Saturday Night Fever (1977) - Classic Disco Movie DVD - Perfect for 70s Dance Parties & Retro Movie Nights

This film has great significance for me. When I saw it in the theater in 1977, I was enthralled with the club life style. Little did I know that in late 78-79 I would be put into the life. A business man (Rock Promoter, Concerts) by the name of Harry Arnold and his wife had taken a Trip to New York City that year. And went to Studio 54 and yes because of his background in entertainment was given entrance. He and his wife fell in love with the idea of the club and decided to build one in Southern Oregon. Because of the Studio 54 influence they named it Manhattan Rose. Needing a second job and not knowing what I was walking into at the time applied. I was interviewed by Mr. Arnold himself and was hired for the front door security and ID checker. Had to ware all black pants, vest and collared shirt. Part of my job was to enforce the dress code no t-shirts, tank tops, Levis, gym shoes, baseball caps, or cowboy hats. Ever tell a cowboy he had to check his hat, and yes we had a coat room with a young lady at the helm. Like I said the place was meant to reflect Studio 54 and have class. When you walked through the double door entrance you could feel the music vibe immediately. You would walk up the 8 foot wide by 15 foot long ramp. then look left and you would see me just a few feet away. Manhattan as I called it boasted to have the biggest dance floor between Sacramento CA and Portland Oregon ("Earthquake Ethels'). It was 25 feet across by 90 feet long. It had 8 four foot high topline speakers on the floor and 8 hung in the ceiling. Seating was all swivel high back black leather chairs. The lighting was somewhat automated remember its the 70's and operated by the DJ's. The light board in the booth was about 2 feet wide and 6 feet long. I have never seen a lighting system in a club even come close to this one since. We had 3 turntables and a great music collection albums of course. Even brought in a few of mine to add to it. We even had the Chippendales at the club a few times but they were expensive. We did go with groups that were a little more reasonable. We also had a comedy night at least once a week. I got to break the DJ's once in a while and operate the booth. But Mr. Arnold did not like me to come off the door for that length of time. Now the people between 16 and 20 needed a place as well. So Harry Arnold built another club just for them and only 2 blocks away. The name of that club was "Fat City" and it was always packed. Drinks were soft drinks made to look like bar drinks. I went over a couple of times to check the crews. That was ok for a while until someone let it out that I operated the door at Manhattan Rose. That's when the bribes stated to come across. So I needed to stop going over because of that. Mostly from young ladies, that would even show up at Manhattan. The nightlife was great just like in the movie only better, because it was real. The "After Hours Parties" were truly unbelievable so much so I can't divulge on this site any details. I worked there from 1979 until 1985, but even after that I was given special access at many places in town. So this movie has some special triggers for me. Mr. Arnold would even ask me to light the dance floor as he put it. Which was to choose someone and dance to get things started. Or just dance by myself if I wanted to which was always better since I could easily walk away. All of us had to be able to dance well. So when I hear the beat of the movie I just get this big grin on my face and all the memories come flooding back. This film is fantastic even though the club in the film is on the small side. But the mood, crowd sounds, and of course the music there was no experience like it. Thanks For The Memories Again. - JIMI