Page 13 - The South China Business Journal
P. 13
Bianca Jagger riding a white horse into
Studio 54 on her birthday
that flooded Max Yasgur’s 600-acre dairy farm in 1969 for 13 months, they had one last party in February
now flooded a Manhattan disco steeped in elitism and 4, 1980—a party called, appropriately enough, “The
shameless materialism. “All You Need Is Love” had End of Modern-day Gomorrah.” Ryan O’Neal,
somehow changed to “All You Need Is Fame and Lots Farrah Fawcett, Jack Nicholson, and Sylvester
of Money.” Stallone were among the guests that night. Diana
Ross personally serenaded Rubell and Schrager from
In December 1978, Rubell was quoted in the New on top of the DJ booth, Liza Minnelli sung “New
York newspapers saying Studio 54 had made $7 York, New York” at the farewell party, and then the
million in its first year and that “only the Mafia doors were closed. “It was a long time before I could
made more money”. This got the attention of the talk about it, because they are bittersweet memories
IRS. Shortly thereafter the nightclub was raided and for me and I was embarrassed by the way it turned
Rubell and Schrager were arrested for skimming out,” Schrager said.
$2.5 million. The Feds found more than $600,000
crammed into Hefty garbage bags stashed in the Studio 54 served as the perfect bookend to the 1970s,
ceiling. Rubell and Schrager had only paid $8,000 a decade that began with longhaired idealism and
in taxes since they opened; yet the club was making ended with the materialistic apocalypse of the Me
more than $75,000 per night. The two nightclub Generation. When the smoke cleared, disco was dead,
owners were charged and sentenced to income tax Reagan was president, and AIDS was epidemic. The
evasion. Before the co-owners were hauled off to jail world was a very different place.■
South China Business Journal 11
Studio 54 on her birthday
that flooded Max Yasgur’s 600-acre dairy farm in 1969 for 13 months, they had one last party in February
now flooded a Manhattan disco steeped in elitism and 4, 1980—a party called, appropriately enough, “The
shameless materialism. “All You Need Is Love” had End of Modern-day Gomorrah.” Ryan O’Neal,
somehow changed to “All You Need Is Fame and Lots Farrah Fawcett, Jack Nicholson, and Sylvester
of Money.” Stallone were among the guests that night. Diana
Ross personally serenaded Rubell and Schrager from
In December 1978, Rubell was quoted in the New on top of the DJ booth, Liza Minnelli sung “New
York newspapers saying Studio 54 had made $7 York, New York” at the farewell party, and then the
million in its first year and that “only the Mafia doors were closed. “It was a long time before I could
made more money”. This got the attention of the talk about it, because they are bittersweet memories
IRS. Shortly thereafter the nightclub was raided and for me and I was embarrassed by the way it turned
Rubell and Schrager were arrested for skimming out,” Schrager said.
$2.5 million. The Feds found more than $600,000
crammed into Hefty garbage bags stashed in the Studio 54 served as the perfect bookend to the 1970s,
ceiling. Rubell and Schrager had only paid $8,000 a decade that began with longhaired idealism and
in taxes since they opened; yet the club was making ended with the materialistic apocalypse of the Me
more than $75,000 per night. The two nightclub Generation. When the smoke cleared, disco was dead,
owners were charged and sentenced to income tax Reagan was president, and AIDS was epidemic. The
evasion. Before the co-owners were hauled off to jail world was a very different place.■
South China Business Journal 11
