[First published on March 17, 2016, the 40th Anniversary of the Catalyst opening in its new home]
The Catalyst, 1976
The Catalyst: for generations of Santa Cruzans, our nightclub. How many thousands of us danced at that concert, or met the person on that magical date that lead to the rest of our lives, or hugged our friend that one night when it seemed that no one had ever been closer friends, loved better music, lived a longer night? How many Santa Cruzan musicians have played their first gig there? How many of us took hours getting ready for that first All Ages Show? How many of us came through Santa Cruz on tour, and will never forget playing the Catalyst?
I won’t be telling more than a brief outline of the Catalyst; there are other histories online already, and so many other stories are yet to be told. (Feel free to use the comments, or send me yours and I’ll post them.)
If you don’t know anything about the Catalyst, start with the fabulous documentary about the Catalyst was made by Michele Benson and Dean Newbury, available from the filmmakers directly for only $20.
It was reviewed by the Sentinel in 2011.
Randall Kane brought the cafe and community hub called The Catalyst from the St. George to its current location, and created the venue, bar, and billiards hall we know today. You can read a nice recounting of the old Catalyst of Al & Patti DiLudovico in the St. George and a loving portrait of Randall Kane here.
The new Catalyst opened on St. Patrick’s day, 1976.
….He [Kane] has converted the bowling alleys into a huge dance floor with a stage that can send forth disco music, seat the largest of young groups, and be converted to handle movies.
Kane did not give any cost figures, but it has been estimated the mammoth project cost between $750,000 and $1million.
Running along the sides of the dance floor are hall-length, church-like benches, and over them are balconies running down the side of the hall. It is the size of a full bowling alley, naturally.
But that space is nearly dwarfed by the feeling of space and light that comes when patrons walk through the wood and glass doors into the dining hall and delicatessen area that front the street.
Huge vaulted skylights rain down light that open the space and light the walls that support grad displays of local art.
The dining and delicatessen area house 100 handmade tables and their accompanying hundreds of handmade captains chairs.
The floors are covered with 8,000 square feet of imported Italian deco tile.
The center of the dining area is graced with a tall tiled planter and water fountain, and at the rear of the wrap-around 136-foot long bar ties in the dance hall to the restaurant. ...
Also, along with other intoxicants, the new Catalyst features over 50 brands of beer, mostly imported. ...
The designer, with Kane, is Ralph Rapattoni, who has called it a "Comedia dell'Arte" approach to architecture. Light from the huge skylights are reflected down below by sections of mirrors and highlight a bas-relief of a Manet painting done by UCSC students.
Over the cafeteria section is a mural of the old Catalyst—peopled by strange creatures inside and stranger creatures done by Vicki Petrovich. All told, it is a new Catalyst, but like a new bride, it is carrying a bit of the old.
The old Catalyst Bar will be in service in the pool room area upstairs, and many of the old Catalyst signs will adorn the walls.
The Catalyst thrived, and as the years went on, Kane’s approach to his business at the south end of Pacific belied the Sentinel’s Eeyore headline:
Despite Worry, Mall Merchants Upbeat
...Down at the southern end of the Pacific Garden Mall, the Catalyst nightclub, bar and restaurant is undergoing a major facelift that will add lots of "quality space" to that venerable and venerated establishment, as well as prevent people from sleeping and making drug deals there, says its owner, Randall Kane. ...
Catalyst owner Kane was busy Wednesday morning overseeing construction on upstairs and downstairs additions to the club.
"I wanted to do it for a long time,” says Kane. The place is getting a new entrance, a downstairs eating and drinking area that will be pushed out 20 feet or so to the sidewalk and a new glassed in upstairs room, with planter boxes and an awning outside to mark the changes. …
He says the recent well-publicized machete attack at the other end of the Mall, plus reports of extensive "crack" cocaine dealing at nearby Laurel Park haven't deterred him from upgrading his business investment.
"I can't be worried about all this stuff. The Mall will do fine. The Catalyst always does ok," he says.
Nevertheless, Kane says one reason the Catalyst is getting a new look is because of the people problems. Such as: Homeless persons seeking onto the then-open second story and sleeping at night. Or downstairs, where "a bunch of overgrown planters, bicycles, and people who would come there to made (drug) deals were not helping business any.
That was the year Kane ran unsuccessfully for City Council in 1988, listing his occupation as “Saloon Keeper.”
Kane was often to be found at the the end of the Atrium bar until he sold it in 2003. Many people were concerned that the Catalyst would be leaving them, yet were grateful for the years of his contribution to our lives. Even the Sentinel weighed in.
[Thumbs Up] To Randall Kane, the one-of-a-kind owner of the Catalyst. Reports are that Kane has sold the historic Santa Cruz bar and music spot after more than 30 years of ownership. Kane's contribution to the fabric of Santa Cruz can't be overstated: the club has been there through a variety of upheavals and change in both the culture of young Americans and young Santa Cruzans. Through it all, Kane has branded the club with his own unique sense of what works: think of him as Col. Henry Blake of the old M*A*S*H program. He had a vision of what the ultimate Santa Cruz nightspot would be, and he's improvised his way from there.
There are things that will go away forever when present owner Randall Kane turns the Cat over to the people from San Jose. One of the things I will miss the most is Randall's home baked rye bread. I'm sad to say that I only discovered this wonderful treat a few months ago. For years he has baked much of the bread and rolls served at the Catalyst.
Explaining how the purchase came about, Gerhardt says, "We've owned the Usual for the last eight years, and had this relationship with Gary [in] booking. Three years ago when the Catalyst came up for sale, Randall had, like, three offers in that were for the full amount, in cash. But he ended up taking our offer. He really liked our package, and wanted to make sure that Gary and the live booking stayed in place, which we thought was the key to its success."
An enigmatic personality, he was once described as the most loved and reviled man in Santa Cruz. Randall was an easy mark for starving artists, buying art both funky and accomplished as it caught his eye. Randall was tolerant of all but ignorance, and was a patriot of the highest order. His was a strong voice against the Vietnam War and all wars since. Obama's victory brought him great joy.
When I first went to the Catalyst in the early 1980s someone told me it was a converted bowling alley. It wasn’t hard to see it. I did wonder about that Rip Van Winkle painting we walked under as we entered the dance hall. We thought only old people bowled, and it never occurred to us that those ancient 40 year olds had been young once.
Link to PDF File of this post with footnotes and citations.
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