Address: 626 Hornby Street, Vancouver
Opened in 1937, the Cave Supper Club offered not only offered dinner and a show, it was known for its exotic entertainment, celebrity sightings, and its grotto-like interior complete with stalactites.
The Cave was at its most successful during the postwar boom of the 1950s when it became the first club in the city to have a liquor license. Out-of-town visitors staying at the nearby Hotel Vancouver or Georgia Hotel could treat themselves to top entertainers and a stage show featuring elaborate production numbers.
It was said that Las Vegas-bound acts liked to try their shows out at the Cave because the Vancouver audiences were notoriously hard to amuse. If they could get a reaction at the Cave, Vegas would be a breeze!
StarWalk Inductees who played The Cave include Dave Robbins, Jack Card, Chris Gage, Judy Ginn Walchuk and Jim Walchuk, Bob Reid, and many more. Inductee Isy Walters owned and managed The Cave Supper Club 1952-1958. It was during his time at The Cave that he brought his son Richard (“Richie”) into the business. Isy sold The Cave and went on to built Isy’s Supper Club with Richie, which opened it in 1958.
International names to grace the Cave’s stage include Tony Bennett, Chuck Berry, James Brown, Ray Charles, Bo Diddley, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Mitzi Gaynor, Robert Goulet, Lena Horne, Gypsy Rose Lee, The Ink Spots, Bette Midler, The Mills Brothers, Wayne Newton, Roy Orbison, The Righteous Brothers, Sonny & Cher, The Supremes, The Temptations, Sophie Tucker, Ike & Tina Turner.
Photo source: Tom Carter’s archive with UBC iSchool
