As the story goes, William "Billy" Wilkerson (owner of The Hollywood Reporter) was using the building at 8610 Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood as a booze warehouse when he got the idea to turn it into a black tie nightclub. In 1934 Wilkerson renovated the place in a swanky French-deco style, called it the Cafe Trocadero, and created the first celebrity hot spot on the famous Sunset Strip.

Among the celebrities who beat a path to the Troc on a regular basis were Fred Astaire, Bing Crosby, Cary Grant, Myrna Loy, Jackie Gleason, Henry Fonda, Judy Garland, Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Jean Harlow, and Norma Shearer, just to name a few. The Trocadero was also the last place reliable witnesses saw actress Thelma Todd prior to her mysterious death in 1935.

The Cafe Trocadero closed its doors in 1946 and the building was eventually demolished. Today all that remains of the famous Troc are its three front steps, although the Trocadero's name is now in use by another club a few doors down Sunset Boulevard from where the "Crown jewel of the Sunset Strip" once hosted the most famous names in motion pictures.