Read more at SFBay.ca

— From 1936 to 1970, San Francisco’s Chinese nightclubs were the epitome of Hollywood glamour — with a Bay Area twist: All of the performers were Asian American.

The floor acts ranged from Frank Sinatra-style crooning and elegant ballroom dancing to breathtaking acrobats and titillating burlesque stripteases. Some performances leaned on American stereotypes of Chinese culture, while others embraced All-American Las Vegas-style razzle-dazzle, shocking the mostly white audiences…

Image courtesy of SFBay.ca