The Bitter End

The Bitter End began its life in nineteen sixty-one as an alcohol-free coffeehouse. Its founder, Fred Weintraub, was an advertising executive who transformed the former Cock and Bull club into a performance space by manually chipping away layers of crumbling plaster to reveal the raw brick walls that define its look today. The name itself was a deliberate choice by an associate of Weintraub, inspired by the nautical term for the final few inches of a ship's rope, meant to signify a place of last resort for performers seeking their final chance at success.