Private Eyes (nightclub)

Private Eyes was a video nightclub located at 12 West 21st Street in Manhattan.[1] The club was owned by Robert Shalom.[2] It was a popular nightspot in the 1980s that catered to a variety of growing underground music scenes in its heyday. With 34 television screens, Private Eyes had an unusually advanced state-of-the-art video and sound system for its time.[3]

History

Due to the rise of MTV, the popularity of music videos increased and it reinforced the visuals in pop music.[4] 25-year-old Robert Shalom capitalized off this burgeoning visual art form and opened Private Eyes on July 17, 1984.[3][1] Steve Sukman, vice president for program relations of the club, told Billboard magazine, "We have a commitment to music videos ... and we work very closely with record companies."[5]

The 500-capacity club didn't have a defined dance area. "It's like a living room with the coffee table pushed aside," said Sukman.[5] Due to the club having 34 television screens, New York Magazine described it as "a department-store television section, except at Private Eyes you can have a beer and you can’t change the channel."[6] The highly equipped club took advantage of new technology. Their tape library was cost-effectively built on VHS to deliver high quality.[5] By 1985 the club had nine tape decks to be programmed onto any of the screens. Video Jockeys were able to offer numerous combinations of promo clips.[7]

Actress Bette Midler had a viewing party for her HBO concert film Art or Bust at the club in August 1984.[3]

Pop star Madonna had her Like a Virgin album release party at the club on November 7, 1984.[8] Attendees included artists Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat.[9]

In 1992, Private Eyes was purchased by a few of the owners of The Sound Factory, and it was reopened as the Sound Factory Bar.[10][11]

References
  1. Fier, Bruce (1993-08-22). Start and Run a Money-Making Bar. McGraw Hill Professional. ISBN 978-0-8306-4246-5.
  2. Gross, Michael (1986-02-14). "CASTING THE CHARACTERS FOR SUCCESSFUL CLUBS". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-06-13.
  3. "Screens". The New Yorker. August 20, 1984. pp. 26–28. Retrieved 2022-06-13.
  4. Vole, Maria (January 21, 2022). "The evolution of MTV and music videos - Reader's Digest". www.readersdigest.co.uk. Retrieved 2022-06-13.
  5. McCormick, Moria (November 17, 1984). "Video Venues Surround Audiences with Wall-to-Wall Sights and Sounds". Billboard: The World of Video Music: MV8, MV17.
  6. "The Environment Clubs". New York Magazine: 71. July 2–9, 1984.
  7. "Club Jocks Tell How They Remix It Up". Billboard. October 19, 1985. p. 60.
  8. Bego, Mark (2000). Madonna: Blonde Ambition. Cooper Square Press. p. 103. ISBN 978-0-8154-1051-5.
  9. Warhol, Andy; Hackett, Pat (1989). The Andy Warhol Diaries. New York, NY : Warner Books. p. 613. ISBN 978-0-446-51426-2.
  10. "New York City House". daily.redbullmusicacademy.com. Retrieved 2022-08-07.
  11. Fikentscher, Kai (2000-08-18). "You Better Work!": Underground Dance Music in New York. Wesleyan University Press. p. 72. ISBN 978-0-8195-6404-7.
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