Coffee Dan's

Although this is the Native Sons of the Golden West^{1Fraternal organization specifically dedicated to preserving the spirit of '49} building the reliefs over the entrance start a bit earlier, with Junípero Serra preaching to Native Americans^{2Approx. 1770s. Some will tell you that colonization of California was less brutal than that of other States, but Native Americans still died in their thousands.}. While they and the vision they present are quite pretty we're really here for Coffee Dan's, a cabaret and 24-hour restaurant. It never closed - not for a fire, not even for a ham and eggs shortage^{3Their menu was graced by a quote from E. R. Bulwer-Lytton:
We may live without poetry, music, and art;
We may live without conscience, and live without heart;
We may live without friends; we may live without books;
But civilized man cannot live without cooks.}.

With the arrival of Prohibition Coffee Dan's added a side entrance to the Slide - a marvelous speakeasy. Visitors would step behind a concealed door and down a 15-foot slide^{4The fashion for shorter flapper dresses made this particularly exciting, which is why there was a stair for the more staid patrons.} to eat, drink, gamble, and be very merry.

Every entertainer in the audience was forced to perform for their supper over and above the announced program^{5Some of the greats that performed here were Ruby Adams (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31368201-waiting-in-the-wings), Paul Lingle (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73DLVYrNhSQ), Eddie Peabody King of Banjo (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXR8YtUYlFA), and Les Poe (https://www.queermusicheritage.com/MAY2010/Les%20Poe/Poe-Les78-doctor%20my%20adjustment.mp3).}, which made every evening a surprise^{6A 24-hour speakeasy in the middle of the theatre district tends to draw entertainers}. The audience expressed their approval by banging on the tables with wooden mallets and, in cases of extreme delight, by breaking the dishes.

This is the setting of arguably one of cinema's most important movies, the first "talkie" - The Jazz Singer (1927)^{7You can see Coffee Dan's here: https://youtu.be/J9Yo-zcuQM4?t=791 The rest of the film is not as interesting.}, as well as a few Vitaphone short comedies including Ten Minutes at Coffee Dan's, all filmed by Warner Bros. The first words spoken in a feature film were "Wait a minute, wait a minute. You ain't heard nothin' yet!"

^{1Fraternal organization specifically dedicated to preserving the spirit of '49}Fraternal organization specifically dedicated to preserving the spirit of '49
^{2Approx. 1770s. Some will tell you that colonization of California was less brutal than that of other States, but Native Americans still died in their thousands.}Approx. 1770s. Some will tell you that colonization of California was less brutal than that of other States, but Native Americans still died in their thousands.
^{3Their menu was graced by a quote from E. R. Bulwer-Lytton:
We may live without poetry, music, and art;
We may live without conscience, and live without heart;
We may live without friends; we may live without books;
But civilized man cannot live without cooks.}Their menu was graced by a quote from E. R. Bulwer-Lytton:
We may live without poetry, music, and art;
We may live without conscience, and live without heart;
We may live without friends; we may live without books;
But civilized man cannot live without cooks.
^{4The fashion for shorter flapper dresses made this particularly exciting, which is why there was a stair for the more staid patrons.}The fashion for shorter flapper dresses made this particularly exciting, which is why there was a stair for the more staid patrons.
^{5Some of the greats that performed here were Ruby Adams (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31368201-waiting-in-the-wings), Paul Lingle (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73DLVYrNhSQ), Eddie Peabody King of Banjo (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXR8YtUYlFA), and Les Poe (https://www.queermusicheritage.com/MAY2010/Les%20Poe/Poe-Les78-doctor%20my%20adjustment.mp3).}Some of the greats that performed here were Ruby Adams (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31368201-waiting-in-the-wings), Paul Lingle (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73DLVYrNhSQ), Eddie Peabody King of Banjo (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXR8YtUYlFA), and Les Poe (https://www.queermusicheritage.com/MAY2010/Les%20Poe/Poe-Les78-doctor%20my%20adjustment.mp3).
^{6A 24-hour speakeasy in the middle of the theatre district tends to draw entertainers}A 24-hour speakeasy in the middle of the theatre district tends to draw entertainers
^{7You can see Coffee Dan's here: https://youtu.be/J9Yo-zcuQM4?t=791 The rest of the film is not as interesting.}You can see Coffee Dan's here: https://youtu.be/J9Yo-zcuQM4?t=791 The rest of the film is not as interesting.