Kansas City Strip Clubs: That Was Entertainment
The Century, 12th Street and Central
This Star ad seems demure compared with what the Century ran in The Post: The Only Real Burlesque House in KC. In April 1910, the Century presented Miners American Burlesquers and Lura Bennett, Champion Woman Wrestler of the World. This was immediately topped in May with the Lady Buccaneers, who are further described as Naughty Nautical Brigands and Frolicsome Feminine Pirates. Originally christened the Standard, the Century proper opened in 1902. Besides its frolics, it also offered vaudeville, prizefights and (upon its purchase by the Shubert brothers in the 1920s) what we might call legitimate theater. That couldnt last, of course. By the time it was shuttered for good in the 70s, a theater that once hosted Fanny Brice was reduced to strippers and porn.
See the full article from “Pitch Weekly”