New York controlled jazz clubs through a discretionary cabaret card system lasting decades

Evidence

A 1926 New York City ordinance defined a cabaret as an establishment that featured dancing and other forms musical entertainment along with the sale of food or drinks. Cabarets were licensed by the Department of Consumer Affairs and from 1940 through 1967 entertainers were required to have a cabaret card, which could be revoked at the discretion of the police. (Although several times amended, the cabaret law was not repealed until 2017.) — J. Hoberman, Everything Is Now, 1841

Categorization

• SHARE: Send to anyone who writes about urban nightlife regulation — the cabaret card revoked at police discretion is a perfect lever for how scenes get policed.
• XREF: Connects to gentrification-origin thesis: municipal regulation shaping where artists could perform and gather.