Diana Vreeland was there, and people were being brought over to Lizshe was the queen. We were all there to work really long hours. Join Vanity Fair to receive full access to VF.com and the complete online archive now. Here, Vogue presents the best looks from Studio 54. Studio 54. Like a fat little Kewpie doll. Pittman recalled shooting at Bethesda Fountain in Central Park, which was then a social spot to "peacock fashion," drink sangria and socialize, in 1969. The girls could also go hang around the club themselves for a bit, then come back with all the gossip. Anything Went. This was like a different person. 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. Health warning over viral TikTok trend which sees sweet-flavoured powders and syrups added to water to make it taste better. Weve been on this long journey to figure out what happiness is. The photographer that captured the disco and diamond dust of legendary club Studio 54, The photographic work of Dustin PIttman -- the focus of this feature -- is part of the exhibition 'Studio 54: Night Magic' at the Brooklyn Museum, which is temporarily closed. However, it only put him into a labored sleep. However, the notorious New York City nightclub encountered a fair share of obstacles while party-goers ravaged the dance floor . The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Cond Nast. After making it past the velvet rope, partiers at Studio 54 entered what one hostess called "The Corridor of Joy," according to Another Man. Catherine Opie: 'Beauty has to encompass more about the human condition', "What was great about Studio 54 was that the unallowed was allowed," he added. But most celebrities knew there would be paparazzi there, and they could be on Page Six the next day. At 19 you were one of the youngest on staff at Studio 54. Therefore, celebrities and people in general were willing to let their hair down a lot more. What made the atmosphere special, the photographer said, was the co-mingling of people from all walks of life. You were drawn to it, like a vortex of pleasure. The bartenders at Studio 54 were meant to be eye candy as much as employees there to serve drinks. New York was very, very loose at the time. [Editors note: There are two other Bee Gees, Robin and Maurice Gibb; respect to these Bee Gees. The photographer that captured the disco and diamond dust of legendary club Studio 54. The outside was really a show in itself. Mark Fleischman, former owner of the legendary space, has chosen to end his life after an eight-year battle with an undiagnosable neurological disease. After a spate of troubles finding housing, The de la Mottes, a family ensemble of nine kids who all play string instruments, have landed in Harlem. Vote up the Studio 54 snapshots that make you want to queue up and bribe a doorman. There was a fair amount of nudity. In 2021 alone, it reared its glittery head in Halston, as the site where the eponymous designer (allegedly) railed cocaine in a booth and lit a fur coat on fire. I definitely did. I was a poli sci major in school, I wanted to become a lawyer. 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 . If I can be emotional for a secondone of the things I think that made me a good doorperson was that I can really feel [peoples] energy and for the most part, where theyre coming from. Everybody just immediately went onto the dance floor and started dancing. It just wasnt gonna work. Youre there, youre there at a private party in the South of France, youre there in Vegas, youre in L.A., youre seeing all these people that you read about. I was very young. Paolo M. Miranda - busboy. People would slip me vials of coke, you know, people who were regulars. Nancy Neimeth - book-keeper. Madonna And The Beastie Boys Owe Their Career To A Studio 54 Doorman. Hed show up with Cheryl Tiegs and Christie Brinkley, and all the models of the day, and I let them all in for free. The late 70s also saw the rise of celebrity culture, and Studio 54 . 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? 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I said, How do you do? I shook his hand, and he just wouldnt let it go. People got off on that. You had a really interesting mix of all different levels of society. Yes, very much so. (Synonymous with wealth, style, power, to borrow from Gaga.) He worked on Wall Street and he used to dress up in this semi-drag outfit. And, perhaps to make Miestorm more entertaining, he also gave him his first quaalude. The Supreme Court Pauses Abortion-Pill Restrictions. The all-night shifts were "grueling and the work was extremely physical" and had some occupational hazards, namely accidental contact highs. But screwing the government out of their money? According to a prosecutor (via MarketWatch), the owners were skimming up to 80% of the club's revenue. Absolutely unacceptable. "It's where you come when you want to escape. Or Michael Jackson, or theres Mick Jagger. Now 39 years sober, Sheridan is in private practice as a psychotherapist in Providence, Rhode Island; he is also the father of one of my best friends, which is how I know about his past life as a disco lounge lizard, as he put it in our recent interview. For even more privacy, there were mattresses in the basement, but assumedly the employees weren't cleaning those every night. "Studio 54 only ran for 33 months, which is outrageous -- you'd think it ran longer because people are always trying to reinvent (it)," he said. The 25 Best Shows on Netflix to Watch Right Now. Do you expect me to pick up glasses and sweep the floors? A distant cousin of mine had a bouncer contract for 54. The group's members Ad-Rock, Mike D, and MCA also got big a few years later. Getting into Studio 54 in the 1970s was a nearly impossible endeavor. The 1970s were an exciting time in music, the New York City Club scene, and, more broadly still, the (largely) underground (at the time) LGBTQ+ community. They saw me behind the bar, and they asked Jim McMullen about me. Perhaps not surprisingly, Siano only lasted four months at Studio 54, but Kaczor stuck it out for three years. The club was even planned with that in mind. What does it feel like looking out at that crowd?Well, its overwhelming, but you feel safe because youve got a lot of security. What were we thinking?, Steve Rubell and Diana Ross went up to control central, the DJ boothDiana Ross began to sing out over the crowd. Caravan to Oz says they were picked for "their beauty, youth, energy and style." Studio 54 The Documentary - Official Trailer. Knowing his time was coming to an end and not wanting to die suffering, the former bouncer invited some of his closest friends to his apartment, including Madonna, who joined by telephone (viaNew York Magazine). Locals have targeted former TOWIE star Elliot Wright's Spanish restaurant with graffiti calling him a 'killer' less than two days after his doorman was killed while trying to break up a fight at . A lot of stuff was going on in New York City that you just couldnt believe. As an editor who worked in the . According to Disco, Drugs & Decadence: The Rise and Fall of America's Premier Discotheque. When Studio 54 opened, Pittman was working as an editorial photographer for publications like W magazine and The New York Times. In 2021 alone, it reared its glittery . Theres a solar eclipse in Aries, Taurus season begins, and Mercury goes retrograde once again. Andy Warhol was one of the few well-known artists in the world [that came to Studio 54]. 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? 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. I can only wonder, as I ogle all the reproductions from my dumb little couch: Is this sufficiently swinging? And the doorman/bouncer at those clubs Studio 54 especially was, for a time anyway, a man named Haoui Montaug. I'm going to entertain your guests. If Pittman was taking a portrait, he liked to make it more collaborative, capturing the whole of their personality in a single shot. I knocked on the backdoor on 53rd Street, and it all began. Steve and Ian, the owners of Studio 54, came in looking for another doorman, a preppy doorman, to help out Marc. On any given evening, it was an extraordinary event. 1. "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.". And two of the acts who appeared in his shows were Madonna and the Beastie Boys. The Studio 54 doorman was all-powerful. Would any celebrity get in if they just walked up?Well, not necessarily. Absolutely. It's almost like asking the cast of a major show like A Chorus Line, 'Well, did you guys really go out and party all the time?' Password must be at least 8 characters and contain: As part of your account, youll receive occasional updates and offers from New York, which you can opt out of anytime. Even after the original owners went to . People felt like the key to happiness was maybe not getting married, but maybe having multiple partners. (It would open again with new ownership, but it wasn't the same.) She became friends with Michael Jackson, wore $1,200 shoes, and took limos to the disco at midnight every night. Are you glad you quit the higher-paying job at Jim McMullen to do Studio?Oh, well, yeah. For the first time since he and his business partner (Rubell) were forced to sell the discoteque in 1980, former co-owner Ian Schrager . Though the door was notoriously challenging due to the sheer number of people lined up each night, inside there was no hierarchy. I do! "(I'd) back off a little bit and feel the vibe, and then document things," he said. He gave us nicknames: his was Biff, and my nickname was Bunky. Everybody was in awe. He had this drag queen muse. ", What makes a man? Theyd get in. It was New Year's Eve, 1977. This article originally appeared on Vogue US. Considering Studio 54 was a nightclub, and people tend to go to nightclubs to dance, you'd assume the DJs there would be close to royalty. I had only ever been to one clubI wasnt interested in that whatsoever. It was before cell phones and before TMZ and all the media outlets that we have today. It was as crazy as has been talked about. The actor, artist, and certified beefcake chats with, Filming a geopolitical epic in Europe for seven months was the last thing on the. I was right behind him, and he got on the floor and they put his album on. (This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.). *Sorry, there was a problem signing you up. Club founders Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager provided premium guests with premium cocaine and spent up to $100,000 on a single nights party decor. Each celebrity "get" was worth a certain amount of money, depending on star power. Actor Alec Baldwin worked for two months as a waiter at Studio 54. Barts. Of course, we took him inside, gave him the royal treatment, made up for it a little bit. I have heard that, yes! Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement and Your California Privacy Rights. There were people like Carmen D'Alessio, who claims almost all the credit for making the club a hit but didn't hang out with the other employees, saying that, "Studio didn't impress [her]." The one that sticks out in my head had a midget family eating a formal dinner., Ahead of Thanksgiving in 1978, Rubell attempted an audacious holiday event for which Valentino footed the bill. The next morning, he woke up furious, threw everyone out, and instead took 20, the final chapter in the life of one of the New York LGBTQ+ community's most beloved members. Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards, the twin founders of the New York disco and R&B group Chic wandered down to West 54th Street in Midtown . Feds had previously discovered $600,000 in garbage bags, 300 quaalude pills, and cocaine during a raid of the club. What was your approach to turning someone away? The busboys were running around in tiny shorts, for goodness sake. "Renny the florist decorated the entire studio with live gardenias for Liz, because that was her favorite flower," he wrote as a caption for one of the exhibition images . "I only want fun-looking people in here," said the club's co-owner, who grew up in Brooklyn long before it became fashionable. They were offering me money, and they were getting a little annoyed with me. From Ceremonias Papaya Scalp Scrub to Elixs digestive tincture. Many of the people that you worked with at Studio 54 got burned out on the industry because of all of the excess. Dressed in tight pants and high-top sneakers, she became Disco Sally, a star at Studio 54 and Xenon whod draw an audience of adoring fans as she got down on the dance floor.. They are provided in a historical context. 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. . Exclusively men, it's unclear if any of them owned a shirt. 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. Anything wentso much so that, when I asked Halston biographer and Studio 54 regular Steven Gaines for his craziest story about the club, he offered an anecdote so risqu that we cannot print it in full here. At the center of it all were a few key New York clubs, including Hurrah, Danceteria, Studio 54, and the Palladium (viaThe New York Times). He basically fell over the thing at one point, Roger Parenti says. He talked about working on the balcony, only to be sent to "fetch cigarettes" so people could use it to hook up. The law was willing to look the other way on that stuff. And people felt incredibly comfortable therebecause we did the selection process at the door. 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. Once you were in, you could find yourself doing a million different jobs or getting a sudden and unexpected promotion. So I was hired, and I was paid $625 a week. What was the celebrity culture like back then? It was my 15 minutes with Andy Warhol, I guess. 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