Mapping CommonPlace
Changing History
My rhetorical analysis goes over the Tune Inn’s identity as a dive bar. It questions the idea of its name in modern day society compared to its name historically. I looked specifically at the more modern side of public opinions on dive bars and the Tune Inn in respects to said opinions. However, the Tune Inn’s popularity came from its rich history development. I want to look at how the Tune Inn got such a name, and compare its historical development with its next door neighbor: the Hawk ‘n’ Dove. Both bars have been around for quite some time and each have their own reputation. The Tune Inn got its popularity for being around since the late 40’s, and Hawk ‘n’ Dove earned its name from a historically famous event: the Vietnam War. Both went through a similar hardship around 2011 and returned in opposite fashions. My commonplace mapping plans to looker more closely at the history of these two bars and see how their methods shaped their reputations today.
Compared to the Hawk ‘n’ Dove, the Tune Inn has a pretty simple and straightforward history behind its creation. Joe Nardelli, the youngest in an Italian family of nine children, moved to Washington, D.C., during World War II (Roll Call). Joe had taken up the restaurant business like any ordinary man and continued to work up the ranks until he became the Tune Inn’s manager. Five years later, he bought the bar at 331 Pennsylvania Ave. SE from his debt-plagued boss (Roll Call). That really is the long and the short of the Tune Inn’s history. It’s been managed by Joe Nardelli’s family line ever since. Joe really seemed to like the thrill of the hunt and the outdoors, as many decorations of animal heads and vintage rifles are mounted on the wall. Many of the animals are from Nardelli family hunting trips — Joe Nardelli was an avid hunter — and others were donated by patrons over the years (Roll Call). He even has a sense of humor, and put up deer butts above the bathroom doors. The Tune Inn didn’t start with any rich origin or reason behind its creation, but it continued to rise in popularity in D.C. This was during the time that dive bars were more popular and known in the public. Since the Tune Inn is located in Capitol Hill, anyone from an important politician or businessman, to a poor citizen trying to enjoy a pint.
The Hawk ‘n’ Dove has more of a reason behind its creation. Back in 1967 during the Vietnam War, Stuart Long created the Hawk ‘n’ Dove as a bar behind a major event in the U.S. The origin is more ancient, but its presence can be seen during the War of 1812 and more importantly related to the Vietnam War. “hawks” were people who wanted to step up the fighting in Vietnam, and “doves” were people who wanted to slow it down (Saad). Long was able to gain a reputation with the Hawk ‘n’ Dove, as it grew into popularity very steadily. It is also important to me personally, because my grandparents met at the Hawk ‘n’ Dove in its early years. Without that popularity, my family line wouldn’t exist. As time went on however, things started to simmer down as the bar only maintained its popularity to an extent for the upcoming years.
In 2011, both bars had been hit in different ways. The Tune Inn caught up in flames during the summer of that year, and Long had to sell the Hawk ‘n’ Dove due to financial issues with the restaurant. Fortunately, both bars are back on their feet, but they each came back in a different way. After the renovations, the Tune Inn looked almost unchanged. Lisa Nardelli, the current owner, was able to get people to restore the foundation and the decorations of the Tune Inn. The Hawk ‘n’ Dove took a completely different approach. The new owner, Xavier Cervera, had completely redesigned and renovated everything. Cervera says he had no choice but to gut the bar after buying it two years ago. “Structurally, it was unsound,” he says (Rogers). Structural renovations are a valid and important point, but what was also changed was the spacing. If anything, it felt like a new bar was put in place of the Hawk ‘n’ Dove, and that nudged old customers in the wrong way. The new Hawk doesn’t smell, but to some, that’s precisely why it stinks (Rogers). Cervera had a clear plan to try and revitalize the once well known Hawk ‘n’ Dove with these renovations, but he went to far in the public’s eyes.
This key comparison demonstrates the differences in these two bars’ history. The Tune Inn was able to maintain and even increase its popularity by staying the same. The Tune Inn created a name through time, and they valued that nostalgia very much. “Janet Reno used to come in and have breakfast,” Lydon said. “A guy that’s a ditch-digger is sitting next to the attorney general of the United States. In there, there’s no titles, no nothing. It’s family” (Kinzie). The Hawk ‘n’ Dove lost its valuable customers and rich history to Cervera’s changes. Now that it’s been spiffed up, the Hawk is the latest battleground of an ongoing epistemological debate in the District on what makes a dive bar, which places have maintained their dive status, and whether a dive can even exist in D.C (Rogers).
This set of events helps magnify the image of the Tune Inn and dive bars in general. The Tune Inn understood what made them successful and chose to continue their dive bar feel. Hawk ‘n’ Dove demonstrates that too much change can result in a loss of history and culture between the public.
Works Cited
“Capitol Hill’s Tune Inn Hits Its Own 50-Year Mark.” Roll Call. N.p., 09 June 2005. Web. 10 May 2019.
Kinzie, Susan, and Justin Jouvenal. “Fire Damages Tune Inn Bar on Hill.” The Washington Post. WP Company, 22 June 2011. Web. 10 May 2019.
Rogers, Jenny. “Live and Let Dive: Does Renovating a Beloved Bar Mean Quashing Its Charm?” Washington City Paper. N.p., 03 Jan. 2013. Web. 10 May 2019.
Saad, Lydia. “Gallup Vault: Hawks vs. Doves on Vietnam.” Gallup.com. N.p., 24 May 2016. Web. 10 May 2019.