The Story of the Fabulous Fong Wan: Chinese Herbalist, Night Club Owner, and Showman

“We are delighted to welcome former Art Deco Society of Los Angeles Board Member Randy Chong to the virtual stage to share some Art Deco era family history: The Story of the Fabulous Fong Wan: Chinese Herbalist, Night Club Owner, and Showman in a special program that will also feature a cocktail or two!

This is the story of Fong Wan (Randy’s great grandfather) and his empire in the San Francisco Bay Area. With $10 in his pocket and huge dreams, Fong Wan arrived in San Francisco at the age of 17 in 1900 to become an herbalist. Treating Chinese and Caucasians, he became the leading herbalist in the country. Fong Wan didn’t stop there. His nature as a promoter and keen business acumen helped grow his modest café to an empire of a department store, a shrimping fleet, multiple restaurants and nightclubs in Oakland and San Francisco. With exotic fan dancers, magicians, acrobats, and singers imported from China, he became the envy of fellow nightclubs in the 1930s to 50s, including his big rival, Charlie Low and the Forbidden City.”

This program is free to Art Deco Society of Los Angeles members. Members can use the button below to get to the ticketing page. When you log into your ADSLA account, you will have the option of ordering a free ticket.

General admission is $10.