The Secrets of the... Stork Club
Exploring the dark secrets and the lasting impact of some of Old Hollywood's hangouts that marked an era
The Golden Age of cinema, beloved by cinephiles for its unmatched glamour and allure, also witnessed the rise of iconic establishments frequented by Hollywood's elite. Mentioned in countless films, these venues, namely nightclubs, restaurants or cafés, also became extremely famous and popular, not only for the elite but for the general public as well. Sought-after personalities and public figures of the moment paraded through their tables, capturing media and audiences attention. Once bustling with activity, they seem to have since faded into history. Through a series of posts, maybe we can breathe some life to these bygone “hot spots” that reflected the social landscape and political atmosphere of its era.
Let's now place ourselves for a moment in the East Coast of the US, in New York City, right in the heart of Manhattan, at the end of the roaring twenties. That’s where we’ll find our first stop of this series, the legendary Stork Club. Because, like the song would say, if you're blue and you don't know where to go to, why don't you go where fashion sits?
That’s exactly where we are headed. Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a lively night...
Sophisticated, cosmopolitan, and run by the charismatic and former felon Sherman Billingsley, this nightclub became the pivotal center of the rich and famous in New York, but it might as well have been at the time, the center of the universe. Although the origin of its name still remains a mystery, the Hollywood and Broadway set and many influential personalities frequented the club between the 1930s, 40s, and 50s. If one truly desired to be seen in those days, there was no better place to do so. Nowadays, it would be practically impossible to find, a venue comparable to the Stork Club. None where every night, one can spot numerous celebrities, media moguls or law-enforcement top chiefs. None with unending international waiting lists, filled with names shining as brightly as the multitude of flashes surrounding them.
Located on 53rd Street, east of Fifth Avenue, the club began its journey in 1929 as a speakeasy. The Prohibition period, which was in effect between 1920 and 1933, was the main cause of this incredible proliferation of exclusive and secretive nightlife venues. The impossibility of acquiring drinks, particularly for those who hosted lavish parties at home but also in general, led to the relocation of such events to venues where alcohol was served. Clandestinely, Billingsley opened his establishment in 1929 and placed it on 58th Street. Upon discovery of his activities, he was forced to close his club in 1931. A couple of years later, once the prohibition was abolished, he relocated and reopened his legendary venue. Throughout its intense existence –which lasted until 1965, just a year before the building was finally demolished, it inhabited a pulsating and turbulent era that witnessed great changes in the American society such as the Great Depression, World War II, or the fight for civil rights.
The Secret of Its Success
The whirlwind and turmoil of those years matched the frenzy and excitement buzzing within the walls of the Stork Club. Among its regular clientele were New York’s high society, high-profile athletes, Hollywood and Broadway biggest names, famous society columnists, and even heads of state. Billingsley was able to turn a questionable business venture, into a beacon of luxury and glamour, projecting beyond its doors, a dream of relevance and importance. Many controversies surrounded the Stork Club, from its fundings, rubbing elbows with gangsters, to the treatment of its employees and some of its constituency. Despite that and more, for several decades it attracted money and power. The allure of belonging to a social elite that propelled individuals to the heights of fame and fortune was just one of the factors contributing to the success of this extravagant nightclub, albeit not the sole one.
Among the main reasons for its rise as the best nightclub in the world were its ultra-exclusive entrance and its treatment, or rather, its opulent pampering of its most special clients. Part of this pampering involved showering them with lavish gifts. The abundance of these items included the finest French champagne, captivating perfumes, powder compacts with diamonds and rubies, and so on, to complete a list of products that cost its owner more than one hundred thousand dollars a year. In addition to such spectacular gifts, the Stork Club had a private room called the Cub Room. A VIP lounge, guarded and served by waiters considered as an imperial service, whose captain was named Saint Peter, in honor of the saint who guards the gates of Heaven. A ‘divine’ marketing strategy, to say the least.
One of the most popular of these Saint Peters was John "Jack" Spooner, known in those times as 'America's most famous bartender'. This legendary professional knew, like no other, how to earn the respect and affection of the celebrities he served. From his beginnings as a bartender at the famous Waldorf, he was associated with serving the most notable personalities in New York. His inclusion in the personal paradise of the Stork Club was a success, both for Jack and for the distinguished venue. The more satisfied, indulged and away from prying eyes, all these important people were, the more they chose the Stork Club as their center of operations, if you know what I mean.
An Exceptional Guest
The incisive personality of journalist Walter Winchell was another fundamental asset for the tremendous notoriety and influence that this venue achieved. With a privileged view from table 50, and through his renowned weekly society column in the New York Daily Mirror, owned by William Randolph Hearst, his words dictated the rise or fall of any celebrity who appeared in such a sublime establishment. If the Saint Peters were the guardians of this celestial realm, Winchell was its all-mighty deity. Once the most feared and highest-paid journalist in America, Walter gave such publicity through a column followed by around 50 million Americans, that it would be fair to say that a large part of the Stork Club's impact can be attributed to his viperous prose.
Furthermore, his “goose quill dipped in venom” created a new and explosive language to describe the personalities that paraded through the Stork Club. Short phrases or the invention of catchy insults like 'presstitute' or 'chicagorilla' were his trademark and the object of imitation of every sensationalist publication. Entertainment gossip became a polarized and polarizing practice that enabled celebrity worship and that has certainly impacted the current view or aversion to it. In alignment with sharp-tongued columnists like Louella Parsons, the spread of every rumor, scandal, or compromising situation increased their power and media influence, which they exerted with sharp acrimony. The public voraciously craved scandals, and Winchell's relentless column provided the ideal fodder –sometimes overly spicy, yet always tantalizing. His explosive personality was transferred to the big screen through characters like J. J. Hunsecker, portrayed by Burt Lancaster in Sweet Smell of Success (1957), or the more refined and fascinating Waldo Lidecker, by the grace of Clifton Webb, in Laura (1944).
The Art of Building an Exclusive Brand
Among the illustrious personalities who graced its halls were, among others, comedians Milton Berle and Lucille Ball; families with the influence of the Kennedys, great actors such as Marlene Dietrich, Elizabeth Taylor, John Garfield, Humphrey Bogart or Marilyn Monroe, directors of the caliber of Orson Welles, Alfred Hitchcock, Vincente Minnelli, or John Huston. A never-ending list that comprised a dazzling array of celebrities and personalities. For all of them, Sherman Billingsley became the perfect host. Charismatic and accommodating, he was an overly-meticulous master of ceremonies. His skills relied on an intricate signaling system in collaboration with his waitstaff that served to alert his staff about very specific and common order or to resolve situations typical of any extravagant night at the Stork Club.
A myriad of resources and strategies that should be studied on any business marketing class. Their famous logo with the stork was displayed on a multitude of objects, especially on their famous black-and-white ashtray, as a kind of early merchandising. Some of these pieces are now exceptional collectible items. As mentioned earlier, exclusive gifts, many of which were custom-made for the Stork Club or obtained for exclusive distribution. The most significant example of the latter was the discontinued French perfume Sortilège by Le Galion. Billingsley formed a group of investors to ensure that this fragrance could only be obtained at his establishment.
All of this served to create significant brand awareness within the society of the time, and while it may seem frivolous, its impact was colossal. Thanks to this ostentatious philanthropy, the glamour of its clientele, its restrictive entrance policy, and the constant sensational buzz from Walter Winchell, the Stork Club became a lifestyle dream that everyone aspired to emulate. The press and the government recognized its significance in the collective imagination, as its name became part of the familiar vocabulary of the era, and they didn't hesitate to leverage it to engage the masses, particularly during World War II. During this time, three bombers were christened with the name of the club, and Billingsley commissioned the famous jeweler Tiffany & Co. to produce silver badges with its logo to be worn by the members of its crew.
In addition to its own television program, aptly named The Stork Club, in which Billingsley himself approached the most illustrious tables and interviewed his guests; cinema also reflected the significance of this establishment in its heyday. Among some of the most well-known examples, All About Eve (1950) stands out. In one capital sequence, its main characters converse in the famous Cub Room. Equally, Alfred Hitchcock with his film based on true events, The Wrong Man (1956), shot several scenes at the Stork Club where Henry Fonda plays a bassist. The venue is also featured in films like Daisy Kenyon (1947), Executive Suite (1954), Artists and Models (1955), and My Favorite Year (1982). Let’s not forget also that, in the height of the establishment’s popularity, there was even a film titled The Stork Club (1945). Produced by Paramount Pictures, reportedly Billingsley received over a million dollars in today's currency, for the rights to use the club's name for the film.
The Inevitable Decline
In 1951, a notable snub to the artist Josephine Baker, who accused the Stork Club and Walter Winchell of racism, produced the first tear in the, until then, pristine image of the venue. Legend has it that the performer, after being reluctantly invited, waited for over an hour to be served, only to leave in a fury escorted by actress Grace Kelly, a regular at the club. This event rightly sparked endless protests, lawsuits and fueled discredit towards Billingsley and Winchell whose heated reaction towards Baker, further intensified his demise, turning his own audience against him.
By the mid-1950s, the West Coast of the United States was undergoing its long-awaited surge as a tourist destination. Hollywood, San Francisco, or Las Vegas, were competing with an East Coast that seemed to be in a haze of other times. In 1956, for the first time, the Stork Club lost money. Unions started to organize to advocate for the workers at the venue, prompting a reaction from Billingsley, who, much like Walter Winchell, viewed these actions as underlying communism exaltation, a sentiment Senator McCarthy denounced and pursued. All these events marked the end of an era, the end of the Stork Club.
After being demolished in 1966, the establishment was replaced by a small park called Paley Park, in honor of William S. Paley, director of the CBS television network who funded its construction. An open space that, paradoxically, bears no resemblance to the exclusive fortress that the legendary venue represented. Without plaques, without emblems; the sparkle of the stars who frequented it, or the grandeur of its lavish gifts, only lives on in the memories of those who participated in such experiences.
It is undeniable that all its ostentatious liturgy and its exuberant legend still produce, even today, a dangerous fascination. An attraction that I hope contributes to a better appreciation of an era of cinema full of anecdotes, historical events, mishaps, harsh realities and experiences that have become also its emblem. It is entirely impossible to capture some of its glory and also its decline without entering and being seduced by some these cinematic venues.
From now on, before trespassing any new establishment, remember, glamour, toujours glamour.
🎬 If you enjoyed this bit of history of emblematic hangouts of Hollywood’s golden days. Would you also like to know about other place? Let me know in the comments, I would love to know because I intend for this to be a series!
Did you know about the Stork Club and some of its anecdotes? What has surprised you the most?
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Wishing everyone a great Spring!
Cheers,
Miriam
This was a fabulous read, Miriam, thanks a million for all the research and facts. I love the Stork Club Cocktail Book and have tried quite a few of the tipples within. I would love to know more about Sardi’s and The Brown Derby in Hollywood - they might be fun ones to write about! 💋
Thank you, Jenny! So glad to hear that. The cocktail book must be so much fun. I would love to investigate about those two Hollywood spots!