The great Jane Fonda was in San Francisco Thursday, appearing "in conversation" on stage at the Castro Theatre with Manny's owner and SFMTA Board Member Manny Yekutiel.

Following an appearance at Manny's that had to be cut short last fall due to illness — "I kept throwing up on him," Fonda says — Yekutiel arranged to rent out the whole Castro Theatre to do a much bigger event, kicking off Pride Month. The $18 tickets for the event sold out quickly, and the event included a little 80s-style drag performance/workout routine in Fonda's honor, with Yekutiel also donning a wig and jumpsuit.

The event was a fundraiser for the Jane Fonda Climate PAC.

Fonda and Yekutiel spoke briefly with KPIX's Reed Cowan Thursday night before the event in the Castro's upstairs lounge, discussing the intersection of the LGBTQ rights movement and the fight to stop — or slow down — climate change.

"Ever since the 70s and 80s, with Reagan, we've become a very individualized culture," Fonda said. "And it couldn't be a more unfortunate thing to happen right now because we are facing collective crises and we have to face them collectively."

Yekutiel said that Fonda "embodies" many fights in our culture, and at a time when "we are under assault, and our rights are not guaranteed... what better way to start Pride than to have a conversation with the one and only Jane Fonda."

"One thing I've learned," Fonda said, "If there was no homophobia, if there was no patriarchy, if there was no racism, there'd be no climate crisis. It's part of a mindset. So solving the climate crisis includes solving a mindset that says some people are more worthy than others, and some people are expendable because of the color of their skin or because of who they want to have sex with."

When asked about how she finds hope, Fonda says, "Hope is a muscle. Look for action and hope will come. If you go out and do something concrete to support the LGBTQ community, you'll be hopeful."

During the event, Fonda also talked about how she used to believe the fight for the climate and for civil rights was a sprint, and then she thought it was a marathon, but, "You know, it's a relay race. We'll be passing it on [for years to come]."

Also, she grabbed Manny's butt on the way offstage.

Meanwhile, Another Planet is having a couple of events this weekend in honor of the beginning of Pride Month — there's a "night of queer entertainment" tonight, and on Saturday Movies for Maniacs is hosting a Barbra Streisand double feature, showing What's Up Doc? (which was shot in San Francisco) and Yentl.

Frameline, the country's oldest LGBTQ film festival, kicks off on June 14 and runs for 10 days, with many screenings at the Castro.

Top image: Photo by Dana Jacobs/Getty Images