From DiscoverNikkei.org
Holiday Bowl History Project
In 1958, five Japanese Americans founded the Holiday Bowl in the Crenshaw area of Los Angeles. Serving a multi-racial clientele, this bowling alley played an important role in the desegregation of the city and served as an integral part in rebuilding the Nikkei community after World War II. It was demolished in 2003 despite efforts to save or re-purpose the site.
The Holiday Bowl History Project seeks to preserve and celebrate this story.
Related resources
- Scott Kurashige, "Game Over for Holiday Bowl?" Article originally appearing in Gidra (Summer 2001), republished on Azine (Asian American Movement Ezine)
- Erin J. Aubry, "Holiday Bowl". L.A. Weekly, July 12-19, 1999.
- Aubry's review of the Holiday Bowl Coffee Shop, including description of the Bowl's historic role as a community landmark.
- Raul Deznermio, "Interview with Nina Revoyr, author of Southland (Akashic Books)
- Revoyr describes the role the Holiday Bowl played in inspiring her novel.
- Ronald Schultz, "Review of Gail Dubrow with Donna Graves, Sento at Sixth and Main: Preserving Landmarks of Japanese American Heritage," H-West, H-Net Reviews, April, 2003. URL: http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.cgi?path=130841055560054.
- Schultz (Univ. of Wyoming, Dept. of History) cites how "the history of Japanese bowling leagues and the building of the Holiday Bowl in [Los Angeles'] Crenshaw District reveal the tenacity and creativity of Nihonmachi in meeting the challenges of exclusion, discrimination, and cultural opposition."