Frank’s Lounge turns 40

It’s going to be a party 40 years in the making.
On Tuesday, Judy Petty and her small staff of bartenders and large group of extended bar family will celebrate 40 years in the same location for Frank’s Lounge, 2112 S. Main St. in Joplin.

Franks Lounge owner Judy Petty sits with patron and friend Susan Manard at Franks Lounge on Monday, December 13, 2010.

“I’m looking forward to it. It will be a lot of fun,” Judy said as we talked party plans and recounted memories from one of Joplin’s longtime watering holes. “We’ve been told a lot of people are taking off work to come and in and have some fun and see old friends. The (bartenders) are excited about it, too.”
Judy said Frank’s will be “busy” from noon until close on Dec. 21. That may be an understatement.
Frank’s will open 6:30 a.m. on Tuesday and Judy expects the party to pick up around noon, when she will serve up tables full of sandwiches and snacks. Throughout the day promotional teams from area beer distributors — the Bud and Miller/Coors girls — will drop in and give away brewery merchandise and socialize with patrons.
A casino night fundraiser for the Ronald McDonald House gets under way at 6 p.m. with the buy-in benefiting RMH. Participants will play poker, blackjack and Let it Ride, then buy merchandise with their casino cash winnings.
Door prize drawings for a Margaritaville-style bar top blender, single-cup coffee maker and flat screen television will be held during the day. Local favorites Willie and the Po Boys will entertain the crowd beginning at 9 p.m. and play until midnight.
“I don’t know if it’s a birthday or an anniversary,” Judy said, laughing. “I just know it’s going to be a big party. You got to do it at 40 because I don’t know if I’ll be around for 50.”

Frank's patron Mike Walker has a drink at Frank's Lounge on Monday, December 13, 2010.

Frank Petty, Judy’s husband of 32 years and the lounge’s namesake, died in 2002 after successful careers in the trucking and bar business. Together they owned Ozark Speedway and Judy maintained her own business interests throughout years.
A framed photo of Frank hangs behind the bar. It’s as if he’s always there with an eye on the business, keeping Judy company. Judy laughed when she told me she talks to Frank all of the time. She seems comforted by his presence.
“I hope a lot of Frank’s friends will come in,” Judy said. “I wish he was here.”
More than 40 years ago, Judy worked for Frank at his lounge at 625 Joplin Ave. They married in April of 1970, and opened the bar in its current location on Dec. 21, 1970. Judy and Frank poured beer and mixed cocktails together there for 32 years.
“I never imagined I’d be doing this alone,” Judy said, sounding a little sad. “We thought we would get old together and set on the porch and rock. Well, I’d probably go fishing and Frank would rock.”
But, Judy said, “Life took a turn.”

Frank's Lounge opened in its current location on Dec., 21, 1970.

I don’t think I will be able to take off work to spend the day at Frank’s listening to old stories and tall tales, but I will make an appearance and join in on the fun after work. I started going to Frank’s a few years back. At first, going into a place such as Frank’s with a loyal, regular following can be intimidating.
But I never felt like an outsider at Frank’s. Judy and her girls behind the bar always made me feel welcome.
“We try to have a family atmosphere where everybody knows everybody,” Judy said. “We’ve had four generations of customers. We have the grandkids of customers coming in now. The kids know their folks came in here and they just stick with us. We’ve grown to be close friends.”
After 40 years of slinging drinks behind the same bar you might think that Judy, now 70, would be ready to call it quits and spend her golden years fishing at the lake with her grandkids. She’s not.
“I’ll never retire,” she said. “How can I retire, my extended family and friends are all here. It’s my social life.”
Frank’s is a hub of social activity for many of her regulars, too.
“This is where you congregate when someone passes or has a child,” she said. “Frank’s is where you come.”
I asked Judy if there was anything she wanted followers of the Booze Beat to know about the upcoming fete.
She thought a second, then smiled. “Everyone who was a friend of Frank should come in and tell a story,” she said.

Cheers!