I’m unfortunately too young to have experienced Studio 54, but I know I would have been there every weekend if I was around for it! Disco is my favorite genre of music! The many stories that have emerged from 254 W 54th Street are iconic! The first Studio 54 patrons were Donald & Ivanka Trump, who were basically unknown at the time. Donald hadn’t built Trump Towers yet, but they had gone out to dinner that night for socialite friend, Nikki Haskell’s birthday, & she got wind of a new club opening up that night, so the 2 couples headed over. They knocked on the door, but no one answered, so they waited about 15 minutes & began to walk away, when someone finally let them in. No one was even there when they arrived. The DJ was still checking his sound & the bar tenders were setting up the bar & tables, but they hung out & around 11pm, the crowd came in droves, with the party spilling into the streets! The future pres became aw frequent of the club, but never drank or danced, even though, he should have because we’ve seen the moves he’s got! But he knew it was a great place to meet people, considering all of the biggest celebs & prominant people hung out here. Getting into the club was it’s own entity! Club frequenter, Andy Warhol, would go to Studio 54 just to watch who was allowed in by security & club owner, Steve Rubell, who would sit outside of a barstool monitoring who came in & out, keeping the crowd ecclectic & attractive.
IRS agents raided Studio 54 on December 14th, 1978. Both Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager were arrested and accused of skimming $2.5 million in club earnings. The judge sentenced club owners to three-and-a-half years in prison and $20,000 fines. 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 54′s most faithful, including Richard Gere, Halston, Reggie Jackson, Andy Warhol, Lorna Luft and Sylvester Stallone. Diana Ross serenaded the owners from the DJ booth, and Liza Minnelli sang “New York, New York.” Rubell, donning a Sinatra-like fedora, piped in with a spirited rendition of “My Way,” which played on repeat during the night, as did Gloria Gaynor’s Studio 54 anthem “I Will Survive.” From a mechanical platform high above the dance floor, Rubell addressed his guests with an emotional speech. He was saying, ‘I love you people! I don’t know what I’m going to do without Studio!’ And everyone was crying and weeping.” New York Post columnist Jack Martin found Rubell in the early morning hours. “He was sort of spaced-out.” “He had accepted it. It was a sad going-away party but we were laughing and trying to have fun. We were with him literally until he took a car to go home and meet the authorities.” The party was over.
Studio 54 became the epicenter of NYC partying- it encompassed every aspect of sex, drugs and rock & roll. Because of it’s insane level of popularity, it’s been the center of many movies, like 54 & Saturday Night Fever.