The Cotton Club
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
Images
Cab Calloway and dancers at The Cotton Club in 1937
1937 New Years' Eve Party
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
The original Cotton Club was opened in 1923 in Harlem, New York on 142nd Street and Lenox Ave. Being in Harlem popular opinion would assume that this would be primarily a club used by African Americans, however this was an exclusive club for whites only. It was opened by Owney Madden who was a prominent gangster during the prohibition period that was also nicknamed “The Killer.” Madden originally bought the ‘Club Deluxe’ from Jack Johnson, who was the former heavyweight boxing champion at the time. After renovations, Madden renamed the club ‘The Cotton Club’ and used it to sell his beer illegally during the prohibition.
The Cotton Club when it first opened to the public was themed as a “plantation environment” which included themed decorations and mostly African American staff as the “plantation slaves.” Music that was played was even exotic and jungle-like at times. This club was geared towards and only allowed the rich, white people of New York City.
Many extremely famous jazz musicians performed at the Cotton Club during its prime years. Duke Ellington’s orchestra played here for over four years from 1927 to 1931. Other famous musicians including Louis Armstrong, Ethel Waters, and the Nicholas Brothers played here frequently. The Cotton Club gained a national reputation due to the radio broadcasts of various performing artists at the club.
In 1935, The Cotton Club was forced to shut down due to the lack of customers. Starting in 1935, race riots in Harlem began to escalate and the number of white customers began to decline since it was unsafe for white people in this part of Harlem. The Cotton Club moved and reopened at Broadway and 48th Street in 1936 and thrived until 1940 when it again closed down.
The Cotton Club was closed and stood as merely a legend until a movie filmed in 1984 named “The Cotton Club”, starring Nicolas Cage, was released. This movie is a crime-based, love story movie that brings to life Harlem Jazz at The Cotton Club. The movie was nominated for several Golden Globe and Oscar awards.
Today, the Cotton Club has rich history regarding the musicians that became famous by performing there. The Cotton Club is now currently located in a different location that the previous locations of the venue, but it carries with it a proud reputation of jazz music. Various types of events are held there weekly and monthly such as Swing Dance Night, Dinner & Jazz sessions, and Gospel Brunch. The Cotton Club is open to the public and today is a restaurant and jazz music stage.