Owl Club
Encyclopedia
The Owl Club of Cape Town
, South Africa
, is a gentleman’s dining club formed in 1894 to provide a social meeting place for those with an interest in the liberal arts and science. The members are entertained and informed by a tradition of speakers and musical performance.
, usually in the Grill Room.
” is the customary plumage. The normal pattern of each meeting comprises a main speaker, always a guest, followed by a musical item which may be provided by an Owl or by an outside performer. There follows a bar interval, when the Owls and their guests move around to chat, often congregating around the bar. The second part of the meeting features a shorter talk by an Owl which, because of its purposeful inconsequence, is nicknamed “The Waste Paper Basket”. A second musical item closes the evening.
By convention, speakers are requested to avoid such references to religion, sexual matters and party politics that may give offence; English is the only language used for the addresses. If possible, the delivery should be what one of our great former presidents referred to as “A light touch with something behind it”. The speaker is not subjected to interjections, nor is he required to answer questions after his address; and experience has shown that it is generally undesirable to invite them. The press are not present but the proceedings are recorded and a monthly digest is circulated to members.
The current President of the Owl Club is Owl Tony Murray.
, Drama
, Literature
, Music
or Science
. The category might mirror a member's profession
, though there are many members who have an interest in one or more of the Membership categories without engaging in it professionally. Membership is by invitation only. The fitness of a prospective member is judged initially by his proposer and seconder, who present his curriculum vitæ for consideration by the Committee of the Owl Club. He should have demonstrated some distinction in his area; but the overriding criterion should be his ability to dwell in harmony with his fellow Owls. So, on occasion, members have been elected more for their “clubability” than for their distinction, and this is perfectly acceptable.
The Owl Club enjoys reciprocal arrangements with the Savage Club
and the Eccentric Club
, both of London, and the Melbourne Savage Club in Australia.
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, is a gentleman’s dining club formed in 1894 to provide a social meeting place for those with an interest in the liberal arts and science. The members are entertained and informed by a tradition of speakers and musical performance.
Background to the name
It was the wife of the first Secretary, C. G. Lowinger, who coined the name. Soon after the genesis of the idea of its formation, four men sat in the twilight near the Royal Observatory in Cape Town discussing what it should be called. W. E. Ranby, the first chronicler of the Club, takes up the tale: “Into the gathered darkness came Mrs Lowinger with the natural inquiry, ‘Why are you all sitting here in the dark like a lot of owls?’ ‘The very name for our Club!’ they cried, and the Owl Club it was called and remains” (Ranby 1952: 7). Members are designated as “Brother Owl” or Owl so-and-so. The first formal meeting of the Owl Club took place on 1 October 1894.Location of the Club
Down the years, the Club has met in various venues in the City of Cape Town. Between 1975 and 1998 it met at the Cape Town Club (formerly the City and Civil Service Club) in Queen Victoria Street. Since 1998, the venue for meetings has been the Kelvin Grove Club at Newlands, Cape TownNewlands, Cape Town
Newlands is an upmarket suburb of Cape Town, South Africa.It is located at the foot of Table Mountain in the Southern Suburbs of Cape Town, and is the wettest suburb in South Africa due to its high winter rainfall...
, usually in the Grill Room.
The Club today
The Owl Club maintains a tradition of monthly dinners for members and their male guests; “black tieBlack tie
Black tie is a dress code for evening events and social functions. For a man, the main component is a usually black jacket, known as a dinner jacket or tuxedo...
” is the customary plumage. The normal pattern of each meeting comprises a main speaker, always a guest, followed by a musical item which may be provided by an Owl or by an outside performer. There follows a bar interval, when the Owls and their guests move around to chat, often congregating around the bar. The second part of the meeting features a shorter talk by an Owl which, because of its purposeful inconsequence, is nicknamed “The Waste Paper Basket”. A second musical item closes the evening.
By convention, speakers are requested to avoid such references to religion, sexual matters and party politics that may give offence; English is the only language used for the addresses. If possible, the delivery should be what one of our great former presidents referred to as “A light touch with something behind it”. The speaker is not subjected to interjections, nor is he required to answer questions after his address; and experience has shown that it is generally undesirable to invite them. The press are not present but the proceedings are recorded and a monthly digest is circulated to members.
The current President of the Owl Club is Owl Tony Murray.
Membership
Members are classified into one or more of five "faculties" which best describe their main interest: ArtArt
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
, Drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
, Literature
Literature
Literature is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources...
, Music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
or Science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
. The category might mirror a member's profession
Profession
A profession is a vocation founded upon specialized educational training, the purpose of which is to supply disinterested counsel and service to others, for a direct and definite compensation, wholly apart from expectation of other business gain....
, though there are many members who have an interest in one or more of the Membership categories without engaging in it professionally. Membership is by invitation only. The fitness of a prospective member is judged initially by his proposer and seconder, who present his curriculum vitæ for consideration by the Committee of the Owl Club. He should have demonstrated some distinction in his area; but the overriding criterion should be his ability to dwell in harmony with his fellow Owls. So, on occasion, members have been elected more for their “clubability” than for their distinction, and this is perfectly acceptable.
Opening hours and reciprocal arrangements
The Club meets on the third Tuesday of each month, with the exception of January; in December, to avoid a “bump” with the Christmas meeting of the Oxford and Cambridge Club, the meeting may take place on the previous Tuesday. Meetings commence at 8.00 p.m., preceded by a dinner (6.30 p.m. for 7.00 p.m.) and last until about 10.30 p.m.The Owl Club enjoys reciprocal arrangements with the Savage Club
Savage Club
The Savage Club, founded in 1857 is a gentlemen's club in London.-History:Many and varied are the stories that have been told about the first meeting of the Savage Club, of the precise purposes for which it was formed, and of its christening...
and the Eccentric Club
Eccentric Club
The Eccentric Club was the name of several London gentlemen's clubs, the best-known of which existed between 1890 and 1986. For much of its history it was based at 9–11 Ryder Street, St James's.-First Eccentric Club:...
, both of London, and the Melbourne Savage Club in Australia.