Jewish Women on the Map - Cotton Club

Location

This was the original site of the legendary Cotton Club, opened in 1920.  During its heyday, it served as a chic meeting spot in the heart of Harlem and was host to jazz musicians and notable personalities until its closing in 1936.  Lyricist Dorothy Fields, who wrote the classics "On the Sunny Side of the Street" and "The Way You Look Tonight" got her start writing songs for Cotton Club revues.  In all, Fields wrote lyrics for 19 Broadway musicals and 25 films, including Annie Get Your Gun, Sweet Charity, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, Up in Central Park, and Seesaw.  A new club with the same name opened in 1978 in Harlem on 125th Street.

See also: "Birth of Broadway lyricist Dorothy Fields" in This Week in History; Dorothy Fields in Jewish Women: A Comprehensive Historical Encyclopedia.