1979. The Internal Revenue Service forces Studio54 to close its doors. Where did all the celebrities go?
Andy Warhol, Farrah Fawcett, Grace Jones, Rod Stewart, Tina Turner, Burt Reynolds, as well as countless others were regular guests at a nightclub in Atlanta making ripples in the media. What unlikely place in such an unlikely city would have such a pull? The legendary Limelight nightclub was the place to see and be seen during its peak in 1981-1982. The Limelight’s decadent, wild, and over-the-top reputation earned it the nickname, “The Studio54 of the South.” The concept of The Limelight was the brainchild of notorious club owner Peter Gatien (portrayed by Dylan McDermott in the film Party Monster) after his Limelight in Miami burned to the ground in the late ‘70s. Gatien would later be involved in The Limelight New York controversy surrounding outrageous club kid Michael Alig.
Situated on Piedmont Road across from Tower Place (the only Buckhead high-rise at the time…now a skyline of postmodern condos and office towers dwarfing even Tower Place itself), The Limelight was located next door to a 24-hour Kroger grocery store, spawning the affectionate nickname, “Disco Kroger.” The name still stands to this day, though the multitudes of people who’ve moved to Atlanta over the past twenty years have no idea where the name originated.
The club itself was designed in a manor that now epitomizes ‘80s excess…larger-than-life staircase (lined with live models striking various poses throughout the night) leading down to the much publicized glass dance floor, which, underneath was an aquarium housing sand sharks that swam while you danced (it originally housed a tiger, but was replaced with sharks after noise complaints). The club’s 10K watt sound system pumped out disco, top 40, and new wave dance tracks of the moment, while thousands of spots and mobile lights provided a constant light show. Like Studio54, it was common for confetti to fall at any given moment. Caged dancers would be lowered from the ceiling to the foot of the dance floor (indeed, singer/actress Pia Zadora made her entrance this way). There were also the “exciters” (scantily clad dancers encouraging you to shake your booty). The VIP room in the back provided privacy for celebrity guests, while the curtained booths were havens for sex and cocaine use. And if all of that wasn’t enough, there was also an onsite restaurant, as well as a jumbo Jacuzzi with changing rooms, and finally, a small movie theater with pillows instead of seats.
The scene at The Limelight came in every form imaginable…disco freaks, new wavers, prominent business folk, straight, gay, and everything in between. The look du jour was shiny…(think American Apparel shiny leggings, only with bigger hair and heavier makeup, and twice as many useless accessories). The line could be as long as a four-hour wait, and at times, it extended down Piedmont Road. Denials at the door were common (sometimes just for sensationalism). Dress codes (as well as attitudes) were strictly regulated. The eccentric Gatien would often be perched at his desk in the office reading a novel.
One of the club’s most memorable nights came in June of 1981 when singer Anita Bryant (whose anti-gay stance was well documented during her stint as spokesperson for Florida Orange Juice) was photographed dancing with gay rights activist Russ McGraw. The photo made the pages of Time, Newsweek, Playboy, as well as the cover of The Atlanta Journal and Constitution, and more than 200 other American newspapers. Bryant was furious. Gatien relished the publicity.
By 1983, Gatien moved to New York to open another Limelight, and left the reigns to his brother, Maurice (who according to Guy D’Alema, Gatien’s publicist and photographer) did not want to spend money on The Limelight and lacked creativity. From the then on, The Limelight went into decline, eventually closing in early 1986.
As a child during the Limelight era, my mother (divorced and dating a series of guys until she married my stepfather in 1987) used to go out with her friends from work (Coca-Cola), and I’d hear these stories about a nightclub with sharks swimming around under a glass dance floor in Buckhead. The idea fascinated me (more so because I was obsessed with sharks as a kid). My seven-year-old brain just couldn’t imagine it. Interestingly enough, she did date a man named Guy during the early ‘80s for a brief stint…hmmm.
In the years since (my generation and later), Buckhead has become a business, shopping, and restaurant district …a southern version of Beverly Hills, if you will…not a nightlife destination by any stretch of the imagination. The bar and club scene migrated to Midtown by the mid to late ‘90s. Ironically, I live directly across the street from where The Limelight was located, and I go to Disco Kroger almost daily. Now, World Market (a retailer) is in The Limelight's upper level space, while the staircase going to the lower level leads to an art supply store. Instead of jam-packed night time traffic on Piedmont, we now have jam-packed all-day traffic. At night, it’s a ghost town.
The closest thing we’ve had to The Limelight since its demise was Midtown’s superclub, eleven50 during its first years of business (2000-2003). The marketing agency I would go on to work for a year later was behind eleven50’s opening, and two of the company officer's were also its resident DJs, Richard Leslie and Brandon Sutton (guerilla-styled email marketing helped make the first few months at eleven50 memorable). One of my most fun memories there was Saturday, April 28, 2001 for the traveling Miss Moneypenny's party. I can still remember the giant black and white clock inspired dress The Transformer (a notable drag queen) was twirling at the entrance of the club. The weather was gorgeous. The club was packed. Everyone oozed fashion. My coworkers sequestered the VIP room, which held supermodel, Niki Taylor (who was WASTED, by the way). I made friends with the “Dude, you got a Dell” computer guy. Sadly, the next day Niki Taylor’s car accident was all over the news. In the years that followed, Jared Leto physically moved me out of the way while I primped in front of a mirror by the front door (he was trying to leave and was apparently waiting for me to get out of the way), I watched Justin Timberlake waddle down the stairs to coatcheck with two girls that were SIGNIFICANTLY younger than he, and I got trapped on stage with BT after my friend Brandon stopped spinning (he didn’t tell me he was leaving). BT’s hair was off the chart, and the stupid bubbly girls kept trying to offer me champagne. Finally, I slipped down the side stage steps to escape notice. Let’s not forget drag queens EJ Aviance and Rubayne’s fitting rooms…um, yeah. Promoters Byron Burroughs and Bill Kaelin (Kaelin is now at Bazzaar) brought world-renowned house DJs every Friday and Saturday night. It was incredible…until the khaki pants invasion. Now it’s…uh…Opera, I think?
Nevertheless, none of my experiences at eleven50 (or any other club for that matter) could surpass anything that happened at The Limelight, and I’m jealous of that generation!
If you'd like to read some of the stories from patrons, CLICK HERE.
Some of the outrageous celebrity photos can be found in the coffee table book, Disco Years by photographer Ron Galella. Most of it showcases the disco era in New York, but there are celebrity pics from the Limelight scattered throughout the book.
Great review of the Atlanta Limelight. I am the publicist/photographer that is referenced in that piece. I am also the photographer that did the Anita bryant photo that you referenced. Now there was an interesting series of events that went along with that photo release.
I was with the Limelight/Atlanta as the house photographer from '81 through '84 (a couple of those years I handled the P.R. for Maurice Gatien when he "ran" the club. It became more than apparent that the Atlanta Limelight was on life support systems near the end. It had a fantastic run and fabulous history until ....
I met Ron Galella at an event in the Atlanta Limelight and he "welcomed' me into the world of paparazzi after the release of my Anita Bryant photo. That was a trip for a young photographer, like myself, that was new to the business. I am still sitting on thousands of images from those years I was there. They bring back so great - and not-so-great memories. But I wouldn't have missed that journey for anything.
Posted by: Guy D'Alema | 05/14/2009 at 06:54 AM