“First, there was the razz of a snare drum in the 1930s, then Desi Arnaz’s orchestral swoon of horns and strings in the ’40s and ’50s, followed by comics such as Don Rickles cracking wise and crooners like Wayne Newton following them onto the stage in the ’60s. Somehow, sunny Palm Springs became the unofficial capital of the lounge act, an entertainment phenomenon unlike any other.
The lounge was a place where anything went — and often did. Barbs, jabs, sometimes even punches were routinely exchanged and thrown. Songs and acts were improvised, characters and personas developed. The general idea was to party hard, break the rules, and not take it personally…”