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Steve Paul's The Scene

The Scene was a trendy Manhattan nightclub founded by Steve Paul who had been the publicist for the Peppermint Lounge. (POP120) In August of 1965 Warhol had projected BEAUTY NO. 2 starring Edie Sedgwick on one of it's walls at a party while the real Edie "wearing a blue surfer's shirt over black panties and mesh tights, frugged, jerked and twisted" on the dance floor. It was at The Scene that Edie also met Mick Jagger. (DB210)

Susan Pile recalled going to The Scene in January 1967 when she was working for Warhol while a student at Barnard College.

Susan Pile [from a letter to Ed Walsh]:

"Mary [Woronov] wasn’t at the Scene that night, so Gerard asked me to dance along with the multitude of groovers. As the Velvets were taking the stage, I told Gerard it was time for him to captivate, but - no - since he wasn’t being paid for dancing, he wasn’t about to bless them with a dying swan and I must continue to rock out with him.

OK, so we assume the dance floor in preparation for hot bopping when suddenly strobelights flick on, audience hushes--”Venus in Furs”--and Gerard pulls out the whip.

Yes, flagellation unmitigated, unpredicted, undesired. I was acutely embarrassed and flew into a cab back to school as soon as I found a replacement..." (S)

Andy Warhol's art assistant, Ronnie Cutrone, recalled the last time that The Velvet Underground played as part of the Exploding Plastic Inevitable - a performance which took place at The Scene:

Ronnie Cutrone:

"The last time we played as the EPI (without Nico, who had returned to Ibiza) was in May 1967 at Steve Paul's Scene where Tiny Tim used to hang out and Jim Morrison played. Before this people came to watch The EPI dance and play, they were entertained, and got a show. But when we played at the Scene I remember Gerard, Mary and I were dancing and the audience came on stage with us and totally took over... Everybody became part of the EPI. It was a bit sad, because we couldn't keep our glory on stage, but we were happy because what The EPI intended to do had worked - everybody was liberated to be as sick as we were acting! All of a sudden there were no dancers, there was no show; the music had just taken everybody at that point. That was the last time I danced, and I think the last time Mary and Gerard danced. I mean maybe they tried futilely after that, but it didn't work." (UT124)

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