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Moruzzi Book Signing at Festival of Books on Saturday 1-3pm

Posted on April 29, 2011 by Peter Moruzzi

I’ll be signing both of my books – “Havana Before Castro” and “Palm Springs Holiday” – at the Gibbs Smith booth (Booth 911) at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books being held at USC this year.  I’ll be there from … Continue reading →

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The Twist Riot at the Peppermint Lounge

Posted on April 25, 2011 by Peter Moruzzi

This gallery contains 3 photos.

The Twist started out as a dance fad in 1959, but two years later Life Magazine wrote about a “dingy Manhattan nightspot named the Peppermint Lounge [that had] quickly became the most jammed joint in town.” According to Life, “Before … Continue reading →

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Palm Springs’ Congo Room & Cellar at the Tropics Motor Hotel

Posted on March 27, 2011 by Peter Moruzzi

This gallery contains 12 photos.

The Ken Kimes chain of Tropics Motor Hotels included an outpost in Palm Springs that opened circa 1964.  Scattered amidst the lushly landscaped property were tikis of various sizes that punctuated the tropical theme. Kimes leased the hotel’s food and … Continue reading →

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Grand Central Oyster Bar Video

Posted on March 21, 2011 by Peter Moruzzi

This gallery contains 5 photos.

For my upcoming book on American nightlife I’m including examples of some of the best continental style fine dining restaurants remaining in these United States.  Mr. Sven A. Kirsten (of Book of Tiki fame) is my brilliant photographer and together … Continue reading →

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Supercool 1962 Las Vegas Dunes Concept Rendering

Posted on March 10, 2011 by Peter Moruzzi

This gallery contains 3 photos.

I just found this incredible rendering of the Las Vegas Dunes Hotel from 1962 that shows the original concept by Chicago-based architect Milton M. Schwartz.  Compare this with the actual as-built hotel that I showed in my January 30, 2011 … Continue reading →

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Camera Girl Captures Essence of 1950s Nightclubbers

Posted on March 3, 2011 by Peter Moruzzi

This gallery contains 4 photos.

The girl wandering around with her big camera and flash was a ubiquitous feature of American nightclubs prior to the 1970s.  Generally, people posed stiffly.  But every once in a while the camera captured the essence of a couple, such … Continue reading →

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Surreal Las Vegas Motels. My 1988 Music Video

Posted on February 11, 2011 by Peter Moruzzi

I shot this video late one night with my friend Jerry Stefani in 1988.  We drove down the Las Vegas Strip and Fremont Street to capture the amazing neon-lit motels  that once were ubiquitous  but now have mostly vanished.  The … Continue reading →

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Strange Lounge Acts

Posted on February 6, 2011 by Peter Moruzzi

This gallery contains 3 photos.

Any cocktail lounge providing live entertainment is top notch in my book.  But back in the day, the definition of a lounge act was rather loose. Piano bars were fairly common but organ bars less so.  This one features Miss … Continue reading →

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Dome of the Sea restaurant at the Las Vegas Dunes

Posted on January 30, 2011 by Peter Moruzzi

This gallery contains 9 photos.

There have been many outrageously themed motels, hotels and restaurants constructed in Las Vegas these past 75 years but few have been as over-the-top fabulous as the Dome of the Sea.  Of everything ever to appear on the strip it … Continue reading →

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Oakland’s Zombie Village

Posted on January 29, 2011 by Peter Moruzzi

This gallery contains 2 photos.

When I lived in Oakland, California in the 1980s I didn’t know that two of the most amazing Polynesian-themed restaurants were once located across from each other on Oakland’s San Pablo Avenue – Trader Vic’s and Zombie Village.  Both are … Continue reading →

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