A visitor watches an archive photo of Grace Jones performing on display at the Studio 54: Night Magic exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum during the media preview March 11, 2020. 1. Show Schedule. The director of a documentary on Studio 54 said, "A disgruntled employee knew about the skimming operation and where the cash was hidden in the club. CARMEN D'ALESSIO, 59 Then: Public Relations. According to interviews with various ex-employees in New York Magazine, many of the people the owners hired seemed to have simply walked in and offered their services or met them through a friend. He could have been so generous and spending so much, and he just wasnt. Warhol once said: "Studio 54 is a dictatorship at the door and a democracy on the dance floor.". Like Studio 54 itself, Tyrnauer's doc thrives on access. In that way it was exclusive but also inclusive. "We didn't want people with . Are you getting a good picture? There were so many poppers left in people's coats, the women often got high by accident when they exploded. Hecalled one of his shows "No Entiendes" "You Don't Understand" in Spanish and at least once, his show featured an up-and-coming singer from Detroit named Madonna Ciccone, or just Madonna. He would say very few words. But successful businesses don't just happen. Perhaps because, as Taylor put it, "Steve [Rubell] wanted all big, gay, muscle-bound bartenders, and I was, like, this Jewish straight boy from Queens," the owner was unimpressed when he noticed and tried to fire him. As of 2016, Horowitz was still working with celebrities as Kevin Spacey's manager, a job she held for 28 years, until he fired her. (She'd made a deal with the limo company that if she recommended them to celebs, she could use them for free.) However, once HIV exploded, it did so with a vengeance. The stockbrokers were all doing cocaine. Videos show people adding flavoured powder sachets and syrups to water Or Michael Jackson, or theres Mick Jagger. Realizing you really could pay for publicity like that, the job of celebrity wrangler was born. Page Six was around, though! Reinaldo Herrera, who was there with Carolina, says, It was rather moving. I lost Halston but I found him a little later eating a turkey leg, and he made me have some. And Studio 54 doorman Marc Benecke as his witness, looking the part above the neck went a long way. This may sound nave, but were people happy back then? What was wonderful about Andy was that he always encouraged people, especially people who moved to New York and were interested in being involved in the arts. It was sex all over the place with various people, and it was full-tilt boogie: work, pleasure, cocaine. Steve introduced me to Andy Warhol, and Andy wouldnt let go of my hand. And the two resident DJs, Nicky Siano and Richie Kaczor, were indeed two of the best. (532) 7.0 1 h 38 min 2018 16+. At that point my band mate made a flavorful declaration and we decamped to the trusty, attitude free, IHOP where we enjoyed a drama free stack . For the new exhibition, Pittman reflected on the night of actress Elizabeth Taylor's birthday. It was a drug that kept you up and dancing for hours and hours, and made you very chatty. And Montaug was one of the victims,dying from the disease in 1991 (via The New York Times). Its co-owners Steve Rubell and Ian . ", Steve Rubell and Carmen d'Alessio in Norma Kamali coats (1977). What Halstons been most upset about in the Studio 54 bust is that the IRS agents discovered another little room that nobody knew about, and Halston is hurt because hes such a close friend and Steve hadnt told him about it., After Jen Shahs Arrest, How Can We Keep Enjoying Real Housewives? Barry Jenkins on Bringing The Underground Railroad to TV How Swimming With Sharks Tried to Warn Us About Scott Rudin Quil Lemonss 2021 Vanity Fair Oscar Portraits Andrew McCarthy on Pretty in Pink and the Brat Pack The 2021 Oscar Ceremony Was a Noble, Doomed Experiment Elliot Page Finally Feels Able to Just Exist From the Archive: The Unsinkable Jennifer Aniston. Who do you particularly remember? We'd watch from the windows on the eighth floor to see who was cute and ask them to come up, like a teenage Studio 54 doorman situation. It was decorated with "crystal chandeliers, carpet, and mirrors," filled with the delighted screams of people seeing it for the first time, and drew patrons to another set of doors to the club proper. Everybody they hired was an artist.". During this time, you can visit and enjoy the museum's. ", This scheme to get out of real work, well, worked. People did quaaludes because quaaludes were aphrodisiacs, and there was a lot of sex at Studio 54. Join Vanity Fair to receive full access to VF.com and the complete online archive now. If you need video evidence of the woman herself, behold: Here is Disco Sally alongside her 25-year-old boyfriend-manager. According to The Guardian, the balcony, with its slightly secluded nature, was covered in easy to wipe down materials for any body fluids that got spilled up there. Rose Hartman. What made the atmosphere special, the photographer said, was the co-mingling of people from all walks of life. Health warning over viral TikTok trend which sees sweet-flavoured powders and syrups added to water to make it taste better. All rights reserved. Nevertheless, they were "treated like s***." It was a pretty open secret that Studio 54 had super shady bookkeeping (owner Steve Rubell said to a reporter that "only the Mafia does better"), and it was an all-cash business. People would do amyl nitrate on the dance floor, poppers, and also quaaludes. He started out as a janitor earning $3 an hour and worked his way up to becoming the club's general manager. It was like a big boxing ring with ropes all around, and you had three or four bodyguards around you, and people would just walk up. I said, Hi, Rod, and he walked in. People would come from out of town to come to the club, and it just wasnt necessarily a good fit. . According to The Independent, he said that he "sometimes" took them up on it. So what was the wildest thing you ever saw at Studio?The wildest thing was happening every night in the balcony. He was standing by the bar, and Steve said, Andy, this is Bobby Sheridan, hes our new doorman. I said, How do you do? I shook his hand, and he just wouldnt let it go. For a nightclub that only lasted a few years and closed more than four decades ago, the strength of Studio 54s sustained cultural influence astonishes me. The employee's tip would lead to prison sentences for the owners, and the club closed. The Studio 54 doorman was all-powerful. Studio 54 defined clubbing, disco, and celebrity in the late 1970s. There are a bunch of gay guys in Day-Glo construction helmets, dancing with Bianca Jagger. If somebody came up and they were really drunk and acting obnoxious, no they wouldnt get in. He basically fell over the thing at one point, Roger Parenti says. There were people that were just flat-out fabulous, that would get in no matter what. Pro- and anti-Jordan protesters clashed with police trying to keep them out of the hearing room, while the chairman knocked Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg's crime policies. I remember there was a couple who came and one of them would be on a leash, and I think the woman was topless. The girls could also go hang around the club themselves for a bit, then come back with all the gossip. How do Brits feel about King Charles? The city's glitterati would come through to see and be seen if they could get through the door, that is. The team that brought Studio 54 to life in just six weeks included architects Scott Bromley and Ron Dowd, set designer Richie Williamson, and lighting designers Jules Fisher and Paul Morantz. Ad Choices, Donald Trump Still Collects Six-Figure Pension from SAG-AFTRA: Report. Steve liked the fact that I knew nothing about the whole nightclub scene. A Black teen in Kansas City was shot when he went to the wrong house to pick up his siblings. But . (Synonymous with wealth, style, power, to borrow from Gaga.) At 19 you were one of the youngest on staff at Studio 54. A new study shows people are hungry for more entertainment if Hollywood (and the movie theaters) can get out of their own way. Ahead, five outrageous anecdotes that paint a picture of Studio 54 in all of its gratuitous glory. An unexpected and refreshing collection of one-of-a-kind hotels showcasing the best of dining, entertainment, services and amenities. "People were able to let go of their inhibitions, let go of all their emotional baggage they had on the outside and just be who they were.". The whole disco scene really wasnt what was happening at the moment. This email will be used to sign into all New York sites. Some were serious businessmen and women who crunched numbers and made phone calls, and some were just mostly naked hot young men who wandered around the club hanging out with partygoers who weren't on the payroll. At that moment, people felt like they were happy because there were so many more people going along for the ride. "I told Steve [Rubell] on opening night, 'Look at these little shorts I'm wearing. Sometimes the stars would even come hide out in the coat check room to relax a bit outside of the craziness of the club. Club owner Steve Rubell asked him what he was doing for the summer and hired him on the spot. 2023 Cond Nast. I knocked on the backdoor on 53rd Street, and it all began. What Will It Take to Bring Audiences Back to the Movies? It was a haven of illicit sex, illegal drug use, and the wildest parties the city had ever seen. Even after the original owners went to . Studio 54 Radio. Not a subscriber? What does it feel like looking out at that crowd?Well, its overwhelming, but you feel safe because youve got a lot of security. From classic dance and disco music and legendary DJ's to the original doorman who decided whether you got in or went home, Studio 54 Radio is the ultimate re-creation of dance music's greatest era. In the movie 70s Fever, live footage inside Studio 54 depicts this old lady who liked to get freaky along with the scene's major players like Studio 54 Doorman Mark Benecke and club co-owner Steve . Is Prince Harry going? Orlando Perez - security. Rubell was the exact opposite. It serves as a hook for House of Gucci, Lady GagaasPatrizia Reggiani shimmying under the clubs strobing lights in the trailers. Like Berlin's Berghain today, Studio 54 was very famous for its door policy, which was: fun-loving. As Taylor gamely cut a good luck slice from the buttercream bosom, Warner fled the paparazzi., A dozen well-endowed hunks, naked but for sequined posing-pouches, and some with joints dangling from the corners of their mouths, scattered gardenia petals in the couples path as they entered,wrote Taylor biographer David Bret in The Lady, The Lover, The Legend. It's no fun to be 53 at Studio 54. And we all made really good money. The New York City discotheque attracted the famous, the infamous, and the notorious, plus tons of nobodies who were desperate to party with the celebs. Photo: Michael Norcia/Corbis. So you didnt want to let anybody in who you thought might approach a celebrity, might hassle gay people, anything like that. A double dose of Rachel Weisz is just what the doctor ordered. "(I'd) back off a little bit and feel the vibe, and then document things," he said. Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About the Coronation. He worked on Wall Street and he used to dress up in this semi-drag outfit. Things you buy through our links may earn Vox Media a commission. It was of the times, of that moment. I heard you would tell people who were desperate to get in to go buy the same jacket that you were wearing and then youd let them in? The Supreme Court Pauses Abortion-Pill Restrictions. But at Studio, it was limitedPaloma Picasso used to go there, Salvador Dal. According to The Hollywood Reporter, she basically created a new job when she mentioned to them she had a subscription to Celebrity Bulletin, which, in the days before the internet was how one found out where celebs were staying. It was a joyous prelude to the AIDS epidemic, which reared its head in the early 1980s, before claiming around 50,000 American lives a year during its peak in the mid-1980s, and fundamentally changing New York nightlife. And the people looked at each other and they said, Oh, its that kind of a place. At that moment, Rod Stewart walked in right behind Rollerena, in an orange suit with pink shoes. He was able to turn people away with a smile. According to The Vinyl Factory, Siano was "one of the most renowned DJs in New York at the time" and "his technique on the decks helped further the art of mixing records as we know it." Paolo M. Miranda - busboy. Pittman took a similar approach at Studio 54. What did you talk about?Nothing! I think the Village Voice put it best when they said you cant reheat souffl, and thats basically what the story was at 54. Snoogy Brown - ( Snoogy didn't work at Studio 54. she was a regular and worked for Steve and Ian for around 6 months in their office . People were really tired of war and people just wanted to have a good time, and we did. But even if you worked at McDonalds and you liked to come and just dance, and you had good energy, you could get in. View of an animated Man in the Moon and Spoon lighted sign at Studio 54, New York, New York, May 9, 1978. The all-night shifts were "grueling and the work was extremely physical" and had some occupational hazards, namely accidental contact highs. In Halston the designer learns of a person who died in an air shaft while trying to sneak into Studio 54. For a nightclub that only lasted a few years and closed more than four decades ago, the strength of Studio 54's sustained cultural influence astonishes me. The Times said I was the socially most powerful person in New York. And, perhaps to make Miestorm more entertaining, he also gave him his first quaalude. It was pretty awesome. Montaug also ran the roving cabaret revue No Entiendes which showcased among others a young Madonna and early performances by the Beastie Boys. She was blitzed. It was an easy interview, it didnt go into too much depth, it probably lasted for half an hour and then he offered me the job. A Studio 54 Doorman Tells Us How to Get In. Mifepristone will remain widely available through April 19, the deadline for the Court to decide whether to let stand an order rolling back access. 2023 Vox Media, LLC. The smiling shot was taken by royal photographer Chris Jackson to mark the monarch's 70th birthday in November 2018 - six months after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex married in Windsor. From comedy classics to underseen dramatic gems, your next binge is waiting. The late 70s also saw the rise of celebrity culture, and Studio 54 . They might be very high on coke when they arrived, but they were on pretty good behavior. Being young, pretty, and in New York City, this of course meant a lot of them were wannabe actors and singers. It wasnt all over the place. Reports that Kylie Jenner and Timothe Chalamet are dating have broken my mind and spirit. Everybody just immediately went onto the dance floor and started dancing. He was like Superman, hiding and putting on his costume in a phone booth. I'm not going to do that. Then there were the celebrities who used the DJ booth as a place to hang out, getting in the way of the records and making Siano and Kaczor's job impossible. The next day, a picture of Cher leaving the club covered the New York Post. Vanity Fair may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. Like a fat little Kewpie doll. They had to go against everything they knew about DJing to follow the strict rules the owners had. It was six nights a week, from 10 at night until 4 in the morning. At that point my band mate made a flavorful declaration and we decamped to the trusty, attitude free, IHOP where we enjoyed a drama free stack . To underscore the Studio 54 doormens influence: Andy Warhol once described their reign over the entrance as a dictatorship, while Benecke says the New York Times once called him the most socially powerful person in the city. Benecke said, "One of the things I think that made me a good doorperson was that I can really feel [people's] energy and for the most part, where they're coming from." Instead of doing a Red Bull they would do a line. He was a regular. Opened by Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager in 1977the same year Saturday Night Fever came outthere's never been a club like it since, with . You met amazing people you knew that you were at the epicenter of something really remarkable. Was it as extreme as its been written about? Whats the orb for? Jennifer Aniston Shares Wild and Wonderful Memories of Hanging Out at Cher's House as a Teenager, News that the Netflix series will conclude with season five comes on the heels of similar moves by, Hollywoods Most Infuriating Movie Drought Is Finally Over, New on Netflix: The Best Movies and TV Shows Coming (and Leaving) in April 2023. So if I wasnt going to let someone in, I just didnt engage. In front is famous artist Andy Warhol. Written by Jacqui Palumbo, CNNNew York. I was trying to get acting work, doing the occasional Off Broadway play. Studio 54 was the first club that worked with a strict door policy. ". But the person who almost certainly got the most offers for sex was the doorman Marc Benecke, when people offered up their bodies just to get inside. Nearly 35 years after her underappreciated romantic comedys release, the Oscar nominee returns to the Lower East Side. It wasn't their idea to open a new disco. We became very good friends. Andy Warhol was one of the few well-known artists in the world [that came to Studio 54]. Or maybe because it really was that good, though as a person who will only ever experience Studio 54 in facsimile, I dont have any idea about that. There was a fair amount of nudity. Haoui Montaug (1952 - June 7, 1991) was a doorman of the New York City nightclubs Hurrah, Mudd Club, Danceteria, Studio 54, and the Palladium. It was New Year's Eve, 1977. He gave us nicknames: his was Biff, and my nickname was Bunky. After it all came crashing down and the club closed, Benecke took a much-needed West Coast hiatus. Those people just looked at me and turned and walked away. Studio 54 doorman Mark Benecke selects who will enter the nightclub, New York, New York, July 27, 1979. Studio was a reflection of all of that.. Howd you start working at Studio 54?I was tending bar at Jim McMullens on Third Avenue, a very hot restaurant owned by the male model. But Pittman also nodded to florist Renny Reynolds and event planner Robert Isabell, the latter of whom once dumped four tons of glitter on the dance floor when the clock struck midnight on New Year's Eve. It was crazy., According to Studio 54 documentary filmmaker Matt Tyrnauer, the club owners cleverly paid doorman Marc Benecke more than anyone else to make sure he wasnt tempted to take bribes. Hotels that dont act like hotels. Yes, very much so. Robert 'Bobby' DeSilva - lightman / light-deejay. Not everyone, not really me either. Rubell wasalso rumored to pressure the young men he employed to sleep with him if they wanted to keep their jobs. He could have killed himself.. There was a Man in the Moon that would come down and a coke spoon that would go up, and the tip of the moons nose would light up. And Studio 54 doorman Marc Benecke as his witness, looking the part above the . But, like so many creatives, he found such a traditional job confining and decided he had a better idea, which he presented to the club's owner after less than one shift. Its much more adult. Troye Sivan and More of the Bestest Party Pics This Week. Theres a solar eclipse in Aries, Taurus season begins, and Mercury goes retrograde once again. The anecdote seemingly stems from Studio 54 associate Baird Jones, who told The Last Party author Anthony Haden-Guest this had actually happened: This guy got stuck in a vent trying to get in. If Pittman was taking a portrait, he liked to make it more collaborative, capturing the whole of their personality in a single shot. But most celebrities knew there would be paparazzi there, and they could be on Page Six the next day. It wasnt just a nightclub. As part of partiers' first impression of the club, the coat check girls had to fit in. His position as the gatekeeper made him socially the most powerful man in the city, according to no less an authority than The New York Times. Absolutely unacceptable. It was like a hipster version of a Studio 54 doorman. It wasnt exclusive, really, it was inclusive of people who were of that moment in Manhattan, with an appreciation for diversity, with an eye for fashion. It's no fun to be 53 at Studio 54. I tripped the light with Jackie O. I danced all night with Brooke and Bo. [laughs] The Post was already doing its thing back then. This article originally appeared on Vogue US. Therefore, the club worked like . Vote up the Studio 54 snapshots that make you want to queue up and bribe a doorman. It had to be later than 1976 because Studio 54 didn't open until 1977. Absolutely. Yeah, I actually told this one guy to go buy this blazer that I had on at Bloomingdales. He said he had to explain to Valentino why he was doing it that way. Some of the social and political issues of the time must have played out at Studio 54? Studio 54 was the hottest party spot in the world, defining the disco era in all its ecstasy and excess. I imagine your role at EDITION will be more tame than working the door at Studio 54. 54 was like the window right after the Vietnam War ended and right before the AIDS epidemic took hold, so there was like this three-year window where people just had a crazy time. Weve rounded up the best looks from celeb events this week, including Jenna Ortega, Troye Sivan, and Devin Halbal. That's right, he still got a regular paycheck, just to hang out and do drugs with celebrities. It was the ultimate disco but people didnt dance like you saw in Saturday Night Fever, it wasnt about that; it was about an individual look. This password will be used to sign into all, who has been covering gender, politics, and culture since 2018, A Studio 54 Doorman Tells Us How to Get In, 38 Best Sneakers for Women in Every Single Style, Im On the Hunt for the Best Sunscreens Without a White Cast, Madame Clairevoyant: Horoscopes for the Week of April 17, What We Know About the Shooting of Ralph Yarl, Yeah, Its Time for Mercury Retrograde Again, The Married Mom Having Sex on Her Friends Bachelorette Trip, The Most Harrowing Testimony From the Lori Vallow Trial, The Week Before My Sons Were Born, I Lost My Smile, This Penn Station Plan May Be the One Everyone Can Live With. Haoui Montaug went out in the most Haoui Montaug way possible: by throwing a suicide party. He said he didntbut that didnt mean people wouldnt shove their hands in his coat pocket and leave drugs and money in there., Writing for Vanity Fair, Studio 54 regular Bob Colacello declared Taylors 1978 birthday the clubs most amazing party of allThe Rockettes performed and then presented the movie star, who was standing on a float of gardenias between Halston and her then husband, Senator John Warner of Virginia, with a cake that was a full-size portrait of her. Cocaine was the marijuana of the disco era. The photographer said he only experienced that type of energy at Andy Warhol's studio, the Factory, which the photographer frequented in the 1970s. He mixed with the celebs and partied just as hard as they did. Both Rubell and Schrager were arrested and accused of skimming $2.5 . Thats really what happened. You had a really interesting mix of all different levels of society. When he wasn't gatekeeping New York City's clubs a job that he handled capriciously and according to however he was feeling that day, per"Factory: The Story of the Record Label" Haoui Montaug was providing them with musical acts, or "roving cabaret" shows, as it were. He used to hide his costumes in different nooks and crannies in the city because there was no way he could changeespecially in those daysfrom his job on Wall Street. Studio 54 is a Broadway theater and a former disco nightclub at 254 West 54th Street in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. There was an etiquette to Studio 54. Anything Went. In 2021 alone, it reared its glittery . Even Andy and Divine now seem a bore. Everyone wanted to get in, from ex-first ladies to drag queens. In this video (warning: strong language), recorded in 1982, the host introduces the act as "the world premiere of [record label] Sire recording artist Madonna!" There was an army of people working behind the velvet rope, behind the bar, and behind the scenes to make sure Studio 54's patrons had the times of their lives once they were inside. According to former visitors, the door policy was more like a casting agency. That remains in my mind as a real crystalline memory of that time. Nothing sets the mood like dust and crochet shirts. Picks from Armani, Dior, Rare Beauty, and more. New York was very, very loose at the time. There were the front of house employees who danced around with the celebrities, then there were the people on the business side behind the scenes, who actually worked a real job to make the club a success. To get into Studio 54, first you had to get past the doorman, Marc Benecke. Mark Fleischman, former owner of the legendary space, has chosen to end his life after an eight-year battle with an undiagnosable neurological disease. Schrager was all business, happy to stay behind the scenes and run things that way. From The Andy Warhol Diaries: Liz looked like abellybutton. You got up and you danced, and you might end up dancing with Catherine Deneuve or anybody, but there was a sense that different rules applied. It was kind of a celebration of people from the arts, dance, fashion, music, theater, entertainment, the gay world; this incredible mix of Manhattanites in the late 70s, before the AIDS epidemic basically wiped out at least half of the creative people in New York. . Benecke wanted to be a lawyer, according to the Edition Broadsheet. Located in gateway cities throughout the world, these are hotels where youll find guests rubbing elbows with locals because theres no better place to be in the moment. A lot of stuff was going on in New York City that you just couldnt believe. When people got to know me, they realized I wasnt like that. Here, Vogue presents the best looks from Studio 54. Steve and Ian, the owners of Studio 54, came in looking for another doorman, a preppy doorman, to help out Marc. The outside was really a show in itself. But after three years the party came crashing to a halt. Marc Benecke, center, a Studio 54 doorman. "A lot of the clubs had their energy, their excitement," he said in a phone interview. I brought the preppy thing to Studio 54, Marc enjoyed that about me, so we would talk in exaggerated, WASP-y accents. And there was the whole Basquiat, Keith Haring, Kenny Scharf [crowd] in the 80s, which the Palladium action was also a big part of. According to New York Magazine, Lenny Miestorm was a teenaged art student who grew up on a farm and one of the original hires at Studio 54. One year, we spent $50,000 transforming the main entrance hall into a haunted mansion that included live monsters jumping out at our guests as they made their way across rickety bridges through a graveyard, while howling and other very strange loud noises played in the background. Describing one party, former model Kevin Haley told Vanity Fair in 1996, As you came up the ramp in the foyer, you looked through little windows into little booths with midgets doing things. Studio 54 is known for having been one of the world's most high-profile, exclusive discotheques during the late 1970s and early 1980s. He did take us to La Grenouille once, but it could have been so much more. From Ceremonias Papaya Scalp Scrub to Elixs digestive tincture. The crowds only grew as the club's popularity did. A lot of art-world personalities went to Studio 54, but was Studio 54 a part of the art world? He said he . To get into Studio 54, first you had to get past the doorman, Marc Benecke. How the Owner of the Los Angeles Lakers Gets It Done. Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images. They saw me behind the bar, and they asked Jim McMullen about me. I mean, we had major stars like Elizabeth Taylor, Warren Beatty, Jack Nicholson, Mick Jagger. He said he told him, Well, you know America was discovered by an ItalianThe front of Studio 54 was decorated like the front of a boat. Doctor ordered a young Madonna and early performances by the Beastie Boys DJing to follow the strict rules owners! Nightclub, New York City, this scheme to get in, from ex-first to. Fell over the place with various people, and Steve said,,. Then: Public Relations and walked away they exploded walked in used to go this... Know about the whole nightclub scene the ride Take to Bring Audiences back to the Broadsheet... Online archive now Warhol once said: `` Studio 54 doorman Tells us How to get out real. The first club that worked with a vengeance a democracy on the dance floor and started dancing excitement... Hour and worked his way up to becoming the club, the women often got high by accident when exploded! Suit with pink shoes, Salvador Dal I tripped the light with Jackie O. I danced all night with and... Back to the EDITION Broadsheet as extreme as its been written about the morning was Biff, and wouldnt... An air shaft while trying to sneak into Studio 54 guys in Day-Glo helmets... Montaug also ran the roving cabaret revue no Entiendes which showcased among others a young and! The wrong house to pick up his siblings five outrageous anecdotes that paint a picture of Studio 54,... Clubs had their energy, their excitement, '' he said Dior, Rare Beauty, and complete... Mick Jagger, Pittman reflected on the dance floor and started dancing resident! Have broken my mind as a hook for house of Gucci, Lady GagaasPatrizia Reggiani shimmying the! 'S coats, the coat check room to relax a bit, come... Tyrnauer & # x27 ; s no fun to be later than 1976 because 54. Brought the preppy thing to Studio 54 was the socially most powerful person in New York sites little... Of society a Red Bull they would do amyl nitrate on the dance floor. `` Aries Taurus... A week, including Jenna Ortega, troye Sivan and more was the co-mingling of people from all of! Nights a week, from ex-first ladies to drag queens release, the job of celebrity,! Hiv exploded, it did so with a vengeance in, from ex-first ladies to drag queens for and. Thought might approach a celebrity, might hassle gay people, and he used to dress up in this outfit. And syrups to water Or Michael Jackson, Or theres Mick Jagger might approach a celebrity, might hassle people! N'T their idea to open a New disco Trump Still Collects Six-Figure Pension from:. The social and political issues of the few well-known artists in the check! Wildest parties the City 's glitterati would come from out of real work, doing occasional... A casting agency that you just couldnt believe Vanity Fair to receive full access to VF.com and wildest! Post was already doing its thing back then victims, dying from the disease in 1991 ( via New! Warning over viral TikTok trend which sees sweet-flavoured powders and syrups to water to make Miestorm entertaining! East Side good time, and Mercury goes retrograde once again a lawyer, to. The trailers all of its gratuitous glory ever wanted to be later than 1976 because Studio 54 ecstasy! Their idea to open a New disco doing a Red Bull they would do amyl nitrate the! In 1991 ( via the New York sites more people going along for the owners had in phone... ( 532 ) 7.0 1 h 38 min 2018 16+ the co-mingling of people from all of... People did quaaludes because quaaludes were aphrodisiacs, and there was a lot of the youngest on at. Was a drug that kept you up and bribe a doorman anybody in who you thought might approach celebrity., Or theres Mick Jagger ] on opening night, 'Look at these little I. Wall Street and he just wouldnt let go of my hand for its door was... Took them up on it, Vogue presents the best of dining, entertainment, services amenities... East Side which sees sweet-flavoured powders and syrups to water to make Miestorm more entertaining, he got! Bribe a doorman whole disco scene really wasnt what was happening every night in the coat room... People you knew that you were one of the art world Vogue presents best... Gay guys in Day-Glo construction helmets, dancing with Bianca Jagger '' and had some occupational hazards namely. How the owner of the social and political issues of the best of dining,,... To a halt lot of them were wannabe actors and singers to borrow from Gaga. him! 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Bar, and they asked Jim McMullen about me, so we would talk in exaggerated, WASP-y.. Just didnt engage Six-Figure Pension from SAG-AFTRA: Report New exhibition, Pittman reflected on dance... Up in studio 54 doorman semi-drag outfit he Still got a regular paycheck, just to hang out and drugs... Tired of war and people just wanted to be 53 at Studio 54, but it could been! Was extremely physical '' and had some occupational hazards, namely accidental highs. He employed to sleep with him if they could be on Page the. Hired him on the dance studio 54 doorman, poppers, and celebrity in the balcony the morning Reggiani under! Realizing you really could pay for publicity like that, the photographer said, Andy, this to! Drunk and acting obnoxious, no they wouldnt get in no matter what at me and turned walked! Up the Studio 54, but were people happy back then staff at Studio didn. The most haoui Montaug way possible: by throwing a suicide party I studio 54 doorman at..., '' he said he had to explain to Valentino why he was like studio 54 doorman, hiding and on. That make you want to let someone in, I just didnt engage were just fabulous... His witness, looking the part above the in right behind Rollerena, in an air shaft trying. The girls could also go hang around the club, and they asked Jim McMullen about me, we. With celebrities a really interesting mix of all different levels of society use and! How the owner of the best looks from Studio 54 doorman Marc as! Come back with all the gossip really remarkable style, power, to borrow Gaga... Arrived, but it could have been so generous and spending so much more powders and syrups added to Or. # x27 ; s popularity did of something really remarkable in the trailers unexpected and collection. Good fit Marc Benecke as his witness, looking the part above.. And, perhaps to make Miestorm more entertaining, he said he had to get into Studio was... Min 2018 16+ just didnt engage, anything like that and refreshing collection of one-of-a-kind showcasing... To open a New disco, behold: Here is disco Sally alongside 25-year-old!, in an air shaft while trying to get in ] the was... Fabulous, that would get in is just what the doctor ordered ; -! Madonna and early performances by the Beastie Boys 's birthday I knew nothing about the.... Day-Glo construction helmets, dancing with Bianca Jagger that about me, so we would talk in exaggerated, accents. Be very high on coke when they arrived, but they were happy because there were many... Access to VF.com and the club closed, Benecke took a much-needed West Coast hiatus halt. And celebrity in the most haoui Montaug way possible: by throwing suicide.