--- title: Nightclub Hand Signals: A Primer From New York's Legendary Stork Club description: LIFE.com looks back at a legendary New York watering hole and the bizarre hand signals the club's owner used to keep the joint running smoothly. canonical: https://time.com/3876573/nightclub-hand-signals-a-primer-from-new-yorks-legendary-stork-club/ author: Ben Cosgrove article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2013-04-05T17:34:41.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T05:03:53.104Z og:title: Nightclub Hand Signals: A Primer From New York's Legendary Stork Club og:description: LIFE.com looks back at a legendary New York watering hole and the bizarre hand signals the club's owner used to keep the joint running smoothly. og:url: https://time.com/3876573/nightclub-hand-signals-a-primer-from-new-yorks-legendary-stork-club/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4e9a8d9843500dab/6987f0ab0b72e337d26e2265/50701990.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Stork Club, New York, 1944 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Nightclub Hand Signals: A Primer From New York's Legendary Stork Club twitter:description: LIFE.com looks back at a legendary New York watering hole and the bizarre hand signals the club's owner used to keep the joint running smoothly. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4e9a8d9843500dab/6987f0ab0b72e337d26e2265/50701990.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # LIFE at the Stork Club: Old-School Nightclub Hand Signals Explained by [Ben Cosgrove](https://time.com/author/ben-cosgrove/) ## Ben Cosgrove Apr 5, 2013 5:34 PM UTC  "Not important people," or, "No need to pay attention to these folks." "Not important people," or, "No need to pay attention to these folks."Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images by [Ben Cosgrove](https://time.com/author/ben-cosgrove/) ## Ben Cosgrove Apr 5, 2013 5:34 PM UTC Manhattan’s Stork Club, one of the most famous watering holes in the long history of American nightclubbing, was—from its opening in 1929 to its demise in 1965—_the_ place to see and be seen in the Big Apple. The slick, sexy, smoky creation of a native Oklahoman and ex-bootlegger named Sherman Billingsley, the Stork was, in the words of legendary gossip columnist and radio loudmouth Walter Winchell, “New York’s New Yorkiest” joint. Billingsley was, it would seem, born for the role of nightclub big shot; rarely a night went by when he wasn’t on the floor, shaking hands, slapping backs, greeting movie stars, musicians, powerful pols and famous athletes, keeping the booze flowing, playing cards with the clientele—in short, running an upscale saloon like a well-oiled (and highly profitable) machine. While a hands-on kind of guy, Billingley was also just downright handy—as in, secret hand signals sent to his staff when sitting with customers. The trick? The signals had to be discreet enough so the customers wouldn’t catch on, and clear enough, amid the din produced by a well-oiled crowd, that the staff wouldn’t screw it up. Here, LIFE.com looks back at the Stork Club in its heyday and, specifically, at some of Billingsley’s most frequently employed creative gesticulations. _Billingsley portrait: Alfred Eisenstaedt–The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images_  Sherman Billingsley (lower right), Stork Club owner, plays cards with a patron in 1944. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  This one means, "Call me to the phone, I want to get away from this table." Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  "Get them out, and don't let them in again." Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  "No check for this table. I got it." Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  "Get them a bottle of perfume." Billingsley routinely gave out perfume and other gifts to preferred customers. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  "Not important people," or, "No need to pay attention to these folks." Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  "Bring a bottle of champagne." Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  "Bring a round of drinks to these folks." Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  "The music in the main dining room is too loud." Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Just a fraction of the $100,000 worth of gifts that Stork Club owner Sherman Billingsley presented to his favorite patrons each year, including a gold compact with a horseshoe of diamonds and rubies ($1,500), perfume ($200), bottle of booze, cigar clippers, hosiery, and much more. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  The Stork Club, New York City, 1944. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Artist Lester Gabba and his lifelike mannequin, Cynthia, who became something of a celebrity in the 1930s, enjoy a drink at the Stork Club in 1937. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Patrons dine and dance to Ecita (with maracas in the air) and her orchestra in the Stork Club dining room in 1944. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  The Stork Club powder room, 1944. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Merle Oberon and Walter Winchell at the Stork Club, 1940. John Phillips—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Shirley Temple and date at New York's Stork Club, 1944. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. "Sailor with date has his reservation checked under the canopy at the Stork Club, where unescorted women are not allowed at night, but are much in evidence during lunch and cocktails." Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A Stork Club ashtray, circa 1944. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3876573/nightclub-hand-signals-a-primer-from-new-yorks-legendary-stork-club/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3876573/nightclub-hand-signals-a-primer-from-new-yorks-legendary-stork-club/"},"headline":"LIFE at the Stork Club: Old-School Nightclub Hand Signals Explained","datePublished":"2013-04-05T17:34:41.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:03:53.104Z","description":"LIFE.com looks back at a legendary New York watering hole in its heyday and, specifically, at the creative hand signals employed by the Stork Club's owner, Sherman Billingsley, that kept the joint running smoothly.","url":"https://time.com/3876573/nightclub-hand-signals-a-primer-from-new-yorks-legendary-stork-club/","keywords":["alfred eisenstaedt","Alcohol","New York City","Restaurant","black and white photography","Nightclub"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4e9a8d9843500dab/6987f0ab0b72e337d26e2265/50701990.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Ben Cosgrove","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/ben-cosgrove/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4e9a8d9843500dab/6987f0ab0b72e337d26e2265/50701990.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Stork Club, New York, 1944","caption":"\"Not important people,\" or, \"No need to pay attention to these folks.\"","creditText":"Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/alfred-eisenstaedt/","name":"alfred eisenstaedt"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3876573/nightclub-hand-signals-a-primer-from-new-yorks-legendary-stork-club/","name":"LIFE at the Stork Club: Old-School Nightclub Hand Signals Explained"}}]}] ```