Daniel P. Overstreet 04/19/1948 - 05/01/2026

A Detroit Cass Corridor legend has moved on to his next adventure.

Written by Julie Flynn and Jimmy Doom

Danny Overstreet died peacefully in his home surrounded by loving friends and family due to complications of agent orange.

Overstreet, the heart, soul and guts of The Old Miami, passed away Friday, May 1st.

Born in Detroit in 1948, raised in Garden City, Michigan, the loud and proud decorated Vietnam Vet made an impact far beyond his beloved bar.

The “half Portuguese, half mutt” Overstreet, who was court-martialed for protesting the conflict in which he served once, faced 99 years or a firing squad, the latter of which he requested. The military judge dismissed the case as Danny had been awarded more medals than he had.

Overstreet ventured into the bar business after a stint leading one of Michigan’s Railroad Workers Unions.

He bought The Old Miami because “he didn’t fit in anywhere” according to his partner of 40+ years, Julie Flynn. “That’s sort of how the bar became a haven for our regulars and staff over the years.”

Always packed with a mix of veterans, punks, artists, Cass Corridor characters, it’s undeniable that Danny Overstreet’s bar was a Mecca of the disenfranchised.
He loathed the “Midtown” rebrand of the area, south of the Wayne State Campus.

“Why don’t you just put up tollbooths to get in and keep your undesirables out,” he said, tongue firmly in often laughing cheek.

Not content to simply serve the community quips and beers, for years he bought shoes, dictionaries and Halloween pumpkins for the students at neighboring Burton International School because “they deserved a goddamn chance.”

Overstreet’s best friend from boot camp, Joseph Bonner was KIA in Vietnam and 19 of the 21 of Overstreet’s Army recon unit lost their lives, so it’s unsurprising that he hated “ the draft dodging rich prick orange guy who claims to be President of the United States.”

There is no President of the Cass Corridor, though Danny Overstreet would be widely considered its Mayor. He was instrumental in restoring the neglected, often maligned and even feared community. His bar and his personality are gruff, gritty beacons bridging the Detroit of the Vietnam War era to the kinder, friendlier Detroit of today.

“He laughed until the end,” Julie says, and they will be laughing for a long time to come with memories of Danny Overstreet at 3930 Cass Avenue, Cass Corridor, Detroit.

Services will be held Saturday May 16, 2026 at James H. Cole Funeral Home, 2024 West Grand Blvd, Detroit, MI 48208 from 11am-3pm.

Celebration of Life will be at The Old Miami immediately following funeral home services.

Editor's Note: Longtime readers of Daily Detroit may know that I rarely post obituaries. However, as Mr. Overstreet is very dear to many of my friends; and his bar was a place where a person like myself who couldn't fit in; can fit in — I am honored to share his memory here, as written by those who knew him best.