Roxy NYC (sometimes The Roxy) was a popular nightclub located at 515 West 18th Street in New York City. Located in Chelsea section of Manhattan it began as a roller skating rink and roller disco in the late 1970s, founded by Steve Greenberg. It even hosted a party for the Olympic gold medal USA Ice Hockey team in 1980. Beginning in the early 1980s, the owners began hosting dance nights, including breakdancing competitions. The Roxy hosted New York City's largest weekly gay dance night, Roxy Saturdays, promoted by John Blair Productions, which has featured many many famous deejays including Junior Vasquez, Manny Lehman, Victor Calderone and Peter Rauhofer. The club was featured in the classic 80s breakdancing film Beat Street (1984). Many of the film's dance sequences were filmed at the club. Roxy had stopped for several weeks in the fall of 2006, but resumed operation once again on December 2, 2006. The club closed their doors for good on March 10, 2007. The Roxy will eventually be demolished in order to make room for new residential apartments.
References
- Kalkhoff, Matt, "How the Roxy became the Roxy". The New York Blade magazine, April 8, 2005 issue.
External links
- Official Roxy NYC website
- Last Hurrah for a Gay Playground: NY Times article on closing
- Retrospectively Yours: Next Magazine's retrospective look at the Roxy
