Jimmy's Backyard
Address
1608 Cosmo St, Los Angeles, CA 90028
Active Dates
1929 - 1933
Schultheis, Herman. Hollywood west from Cosmo. Circa 1937. Herman J. Schultheis Collection, Los Angeles Public Library. https://tessa2.lapl.org/digital/collection/photos/id/38501.
About this location
Jimmy’s Backyard was a popular Hollywood nightclub featuring performances by female impersonators like Rae Bourbon. Thomas Gannon opened the club on New Year’s Eve in 1929. The LAPD raided the club in 1932 as part of what Variety described as an effort targeting “Nance and Lesbian amusement places.” When Prohibition was repealed in 1933, police cracked down on drag establishments in particular, including Jimmy’s Backyard. In a 1933 raid female impersonators were each sentenced to six months in jail.
Categories
LGBTQ+
Sources
- Faderman, Lillian, and Stuart Timmons. Gay L.A.: A History of Sexual Outlaws, Power Politics, and Lipstick Lesbians. Univ of California Press, 2009. 46.
- Hamel, Jenny. “The Pansy Craze: When Gay Nightlife in Los Angeles Really Kicked Off.” KCRW, May 11, 2018. https://www.kcrw.com/shows/curious-coast/stories/the-pansy-craze-when-gay-nightlife-in-los-angeles-really-kicked-off.
- Queer Maps. “Jimmy’s Backyard.” Accessed September 7, 2026. https://www.queermaps.org/place/jimmys-backyard.