Cowboy Palace Saloon To Reopen Friday

CHATSWORTH, CA — Giddyup! The Cowboy Palace Saloon in Chatsworth, an Old West saloon where people square dance to live fiddle music and/or film movies and music videos, announced that it is reopening after more than a year of closure.

The saloon announced its reopening Tuesday on its social media that it would reopen Friday but close at 6 p.m. - historically the time when the first leather-booted patrons just began to swagger in - and is limited to 25 percent capacity, about 40 people. Thick mustaches will need to be covered up by masks (except when eating or drinking), and no live music or dance classes are being offered yet, per yellow tier guidelines related to bars.

“It’s a start!!!!” the saloon said.

The Facebook announcement generated a bevvy of excited comments and shares. “The honky tonk is coming back!” one user wrote.

“Yahooooooo!” wrote another.

It is unclear whether partner dancing will be allowed. Patrons are still required to keep six feet apart, which seems like a de facto ban on any sort of close dancing. One user asked if dancing would be allowed, to which the moderator replied, “I didn’t mention dancing...and I’ll leave it that,” suggesting they don’t have a clear policy, or are willing to look the other way. A representative from the Cowboy Saloon told Patch that yellow tier rules allow dance classes at 50% capacity, but they have not made plans to bring back dance classes yet.

What is currently the Palace was built in 1928, and opened as a fine dining restaurant and country western music venue in 1954, owner Chris Johnson told Patch back in May. A studio stuntman named Bill Ryan who owned a ranch in Chatsworth bought the building and renamed it Wild Bill's in the late 60s, and later renamed it Ryan's Roundup. In the late 70s or early 80s, it was renamed JR's Cowboy Palace, and assumed its current name in about 1985. Johnson, a singer and guitar player who also owns a North Hollywood recording studio and a production storage warehouse, bought the club in 2015 after performing there for many years.

As one of the few spots in Los Angeles that can double as an Old West movie set, the Cowboy Palace has served as the backdrop to hundreds of music videos and films, from Keith Urban to Blake Shelton to a scene in "Terminator." Country star Toby Keith even wrote the 2003 song “I Love This Bar” about the Cowboy Palace.

Until COVID, it was filled to capacity with a fascinating cross-section of Angelenos. "We have bands seven nights a week, but it has a built-in dance audience because we teach all the various couples dances: we teach the waltz, the cha-cha, swing dancing," Johnson said. "We have the daytime drinkers, the after work guys, the pool league, we got cowboys, bikers, kids from college looking to hook up on the weekends, and we got seniors in there on Sundays."

COVID hit the saloon hard, and for a time it looked like it would have to close. It closed down in March, and was still on the hook for rent, utilities, insurance, and other expenses, despite not bringing in any new revenue. But loans, lease renegotiations, and a series of fundraisers - including a drive-thru, parking lot party, and one on GoFundMe that raised $19,849 - it looks like Friday will indeed be “just a start.”

GoFundMe is a Patch promotional partner.