Sign of the times? Huge line forms for job fair at forthcoming Hollywood nightclub

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This was the scene on Hollywood Boulevard just a few hours ago during an open call for bartenders, bar backs and cocktail servers for Playhouse, a forthcoming club near Ivar. A few years ago, this kind of open-to-the-public job fair for a new club might have attracted maybe 50 people all day. But apparently, this economy has plenty of people looking for a new (or better) gig.

Likening the job fair to an ‘American Idol’ audition, a rep for the club estimates that close to 100 people are currently in line. If you pride yourself on your ability to pour under pressure inside a club with a booming sound system, job interviews continue Thursday between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. (The calls are at Ivar because Playhouse is not quite yet ready for its public debut.)

Playhouse is set to open in mid-February inside the old Fox Theater on Hollywood Boulevard at Whitley.

-- Charlie Amter