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Continuity and change within a social institution: The role of the taxi-dancer
Abstract
Considered one of the more popular and common forms of masculine recreation during the 1920s and 1930s, taxi-dancing all but disappeared following the years of World War II (Cressey 1932; Vedder 1947; Hong and Duff 1976, 1977). In "Decline of the Taxi-Dance Hall" (1954), Clyde Vedder inaccurately predicted its approaching demise. The taxi-dance hall did survive, however, and may be found today in such metropolitan areas as New York, Detroit, Los Angeles, Honolulu, and Oakland (Hong and Duff, 1977). Moreover, the number in commercial operation has increased dramatically in the state of California since the mid-1970s. A principal concern of this study is the role of the taxi-dancer herself, whom Vedder describes as "the heart and soul of the taxi-dance hall" (Vedder 1947, p. 7; 1954, p. 388). The taxi-dancers themselves are brought "front" stage to voice the contexts defining the personal and professional spheres of their everyday lives. A range of topics is introduced as evidence of the "semi-deviant" status of their work and its effects, including: wage competition, alcohol and drug abuse, sexual exchange, and ageism. A taxi-dancer or dance hostess is usually a Caucasian, Hispanic, or Asian female between the ages of 18 and 25 (sometimes older), employed by a public dance establishment which caters to the tastes of male customers by providing paid women partners for dancing within a reasonably acceptable social sphere. A man can, in effect, "rent" a woman's company for as long as he likes; thus, the term "taxi-dancer" appears applicable. The primary objective of this research is to accomplish a qualitative, in-field examination of recreational establishments commonly called taxi-dance halls and the unique role of women fulfilling requirements particular to the specific job title of taxi-dancer. I conducted field work in Oakland and Los Angeles, California during the winter of 1986 and the spring of 1987. This dissertation also examines the specific social phenomena, educational and socioeconomic, which channel women into this form of employment.
Subject Area
Sociology|American studies
Recommended Citation
Meckel, Mary V, "Continuity and change within a social institution: The role of the taxi-dancer" (1988). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI8824944.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI8824944