Infinity

**Infinity** was a disco founded in 1975 by Maurice Brahms. It was the first disco to make extensive use of neon lighting.

## History

Having had success with the Flamingo, Maurice Brahms turned his sights to a former envelope factory on 653 Broadway, then occupied by some Hare Krishna members. After obtaining a 15-year lease on the building, he spent $150,000 converting it into a disco, with neon lighting effects produced by Let There Be Neon. He advertised the club extensively in a gay magazine titled *Michael's Thing*, with the caption "IT'S COMING!". Then, on opening day on November 5, 1975, he announced the opening with a new ad with the caption "IT'S FINALLY COME!" People lined up extensively to get in, but the club was so successful that not all who had paid for memberships could get in on opening night. Among the clientele who attended Infinity were Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager, who would go on to found Studio 54

However, the club wouldn't last forever. On the night of February 14, 1979, a fire started in a pillow factory above the club. By the time the FDNY was able to start fighting the fire, the blaze had grown extensive, and Infinity was no more. There has been much speculation about who started the fire. According to a Disco-Disco interview with Maurice Brahms, prior to the fire, his landlord had approached him about buying the building, and then sold it to a man named Jack Fein, who called Brahms about buying out his lease. Brahms refused, but nevertheless agreed to show him around, though Fein left in a huff before the tour ended. Prior to the February 14 fire, another fire had been extinguished in the basement that had been attributed to a disgruntled customer. Also, according to a commenter on Discomusic.com, the February 14 fire that burned down Infinity had been started by the Mulberry Street mob after the son of one of the members had been roughed up by the bouncers.

Regardless of who started the fire, the current landlord installed scaffolding to hold up the exterior, and in subsequent years, the building was rebuilt with storefronts and NYU dorms.

## Design & Architecture

Infinity was the first to make extensive use of neon lighting. One prominent example of this was four disco balls, each surrounded by three neon rings. There were also four columns near the bar surrounded by neon rings that got progressively larger towards the top. Lining the block-long dancefloor were half-circle mirrors surrounded by neon, and if one looked into the mirrors, the disco balls appeared to go on forever, hence the club's name. Another unusual neon effect was a neon penis near the entrance. There were also four rows of chase lights on the ceiling that broke off into a diamond shape at one end of the dancefloor. It is unknown who did the sound system, but the two turntables in the DJ booth had a special suspension system to prevent vibrations from the dancefloor from causing the needles to jump.

## Culture

Infinity was primarily a members-only club, but non-members would be admitted if there was enough room. The club also served complimentary pears.

## DJs

* Bobby "DJ" Guttadaro
* Larry Sanders
* Jim Burgess

## Trivia

* Infinity was featured on the cover of Carol Williams' 1976 album '*Lectric Lady*.