Studio 54

**Studio 54** was a former TV studio founded as a nightclub by Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager on April 26, 1977. Not only was the club known for its restrictive entry policies, but it was known for rampant sex and drug use. The club was originally closed in March 1980, after Rubell and Schrager had been busted for tax evasion, but reopened in 1981 and continued to operate until 1989, also hosting the Ritz rock club. In 1998, the Roundabout Theatre Company acquired the building and renovated it into a theater, which it continues to operate as today.

## History

Originally opened in 1927 as the Gallo Opera House, it continued to operate as such until 1930, when it became the New Yorker Theater and then a cabaret known as the Casino de Paree and the WPA Federal Music Theatre. In 1942, CBS leased the theater as a radio soundstage, operating it as both a radio and TV theater under the name Studio 52, one of seven that CBS had in New York City. It hosted such shows as *The Jack Benny Show*, *What's My Line?* and *The $64,000 Question*.

By 1976, however, CBS put the studio up for sale. German-born male model Uva Harden was looking to foudn a nightclub tentatively known as "Studio". Together with Israeli entrepreneur Yoram Polany, he agreed to take over the studio, which was to be renamed "Studio 54" due to its location on 54th Street. They hired Carmen D'Alessio, who'd hosted monthly parties at Infinity, as the club's publicist. However, there were numerous delays in getting work started, and after Harden partnered with entrepreneurs Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager, he was forced out of the club's operation, and Polany left of his own volition. Together, Rubell and Schrager founded the Broadway Catering Corp. and spent $400,000 to convert the space into a nightclub.

Studio 54 opened on April 26, 1977, and was an immediate success, which only grew after a photograph circulated of Bianca Jagger at the club riding a white horse. However, the club was soon shut down due to issues with liquor licensing. Rubell and Schrager had previously applied for a license with the New York State Liquor Authority, and until their license was approved, had been using one-day "caterers' permits" to get around this. Soon, the club was reopened, but would only serve non-alcoholic drinks until the liquor license was processed.

Studio 54 rapidly became known for its exclusivity, with Rubell deciding who could get in and who could not on a specific night, preferring to mix beautiful-looking nobodies with well-known celebrities such as Andy Warhol, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Michael Jackson. Sometimes, even celebrities would be denied entry, and in one notable instance, the members of Chic had been invited by Grace Jones, but were mistakenly denied entry, which prompted them to write the song "Le Freak". In another instance, Rubell denied entry to a man because he didn't like the man's shirt, but ended up admitting the man when he took his shirt off. Drug use and sex was rampant within the club as well. All of these factors contributed to Studio 54's popularity, and it was said that the club made $7 million in its first year, with Rubell being quoted as saying "only the Mafia made more money".

Studio 54 underwent renovations in 1978. However, dark times loomed for the club. In December 1978, an anonymous tipster - supposedly a disgruntled ex-employee - told the IRS that Rubell and Schrager were illegally skimming profits from the club. This led to their arrest shortly thereafter, and in November 1979, they pleaded guilty. On February 28, 1980, the club's liquor license was not renewed, and Studio 54 closed down shortly thereafter, thus putting an end to an era.

The club wouldn't stay closed forever, however. After several failed attempts at contesting the revocation of the club's liquor license, Rubell's company sold Studio 54 to Philip Pilevsky in August 1981, and Mark Fleischman took over after applying for a liquor license, which was granted provided that Rubell or Schrager not be involved in the club in any way. The club reopend to the public on September 15, 1981 and hosted several special events thereafter, including a concert by KISS in 1982 and a concert by Slayer in 1985, the latter being titled "Ultimate Revenge For Disco". In spite of the club's comeback, it would be shuttered again in April 1986, partly due to being unable to obtain liability insurance due to several lawsuits.

In 1989, the Ritz rock club leased the space, and the owners spent $2 million to renovate the space. In July 1993, due to declining bookings, the Ritz closed down, and the space was used for a topless bar. After further remodelling, the space was repoened in 1994 as the Cabaret Royale at Studio 54. Later on, after a foreclosure, the building was auctioned off to Allied Partners, run by the Hadar family, who were considering remodelling the building as a virtual reality gaming center. However, those plans fell through, and the club was instead rented out for private events.

Finally, in 1998, the Roundabout Theatre Company acquired the building, and $1 million later, they converted it into the Roundabout Theatre at Studio 54, which it continues to operate as today.

## Design & Architecture

The most prominent lighting effects in Studio 54 were the 16-foot light poles that descended from the ceiling, each having two parallel rows of chaser lights and being tipped on the bottom by Tripp Lite Mark XII "police" lights with clear lenses. The club also had a few "helicopter" and strobe lights. Another famous effect was the "Moon and Spoon", which depicted a moon with a lit-up cocaine spoon, plus a sun with two rotating lights behind its eyes. Studio 54 also made extensive use of lighting effects discarded from defunct Broadway shows. For sound, Studio 54 made use of a Richard Long sound system hooked up to two turntables.

## DJs

* Richie Kaczor
* Nicky Siano
* Roy Thode

## Trivia

* Club patrons commonly referred to the club as "Studio".
* The story of Studio 54 was dramatized in the 1998 film 54, starring Mike Myers as Steve Rubell. The film received negative reviews from critics, but has become a cult hit in recent years.