[Dixielandjazz] One More Topless Story

[Robert S. Ringwald]

At the time that the topless craze hit SF, I was working in Sacramento at a
pizza place.  Only this pizza place was not your run of the mill type family
pizzeria.  It was a wild & crazy place called Capone's Chicago Tea Room.  In
fact, our listmates Bill Gunter, Art Terry & Ralph Thompson worked with me
at various times there.  I was there 5 nights a week for 15 1/2 years.

Shortly after the topless started in SF in 1963, our boss had the idea to 
advertise
topless at Capone's.  We did some advertising but the word of mouth spread
like wild fire.

The night our topless show was to debut, the place was
packed.  "Topless in a pizza pub???"

Capone's could seat 300 people but there had to be at least 500 in the
joint that night.  In the crowd was several sheriff deputies ready to close 
the place
down.

Of course in the advertising, we never said that the topless would be women.
So at 11:00 PM we, the band, came out without our shirts.  It was one of the
funniest things you ever saw.  We snookered everyone, including the cops.

After a couple of nights, we stopped doing that.  But one banjo player named
Roger Reitano, kept it up.  He would dress up in drag & then do a comedy
strip topless.  When he left, Listmate Art Terry began doing the act &
really refined it.  He was billed as Miss Carriage.  It was a great show &
really set Sacramento on its ear.  We actually did the show for several 
years.

Those were the days...

 --Bob Ringwald K6YBV
Placerville, CA USA

"There are three kinds of men:
The ones that learn by reading.
The few who learn by observation.
The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence and find out for
themselves."
--William Penn Adair (Will) Rogers B: 11/4/1879 D: 8/15/1935