'Magic Mike' Draws Gay Men To The Cinema

On The Gay Appeal Of 'Magic Mike'

Men flirted and showed off their muscles through tight-fitting tank tops. Women with no shoes gyrated next to men with no shirts. A D.J. played deep beats. Shachar Keizman, 24, climbed atop an armrest and peeled off his shirt to reveal a chiseled torso. People screamed and stuck dollar bills in his shorts.

Then the lights went down, and Channing Tatum got naked.

Clearview Chelsea Cinemas, a cineplex in Manhattan, had become a makeshift gay bar. It was Friday night, and four theaters were showing “Magic Mike,” the Oscar-winning director Steven Soderbergh’s new movie about a troupe of male strippers.

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