Swinging Chinatown: A History of Chinese Nightclubs

Going down Stockton Street at 10pm on a weekday, you're greeted with closed businesses and Yuet Lee tempting you for a late meal. Only the images and stories of clubs like the Chinese Skyroom, the Shangri-La, and the Forbidden City live on in Swinging Chinatown.

Swinging Chinatown: A History of Chinese Nightclubs features vintage photographs, costumes and memorabilia of the exciting and glamorous days of the Chinese American nightclub scene. The exhibit will feature over 100 vintage photographs, dancer Ellen Chin's costumes and gold dancing shoes, Tony Wing's tap shoes, and menus, napkins and other mementos from several famous nightclubs. Immerse yourself in a bygone era, when celebrities and visitors of all stripes were entertained by Larry Ching, "the Chinese Frank Sinatra;" Noel Toy Young, "the Chinese Sally Rand;" and Paul Wing, the "Chinese Fred Astaire."

A collaboration with the Chinese Historical Society of American and the San Francisco Museum and Historical Society. Swinging Chinatown is co-curated by SFMHS associate curator Kristin Morris and historian Trina Robbins, author of Forbidden City: The Golden Age of Chinese Nightclubs.