The Boarding House (nightclub)

Former music and comedy nightclub

The Boarding House was a music and comedy nightclub, located at 960 Bush Street in San Francisco, California, opened by David Allen in 1971 and closed in the early 1980s.[1] Many comedians launched their career at The Boarding House including Robin Williams. Steve Martin's first three albums were recorded there, Let's Get Small, A Wild and Crazy Guy, and Comedy Is Not Pretty!, in whole or in part. Ellen DeGeneres and Jay Leno have said they first met at The Boarding House.[2]

The club was also host to a multitude of musical acts, such as Jerry Garcia, Dire Straits,[3] Dolly Parton, Patti Smith, Neil Young, Bette Midler, Billy Joel, Bob Marley and the Wailers,[4] Mason Williams, The Tubes, Talking Heads,[5] Old & In the Way, Randy Newman, Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks,[6] Jim Croce, Harry Chapin, Hoyt Axton, Camel, and Tom Waits. The Residents also first played there.

## Pre-history and David Allen

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Before opening the Boarding House in 1971, New Jersey-born David Allen had operated a target range on the top floor of California Hall on Polk Street, and performed as a repertory theater actor and as KPIX's "Deputy Dave."[1] In the 1960s, he worked with Enrico Banducci at the hungry i and helped nurture the careers of Barbra Streisand and Lenny Bruce. After he opened The Boarding House in 1971, he helped launch many noted comedians and musicians of the 1970s and 80s by booking them early in their career.[1]

Entertainers and writers have noted that Allen was "genial",[1] "loved and respected"[7] but frequently in financial difficulties and often kept The Boarding House running "on charm alone," relying on benefits performed by stars whose careers he had launched.[8]

## Bush Street location

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### History

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Prior to the 1906 earthquake, the address was an apartment building called The Cecil.[9] After the earthquake and resulting fire, it was rebuilt as a theater and known by many names over the years, including the Kamokila, Fack's II,[10] The Royal Hawaiian Theater,[11] The Bush Street Music Hall, The Balalaika Music Hall, The Troubadour North,[12] in 1970, finally becoming The Boarding House in 1971.

### Media coverage

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The club was featured in Billboard in 1974[13] and by 1977, the same magazine called it "the city's top nightclub for major name entertainment."[14] Robin Williams described David Allen and Bay Area entertainment reviewer John Wasserman as "like a team". "David would find these strange unique talents and John's reviews would get people in."[15]

## Columbus Street location and closure

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After a disastrous fire, the Bush Street building was torn down in July 1980 and replaced by condominiums.[16]

Dave Allen reopened the club for a short time at 901 Columbus Ave in the city's North Beach district,[1] where comedians Robin Williams, Lily Tomlin and Paula Poundstone performed. The club had closed by 1982; Allen died on May 25, 1984.[1][17][18]

## References

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1. ^ a b c d e f Miller, Johnny (2009-05-24). "Nightclub owner David Allen dies in 1984". SFGATE. Retrieved 2021-10-22.
2. ^ (The Ellen Show, aired 01/29/2014)
3. ^ Dire Straits – Boarding House. Sf www.discogs.com
4. ^ "Bob Marley — Tour Dates:1975 — 7 July @ Boarding House".
5. ^ The Boarding House - Rock and Roll Roadmaps
6. ^ DAN HICKS & HIS HOT LICKS - SHOWS LIST
7. ^ Billy Crystal, Still Foolin' 'Em: Where I've Been, Where I'm Going, and Where the Hell Are My Keys? Macmillan, Sep 10, 2013
8. ^ Derrick Bang, Vince Guaraldi at the Piano McFarland, Mar 15, 2012
9. ^ Re: the boarding house/steve martin
10. ^ Vince Guaraldi at the Piano By Derrick Bang
11. ^ Club Royal Hawaiian, San Francisco, CA (restaurant) -- Tiki Central
12. ^ "The Troubadour North, opened in 1970, was owned by Doug Weston, who also owned the Hollywood folk and rock institution, The Troubadour." Boarding House, 960 Bush St., San Francisco, CA
13. ^ Billboard Dec 14, 1974
14. ^ "Billboard". 1977-03-19.
15. ^ John Wasserman, Abby Wasserman, Praise, vilification, and sexual innuendo or, How to be a critic: the selected writings of John L. Wasserman, 1964-1979 Chronicle Books, Mar 1, 1993
16. ^ Perkins, Laura. Bulldozers raze the building at 960 Bush St., the site of the Boarding House entertainment venue, leaving a hole to be filled with more condominiums. Boarding House owner David Allen says he plans to reopen the popular club at 901 Columbus Ave. July 25 with Lily Tomlin. Chronicle's archives: 1980  July 8, 2005
17. ^ "David Allen | RollerDerbyJesus.com". rollerderbyjesus.com. Archived from the original on 2017-01-07.
18. ^ Joel Selvin, San Francisco: The Musical History Tour: A Guide to Over 200 of the Bay Area's Most Memorable Music Sites, Chronicle Books, Apr 1, 1996

## External links

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* Boardinghouse, San Francisco, CA, USA Concert Setlists \- setlist.fm
* Boarding House, 960 Bush St., San Francisco, CA \- Jerry's Brokendown Palaces
* December 12-13, 1974: The Boarding House, Garcia and Saunders (canceled) \- Lost Live Dead
* The Boarding House \- Discogs
* Boarding House \- rocktourdatabase.com
* San Francisco, the Musical History Tour By Joel Selvin
* Venue: The Boarding House - Rate Your Music
* Berkeley Barb June 18-24, 1971 — Independent Voices
* Berkeley Barb Jan. 18-24, 1974 — Independent Voices

* v
* t
* e

Music venues of California

Outdoor
venues|

| Northern California|

* Concord Pavilion
* Cushing Memorial Amphitheatre
* Frost Amphitheater
* Gundlach Bundschu
* Hearst Greek Theatre
* Jerry Garcia Amphitheatre
* Mountain Winery
* Shoreline Amphitheatre
* Toyota Amphitheatre

|

Southern California|

* Greek Theatre
* Hollywood Bowl
* John Anson Ford Amphitheatre
* North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre
* Pacific Amphitheatre
* Glen Helen Amphitheater
* Santa Barbara Bowl
* Starlight Bowl (Burbank)
* Starlight Bowl (San Diego)

Indoor
venues|

| Northern California|

* 924 Gilman Street
* Bimbo's 365 Club
* Bottom of the Hill
* Cafe Du Nord
* Club Fugazi
* Cowell Theater
* DNA Lounge
* The Fillmore
* Great American Music Hall
* Herbst Theatre
* Hotel Utah
* Luggage Store Gallery
* Luther Burbank Center
* Mystic Theatre
* Palace of Fine Arts
* Paramount Theatre
* Phoenix Theater
* Rickshaw Stop
* Sacramento Memorial Auditorium
* San Jose Civic
* SF Masonic Auditorium
* War Memorial and Performing Arts Center
* Sweetwater Saloon
* Yoshi's

|

Southern California|

* Arlington Theatre
* Balboa Theatre
* Bridges Hall of Music
* Bridges Auditorium
* City National Grove of Anaheim
* Dolby Theatre
* Hollywood Palladium
* Jacobs Music Center
* Los Angeles Music Center
* Majestic Ventura Theatre
* Mechanics Bank Theater
* Pasadena Civic Auditorium
* Peacock Theater
* Regent Theatre
* Roxy Theatre
* San Diego Civic Theatre
* Segerstrom Center for the Arts
* Shrine Auditorium
* SOMA San Diego
* The Troubadour
* Whisky a Go Go
* The York Manor
* YouTube Theater

Stadiums|

* Angel Stadium
* BMO Stadium
* CEFCU Stadium
* Dignity Health Sports Park
* Dodger Stadium
* Harder Stadium
* Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
* Levi's Stadium
* Oakland Coliseum
* Oracle Park
* Petco Park
* Rose Bowl
* SoFi Stadium

Arenas|

* Alex G. Spanos Center
* Anaheim Convention Center
* Bill Graham Civic Auditorium
* Bren Events Center
* Chase Center
* Coussoulis Arena
* Cow Palace
* Crypto.com Arena
* Del Mar Arena
* Farm Credit Dairy Center
* Golden Hall
* Golden 1 Center
* Honda Center
* Intuit Dome
* Jenny Craig Pavilion
* Kia Forum
* Long Beach Arena
* Mechanics Bank Arena
* Oakland Arena
* Orange Pavilion
* Paso Robles Event Center
* Pauley Pavilion
* Pechanga Arena
* RIMAC Arena
* SAP Center
* Save Mart Center
* Selland Arena
* Stockton Arena
* Stockton Memorial Civic Auditorium
* Thunderdome
* Toyota Arena
* Viejas Arena

Festivals|

* BottleRock Napa Valley
* Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival
* Desert Daze
* Earthdance
* Hardly Strictly Bluegrass
* High Sierra Music Festival
* Hog Farm Hideaway
* Monterey Jazz Festival
* Mosswood Meltdown
* Noise Pop Festival
* Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival
* Reggae on the River
* Rock the Bells
* Spirit West Coast
* Stagecoach Festival
* Symbiosis Gathering
* Treasure Island Music Festival

Demolished and/or closed|

| Northern California|

* ARCO Arena
* Avalon Ballroom
* Black Hawk
* The Boarding House
* Bop City
* California Hall
* Candlestick Park
* Circle Star Theater
* Dino and Carlo's
* Fillmore West
* Harding Theater
* Hemlock Tavern
* Hyatt Music Theater
* hungry i
* The Jabberwock
* Kaiser Auditorium
* The Keystone
* Keystone Palo Alto
* Mabuhay Gardens
* Maritime Hall
* The Matrix
* Mission Creek Music and Arts Festival
* New Langton Arts Theater
* Nourse Auditorium
* The Purple Onion
* San Diego Stadium
* San Francisco Blues Festival
* Slim's
* Sound of Music
* Terrapin Crossroads
* Tin Angel

|

Southern California|

* FivePoint Amphitheatre
* Mocambo
* Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre
* Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena
* Universal Amphitheatre

Authority control databases: Geographic |

* MusicBrainz place

|

37°47′23″N 122°24′47″W﻿ / ﻿37.78968°N 122.41316°W﻿ / 37.78968; -122.41316
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