The “21” Club – Where Alfred Hitchcock Was A Regular
When one thinks of nightlife prior to World War II, images are conjured of late night haunts serving fare into the wee small hours of the morning and music playing till dawn. Nowhere epitomized being out and about on the town like New York City in the 1930's and '40's. It was a legendary moment in time.
After a period of four years probation was repealed, King Kong carried Faye Ray up the side of the Empire State Building, Duke Ellington was performing nightly at the Cotton Club on 125th Street in Harlem, and two resourceful cousins named Jack Kriendler and Charlie Berns legitimized a speakeasy at 21 West 52nd Street and christened it The "21" Club.
Although "21" had been raided more than once during prohibition, federal agents were never able to pin anything on Jack and Charlie. At the ...