The Cellar

[Dealey Joe]

A downtown bar called "The Cellar" became very infamous back in the 60's when JFK's Secret Service body guards drank there till dawn the night before he was killed in Dallas. The Cellar was the home of Ft Worth counter culture and rock music scene until the mid seventies when the FW police dept. decided it was time to crack down on the goings on at the club. constant harrassment the local federales ran off the customers and the owner (Pat Kirkwood) was forced to shut the doors in the mid-seventies. (Nov. 22, 1963) Nine Secret Service agents drinking at Pat Kirkwood’s bar the “Cellar Door” in Fort Worth, Texas. Several of the women serving liquor to the agents are also strippers from Jack Ruby’s Carousel Club in Dallas. (Pat Kirkwood is a licensed pilot and owns a twin-engine plane. He will fly to Mexico hours after JFK’s assassination.) Bob Schieffer, night police reporter for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram remembers “... the waitresses wore underwear. That was their business attire, as it were, and people sat around on cushions on the floor

[kenmurray]

Was The Cellar one of your hangouts Joe?

[Dealey Joe]

I couldn't find it

[Dealey Joe]

The Cellar, located at 2916 West Berry Street in Fort Worth, is an honest homage to the state’s Cellar nightclubs of 60’s and 70’s fame. It all started when Arvel Stricklin founded The Cellar in 1960 under a hotel on Houston Street in Fort Worth. At one point Mr. Strickland, Pat Kirkwood, and other associates were operating Cellar nightclubs in Fort Worth, Houston, San Antonio, and Dallas. Many a musician – some now famous - went through The Cellar’s rosters at any given location. True to its legacy, the current club - with a completely different owner - is dark, damp, sort of musty, but always cool and hip. The club has been operating in an old multilevel, partially subterranean complex complete with staircases, band area, two-sided bar, pool tables, couches, and killer sound system. The above-ground patio is a nice touch. On any given night of the week just about, you can catch live music from local acts. On a recent Friday night in January 2011, three bands – booked by The Fort Worth Music Co-op, played to crowd-pleasing applause: Trigger Fish, Brazos River Outlaw Society, and Leon Blue and Scot Cloud. Scot Cloud is the guitarist/vocalist of Velvet Love Box, a top-notch 3-piece from the north Texas area. Leon Blue is an outstanding, true Texas country-blues artist reminiscent of the days when one only needed talent, a voice, and a guitar to “make it”. Trigger Fish rocked the house by delivering classic southern rock in their own unique style, fronted by clear and soulful singer Cindy Manuel. The rest of the band is impressive as well and includes Jeff Siewert on bass, guitar, and vocals; Phil Hennen on guitar, keyboard, and vocals; Myra Waldrop on drums; and Ignacio Solano on guitar and vocals. Word has it that Ignacio studied music at a famous conservatory in Mexico City. This is the caliber of musicianship found at the Cellar, just like the original Cellars. Master artists applying their craft and loving what they do. And, it’s really not about earning greenbacks, as a member of Just Play (a local southern Rock and Blues band), who came to see Trigger Fish that night, openly admitted. All have day jobs outside of music, so it’s not about money. Rather it’s about the chance to play live music, hone their chops, and meet and mingle with other musicians. Who knows? Maybe the next internationally famous Texas artist or band will call The Cellar their alma mater.

[kenmurray]

Dealey Joe wrote:I couldn't find it You found the Carousel Club intead!