Christmas Cheer
Wishing all of Clubland USA's readership a happy and joyous holiday season
Holiday cheer is among us here at Clubland USA — and anyone that has a zero tolerance policy for killjoys.
Clubland USA has been busy at work on editorial holiday preparing for the exciting year ahead complete with exclusive Q&As, captivating feature articles, more Chatter episodes, a new X account (yes, you read that correctly) and even more exciting stories from Clubland in the United States.
Outside of Clubland USA, we have been busy mending our affairs before the close of the year sans as many club martinis as we’d like. Yours truly has been bringing in Hannukah between friends in California and family in Mississippi. (Yes, I’m glad to have boosted the Jewish population even if it albeit temporary!)
Taking a break from our editorial holiday, Ishaan Jajodia writes about the mysterious Club Holiday Fund and why you shouldn’t ignore those emails. Doing so means that you might miss the chance to thank those who make your Club experience so special.
We’re also bringing in the Christmas spirit in the “clubby” fashion with a republication of Ishaan’s essay, Metropolitan and the Club Holiday Party.
From Clubland USA to you and your family, we wish you a Merry Christmas, Happy Hannukah and the warmest of season’s greetings to you and your family during this season. - LR
Holiday Dues and Gratuities
The easiest way to spread holiday cheer in Clubland
Weeks ago, a letter from the Club was probably written to you requesting contributions to a Holiday Fund for the staff. In Clubland, this annual financial event is just as inevitable as tax season albeit separated by a quarter.
It’s very important that this letter (or email) does not wind up in your spam folder — for the sake of your Club’s staff and your experience in the year ahead.
Clubs generally maintain no-tipping policies, but some club managers will look the other way when members give to certain beloved members of the staff around holiday time.
If you’re going to do this (which we, as Clubland USA, are obliged to discourage), be discreet. Don’t advertise it, but know that your contribution will be thanked and appreciated. - IJ
To read more of this free article by Ishaan Jajodia, please click here.
Metropolitan and the Club Holiday Party
Another reminder of pomp and circumstance came during my annual rewatch of Whit Stillman’s Metropolitan (1989) which details the going-abouts of a group of preppy young debutantes and escorts during the debutante ball season in Manhattan. Much can be said about the movie, and almost everything that needs to be said on the matter has probably already been. Pomp and circumstance in a world that is rapidly changing is the true theme of the movie. It was almost as if the revolution of the earth around the sun dictated that the holiday season be one of dressing up, socialising, and long nights of conversation and intoxication.
The last hope for pomp and circumstance lies in Clubland. New York’s University Club annual holiday dance, which yours truly was spotted at in a shawl-collar tuxedo, stipulates both good dress and dancing to the tunes of a chamber orchestra, a reprise for Stillman’s Metropolitan, and perhaps the last of the great club holiday parties. Boston’s Union Club requires its members and guests to adhere to the dress code while prohibiting electronic devices from everywhere but the dedicated study, nicely cordoned off in a back room. No sneakers and laptops, puh-lease. New York’s Union Club is similarly pukka, and ties aren’t optional, much like University Club.
To read more of this holiday classic free of charge, please click here.
Please enjoy this special holiday edition of Clubland USA. We look forward to returning to regularly scheduled editorial programming in 2026.