Background
- Ken Steiner's early and exhaustive research into Ellington's time at the Hollywood and its successor, Club Kentucky, is presented in his paper Wild Throng Dances Madly in Cellar Club, Duke Ellington and the Washingtonians, 1923-27, delivered at the 2008 International Duke Ellington Study Group conference in London.
- Dancer, choreographer, stage director, and producer Leonard Harper pioneered the revue type of musical floor show, producing some 2,000 shows between 1920 and 1943. The Pittsburgh Courier profiled him in its 1927-01-13 edition.
- Ellington and his wife Edna rented a room in Harper's house in New York and Duke was Harper's rehearsal pianist at Connie's Inn before the Hollywood Café opened. Wild Throng quotes Ellington:
In September, 1923, we landed a job through Leonard Harper, at the Hollywood...
- After leaving Club Kentucky when it reverted to a white acts policy, Harper presented his Club Kentucky Revue in New York, Baltimore, Washington and Newark theatres in the spring and summer of 1927. Ellington and the Washingtonians' activity during those months is not well documented but they do not appear to have been involved with Harper's show after leaving the club.
Wild Throng says the Hollywood Cabaret was first mentioned in the press in August 1923, after club owner Leo Bernstein obtained a five-year lease for the former premises of Palais de Dance at 49th and Broadway (203 West 49th St.). The Washingtonians, initially led by Elmer Snowden, began there in September 1923, continued when Ellington became leader, and remained until a fire closed the club in April 1924. Returning in June, The Washingtonians stayed until another fire in December. When it reopened in February 1925 as Club Kentucky, the Washingtonians again became the house orchestra until October, when they left to work elsewhere. Back again in November, they left again in March 1926 when the club was closed for six months. Returning from September 1926 until March, 1927, they left when Club Kentucky replaced Harper's revue with a white act and white orchestra. The club itself closed in August 1927, reopening that fall as Club Monterey.- While some Hollywood Cabaret / Club Kentucky revues were produced by others, during the Washingtonians' tenures Harper's included:
After Club Kentucky replaced Harper and Ellington
- When the Kentucky Club switched to white acts in mid-March 1927, Harper took his "Club Kentucky Revue" to theatres in New York, Baltimore, Washington and Newark. It isn't clear if this Club Kentucky Revue was a new production or a renamed version of Chocolate Babies. It was rewritten and billed as a second edition in July.
- Wild Throng suggests Harper's last show at Club Kentucky closed between March 14 and March 20, supported by
- Morning Telegraph 1927-03-15 p.5:
Colored Show May Leave
The colored revue...may make its last appearnce there this week, according to Leo Bernstein, proprietor. If Harper's revue leaves, Bernstein will again install his former custom of having white entertainers in his club... - Morning Telegraph 1927-03-15 s.3 p.10:
Colored vs. White Shows
That white shows are cheaper and more acceptable to night club patrons is the decision of ...the Seven Eleven club...Somewhat in accord with this idea is Leo Bernstein, proprietor of the Kentucky Club, who changed to a colored show about a month ago, but declares himself almost ready to return to the white performers - or let them return to him... - Morning Telegraph 1927-03-23 p.5
Among the events scheduled for tonight are the reopening of ... Kentucky Club, with a new white show. The Kentucky has been closed for a number of days, while the new show was in rehearsal... - Morning Telegraph 1927-03-27 s.3 p.11
Unofficial Opening at Kentucky Club
After three and a half years, Duke Ellington and the Washingtonians' stand at the Hollywood/Club Kentucky ended. Will Osborne's Royal Canadians became the new house band.
- Ellington's residency at the club may have continued after the revue left, but in any event, his orchestra was replaced by the white Will Osborne's Royal Canadians, which opened March 23 after the club was closed for a few days of rehearsals.
- The Club Kentucky Revue played
- April 11 to 17 Lafayette Theatre, New York. "The Stars Where They Are" in The Enterprise, 1927-04-01 said
Leonard Harper has closed his Club Kentucky Revue and will play a few dates in vaudeville, opening at the Lafayette Theatre, April 4, New York City. The New York Age 1927-04-02 said the revue would open at the Lafayette next week. On 1927-04-09 that paper said it would begin Monday (date truncated); this would seem to mean April 11. On 1927-04-16, it said Leonard Harper is presenting this week his famous Club Kentucky Revue at the Lafayette Theatre and the same page advertised a different revue opening at the Lafayette April 18. In The Pittsburgh Courier 1927-04-23, columnist Floyd J. Calvin wrote he witnessed the Club Kentucky Review on "Monday afternoon before the raid Thursday" and saw it again Thursday night. That raid was April 15.
- Orpheum Theatre, Newark - probably one week from April 18 to 24
- The Royal, Baltimore - April 25 to May 1 - reviewed in The Afro-American 1927-04-30. The New York Age instead said it was playing the Regent Theatre in Baltimore.
- Howard Theatre, Washington D.C. one week beginning May 2, reported in The Washington Tribune 1927-06-06 and 1927-06-10.
- Lincoln Theatre, New York - May 28, An earlier scheduled opening was reportedly prevented by a clause in the contract held by the Kentucky Club, but the show eventually did open
after having straightened out difficulties of last week.
- Connie's Inn, New York - early part of June
- Lincoln Theatre, New York - June 11 for the entire week
- Orpheum Theatre, Newark - end of June, beginning of July
- Howard Theatre, Washington D.C. all-new second edition opened July 11.
- Royal Theatre, Baltimore - all-new second edition, July 18 to 24
- The New York Age 1927-07-30 said Harper decided to close his road show for the summer and would instead put on shows at the Lafayette until the season opened.
- The Afro-American's review of the show at the Royal Theatre says, in part:
'...The few weaknesses of the revue appear in an oriental scene where several of the chorus girls add some movements to their dances which should be left out for decency's sake. The nine dancing maids have enough grace and ability to make the grade without any smut...The music by the Royal orchestra is supplemented by four musicians of the "Kentucky Club" troupe...'
- The Afro-American 1927-04-30 reported
The music by the Royal orchestra is supplemented by four musicians of the "Kentucky Club" troupe... but there is no indication these were Ellington men. To the contrary, the 1927-05-07 edition of the same paper says Rev. Stewart of New York City, spent last week in the city [Baltimore]. Mr. Stewart is a cornetist of note, now a member of Leonard Harper's 'Kentucky Club Revue' which was playing at the Royal Theater last week. He was formerly with Fletcher Henderson's Orchestra of New York.
- Steven Lasker:
According to Walter C. Allen (Hendersonia, p. 571), the only cornetist named Stewart who played with Fletcher Henderson's orch. was Rex Stewart. His first tenure with the band lasted from "May-late Oct/26 but felt insecure in that company."
I've never heard of a cornetist named "Rev. Stewart."
Conclusion
These sources produce no evidence that Ellington and his orchestra were involved with Harper's "Club Kentucky Revue" after they both left the Club Kentucky cabaret in March, 1927.
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References
- Ken Steiner,
Wild Throng Dances Madly in Cellar Club
A Compilation form the Contemporary Press and Duke Ellington Itinerary
Ellington 2008 London
- The New York Age, New York, N.Y.
- The Afro-American, Baltimore, Md.
- The Pittsburgh Courier, Pittsburgh, Penn.
- The Enterprise, Seattle, Wash.
- Washington Tribune, Washington, D.C.
- Emails, Lasker-Steiner-Palmquist
The Raid
- At 5:15 p.m. April 14, police, aided by New York's "Clean Stage Jury," raided the Lafayette and arrested its manager and nine Club Kentucky Revue chorines - Mary Duval, Mabel Nichols, Mabel Savoy, Azalyn Lynch, Frances Hubbard, Bertha Young, Mary Saunders, Peggy Burnett and Fanny Cotton. They were charged with presenting and participatng in an immoral and indecent act, and were released the next morning on $500 bail each. Harper was not charged but attended court that morning.
- Their lawyer requested the trial be adjourned until May 24 since the show was contracted for an out of town tour that would keep them away until that week.
- The Pittsburgh Courier:
'NEW YORK, April 21.–...The raid came as a bolt from a clear sky at the close of Thursday's matinee. Officers were stationed at the stage door and were about to take the girls to the patrol wagon just as they had appeared under the foot lights, it is said, but their pleas to get dressed resulted in their being allowed to get their coats...The writer, who witnessed the show on Monday afternoon before the raid Thursday, saw it again Thursday night, and was able to see little change, except a slight toning down on some of the dance numbers.'
- The Pittsburgh Courier said witnesses refused to testify, In any event, the charges were dismissed for a lack of sufficient evidence that the show was obscene or indecent.
- The Washington Tribune:
'"The Kentucky Club Revue" has came and is about to went. But, oh, boy! while here, it surely has been packijng them in. And why not? It's about as good as any that has been to the Howard from quite some time.
From the front of the stage the show looks mighty good. And from backstage, oh boy; That Egyptian scene was "stew bad."
I was talking to Slater, director of the show, and he gave me the low-down on the New York raid at the Lafayette Theatre. Contrary to publications in several papers, it wasn't a wholesale swooping down on the show by the entire New York police force. As explained to me, this is what happened:
The show had been going along smoothly, until the manager of the Lafayette asked Slater to put a little ginger into the acts. The most appropriate place to insert the "ginger," of course, seemed to be in the Egyptian scene. And the "ginger" added the straw that broke the camel's back. But there was no rush to pull the entire show into custody. The police simply notified the girls who appeared in the scene to get dressed after the show and accompany them. The only other person taken beside these girls was the manager of the house.
The affair could not have been of a serious nature, however, since the girls were allowed to leave the city and continue the same act with the show.
What I'm trying to figure out, though, is how any more ginger could be put into that Egyptian act. Slater says that the best part of it is still in New York. The snake dancer, who is said to be a real "whang," could not accompany the show outside of New York because her husband desired her presence near him. I guess he's right.'
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