For today's Postcard Friendship Friday may I present the fabulous Finocchio's, another in the series of long time, but now defunct San Francisco institutions.
Finnochio's was in North Beach, opening in the 1930s and lasting until November 1999. It became a famous tourist spot, and you would see crowds of people (clearly tourists and not San Franciscans) disembark from buses and wait patiently in line for the show. I went to the show a couple of times, at least once with my parents (I think), as my Dad always remembered going there in the 50s and wanted to go again.
As cross dressing became more common, the crowds dwindled, and the club finally had to close down. According to one website, Beat poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti's comment upon hearing of the club's closure was "What a drag."
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What a drag! I'm cracking up here! Happy PFF:)
ReplyDeleteI remember Carol Doda too. I know she's gone, but is her likeness still displayed with the red lights?
ReplyDeleteI have a postcard from that place too, but it is a different one. I wonder how many they had.
ReplyDeleteWhat a drag...that's so funny.
ReplyDeleteToo bad it had to close!
What a shame that somewhere as obviously well-known should have to close like that.
ReplyDeleteI thought of The Birdcage immediately. ...what a drag....that might be the funniest pun I've ever heard.
ReplyDeleteChristine - Carol Doda's likeness is no longer displayed at the corner of Broadway & Columbus - (that's the intersection everyone raced to every time the 49ers won the super bowl, or the championship or wherever which hasn't happened in a while BTW). Instead, there's a big neon sign of a gangster-looking type guy, and the place is called "Big Al's".
ReplyDeleteFantastic blog! This is such a fun postcard. :)
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