to be the last traditional public bathhouse in Beijing and the social culture that emanates from it. Zhang, 67, used to commute more than an hour by public bus to fulfill his daily ritual, but two years ago he moved within walking distance.

In their first enforcement of stringent regulations restricting sexual activity at gay bathhouses, Los Angeles County health officials ordered three clubs to close Monday. Undercover investigators observed "restricted activity a number of times" at the three clubs, county officials said, and the bathhouses also violated guidelines governing the use of private rooms. One bathhouse owner, however, said he will defy the order and open today. "I don't plan to close," said Scott D.R.

Dist. Atty. Ira Reiner is preparing to file lawsuits in the next few weeks in an effort to close some of Los Angeles County's 12 gay bathhouses, a spokesman said. The move, part of an effort to stem the spread of AIDS, would be based on two months of undercover investigations coordinated by Reiner. It would be the first legal action taken by the county against the bathhouses in nearly two years, despite widespread medical opinion that they constitute a health hazard.

The Senate passed legislation Thursday that would enhance the power of local health officials to shut down bathhouses when they find evidence of high-risk sexual practices that could lead to the spread of AIDS.

Gov. George Deukmejian on Friday signed legislation expanding the power of local health officials to shut bathhouses where there is evidence of high-risk sexual behavior that could spread the AIDS virus. The bill is intended to bolster enforcement of local bathhouse regulations adopted in Los Angeles, San Diego and other communities where the incidence of AIDS has been on the rise.

In the first successful enforcement of county regulations aimed at closing bathhouses that allow sexual activities linked to the spread of AIDS, a Los Angeles judge Tuesday ordered a gay bathhouse in Silver Lake to close, ruling that it posed an unacceptable risk to public health.

Despite heated opposition from bathhouse owners and the threat of a legal challenge, the Los Angeles County AIDS Commission backed a recommendation Friday to shut down local bathhouses as a precaution against the spread of the AIDS virus. The proposal, which still must be approved by the Board of Supervisors, calls for the permanent closure of bathhouses as a public health risk that allows high-risk sexual practices that can transmit the acquired immune deficiency syndrome virus.

I tell Valentina it's my first time in a banya and that I've forgotten to bring birch branches. "Oh, I'll flog you with mine," she says, offering typical Russian hospitality. She begins whacking my back as we sit on long wood benches in the parilka (steam room). Whack! Whack! Whack! The beatings continue for a minute or two as green bits fly about. I wince. "Now it's my turn," she says. I return the favor but am timid. Valentina could be my mother. "Harder!" she says.

A suicide bomber blew himself up Friday at a public bathhouse in southern Afghanistan that was filled with men washing themselves before the main prayers of the Muslim week. At least 17 people were killed and 23 injured, provincial officials said. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in Spin Buldak, in Kandahar province. The area, a main crossing point into Pakistan, is a longtime nexus for drugs and weapons smuggling. A Taliban spokesman, Qari Yousef Ahmadi, claimed that the explosion had killed the deputy commander of the province's border police force.

Rain pelted the windshield as I drove up the Vals Valley. Waterfalls coursed over cliff faces, and the tops of the Alps were lost in fog. Not the kind of weather that walkers who come to Vals in the summer long for. But the rain suited me. I was headed for a spa about 120 miles southeast of Zurich, where I planned to spend the next 24 hours. I admit it: I like fancy spas and will go out of my way for a Brittany seaweed wrap or a four-handed ayurvedic massage. But I didn't come to Vals for that -- at least, not strictly so. I came to see the stunning, contemporary bathhouse designed by Peter Zumthor.

Abdullah Safar rests his silver 9-millimeter pistol on a bench at his family's bathhouse and talks about the past. His family's memories live here. In the waiting room, with its peeling lavender paint. In the gray-domed chamber, with its hot black massage slab. At the front gate, where a car bomb killed his 14-year-old son. "If I had lost anything but my son, it would have been easier," Safar says. He closed for nine months after the blast, but he isn't ready to give up the bathhouse.

The Board of Supervisors agreed Tuesday to settle a lawsuit brought by nine gay bathhouses last year that said county requirements imposed on the businesses violated the law. County rules mandated that such businesses obtain county health licenses, pay annual fees of more than $1,000, allow quarterly inspections and provide on-site HIV testing. Business operators "basically agreed to adhere to" county requirements but can complain of potential violations of the law or their rights, said Dr.

THE WEBSITE FOR ONE FACILITY says it's a place for "men to play safely." Another describes itself as the "friendly, no-attitude bathhouse you've been looking for." Others boast of their cedar-lined saunas and private sundecks. Los Angeles County's 11 known sex clubs and bathhouses have long been popular places where gay men (and to a lesser extent heterosexual couples) go to have casual or public sex.

The Assembly on Tuesday passed and sent to Gov. George Deukmejian legislation that would reinforce the power of local governments to close gay bathhouses. The measure, approved by a 58-0 vote, would put into state law the right of local agencies to declare bathhouses a nuisance and order them shut down if they permit or encourage sexual activity that could lead to the spread of acquired immune deficiency syndrome.

We are informed in an article titled "Future of Sex Clubs May Hinge on Zoning" (Oct. 27) that bathhouses catering to male homosexuals may only have a "zoning" problem for operating too close to residential areas. The article implies that homosexual bathhouses have been tacitly allowed to continue operation with the "understanding that they would prohibit anal sex without a condom and offer safe sex information and condoms to patrons. Enforcement (is) left largely to the owners." Imagine the public outcry that would ensue if heterosexual bathhouses commenced operation all over California.

Underwear "always optional" here, boasts one ad, offering three floors of pleasure, the hottest men and erotic theme nights. Another ad in the Los Angeles gay magazine Frontiers features a bare-chested worker, his utility belt bulging with condoms, with the logo, "play safe--condoms are always FREE." And in a third, a muscular man wearing nothing but a baseball cap and underwear rests his hand in a provocative manner.