‘Topless at the Condor’ Red Band Trailer: Carol Doda Makes History in 1960s San Francisco

Samantha Bergeson
·2 min read
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Carol Doda’s XXX-rated legacy is captured in the documentary “Topless at the Condor.”

Doda made history in 1964 as the first topless dancer in America. Doda’s residency at the Condor in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco propelled her to international sex symbol status. As Doda coos in the IndieWire-exclusive Red Band trailer, “I want to be in show business, and I don’t know any other way than by showing my business.”

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“Carol Doda Topless at the Condor” is co-directed and produced by Marlo McKenzie and Jonathan Parker, with Metallica co-founder and drummer Lars Ulrich and Vincent Palomino additionally producing. The film premiered at Telluride before screening at the Mill Valley Film Festival. Picturehouse is distributing.

The official synopsis reads: “Against the backdrop of the 1964 Republican Convention, a San Francisco cocktail waitress became one of the city’s most popular entertainers after making her debut as America’s first topless dancer. The new documentary feature ‘Carol Doda Topless at the Condor’ tells the story of the fresh-faced girl next door who defied convention and the law by gyrating atop a white baby grand piano and turning a North Beach nightclub into the city’s second-most-popular tourist attraction after the Golden Gate Bridge. Meanwhile, Doda’s very public use of silicone to enhance her breasts launched a new industry.”

The film charts Doda’s life and legacy and features behind-the-scenes snapshots of ’60s San Francisco and the rise of North Beach topless bars.

The revisiting of 20th century sexual revolution feminist icons has been a rightful documentary trend in the past year. Dakota Johnson executive produced and narrated “The Disappearance of Shere Hite,” a documentary that centers on the titular late 1970s sex researcher who mysteriously retreat from the public eye following backlash to her bestselling 1976 book “The Hite Report,” which liberated the female orgasm.

“Carol Doda Topless at the Condor” premieres from Picturehouse March 22 in Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco, followed by a national release. Check out the trailer below.

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