Club 82, also known as the 82 Club, was a

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

Manhattan, New York City Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the List of co ...

that employed

female impersonator A drag queen is a person, usually male, who uses drag clothing and makeup to imitate and often exaggerate female gender signifiers and gender roles for entertainment purposes. Historically, drag queens have usually been gay men, and part of ...

s as entertainers. The nightclub had a second life as a music venue, but was eventually closed.

History

Predecessors

The 181 Club was a predecessor to Club 82, and was named for its address at 181 Second Avenue. The club operated from 1945 to 1953, featuring male impersonators as waitstaff, and female impersonators as entertainers. The 181 Club lost its

liquor license A liquor license (or liquor licence in most forms of Commonwealth English) is a governmentally issued permit to sell, manufacture, store, or otherwise use alcoholic beverages. Canada In Canada, liquor licences are issued by the legal authority ...

after being labelled a "hangout for perverts of both sexes".

Founding

Club 82 was connected to the

Genovese crime family The Genovese crime family, () also sometimes referred to as the Westside, is an Italian-American Mafia crime family and one of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City and New Jersey as part of the American M ...

and the Costello

crime syndicate Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...

. While

mobster A gangster is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Most gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from ''mob'' and the suffix '' -ster''. Gangs provide a level of organization and ...

Vito Genovese Vito Genovese (; November 21, 1897 – February 14, 1969) was an Italian-born American mobster who mainly operated in the United States. Genovese rose to power during Prohibition as an enforcer in the American Mafia. A long-time associate and ch ...

was in hiding abroad, his wife

Anna Genovese Anna Genovese (formerly Vernotico, ''née'' Giovaninna Petillo; 28 October 1905 – January 1982) was an Italian-American businesswoman in the Italian mob and the second wife of mobster Vito Genovese of the Genovese crime family and the Costello ...

became hostess of Club 82. The club's tagline was "Who's No Lady," and its drag revues featured both male and female impersonators. Kitt Russell, dubbed "America's top femme mimic" by

Walter Winchell Walter Winchell (April 7, 1897 – February 20, 1972) was a syndicated American newspaper gossip columnist and radio news commentator. Originally a vaudeville performer, Winchell began his newspaper career as a Broadway reporter, critic and co ...

, hosted many of the shows, and countless acts performed in them, such as female impersonators Sonne Teal, Kim Christy, and Mel Michaels. Revues were long and elaborate, replete with sets and costumes, and with titles like ''Sincapades of 1954'', ''A Vacation in Color'', ''Fun-Fair for '57'', and ''Time Out for Fun''.

Investigation

In 1953, Club 82 came under police investigation with a potential loss of its liquor license, allegedly orchestrated by vindictive Vito to spite Anna. In testifying against her own clubs, Anna stated that the Club 82 was gang-owned. Her testimony ostensibly served to shift the blame from solely herself to her husband Vito's associates who had presided over, and allegedly monitored her activities running the club, while Vito was in exile in Italy. The State Liquor Authority had previously revoked Club 82's liquor license on account of "

disorderly conduct Disorderly conduct is a crime in most jurisdictions in the United States, the People's Republic of China, and Taiwan. Typically, "disorderly conduct" makes it a crime to be drunk in public, to " disturb the peace", or to loiter in certain are ...

," which was code at the time for infractions involving things like serving alcohol to gay people, or people suspected of being gay.

Culture

Although the entertainers were mostly gay, Club 82 catered primarily to heterosexuals. Entertainers were reportedly overworked, and the club was frequented by wealthy celebrities:

References

{{Reflist

External links

New York Historical Society: Welcome to 82 Club: The Naughty Story of a Legendary New York Drag Institution

NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project: Club 82
Culture of Manhattan Defunct LGBT drinking establishments in New York City Defunct nightclubs History of Manhattan