The nonprofit Tacky Tourist Clubs of America was founded in Seattle in the early 1980s, and incorporated in 1988. The organization sponsored annual parties and events to raise money for other nonprofits, mostly those benefiting the gay and lesbian community. Three popular annual events were the Queen City Cruise, an "unofficial Seafair" event on Elliott Bay and beloved by many; The Prom You Never Went To, another popular event billed as a "madcap costume party for all lifestyles"; and Things That Go Bump in the Night, also known as "The Bump," a Halloween costume extravaganza.

"The Prom You Never Went To" was first held in 1983 and became an institution in the local gay and lesbian community. The annual party at "Lavender Valley High School, Home of the Fighting Poodles," gave queer people an opportunity to take the dates they really wanted to their high-school proms and raised money for gay and lesbian causes. This poster advertising the 1984 party features a faux high school yearbook style photographs and announces the musical entertainment for the evening, D. J. Ronnie Peterson and local band Cool Ray and the Shades. Proceeds from the event benefited the Chemical Dependency Program, King County Rape Relief, Gay/Lesbian Youth Association, J.C. Scholarship Fund, Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, Seattle Gay Athletic Association, and Tacky Tourist Clubs of America.

Caption information source: "It's the Last Dance," The Seattle Times, April 28, 1997, p. F1.