Former West Hollywood Bar GM Found Dead From Apparent Suicide

A popular West Hollywood bar manager committed suicide last week, sending shockwaves throughout the LGBTQ community. As general manager at Revolver Video Bar and the defunct Here Lounge, Caesar Torres was a fixture within West Hollywood, having worked in both venues since 2001.

Surviving friends organized a memorial service at Micky’s for Torres on Tuesday. Friends, family, Revolver patrons and West Hollywood mayor John Duran expressed their grief since Torres’ death. Duran posted about Torres on his Facebook page last Sunday, and called for all rainbow flags to be lowered to half-mast:

According to Wehoville, Torres was born in Austin, Texas, and raised in Los Angeles. Torres’ nightlife career began at Here Lounge in 2001, where he moved up to general manager. The club faced problems in 2014, and was acquired two years later by the Abbey Bar and Restaurant owner David Cooley. Cooley bought and transformed Here Lounge into a new addition to The Abbey called, The Chapel. Torres continued to work there until early 2016, and then moved on to Revolver, but recently lost his job.

Torres allegedly hung himself at his apartment on September 21. His surviving family wants to lay Torres to rest in Mexico and started a GoFundMe to help pay for costs. Currently the GoFundMe has raised $5,150 of the $10,000 goal.

• In Memory: Former Revolver Bar Manager Caesar Torres Has Died [WEHOVille]
• West Hollywood’s Iconic Revolver Bar Abandons Expansion Plans [ELA]

If you or anyone you know is considering suicide or self-harm or is anxious, depressed, upset, or needs to talk, call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-8255 or text the Crisis Text Line at 741-741. For international resources, here is a good place to begin.