Forbidden City (nightclub)

Forbidden City
The former space of the Forbidden City nightclub is the upstairs area (painted dark grey).
Forbidden City is located in San Francisco
Forbidden City
Forbidden City
Location within San Francisco
Forbidden City is located in San Francisco Bay Area
Forbidden City
Forbidden City
Forbidden City (San Francisco Bay Area)
Full nameCharlie Low's Forbidden City
Address363 Sutter St
San Francisco
Coordinates37°47′21″N 122°24′23″W / 37.7893°N 122.4063°W / 37.7893; -122.4063
OwnerCharlie Low (1938–62)
Coby Yee (1962–70)
Genre(s)nightclub and cabaret featuring Asian American performers
Capacity300
Opened22 December 1938 (1938-12-22)
Closed1970 (1970)

Forbidden City was a Chinese nightclub and cabaret in San Francisco, which was in business from 1938 to 1970,[1] and operated on the second floor of 363 Sutter Street,[a] between Chinatown and Union Square.[3]

Although Forbidden City was not the first Chinese American nightclub,[4] it was the most famous nightlife venue to feature Asian American singers, dancers, chorus lines, magicians, strippers, and musicians,[5] and was entirely managed and staffed by Asian Americans. It was popular with military personnel who were transiting through San Francisco during World War II, as well as Hollywood celebrities, and became the most well-known "Chop Suey Circuit"[4] nightclub during the 40s and 50s.[b][c]

Forbidden City also became a platform for Asian American performers who were denied opportunities through racial discrimination. Asian American performers were able to prove their talent regardless of their racial identity, and some even launched their career after the closure of Forbidden City.[30]

In 1946, the club inspired Tom Ball, a Caucasian stage producer, to open the short-lived "China Doll" nightclub, the first with Asian American staff and performers in New York City.[31][d]

Forbidden City inspired the novel The Flower Drum Song (1957), which became a musical (1958) and film (1961) of the same title. In 1989, the club was profiled in the documentary, Forbidden City U.S.A., by Arthur Dong.

  1. ^ a b c "'Forbidden City' documents jumpin' Chinatown cabaret scene". The San Francisco Examiner. 2014-05-29. Retrieved 2020-05-13.
  2. ^ "Sutter Cinema: 369 Sutter Street, San Francisco, CA 94108". Cinema Treasures. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Ronald Reagan at Charlie Low's Forbidden City". The Virtual Museum of the City of San Francisco. Retrieved 2007-10-12.
  4. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference Dong was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference theatre was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ a b Hix, Lisa (4 September 2020). "In remembrance of dancer Coby Yee: A daring star of S.F. Chinatown's most glamorous era". Local News Matters. Bay City News Foundation.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Chew, Dan (February 2014). "THE HIDDEN NIGHTCLUBS OF CHINATOWN". West Side Observer. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference messynessychic was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ a b Kamiya, Gary (January 9, 2015). "Forbidden City ushered in golden age of Chinatown nightclubs". SF Gate. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  10. ^ a b Zigoris, Julie (8 February 2023). "A 'Chinese Sinatra' and the World's Rudest Waiter: Reinventing the Golden Era of One of SF's Oldest Neighborhoods". The San Francisco Standard. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference VIU-2016 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference ReelSF-2012 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ "Swinging Chinatown: The Golden Age of Chinese Nightclubs in San Francisco Chinatown - the largest Chinatown outside of Asia". Archived from the original on 2010-02-09.
  14. ^ Zhang, Weiming (24 October 2019). "The Kubla Khan at the Gateway of San Francisco Chinatown". AsAm News.
  15. ^ Chong, Raymond Douglas. "Kubla Khan: A Chinatown Gateway". Chinese Food in the USA. Vol. 2012, no. 19. pp. 15–17.
  16. ^ Bicchieri, Paolo (November 2, 2022). "This Chinatown Dive Bar Is Famous for Its Mai Tai. That's Why It Trademarked the Secret Recipe". Eater San Francisco. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  17. ^ a b c d Cite error: The named reference gastronomica-Spiller was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  18. ^ "They see no smoke; they say there's not fire (advertisement)". Museum of the City of San Francisco. May 6, 1934. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  19. ^ a b c d e f g Hemp, Dick (June 19–20, 1949). "Fong Wan, Chinese Herbalist". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 10 October 2024 – via Museum of the City of San Francisco.
  20. ^ "New Shanghai Terrace Bowl, Oakland 1940s". Vintage Menu Art. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  21. ^ "New Shanghai Terrace Bowl nightclub, Oakland 1940s photo cover". flickr.com. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  22. ^ "New Shanghai Terrace Bowl nightclub, Oakland 1940s photo". flickr.com. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  23. ^ "June Melendy at the NSCTB 1942". Oakland Tribune. September 11, 1942. Retrieved 10 October 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. ^ "Have You Heard the Genuine Wurlitzer Pipe Organ Played Every Night at the New Shanghai Terrace Bowl?". Oakland Tribune. September 26, 1940. Retrieved 10 October 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. ^ "Club Shanghai, The Only Night Club in Chinatown, 453 Grant Ave". Curt Teich Postcard Archives Digital Collection. Newberry Library, Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Illinois Digital Collections. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  26. ^ "Group of people at the Shanghai nightclub". San Francisco Historical Photograph Collection, San Francisco Public Library. November 10, 1949. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  27. ^ "Club Shanghai, The Only Night Club in Chinatown, 453 Grant Ave". CardCow.com. Curt Teich & Co. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  28. ^ "Lana Wong, China's most beautiful girl, Fong Wan's Club Shanghai". San Francisco Historical Photograph Collection, San Francisco Public Library. March 2, 1951. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  29. ^ "Forbidden City, USA: Chinese American Nightclubs, 1936-1970: A new exhibition curated by Arthur Dong" (PDF). San Francisco Public Library. April–July 2014. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  30. ^ Cite error: The named reference usher was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  31. ^ a b "Chop Suey Circuit & China Doll Nightclub". Museum of Chinese in America. Retrieved 2022-12-05.
  32. ^ "In Short – New York:" (PDF). The Billboard. July 13, 1946. p. 38. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  33. ^ "Experience New York City's Fabled Mid-Century Nightclubs in an Interactive, COVID-19-Era, Student-Designed Exhibit | Open Culture". Open Culture. April 24, 2020.
  34. ^ Bence, Bill (August 20, 2009). "The China Doll". Archived from the original on 2020-04-26.
  35. ^ Salisbury, Katie Gee (12 September 2022). "The China Doll Brigade Sets Sail". Half-Caste Woman. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  36. ^ "Broadway". New York Daily News. 18 September 1946.
  37. ^ "In Olde New York!". Village Views. November 1946. p. 3. The entire personnel is Chinese—even to the entertainment. The Floor Show is entitled "Slant Eyed Scandals".
  38. ^ http://archive.org/download/variety162-1946-05/variety162-1946-05.pdf [bare URL PDF]


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