Black and tan clubs
The black populations of the large Northern cities in which these clubs arose (e.g. Cincinnati, Manhattan, San Francisco, Seattle) consisted of immigrants, recently arrived from rural areas (especially, from the South[3]).
They provided opportunities for local talent and hosted nationally acclaimed jazz musicians, sometimes launching their careers (e.g. Ethel Waters, Jelly Roll Morton,[5] Louis Armstrong and Cab Calloway[6]).
The clubs were viewed as socially and sexually disreputable by both blacks and whites in the wider society of the time.
[8][7] Informed by the sensationalist coverage in the printed press, whites feared that the clubs encouraged crime, racial impurity and moral corruption.
It was one of the first truly opulent buildings to cater for African Americans and boasted features such as electric fans to cool the interior (some of the first in the city).
Rare exceptions to the whites-only rule were made for black celebrities such as Ethel Waters and Bill Robinson.
[14] It reproduced the racist imagery of the era, often depicting black people as savages in exotic jungles or as "darkies" in the plantation South.
A 1938 menu included this imagery, with illustrations done by Julian Harrison, showing naked black men and women dancing around a drum in the jungle.
[15] The race riots of Harlem in 1935 forced the Cotton Club to close until late 1936 when it reopened at Broadway and 48th Street.
During Ed Small's ownership of the club, he organized many gala charity events, with the proceeds donated to help the needy of the Harlem community.
Josephson helped launch the careers of Ruth Brown, Lena Horne, Billie Holiday,dancer Pearl Primus, Hazel Scott, Pete Johnson, Albert Ammons, Big Joe Turner, and popularized gospel groups such as the Dixie Hummingbirds and the Golden Gate Quartet among white audiences.
[19][full citation needed] Hazel Scott was highly successful at this venue and gained national recognition there.
The Wein Bar, located in Cincinnati, Ohio was founded in 1934 by Joseph Goldhagen, who was active in the commercial production of illegal alcohol until the Prohibition period ended.
From the early years, it was a meeting place for planning civil rights activism, organizing travel outside the region for protests events, and was an ongoing fund raising location for the NAACP.
[22] Purcell's So Different Cafe at 520 Pacific Street in San Francisco was part of the Terrific Street-entertainment district, famed for its music and dance, and was home to ragtime and jazz bands.
[24] Spider Kelly, born James Curtin, was a lightweight boxer and trainer who immigrated to San Francisco from Ireland while an adolescent.
[25] Formerly the Seattle Saloon at 574 Pacific Street in San Francisco the property was bought by "Spider" Kelly in 1919 and reopened specifically as a black and tan club.
By the onset of the Second World War the club was one of the most popular in the city, welcoming whites and Asians as well as its target clientele.
Early performers in the club included Duke Ellington, Eubie Blake, Louis Jordan and Lena Horne.
