The founder of a beloved LGBTQ+ bar in Crystal City is getting married to his longtime partner on a float at D.C.’s WorldPride Parade this Saturday.
Freddie’s Beach Bar owner Freddie Lutz and his partner of 28 years, Johnny Cervantes, plan to tie the knot in bride-and-groom-inspired tuxedos atop a special Freddie’s display featuring a chapel.
They only started planning a couple weeks ago, taking advantage of a unique opportunity with the Equality Chamber of Commerce. Nevertheless, Lutz and Cervantes are as excited as can be to honor their long love story surrounded by friends and, they say, in defiance of federal rollbacks in support for LGBTQ+ communities.
“Gay marriage is alive and well in the United States, and we can’t take it for granted,” Cervantes said. “I think our celebration will certainly serve as a reminder it is available.”
Lutz heard about the opportunity two weeks ago, when an Equality Chamber of Commerce representative asked if the couple was interested in being married on a chapel float.
“I said, ‘What? Oh, my God, that’s my dream to get married to Johnny on a Pride float,'” Lutz said. “She said, ‘well, we’re doing several different couples. Would you like to be one of them?’ And I said, ‘No, but if you’ll do just me and Johnny, and let me put my signage on the float, I’ll do it. And she said yes.”
This year’s WorldPride has been the subject of some contention, with many corporations backing out of sponsorships — including some in Arlington — and a few countries issuing travel advisories over the Trump administration’s hostility toward transgender people.
Despite all of this, Lutz and Cervantes see their wedding as a celebration of joy and visibility.
“At least we can celebrate this,” Lutz said. “We can’t afford to be afraid. We have to keep standing up for our rights. You know, they did it at Stonewall — they didn’t back down.”
Their love story
Lutz and Cervantes first met through mutual friends in 1997 at JR’s Bar and the now-closed Trumpets, two popular LGBTQ+ establishments in D.C.
“Johnny was trying to pick up my friend Terry, and I just kept staring at him from the other end of the table,” Lutz said.
Lutz — who was Cafe Italia’s maitre d’ in Crystal City at the time — later “swooped in” to connect with Cervantes, fostering what would become their long-term relationship.
Since Virginia banned gay marriage until 2014, Lutz and Cervantes said that for many years, they didn’t see it as a serious possibility. That changed in the late 2000s, after they heard Gavin Newsom, the then-mayor of San Francisco, speak about gay rights.
“He kind of convinced us that, you know, we were entitled to those rights of marriage,” Cervantes said. “When you have groups of people that are oppressed to some extent or bullied, I think you feel like you’re unworthy of something.”
When Virginia legalized gay marriage on Oct. 6, 2014, Lutz asked Cervantes about getting married the very next day.
“His response was, ‘No, but you can take me to Tiffany’s,” Lutz said.
Since then, the couple talked often about getting married — but the timing and planning never felt right.
“My problem is, I know so many people … there would be a lot of angry people if they weren’t included on the invitation list,” Lutz said. “This way, we are literally inviting the entire world to our wedding, which solves that problem, right?”
Pride and community
As Lutz and Cervantes discussed their wedding, Lutz spoke about the power of community — something his self-described “straight-friendly gay bar” has fostered for 24 years.
Lutz has felt on guard since Freddie’s received a bomb threat and protests around a family-friendly drag event last spring. Throughout such hardships, mutual friendship has been a source of comfort.
“I can’t tell you how much it means to me to have people come up to me and say, ‘I met my husband at your bar, or I came out at your bar,'” Lutz said.
They are currently wrapping up some last-minute details. Lutz hopes to play the song “Johnny Angel” by Shelley Fabares as a tribute to his sweetheart along the route. An after-party is planned at Freddie’s, and the couple will be tossing some festive invitations to the crowds.
“By our doing this, we’re continuing to serve as a model for other people to celebrate something that is legally available to them, to acknowledge and celebrate the commitment that people are making to each other,” Cervantes said. “That’s what I’m excited about being able to celebrate.”
