Jack's Basket Room facts for kids
Jack's Basket Room was a famous jazz club in Historic South Central Los Angeles. It was also known by other names like Jack's Chicken Basket. This special place was run by Jack Johnson, a former heavyweight boxing champion. The club was famous for its delicious fried chicken and shoestring potatoes, served in a basket – which is how it got its name!
Jack's Basket Room was a popular spot for musicians and music lovers in the 1940s and 1950s. People would gather for exciting "jam sessions" that often lasted until early morning. Even though the club didn't sell alcohol, guests could bring their own drinks or buy them nearby. Beyond the music, Jack's Basket Room also hosted Sunday afternoon shows and held a big Christmas dinner every year for children who needed a warm meal. This kind event was started by Jack Johnson and manager Bill Hefflin, feeding up to 1,000 children with turkey and ice cream. The club was right in the middle of the "Jazz Corridor" on Central Avenue, which was the heart of jazz music in Los Angeles for many years.
A Look Back at Jack's Basket Room
The exact years Jack's Basket Room was open are a bit unclear. Records show that the building owner, Sam Jack Jackson, got a permit for the building in 1944 and sold it in 1951. However, "The Negro Motorist Green Book", a guide for Black travelers, listed the club from 1947 to 1955.
This club was a perfect place for musicians to gather and play music together without planning it much beforehand. It quickly became a central spot for the new style of jazz music on Central Avenue. The room itself felt like a concert hall, with a large stage and a piano ready for performers.
A typical Friday night in 1947 might be a "Sportsman's Night." These events honored basketball and football stars from UCLA. There were also late Monday night jam sessions. Musicians like Howard McGhee and Sammy Franklin would play. Sometimes, bands like Joe Lutcher's would perform with special floor shows. People would even stay for breakfast dances that started at 6 AM!
Famous Musicians and Memorable Nights
Jack's Basket Room didn't have a set group of musicians on staff. Instead, musicians would simply show up and start playing together, creating amazing, unplanned jam sessions all night long. Wild Bill Moore was in charge of finding musicians to keep the rhythm section going. Many great jazz artists played there, including the legendary Charlie "Bird" Parker.
One very special night happened in February 1947. Charlie Parker had just left Camarillo State Hospital. He made a surprise appearance at Jack's Basket Room. The club was completely packed with excited fans. Gerald Wilson, a famous trumpeter and bandleader, remembered the crowd's huge cheer when Parker walked onto the stage. It was so loud, you could hear it all the way down Central Avenue!
Buddy Collette, another well-known jazz musician, also shared his memories of that night in his book, Jazz Generations:
Throughout the years, thinking about Charlie Parker, there were so many marvelous moments and he influenced us in so many different ways. There was a great jam session at Jack's Basket Room after Bird came out of Camarillo State Hospital. He had been quite ill, having problems and going through other things. It was the night he'd been released. There was an announcement that he was going to come and jam. When he arrived, he looked great, really sharp, as healthy as anybody could, and this was his night. I hadn't ever seen him like that before. There must have been thirty or forty different musicians all wanting to show Parker how they could play. All the tenor and alto players were there – Sonny Criss, Wardell Gray, Dexter Gordon, Gene Phillips, Teddy Edwards, Jay McNeely, and on and on. They all played and Bird just sat there and smiled. It was a long night. Finally, Bird got up there and I don't think he played more than three or four choruses. But he told a complete story, caught all the nuances, tapered off to the end. Nobody played a note after that. Everybody just packed up their horns and went on home, because it was so complete, so right..
—Buddy Collette, Jazz Generations, pp. 108–09
After Jack's Basket Room closed, many different businesses used the building. Today, the building that once housed this famous jazz club is empty. However, if you look closely, you can still see some faded writing on the outside that says "Chicken ain't nuten but a bird" and "Jack's Basket Room." There's also a small plaque outside that tells about its important history.
