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"Dangerous Dan," karaoke host, explains his decision to leave Green Lake's Little Red Hen

What do you think? (15 Comments) May 30, 2010 at 9:32AM

It’s the end of an era at Little Red Hen (7115 Woodlawn Ave NE).  Dan McKay, host of a popular karaoke night at the historic Green Lake country bar, has announced that he is stepping down.

Dan, a.k.a. “Dangerous Dan,” sent us a link to his personal site, My Big Fat Blog, where he explains his decision to leave Little Red Hen.  Here are a few highlights:

It seems just about every week some drunk troublemaker is 86′ed for behavior ranging from groping another customer to starting a fight. Sometimes it’s a full-on brawl complete with police presence. [...]

For your humble karaoke host, with nothing between me and a sea of drunk patrons, Wednesday nights at Little Red Hen increasingly became a nightmare. On a weekly basis I was subjected to countless threats and epithets from inebriated patrons, damage to my gear, willful destruction of my songbooks, drinks thrown at me and near-violent confrontations with stumbling, staggering customers whose time perception was so impaired they would yell in my face how they’d been waiting for “hours” for their song – when they actually only turned in their request 25 minutes ago. (I timestamp all karaoke slips for that reason.) [...]

Imagine that! Dangerous Karaoke finally got TOO dangerous. For me.

Dangerous Dan is moving on to other venues, yet to be announced.  Meanwhile, a new karaoke host has been hired at Little Red Hen.

___________________

Ed. note:  We hoped to get in touch with Little Red Hen’s owner for a comment on this story.  However, we were not able to reach him via phone, email, or twitter DM.

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What do you think? (15 Comments)
  • ap

    The Little Red Hen patrons are out of control. They need REAL security out there. It's a free for all and the neighbors have to suffer.

  • Disappointed by the Red Hen

    I agree. I've had problems at my home because of drunks from the Red Hen. It's become worse and worse the last few years. The owners have no regard for their neighbors.

  • JT

    Dangerous Dan was never a very good fit for this club. Wednesday nights have been super-cracking (probably the best karoake in Seattle) for a long time, but it hasn't been because of him. He'll be easily replaced, so as long as The Hen got a good “new guy,” the night will probably just get better. I was a loyal customer to Dan, but he was pretty much always a jerk to me.

    And folks, The Hen is a dive, and that's what we go there for. They operate just as professional as most bars–they don't serve people who are super wasted, and they throw people out who are out of control. It gets packed full of college kids, and they do what they do. There are cheap drinks, and a fun time (and surprisingly clean bathrooms for a dive).

    The neighbors of ALL the local bars complain about noise (just ask all the local bar owners). I love Seattle, but relax a bit people. Move out into the country if you want quiet.

  • ap

    Most bars have security to handle the wasted patrons once they leave the club. The Little Red Hen does not. We looked out one night after acommotion and saw a guy laying in the middle of the street passed out – we had to go downstairs and drag him to the sidewalk and call the police. Clubs normally have security sitting outside the club to help monitor patrons once they leave the club. AS you said, they throw out people who are out of control. And then what? Most clubs have security that keep an eye on them from outside the club and/or call them a cab.
    And btw – Greenlake IS quiet – except the Little Red Hen. It is NOT Belltown or someplace. You shouldn't have to live in the country for businesses to respect their neighbors enough to hire at least one security guard to control their patrons once they leave the club.

  • iMom

    That sucks. Dangerous Dan is awesome.

  • Disappointed by the Red Hen

    It's about safety and security. This is not Capital Hill, Not Bell Town, and Not Ballard or Fremont. It's a neighborhood that prides itself on healthy, balanced lifestyles. I used to live next to the Blue Water and NEVER had any problems at all. Now I live within a block or two of the Red Hen and I've had drunks wandering into my yard and pissing on my front door. I've had drunks crash into my garage door. I've seen several instances where the police had to be called to the Red Hen. If the Red Hen wants to liquor-up a bunch of kids to make money they should move out of our neighborhood and closer to the college kids. Or as mentioned by “ap” they should spend some money on real security.

  • SleeplessGreenlake

    Dear Little Red Hen,

    Please invest in some security. Last night I called 911 to report two drunk drivers leaving the bar at 12:15 last night. The six gentlemen argued underneath my window over who could drive and four got into a car. They waited for 10 minutes as the one less drunk guy had to help the drunker guy get the only helmet of the two on his head and on the bike. Two starts and stops later, the driver (the one without the helmet) guns the bike and pulls out into the street only to barely miss an oncoming car. The four guys in the other car pull out behind them and nearly repeat the same thing and they both head east on 71st back to the U District.

    I have a problem with this because there are too many people arguing outside and the door opening and closing to accommodate the smokers. This means that I have to listen to the entire bad remake of the “Humpty Dance” and the “Rumpshaker”

    I HAVE A SOLUTION!!! USE THE BACK DOOR AND MAKE EVERYONE AFTER 9:00 ENTER AND EXIT THROUGH THAT DOOR.

    If not and there is no security I will keep calling the cops everynight and 911 is more than happy to hear from me to report drunk drivers that come from that bar. I think the police will eventually get the picture.

    Signed,

    Pissed off and not pissed up neighbor

  • SleeplessGreenlake

    Dear Little Red Hen,

    Please invest in some security. Last night I called 911 to report two drunk drivers leaving the bar at 12:15 last night. The six gentlemen argued underneath my window over who could drive and four got into a car. They waited for 10 minutes as the one less drunk guy had to help the drunker guy get the only helmet of the two on his head and on the bike. Two starts and stops later, the driver (the one without the helmet) guns the bike and pulls out into the street only to barely miss an oncoming car. The four guys in the other car pull out behind them and nearly repeat the same thing and they both head east on 71st back to the U District.

    I have a problem with this because there are too many people arguing outside and the door opening and closing to accommodate the smokers. This means that I have to listen to the entire bad remake of the “Humpty Dance” and the “Rumpshaker”

    I HAVE A SOLUTION!!! USE THE BACK DOOR AND MAKE EVERYONE AFTER 9:00 ENTER AND EXIT THROUGH THAT DOOR.

    If not and there is no security I will keep calling the cops everynight and 911 is more than happy to hear from me to report drunk drivers that come from that bar. I think the police will eventually get the picture.

    Signed,

    Pissed off and not pissed up neighbor