We are back at The Pink Panther for another dancing dollybird shaking what she’s got for everyone to see.

Hit play and enjoy all that beautiful Bow has to offer.

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SuperStar is a nightlife institution that’s been entertaining the bad boys of Bangkok and beyond for the past four decades but times have been tough for the old school Patpong bars in recent years and the Covid-19 situation has been the final nail in the coffin for a fair few businesses as their ageing owners decide enough is enough and settle for retirement.

The owner of Cosmos around the corner made the decision enough was enough and called it a day last week when they decided not to continue when the government finally allow bars to reopen becoming yet another nightlife coronavirus casualty.

I recall a couple of years back being offered a six-figure “commission” if I could find someone to buy SuperStar and the neighbouring beer bar owned by Taan but any interested parties halted talks as soon as the lease length of 1-year rolling was mentioned.

Serious buyers want more than a 1-year rolling lease otherwise there’s no point investing hence no SuperStar sale which comes back to what next for the owner?

Reopen whenever that might be, wait on a trickle of tourists and hope someone snaps up the bar for a couple of million to stick in the retirement fund or just pull the plug and not fritter away any more money in what must be a black hole?

Tough decisions to be made for not just this bar owner but many around town who are in the same boat.

Back in the mid 1970’s Soi Cowboy was known as Soi Gold Label, named after the streets first bar catering to foreigners and it’s first real go-go bar, that opened in 1975 or 1977 depending on the source.

Gold Label bar and several others were owned by a retired American airman by the name of TG Edwards who was often seen around the soi sporting his signature cowboy hat.

If you look closely at the lead photo taken in January 1981, on the right is Loretta’s, one of the largest bars in Bangkok at the time.

Loretta had been married to T.G. Edwards. He lost everything to his wife during a bitter divorce.

The Cowboy Bar was opened toward the end of the decade by another retired US military veteran. Everyone knew him simply as “Cowboy”.

Nightlife columnist Bernard Trink coined the name Soi Cowboy when referring to the soi in his weekly rundown of what was happening in the naughty nightlife neighbourhoods of Bangkok and the name stuck.

The rest they say is history…