The Continental is clearly a very very special place to many folks.
The former concert/dance venue on Franklin Street remains a symbol that holds together a massive community who regularly patronized in the 80’s and 90’s. Rise Collaborative put together a small documentary on what made the place so special, namely its embrace of punk rock downstairs and new wave dance music upstairs and its acceptance of people of all different shapes, colors, lifestyles before any other establishment would.
Inside the Facebook group dedicated to the club and its community, Bud Redding’s post about this piece saw an outpouring of love and memories shared with nearly 400 likes and 150 comments.
“Great times every Weekend in the late 80’s early 90’s , always got the Foster’s king can for last call.” – David Jakubik
“Man I loved that place. I hung out there when I was in High School and early College years. It was a place we could go that made us feel accepted.” – Maureen McLaughlin
“Awesome post! The Continental and Buffalo, NY became my home-away-from home, back in the mid-late 80’s. It all started for me, during my airline career, and I was traveling a-lot. One of my F/A roommates, while being based and living in Syracuse NY, who was from Buffalo, told me about the Continental! I found my way to the club one night, and that was it! I left Syracuse and moved to Buffalo. Not only was it closer to Pittsburgh, PA, my hometown, but it was just like getting a huge hug, every time I landed back in Buffalo and entered the Continental. There was no other place, in the country that compared to the Continental, at that time. I’m so grateful for the acceptance, the music and long-lasting friendships, to this day!” – Mary J. Weiss-Hargnett
Beloved upstairs DJ Andre Frazier, who checked in from Florida for the documentary, put together a 31 hour playlist of all the songs he used to play in the dark while people danced with each other, or with themselves in the mirror.
The group then mobilized and filled Rise’s email inboxes to the brim with their orders over the last weekend. Everyone eager to show their love for the venue and for the hospitality workers of Buffalo.
Finally, if you’re wondering what Family Meal Hospitality Trust is all about, and how it helps hospitality workers in our city, we made a video about that too!
Join in on something special, and bring some security to the people who’ve brought you so much joy over the years. As COVID drags on, so do their challenges. See you out there soon, friends.
