F I R S TP R E V871NEXTLAST

Handshake for a Returning Patron, Broadway
San Francisco's Broadway was referred to as 'Bawdway' by local columnist Herb Caen. The street is recognizable for its blazing neon lights advertising sex shops and clubs. But this is no hidden back-alley district, Broadway is a prominent street that divides Chinatown from North Beach.

The topless clubs sit adjacent to the area's many popular cafes and restaurants. The clubs date back to the 1940s when the military declared San Francisco's old Barbary Coast (then called the International District) off-limits to servicemen. The banned clubs simply migrated a few blocks and set up shop on Broadway. With an endless supply of sailors and soldiers passing through the city during WWII, Korea, and Viet Nam, the clubs flourished.

Eventually the red light Broadway clubs evolved to include legendary comedy clubs, the Hungry i and the Purple Onion, and the nation's premier drag club, Finnochio's. But the most well-known was the infamous Condor Club, the first topless and bottomless nightclub in the country.
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