Disco ‘Fever’ hot as ever as club returns
BROOKLYN PUT on its boogie shoes Wednesday in celebration of the 40th anniversary of “Saturday Night Fever,” the iconic film ode to the disco era that made John Travolta and white threepiece suits all the rage.
Bay Ridge went back in time, dusting off its platform shoes, and the famed 2001 Odyssey Disco was recreated for a one-night-only event.
The crowd waited to see the Village People and the Trammps — whose burn, baby, burn — was forever seared in the American music psyche with the Grammywinning classic “Disco Inferno.”
The original club DJ, Ralphie Dee, was on hand to spin again, and pizza from Lenny’s on 86th St., made famous in the film, was served free all night long.
“When that movie came out, this place was bedlam,” said Vito Bruno, 61, an entertainment producer who worked as a security guard and manager at 2001 Odyssey Disco in the ’70s.
“People were coming from all over the world. We were a couple of kids from Brooklyn. Nobody knew what hit them. ”
The dance floor on which Travolta, as Tony Manero, did the hustle and the bus stop was lit up once again, thanks to Gianluca Mech, a devoted fan and businessman who has seen the movie more than 30 times.
Mech reopened the club free of charge and hired the bands in hopes that disco devotees, including Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, could finally find an answer to the question burning in their souls for four decades: How deep is your love?
The movie was released in theaters on Dec. 16, 1977.
Lawyer Stephanie Ovadia worked up several of the contracts for the anniversary event, but the Canarsie native’s sweetest memories of the club were of sneaking in with her older sister during its heyday.
“This place was like fireworks,” Ovadia said. “The dancers were insane. People could dance. And you knew which one was Tony Manero. There was always a Tony, and a Stephanie.”
That would be Stephanie Mangano, Tony’s movie dance partner. The actress who played her, Karen Lynn Gorney, was at the throwback party, along with several other cast members.
“It looks a lot better,” Gorney said of the Chinese restaurant turned back into a club. “It’s much classier now.”
Gorney remembers the floors having screws sticking out and having to watch for them as you danced. “It was a tad degenerate,” she explained.
Alas, there was to be no Tony at the retro extravaganza, as Travolta and his moves were expected to be a no-show. Guests wanted to tell him you should be dancing, but even without the star, the memories were stayin’ alive.
“If you liked disco, it was the place to come,” said Robert Upchurch, 67, an original member of the Trammps. “We always had a good time here. You met friends, you made friends. It was a guaranteed good time when you came here.”