Madame Wong’s Gone
CONFIRMED: Historic L.A. Punk Venue Madame Wong’s to Close for Good in August
This just in: West Coast Sound has learned that the historic Chinatown punk venue, Madame Wong’s, will be closing for good on August 14.
“It’ll probably never be a music venue again,” said Aquarium Drunkard’s Justin Gage, who broke the news via a Twitter post this afternoon. “So anyone that wants to get a sense of that old L.A. punk rock culture, get in while the getting’s good.”
This was actually the space’s second run as an intimate host to some rather high profile performances. Founded in the early ’70s, Madame Wong’s was originally a Chinese restaurant with a Polynesian dance floorshow.
Co-owner Esther Wong was eventually convinced to become a punk promoter as a way to drum up customers, and wound up playing host to shows by an incredible spate of performers, from the Ramones and Black Flag to the Police and Guns N’ Roses.
The restaurant was closed in 1985 after a fire, and the so-called “Godmother of Punk” passed away in 2005 due to lung disease.
