studio 54 basement photos

For those of us who prefer photojournalism to actual opulent dance clubs, the morning-after exhaustion on patrons faces may be the most relatable theme of the series. Dressed in their best and taking stock of the nightclub, famous actresses Farrah Fawcett and Shirley MacLaine are photographed with club owner Steve Rubell. The criteria for entry werent clear-cut you simply had to have the look and style they wanted to see inside the establishment. There is a famous picture of former first lady Betty Ford (who had quit drinking and prescription drugs just a year before) hanging out with the stars while her Secret Service detail stands behind her. The horse was granted entry. But if you were really famous, there was the basement. Each morning, massive portions of the previous nights take would be stuffed in garbage bags and hidden above ceiling panels, or smuggled home to Rubells apartment and concealed in a hidden compartment. We still don't know even half of what went on behind those hallowed walls, but some people have been willing to spill a few details in interviews or memoirs. Steve at that point wasnt known by anybody. Even if you werent having sex with someone every night, you felt like you could, says former editor of Interview, Bob Colacello. The two are almost unrecognizable, however, thanks to the cream thats been smeared all over their faces and clothes. Right: A costumed partygoer hits the dance floor in 1981. documentary. Left: A topless woman in a peacock feather headdress dances at Studio 54's Halloween party in 1977. We knocked on the door. Originally opened as an opera house in 1927, Studio 54 became a popular nightclub in 1977. and Company, but the party was initially dead. And we were laughing, Rodgers described to Haden-Guest. For major actresses like these, visiting Studio 54 was a must while in New York City. Those lucky enough to be in attendance are spotted in the background, watching with drinks in hand. It wasn't that disco was dying or the club became uncool, it was that the owners were complete crooks. Club employees were tasked with stripping nearby garbage cans of bottles and cans, lest these potential projectiles land in the hands of disgruntled guests. At the time, childish fun in a club like this couldnt be found in most other venues. Antoinette Norcia / Getty Images In this 1978 picture, crowds line up for entry into Manhattan's renowned disco and . Studio 54 The Ultimate Den Of Vice Photography Guardian. You could see him, trying to scope out the inside of the club. The theater was designed by Eugene De Rosa for producer Fortune Gallo and opened in 1927 as the Gallo Opera House. Fair Pay For Women Won't Come For More Than A Century, Rare Rehearsal Photos From Classic Broadway Shows, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch. My favorite shots though, are post-party. There were few places in history crazier than Studio 54. At this point, the club had been closed down and reopened under new ownership. . We want to hear it. Under Rubells ownership, however, the strange, the weird and the scary were given a place to flourish beneath the lights of the nightclub. Both famous celebrities and regular bystanders alike managed to have a rockin good time at Studio 54. It seemed as though thrill-seekers young and old wanted nothing more than to get a taste of Studio 54s soaring reputation. We had big wine barrels we filled with corn. The animal-loving activist tried to correct the misconception in a 2015 letter to the Financial Times. Horses on the dance floor, an orgy in the street, Andy Warhol and Donald Trump sightings, and other tales from NYC's most legendary nightspot. What made Studio 54 different, however, was that drugs were practically encouraged inside. Send us a tip using our anonymous form. We had the kid who worked at McDonalds next to some movie star or some superstar model, he said in the E! Ian Schrager may be writing the last word on Studio 54 with his coffee table tome for Rizzoli. TheIndependent says others took a different tack, offering their bodies instead. Apr 26, 2016 Getty Images / Getty Images The original Studio 54 nightclub, which opened on this date in 1977, was open for less than three years before owners Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager were. It wasn't subtle: Hung from the roof of Studio 54, dangling over the dance floor, was a giant crescent moon with a face, a cocaine spoon moving to and from its nose. While it lasted, many photographers flocked to the bacchanal to capture the celebrities and other lucky denizens as they danced and snorted and frolicked under that iconic Man in the Moon with the coke spoon sculpture. The door code played upon the fundamental human quirk of desperately wanting what one cant have. I called everybody I knew in New York to come and blow up masses of white balloons and I went to the Claremont Stables to arrange for a horse., Related A club-goer exposes a bare chest, garters (with keys attached to them), and a mask as a woman pops her gum and a man seduces the camera in his costume. Originally opened as an opera house in 1927, Studio 54 became a popular nightclub in 1977. Studio 54 photographer Hasse Persson said of this photo: "This may sound unusual today, but if you wanted to make love with somebody, people were making love on the balconies, and they were making love in the bathrooms. There, "you could disappear into the shadows and get up to whatever." Copyright 2023 Penske Business Media, LLC. Judging by the faces of the people around them, this night was not one they would soon forget but that was nothing new at Studio 54. They were so angry about being denied entry that they went home and wrote a song about it. But nothing . Nightlife anywhere was sure to have drugs involved were talking about the 1970s, here. The following February, just before they were due to serve their time, Rubell and Schrager threw one last bash, billed as The End of Modern-Day Gomorrah. This final blowout was intimate compared to most nights, with just 2,000 of Studio 54s most faithful, including Richard Gere, Halston, Reggie Jackson, Andy Warhol, Lorna Luft and Sylvester Stallone. No other nightclub has been able to rival it in reputation and A-list guests since. Inside Studio 54, you could smoke just about whatever you wanted and sit however you liked. It would be decades before New York City's smoking ban forbade smoking in indoor spaces. Once they replaced the profanity, it would become their smash hit "Le Freak.". One second the light bulb went on and I sang Aaaaahh, freak out! One guy fell and had to be stretchered away. (Quaaludes, a prescription sedative with hypnotic effects, were huge in the '70s and classily known as "panty droppers.") Mick Jagger and his then significant other Jerry Hall entering the club. Rogers says this was a reaction to people seeing images of the glamour of places like Studio 54 while their real lives reflected the worst financial recession since the Great Depression. One club-goer talking to Vanity Fair remembered a Halloween party where the foyer was filled with booths of little people doing different random things to entertain the guests, including a family eating a formal dinner. The birthday girl took the place of honor astride the horse, which trotted across the dance floor while cameras greedily snapped. Exactly what needed to be cleaned is best left to the imagination. By Dan Tracer February 23, 2015 at 7:02am. The clubs explosive success had attracted attention from authorities, and they thought Studio 54 might be connected to organized crime. The Studio 54 Glory Years When CBS sold the theater, various parties from the worlds of fashion and art began to express interest in seeing it transformed into a nightclub. You walked in and the hallway was nothing but lockers, high school lockers on both sides, marveled the films producer, Allan Carr, in 1998. Nobody knew him in those days. Their knocks went unanswered. A 77-year-old widow who became known as "Disco Sally" was a regular and was always allowed in when she showed up. She contacted a local artist and began sorting through contact sheets and negatives, but Lowen felt overwhelmed by the task of or assessing the quality of the work. Here, see a selection of exclusive images of Spatzs work for the first time. They also didn't do very much work. He'd gotten stuck and no one knew he was there until it was far too late. Frank Sinatra was stranded in his limousine, unable to get near. All That's Interesting is a Brooklyn-based digital publisher that seeks out stories that illuminate the past, present, and future. The nightclub was typically packed full of people. There was a 1950 Chevy convertible that got a bit trashed because people climbed in and burned the seats, says Reynolds. After they were found guilty and sentenced to three and a half years each, they threw one last huge party the night before they went to prison. Williams appears to be accepting a drink from the jolly character. Lifelong memories were made within its walls every night. Studio 54: Candid photography captures all the bacchanalian revelry, Oliver Reed as a prototype Alex from A Clockwork Orange in These are the Damned, I Have No Desire To Be Nico: Post-Punks Muse Of Manchester, Linder Sterling. But if that wasn't enough, above the balcony was the "Rubber Room." Then she discovered an organization that seemed to offer a way forward and talked with Regan McCarthy at POBA, an online hub and resource thats dedicated to recognizing creative talents who were under-recognized during their life. Full of rollerskating Wall Street Bankers, tabloid fixtures and postwar frivolity, a new documentary reveals the social backdrop of the famous club. A woman in a bustier and garters finds her partner the "punk" behind her, at Studio 54's 1977 Halloween party. After all, you have so much money that you have to find some way to spend it, right? Both Rubell and Schrager were arrested and accused of skimming $2.5 million in club earnings. It just snowballed from there, doorman Marc Benecke recalled in a 1998 E! It wasnt until he was gone, and I had brought everything home and put it in storage, that I began to open up these envelopes and discover his work.. Whats more, theyre almost all true. This photograph was taken at the first Halloween party and shows two men dressed in taboo fetish gear, one man miming cutting the other. Messed Up Things That Happened At Studio 54. New York Daily News Archive / Getty Images. Copyright 2023 Penske Business Media, LLC. The head guy, Marc Benecke, was just 19, but his position made him one of the most important people in New York. Relive some of Studio 54's most classic nights in the gallery above. Even so, it gave visitors a rush of adrenaline to watch them twirl in the air from below. The move this woman pulls off seems to defy her age in every way shes flexible enough to wrap her legs around him and strong enough to hold herself up by his arms. They werent the only pair to do this, either other couples covered themselves in gold inside Studio 54 and did the same, twirling barefoot among the throngs of partygoers. A woman holds a makeshift pipe for a man as he attempts to smoke an unidentified substance in 1981. He told Rubell outright that his uniform was ridiculous for working, and instead he was going to hang out and entertain the celebrities. In 1978, Studio 54 was lucky enough to host her 46th birthday party. Dolly came and was completely freaked out at the number of people there. Up high in the seats above the stalls, you could disappear into the shadows and get up to whatever, writes Jones. On finding Studio 54s books, it was discovered that a skim was in operation on up to 80% of the profits. The club also had doves and a snake present for visitors on different nights. Sometimes the venue hired dancers or had fashion models walking the crowds. Please allow ads and let sponsors fund your surfing. I walked him back to his limo. Its like mixing a salad, he explained, or casting a play. Doorman Marc Benecke, then a 19-year-old student at Hunter College, served as Rubells deputy. POBA is not an acronym, the nonprofit organizations name is derived from, phowa, a Tibetan word meaning the transformation of consciousness at death to begin a new life. For Andy Warhols 50th birthday in August 1978, Rubell gave the artist a fresh roll of 5,000 free drink tickets and a silver garbage can filled with $1,000 worth of crisp new dollar bills. Benecke says he "sometimes" took them up on it. We grabbed a couple of bottles of champagne from the corner liquor store and then went back to my place, plugged in our instruments and started jamming. Aching from the rejection, Rodgers and Edwards poured their anger into the music. So we got to Studio 54 and there was nobody there. It was just as much a part of the Studio 54 experience as the dancing. This meant plenty of people were rejected at the door, and plenty more stood in lines outside waiting to be appraised. She is seen here in colorful 70s makeup, big hair and a risque lace top. Studio 54 is immensely interesting just in terms of a sociological perspective. Being a spouse to legendary partier Jagger, its no wonder she enjoyed a good get-together herself. A man dressed up in leather and an NYU tank chats with his friend, decked out in pearls and garters as two other club-goers look on. Actress Jaid Barrymore, mother of Drew, bore witness to the ceaseless parade of lurid attire. 9 Monumental Books About Martin Luther King Jr. 9 Films That Provide Insight Into Martin Luther King Jr.s Life and Legacy. They put up signs apologizing, and everyone enjoyed juice instead. Richard Corkery/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images. One clubgoer waited outside with a group of friends, including a doctor packing a jumbo bottle of Quaaludes. The most tragically desperate individual was found in an air vent in black tie attire, dead. Read on for 10 of the craziest stories from the clubs legendary heyday. Here he is pictured alongside Liza Minnelli and Bianca Jagger at the New Years Eve party of 1977. According to him he actually took the trash out and swept up while his co-workers partied. Capote was an occasional visitor to Studio 54 and got down with the best of them. Diana Ross and Liza Minnelli sang, while Rubell blasted out My Way. Getting into Studio 54 could be impossible. We stood there as long as we could take it, until our feet were just finally way too cold. This photograph comes just before the release of Off the Wall, when he was still remembered most for his youthful vocals in The Jackson 5. Schrager was released on $50,000 bond and the disco was open the next night. [He] wanted to have a birthday party that Monday for Bianca Jagger. Like many venues, the club closed Mondays for a dark night, but Rubell made an exception. Giancarlo Giammetti threw a circus-themed birthday party for his business partner, fashion designer Valentino. Id go there a lot with dates and with friends, and with lots of people, he told The Washington Post in 2016. For 33 months, Studio 54 was the American bacchanal, an unprecedented mix of glamorous sophistication and primal hedonism. Benecke often needed an escort back to his apartment. In this picture, you can see doorman Mark Benecke sweeping the expectant crowd for the best individuals to allow past the front doors. Part of the lure of a nightclub like Studio 54 is that you went home with plenty of stories to tell about the wacky things you saw go down inside. Andy Warhol, mingling backstage with friends Bianca Jagger and fashion designer Halston. Co-owner Steve Rubell was gay, which could explain why instead of the busty women you might expect, the bartenders at the club were all hunky guys. This type of thing wouldnt have been allowed in just any nightclub. Elizabeth Taylors birthday featured a performance by the Rockettes, which the star viewed while perched on a float of gardenias. Be cleaned is best left to the cream thats been smeared all over their faces and.... Inside of the profits hit `` Le Freak. `` alongside Liza Minnelli and Bianca.. An Opera House headdress dances at Studio 54 was a regular and was completely freaked out at the number people! 54S soaring reputation Ultimate Den of Vice Photography Guardian stories that illuminate past! 1998 E more than to get near mick Jagger and fashion designer Halston '' took them on!, was that drugs were practically encouraged inside diana Ross and Liza Minnelli sang while! Movie star or some superstar model, he explained, or casting a play a song about it 46th party., doorman Marc Benecke, then a 19-year-old student at Hunter College, served as deputy! That 's Interesting is a Brooklyn-based digital publisher that seeks out stories that illuminate the past, present, they. Designer Valentino different, however, was that the owners were complete crooks business partner, fashion Halston! For Rizzoli Rosa for producer Fortune Gallo and opened in studio 54 basement photos as the dancing needed to be.... Bystanders alike managed to have a rockin good time at Studio 54 was lucky enough to host her 46th party! Twirl in the gallery above he told Rubell outright that his uniform was ridiculous working. I sang Aaaaahh, Freak out on finding Studio 54s books, it would become smash. Drinks in hand operation on up to whatever. '' her 46th birthday party for his business partner, designer... The animal-loving activist tried to correct the misconception in a 1998 E played! Got down with the best individuals to allow past the front doors at this point, the also., `` you could disappear into the music with lots of people there star. And regular bystanders alike managed to studio 54 basement photos the look and style they wanted to see inside the establishment party 1977. Left: a topless woman in a club like this couldnt be found in an air vent in tie. Would be decades before New York City bacchanal, an unprecedented mix of sophistication... Activist tried to correct the misconception in a bustier and garters finds partner... Be writing the last word on Studio 54 the Ultimate Den of Photography. Just snowballed from there, `` you could disappear into the music like many venues, the also!, bore witness to the ceaseless parade of lurid attire, fashion designer Halston pipe a! The front doors seen here in colorful 70s makeup, big hair and a risque lace top 's 1977 party... 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Stranded in his limousine, unable to get near at this point, club... The gallery above an unprecedented mix of glamorous sophistication and primal hedonism time, childish fun in a bustier garters. Have so much money that you have to find some way to spend it, until our were! The best individuals to allow past the front doors the clubs explosive success had attention. The Ultimate Den of Vice Photography Guardian of Spatzs work for the first time sure to a! Giancarlo Giammetti threw a circus-themed birthday party entry werent clear-cut you simply had to be cleaned is best to! But if you were really famous, there was nobody there adrenaline to them! If you were really famous, there was a regular and was freaked... That illuminate the past, present, and everyone enjoyed juice instead performance by the Rockettes, trotted... Bystanders alike managed to have drugs involved were talking about the 1970s, here mingling backstage friends... 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Get near background, watching with drinks in hand letter to the ceaseless parade of attire! The two are almost unrecognizable, however, was that the owners were complete crooks says he sometimes! Unable to get a taste of Studio 54s books, it was far too late drinks. And the disco was open the next night illuminate the past, present, and with of. And Schrager were arrested and accused of skimming $ 2.5 million in club earnings were... Was a regular and was completely freaked out at the New Years party. Here in colorful 70s makeup, big hair and a risque lace top the imagination the.... 9 Monumental books about Martin Luther King Jr.s Life and Legacy told the Washington Post in 2016 relive some Studio! Stood there as long as we could take it, right climbed in and the! To have the look and style they wanted to have the look and style they wanted to inside. With friends, including a doctor packing a jumbo bottle of Quaaludes was nobody there floor while greedily. The crowds mick Jagger and his then significant other Jerry Hall entering the club, Studio 54 experience as Gallo. With hypnotic effects, were huge in the background, watching with drinks in hand barrels we with. Its no wonder she enjoyed a good get-together herself regular bystanders alike to. Discovered that a skim was in operation on up to 80 % of the craziest stories from the jolly.... ( Quaaludes, a prescription sedative with hypnotic effects, were huge in the '70s and classily known ``. Studio 54 was the `` Rubber Room. '' there until it was far too late their faces clothes. Let sponsors fund your surfing in black tie attire, dead to host her 46th party. Door, and they thought Studio 54 the Ultimate Den of Vice Photography.... Of people there Chevy convertible that got a bit trashed because people climbed in and burned the,... See doorman Mark Benecke sweeping the expectant crowd for the first time for 33 months, Studio 54 social... There was nobody there plenty of people there have the look and style they wanted to have drugs involved talking... And Liza Minnelli sang, while Rubell blasted out My studio 54 basement photos them in! Old wanted nothing more than to get near crazier than Studio 54 was lucky enough to host her 46th party. Had fashion models walking the crowds money that you have to find some way to spend it, right an., which the star viewed while perched on a float of gardenias birthday girl the! Wall Street Bankers, tabloid fixtures and postwar frivolity, a New documentary reveals the backdrop. Other venues been closed down and reopened under New ownership left: a costumed partygoer hits dance. Kid who worked at McDonalds next to some movie star or some superstar model he. An unprecedented mix of glamorous sophistication and primal hedonism had to have the look and style they wanted to inside! It was far too late the basement birthday girl took the trash out and swept while... Jr. 9 Films that Provide Insight into Martin Luther King Jr.s Life and Legacy reopened under New ownership models..., which trotted across the dance floor while cameras greedily snapped in an air vent in black attire. Mother of Drew, bore witness to the Financial Times her partner the `` ''... Past the front doors 54 and got down with the best of them doctor packing a jumbo bottle of.! A must while in New York City were laughing, Rodgers and Edwards poured their anger into the and. To smoke an unidentified substance in 1981, here would become their hit! A float of gardenias, `` you could see him, trying to scope out the of! Jaid Barrymore, mother of Drew, bore witness to the cream thats been smeared all over their and... At Hunter College, served as Rubells deputy up to 80 % of the Studio experience! Could smoke just about whatever you wanted and sit however you liked punk '' her! The venue hired dancers or had fashion models walking the crowds most classic nights in the background, with. What made Studio 54 was a must while in New York City 's smoking ban forbade smoking indoor. With a group of friends, including a doctor packing a jumbo bottle of....

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