Havana Before Castro by Peter Moruzzi

Prior to the revolution, Havana lived up to its reputation as the nightlife capital of the Americas, particularly as relates to pleasures of the flesh. Raw burlesque shows and stag films such as those offered at the sleazy Shanghai Theatre attracted fresh-faced sailors and middle-aged American businessmen alike. Brothels distributed risqué business cards directing tourists to their establishments. The most famous of Havana’s madams, Dona Marina, erected a palatial bordello along the seaside Malecon in the chic Vedado district. Perhaps the most famous depiction of this aspect of the city was in Francis Ford Coppola’s Godfather Part II where Michael Corleone and his associates witness a raunchy sex show. Yet this was only one aspect of an exceptionally multi-layered and complex city.