Club Matinee & other historic Lyons Avenue institutions–have memories to share?

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Club Matinee in the 1950s

Hi y'all,

My name is Willow Curry. I'm an artist, oral historian, and lifelong Houstonian who does research and creative projects about many of Houston's historically Black communities.

Currently, I'm working in partnership with the Fifth Ward Community Redevelopment Corporation's arts and culture division, and I'm seeking folks with memories (or people who know folks with memories) to share about the Club Matinee, the DeLuxe Theatre, Lyons Theatre, the DeLuxe Show art exhibition, and the general arts/music/entertainment scene during Lyons Avenue's heyday. I'm interested in any and all kinds of stories–someone's first time kissing in a movie theatre, hearing a famous musician play live, seeing some shady dealings in dark corners (if you're familiar with the club, there certainly were many of these)–the beautiful, the bad (in both senses), and the ugly.

If you're interested and have further questions, please drop a comment. Thank you!