Discothèque
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- This article is about a musical venue. For the U2 song, see Discothèque (song).
A discothèque is an entertainment venue or club with recorded music, played by "Discaires" (Disk jockeys), rather than an on-stage band. The word derives from the French word discothèque (a type of nightclub). Discothèque is a portmanteau coined around 1941 from disc and bibliothèque (library) by La Discothèque, then located on the Rue de la Huchette street in Paris (Jones + Kantonen, 1999). Previously, most paid entertainment in public venues used live bands.
Today the term discothèque is usually synonymous with nightclub. The term "Disco" was originally a 60s US abbreviation of discothèque, a place where "disco music" was played.
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Some historical discothèques
- La Discothèque in Paris (on rue Huchette), opened 1941 (German troops shut down Paris' dance halls)
- Whisky à Go-Go, in Paris, opened in 1947 by Paul Pacine
- Chez Regine in Paris' Latin Quarter, opened by Regine Zylberberg in 1957
- La Discothèque in London opened in 1960
- Ad Lib in London, opened in 1963 by Nicholas Luard and Lord Timothy Willoughby
- Le Club in NYC, opened in 1960 by Olivier Coquelin, a French expatriate
- Peppermint Lounge in NYC, 1961
- Whisky A Go-Go in West Hollywood, California, opened in 1964. One of the centers of the 1966 Sunset Strip police riots. (The Miracles recorded the song Going to a Go-Go in 1966).
- Arthur in NYC, opened by Sybil Burton in 1965 at the site of the defunct El Morocco
- Electric Circus on St. Mark’s Place, a hippie discothèque opened in 1967
- L’Interdit in NYC
- Il Mio (an Italian discoteca) in NYC
- Shepheard’s in NYC
- The Loft in NYC, opened in 1970 by David Mancuso
- Studio 54 in NYC, operated by Steve Rubell; depicted in the 1998 film 54; parodied in the 2002 movie Austin Powers in Goldmember as Studio 69.
- Cheetah in NYC at Broadway and 53rd St.
- Whisky a Go Go in Chicago
- La Dom, downstairs from Electric Circus, run by Andy Warhol
- Aux Puces in NYC, one of the first gay discos
- The Sanctuary in NYC, the most famous early 1970s gay disco (part of the movie Klute was filmed there)
- Down The Street in Asbury Park, New Jersey, open until 1999
Disco
The term disco is derived from discothèque. It generally refers to a specific style of music and dance that coincided with this cultural landmark.
See also
- nightclub
- disco
- List of nightclubs
- Hot Dance Music/Club Play, a Billboard chart starting in 1974 (originally called Disco Action)
- List of number-one dance hits (United States) (begins with 1974)
- 1986 Berlin discotheque bombing
- Regine Zylberberg
- Go-Go dancer