Inside The Players Club: Secret NYC

The Players' Club at 16 Gramercy Park, founded in 1888 by Shakespearean actor Edwin Booth, is part of a “Secret NYC” that most visitors and even NYC locals never see and the first in a new “Secret NYC” series of posts. Visiting New York? See all of our posts tagged NYC.

As a private club, the Players' Club is normally open only to members and their guests. I recently had a chance to visit the Players' Club thanks to a member, so here's a peek inside the first U.S. private club of its kind for actors and those in the arts, and the oldest club in NYC that is still in its original location.

Players' Club Founding and History

Edwin Booth was the older brother of John Wilkes Booth, the assassin of Abraham Lincoln, and following the assassination, he ceased performing for a number of months. Edwin disowned John and never permitted his name to be spoken in his house again. Edwin did return to the stage in early 1866 and continue to perform as one of the most acclaimed Shakespearean actors of his time, until 1891.

Edwin Booth founded the Players' Club in 1888, in his own townhouse, 16 Gramercy Park, which he had purchased in 1847. Booth retained the upper floor for his living quarters, and turned over the other 3 floors to the Players Club.

Booth modeled the club on London's Garrick Club, a private club that was founded as a place for actors, writers, musicians, and patrons of the arts could mingle as peers.

Here are the stairs up to the lounge and Great Hall:

And the Great Hall, really two high ceilinged rooms with cozy fireplaces and seating:

A cardinal rule of the Players Club, as with most private clubs, is that what is said or heard in the club stays in the club. This is memorialized with the inscription above one of the fireplaces:

The theater is used for performances and “Pipe Nights,” where actors are honored (actually smoking the pipe is optional):

The walls are covered with portraits of actors and members:

Even the one bathroom I saw had portraits of actresses:

One of the creepier aspects of the club, fortunately hidden discreetly away, are several death masks:

That said, some would similarly be a bit creeped out by the fact that Edwin Booth's apartment on the top floor has been kept exactly as he left it–a time capsule, if you will:

Not to mention the fact that the skull he used when playing Hamlet is actually one of a fan, who apparently after his death donated his body to Edwin Booth for this purpose.

On the more touching side, there's a bronze of Edwin Booth's hand with his young daughter Edwina's hand:

If you descend to the basement, you'll find the Billiards Room, including the personal cue stick of Mark Twain:

The bar, needless to say, is well-stocked:

Famous Players Club Members

Some of the most famous Players Club members, past and present, include:

Lauren Bacall
L. Frank Baum
John Barrymore
Tony Bennett
Humphrey Bogart
Carol Burnett
James Cagney
Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain)
Judy Collins
Walter Cronkite
Jimmy Fallon
Ethan Hawke
Angela Lansbury
Liza Minnelli
Peter O'Toole
Gregory Peck
Sidney Poitier
Kevin Spacey
Christopher Plummer

Players Club Scandals

Stanford White, the architect whom Edwin hired to turn his brownstone at 16 Garmercy Park into the Players Club, was a charter member of The Players and also carried on an affair with actress Evelyn Nesbit. Stanford White was shot to death on June 25, 1906 by Harry Thaw, Evelyn Nesbit's jealous husband, who carried a long-standing vendetta against White for seducing Evelyn when she was 16 and White was 47.

While not exactly a scandal, Sarah Bernhardt was once stuck in the club's elevator for over an hour, and was so incensed she vowed never to come back. Players Club members now jokingly refer to the elevator as Sarah Bernhardt's Room.

More recently, the Players Club is struggling with allegations of financial mismanagement and former Executive Director John Martello has been removed.

A pity, as the Players Club is steeped in history, and founder Edwin Booth is also honored with a statue in the private Gramercy Park which the Players Club and other buildings surrounding the park have private keys to: