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Obituary: William Johnson, 73
Adult gay entertainment owner succumbed to cancer, heart disease
William ‘B.J.’ Johnson, 73, a businessman who operated adult entertainment clubs in D.C. and Virginia in the 1970s and 1980s, including the Lone Star gay bar, died Jan. 5 at Holy Cross Hospital in Silver Spring, Md., of complications from bladder cancer and heart disease.
Johnson, who was gay, was known in the gay community as the owner of the Lone Star, a club at 9th and E Streets, N.W. that featured nude female dancers to a largely straight clientele during the day. Johnson operated the club as a gay bar at night that featured nude male dancers.
Shirley Dearolph, a friend who worked as a bartender at the Lone Star and other clubs owned by Johnson, said he bought the Lone Star from the U.S. government in 1978 in an auction after the IRS seized the club from its previous owner. According to news reports, the previous owner, a federal employee, had been convicted of embezzling money from the government for the purpose of buying the club.
“At the time he bought it there were just the go-go girls in the day,” Dearolph said. “It closed at 8 o’clock because most of the customers worked for the government and nobody stayed out late.”
According to Dearolph, within a few weeks of taking control of the Lone Star, Johnson opened it at night and hired male strippers, becoming the city’s second club to offer nude male dancers to a gay clientele.
The Chesapeake House, a gay bar located three blocks north at 9th and H Streets, N.W., began featuring male strippers a year or two earlier, Dearolph said.
Before buying the Lone Star, Johnson established a name for himself in 1976 as the first person in the nation’s capital to offer totally nude female strippers at a nightclub he bought in the city’s then red light district on 14th Street, N.W., called Benny’s Rebel Room.
Dearolph said that during that same period in the 1970s Johnson bought This Is It, another female burlesque nightclub in the infamous 14th Street strip between H and K streets, N.W. Around that same time Johnson bought Ziggie’s, a burlesque club in Arlington, Va., which also featured female strippers.
In the late 1970s, two gay bathhouses and a gay adult bookstore opened on the 14th Street strip near Johnson’s nightclubs. Possibly anticipating what was to come in the mid-1980s, Johnson sold Benny’s and This is It in 1978 at the peak of their popularity but at a time when civic activists began to complain about the adult businesses.
Noting they were located in the heart of downtown Washington and less than three blocks from the White House, real estate developers and some D.C. government officials joined forces to “clean up” the area. By 1986, most of the 14th Street adult clubs had closed, with some having their licenses revoked for alleged liquor law violations.
“He was a good businessman,” Dearolph said. “He sold This Is It and Benny’s around 1978 and bought the Lone Star. He kept the Lone Star until we had to close it in 1986 when they were doing the development down there.”
Similar to the 14th Street strip, the Lone Star and other bars and clubs along 9th St., N.W., including the Chesapeake House and the gay bar Louie’s, were displace by upscale high-rise office buildings.
Johnson was born in Laurel, Md., and spent much of his early years on his parents’ farm in nearby Spencerville. He received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland, College Park, and began his career as a teacher. He later spent “many years as a successful businessman, owning a number of successful businesses, including several bar establishments,” according to a statement released by family members at the time of his death.
At a Jan. 10 memorial service, friends said Johnson lived for many years in a townhouse he owned in D.C. on Capitol Hill while spending time at the farm and farmhouse in Spencerville he later inherited from his parents.
“It was his pride and joy,” said Dearolph. “He didn’t grow crops and raise animals. He kept it manicured and beautiful. It was his showcase.”
In addition to Dearolph, one of Johnson’s closest friends and associates, Johnson is survived by his nieces, Deborah Clark and Donna Dunn; his great-nephew, Glenn Edens, Jr; great-nieces Lisa Edens and Ashley Crisp; and one great-great nephew, William Chase Rezmer.
At the time of his funeral, family members requested that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the William ‘BJ’ Johnson Memorial fund at the American Heart Association and the American Cancer Society.
Abigail Spanberger was sworn in as the 75th governor of Virginia at a ceremony on the grounds of the Virginia State Capitol on Saturday. Thousands of spectators watched the swearing-in ceremony and parade, despite the rain and temperatures in the low 40s.
Spanberger, a member of the Democratic Party and an LGBTQ ally, became the first woman to be Virginia’s governor.
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Newly-elected Attorney General Jay Jones, Lt. Gov. Ghazala Hashmi, and Spanberger were each administered the oath of office in the public ceremony.
Republican former Gov. Glenn Youngkin left the ceremony shortly after the oath of office was administered to Spanberger and before the inaugural address.
In her speech, the new governor made an appeal to bipartisanship and looking past division in our current moment.
“To my friends in the General Assembly — on both sides of the aisle — I look forward to working with you,” said Spanberger. “I know what it means to represent your constituents, to work hard for your district, and to pursue policies you believe in. We will not agree on everything, but I speak from personal experience when I say that we do not have to see eye-to-eye on every issue in order to stand shoulder-to-shoulder on others.”
Spanberger acknowledged Virginians’ frustrations with federal layoffs and governmental policy.
“I know many of you are worried about the recklessness coming out of Washington. You are worried about policies that are hurting our communities — cutting healthcare access, imperiling rural hospitals, and driving up costs,” said Spanberger. “You are worried about Washington policies that are closing off markets, hurting innovation and private industry, and attacking those who have devoted their lives to public service.”
Spanberger alluded to the Trump administration, though never mentioned President Donald Trump’s name in her remarks.
Spanberger said, “you are worried about an administration that is gilding buildings while schools crumble, breaking the social safety net, and sowing fear across our communities, betraying the values of who we are as Americans, the very values we celebrate here on these steps.”
The new governor then spoke of her priorities in office, pledging to tackle housing affordability by working to “cut red tape” and increase housing supply. Spanberger also spoke of forestalling an impending healthcare crisis by protecting access and cracking down on “middlemen who are driving up drug prices.”
Spanberger spoke of investments in education at every level, standing up for workers (including the large number of federal workers in Virginia), and taking action on gun violence.
Virginia married couple Mary Townley and Carol Schall witnessed the inauguration ceremony from the stands set up on the grounds of the Capitol. Schall and Townley are one of the plaintiff couples in the case that challenged the Virginia constitutional ban on same-sex marriage.
Same-sex marriage became legal in Virginia in 2014.
“We are delighted with the inauguration of Abigail Spanberger as governor of Virginia,” Schall told the Washington Blade. “The celebration of her inauguration was full of the beautiful diversity that is Virginia. The Virginia Pride contingent was included as a part of what makes Virginia a great place to live.”
“Such an honor to attend such a wonderful event in Virginia history,” Townley told the Blade. “The weather before the Inauguration was cold and rainy, but I believe it represented the end of a dreary time and it ushered in the dry and sunny weather by the end of the inaugural parade. Madam Governor brought us to the light!”
The inaugural parade following the governor’s remarks included a contingent from Diversity Richmond and Virginia Pride. Marchers in the LGBTQ contingent carried a giant Progress Pride flag and were met with loud cheers from the gathered spectators.
Spanberger after her inauguration signed 10 executive orders. One of them bans discrimination against state employees based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and other factors.
“By virtue of the authority vested in me as Governor under Article V of the Constitution of
Virginia, I hereby declare that it is the firm and unwavering policy of the Commonwealth of Virginia to ensure equal opportunity in all facets of state government,” reads the executive order. “The foundational tenet of this executive order is premised upon a steadfast commitment to foster a culture of inclusion, diversity, and mutual respect for all Virginians.”
Virginia
VIDEO: LGBTQ groups march in Va. inaugural parade
Abigail Spanberger took office on Saturday
The inaugural ceremonies for Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger were held in Richmond, Va. on Saturday. Among the groups marching in the parade were Diversity Richmond and the Virginia Pride project of Diversity Richmond.
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Virginia
Va. Senate approves referendum to repeal marriage amendment
Outgoing state Sen. Adam Ebbin introduced SJ3
The Virginia Senate on Friday by a 26-13 vote margin approved a resolution that seeks to repeal a state constitutional amendment that defines marriage as between a man and a woman.
Outgoing state Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria) introduced SJ3. The Senate Privileges and Elections Committee on Wednesday approved it by a 10-4 vote margin.
Same-sex couples have been able to legally marry in Virginia since 2014. Outgoing Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin in 2024 signed a bill that codified marriage equality in state law.
A resolution that seeks to repeal the Marshall-Newman Amendment passed in the General Assembly in 2021. The resolution passed again in 2025.
Two successive legislatures must approve the resolution before it can go to the ballot. Democrats in the Virginia House of Delegates have said the resolution’s passage is among their 2026 legislative priorities.
“It’s time for Virginia’s Constitution to reflect the law of the land and the values of today,” said Ebbin after Friday’s vote. “This amendment, if approved by voters, would affirm the dignity of all committed couples and protects marriage equality for future generations.”
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