Finocchio's Club

A picture taken in 1958 of Finocchio's club in San Francisco, California

Finocchio's was a nightclub and bar in San Francisco. The history of the club started as a speakeasy called the 201 Club in 1929, located at 406 Stockton Street.[1] In 1933, with the repeal of prohibition, the club moved upstairs and started to offer female impersonation acts; after police raids in 1936 the club relocated to the larger 506 Broadway location.[1][2] Finocchio's night club opened June 15, 1936 and was located in San Francisco, California, above Enrico's Cafe at 506 Broadway Street in North Beach. The term "Finocchio" is Italian for fennel but is often a negative term for gay.[1]

History

Joe Finocchio, the creator of the club, had the idea of a nightclub with female impersonators in costumes when a patron jokingly went on the stage of his club and did a routine that the crowd enjoyed. The club was not advertised as a gay club; it was advertised as a place for entertainment and fun. Both gay and straight performers worked there. The acts included varying ethnic-inspired performances such as geisha-style performances, which may have helped encourage tourists and contributed to the diverse, often racially diverse crowds, which was unusual during this time of segregation.[1][2] In the days before gay liberation, female impersonator clubs provided semi-public social spaces for sexual minorities to congregate.[2]

Finocchio's was "off limits" during World War II, not due to the entertainment, but rather for selling liquor to the military outside the authorized hours of sales. On December 31, 1943 the ban was lifted after Joe Finocchio and other bar owners signed an agreement to limit liquor sales to military personnel between 5 pm and midnight.[3]

Finocchio's was a huge favorite with tourists from the 1930s to the early 1990s. Joe Finocchio died in January 1986.[4] Eve Finocchio, Joe's widow, decided to close the club on November 27, 1999 because of a significant increase in the monthly rent and dwindling audience attendance.[3]

Influence

Finocchio's often featured traditional drag, with performers in gowns singing or lip-synching to top 40 ballads.[5]

A 14-page program, "Finocchio's: America's Most Unusual Nightclub", was published by Zevin-Present circa 1947.

After the closure, another San Francisco establishment called Harry Denton's Starlight Room started a drag show in 2006 called "Sunday's a Drag" a female impersonation show modeled after Finocchio's. These shows are hosted by Donna Sachet.[5]

Notable acts

Artists who performed at Finocchio's included (in alphabetical order):

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "'Finocchio’s – a nightclub' on A Gender Variance Who's Who, Essays on trans, intersex, cis and other persons and topics from a trans perspective.......All human life is here, blog by Zagria". Retrieved Sep 15, 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 "'Finocchio's, a Short Retrospective a Historical Essay' on Digital Archives @ FoundSF by Susan Stryker". Retrieved Sep 15, 2013.
  3. 1 2 Hamlin, Jesse (November 4, 1999). "What a Drag: Finocchio's to Close, Cross-dressers have entertained at club for 63 years from SFGate.com". The San Francisco Chronicle.
  4. ↑ "Joseph Finocchio Dies; S.F. Transvestite Show from LA Times". Los Angeles Times. January 16, 1986.
  5. 1 2 Zinko, Carolyne (June 29, 2008). "Sunday's a Drag". SFGate. Hearst Communications, Inc. Retrieved September 19, 2014.
  6. 1 2 3 "TransVocalizers, David de Alba, Part II". Transgender Forum. Retrieved 2015-11-23.
  7. ↑ "Ray's Story, Nightclubs and Broadway". Don't Call Me Madam, the Life and Work of Ray Bourbon. Retrieved 2015-11-23.
  8. ↑ Brevard, Aleshia (2013). The Woman I Was Not Born To Be. Temple University Press. ISBN 1566398401.
  9. ↑ Gates III, William H. (1999-11-08). "What a Drag". The Journal Record.
  10. ↑ "Mr. Tex Hendrix at Finocchio's (1942)". The Virtual Museum of The City of San Francisco. Retrieved 2015-11-23.
  11. ↑ "David de Alba Interviews FI Brian Keith". Transgender Forum. 2014-11-24. Retrieved 2015-11-23.
  12. ↑ "I AM YOUR QUEEN: Holotta Tymes". SF Weekly. Retrieved 2015-11-23.
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