Pleasure Island To Close

Walt Disney World recently announced it would close the six nightclubs on Pleasure Island in hopes of making the nearly 20-year-old nighttime entertainment complex more family-friendly. But which family are they referring to? For many in the GLBT community, the announcement means yet another blow to the area's all-too turbulent gay nightlife scene, one that last year saw a third of its bars and nightclubs shuttered. The long-held tradition of the Island's unofficial gay night—which, to the surprise of no one, coincides with Thursday's more official Cast Member Night—will cease to exist at 2 a.m., on Sept. 26, 2008. Two days later, the doors will close for good at Pleasure Island's half-dozen nightclubs.