But there's hope for Bungalow 8 yet. It can turn itself into something useful. Just today we learned that the former Limelight might go from being just one crappy store toa whole bunch of crappy stores. And maybe restaurants. Progress!

Studio 54
Era: 1977-1980
Past the Velvet Rope: A disco-fueled coke den with an balcony full of pre-AIDS wanton sex.
The Scene: Michael Jackson, Liza Minnelli, Bianca Jagger, Andy Warhol, and Halston fighting over the last bump.
What It Is Now: A theater.

Danceteria
Era:1982-1984
Past the Velvet Rope: An artsy after hours that was more about grit than glamour.
The Scene: Madonna passed out on the floor after a coat check shift, Keith Haring working as a cocktail waiter. Lots of New Wave.
What It Is Now: Apartments

Area
Era: 1983-1987
Past the Velvet Rope: You never knew. Every six weeks Jennifer Goode redesigned the space to fit a specific theme.
The Scene: Basquiat installing some crazy piece of art, Michael Musto when he used to be a club kid.
What It Is Now: A fond memory.

Limelight
Era: 1983-1985 with a resurgence from 1994-1996
Past the Velvet Rope: An old Gothic church tricked out into several amazing spaces.
The Scene: The first time around celebs too uptown for downtown, the second time around Michael Alig and his crazy-dressed cohorts.
What It Is Now: A ramshackle store.

Tunnel
Era: 1987-1991
Past the Velvet Rope: A long, cavernous room with a booming sound system.
The Scene: The beginnings of the superclub scene, lots of E.
What It Is Now: A restaurant.

Twilo
Era: 1996-1999
Past the Velvet Rope: We did too much K, we can barely remember, but there were some stairs and a big dance floor and a very '90s futuristic VIP room.
The Scene: Ravers, glow sticks, Junior Vasquez, Chelsea queens, the '90s.
What It Is Now: It was BED, and then we lost track.

Bungalow 8
Era: 2001-2004
Past the Velvet Rope: A California Bungalow, with palm trees, banquettes, and a concierge service that would get you whatever you wanted.
The Scene: People so fabulous and wealthy you wouldn't even know their names. Until the B&T invaded the Meatpacking and scared them all away.
What It Is Now: Closing.

Marquee
Era: 2005-2007
Past the Velvet Rope: A balcony, a dance floor, lots of banquettes, tiny tiny tables.
The Scene: The height of the bottle service era as Paris Hilton, Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan and others dance on said banquettes.
What It Is Now: Sad, and full of B&T.

The Box
Era: 2006-2008
Past the Velvet Rope: A neo French bordello with the focus on the infamous stage, but really just dark and full of cigarette smoke.
The Scene: The hippest of the downtown, with artist types getting ready to check out naked people in the infamous shows.
What It Is Now: Recovering from the economic meltdown.

The Beatrice Inn
Era: 2007-2009
Past the Velvet Rope: It was small and cramped and the ceiling was low.
The Scene: Olsens, hipsters, skinny jeans, smoking, and watery drinks.
What It Is Now: Empty.

The Jane Hotel
Era: Right this second until about two weeks from now.
Past the Velvet Rope: A small lounge that opens up into a bigger room. Very luxe and loungey.
The Scene: Everyone from Hugh Grant to Kirsten Dunst has boogied here and woken up the neighbors.
What It Is Now: Embattled.

And for anyone thinking they can make a killing in the nightlife business, there's one number you should know: Even a club as successful as Marquee cleared just $2.4 million in profit in 2007. Try living on that after you've split it among all your bellyaching investors.

Regular street urchins, they are! Anyhow you can expect that figure to be wayyyyyyyyyy lower these days. Marquee's winning strategy, according to Harvard:

The secret is: Be selective about whom you let past the velvet rope, limiting the "filler" in favor of the hip, with just enough bankers to make a profit but not to make the crowd too square.

I believe the nightlife success formula now is "Be a front for illicit money-laundering," but I'm not sure. At least bankers will never stop throwing money around! [NYP]

Earlier: Reviewing 'Radar'

REQUIRED GIRL/GUY RATIO: 70/30. It's always better to have more women in a room. But it's never better to have a glut of tacky, unattractive women. There are more women with heinous style in New York than men.

DOOR PHILOSOPHY: I'd rather the club be fierce and slow than packed and disgusting.

LARGEST BRIBE REJECTED: A car. Someone once offered me their Range Rover...a new one.

AUTOMATIC DQ'S: Women with their t*ts hanging out, really short skirts, midriff exposed. I hate that...be tasteful. Don't come up to my rope looking like a hooker trying to find a trick in my club.

AUTOMATIC ENTRIES: There is never a definite...ever. I've turned away friends, celebrities, investors.

CLOTHING DON'TS: Trucker hats are done. Anything with rhinestones and sequins, baseball hats and anything Ed Hardy is so done. Untucked dress shirts are a huge pet peeve.

WE'VE HEARD YOU HAVE A THING ABOUT FEET: Correct. There is nothing worse than a pair of busted feet on a woman. A woman who puts on a pair of strappy heels and doesn't have a proper pedicure...I can't let that in.

THE KIND OF A CROWD THAT MAKES GOOD FILLER: I love European tourists as a filler crowd. I don't have a problem with a well-dressed couple from Brussels. I don't have a problem with six well-dressed people from France. They add something to the room and Europeans are a lot of fun. They are not as concerned with posing. New Yorkers pose.

The Door [UrbanDaddy]

"Three years ago, Noah Tepperberg and Jason Strauss transformed an old taxi garage (see attached pictures) into a nightlife Mecca. Here is what's happened since.

MARQUEE is:

The first club the Olsens hit when they moved to NY
Where Jay Z took Beyone to dance on her birthday.
Where Stevie Wonder serenaded his daughter with "Isn't She Lovely" on her birthday.
Where the Simpsons, Lindsay Lohan, The Hiltons, the entire 70's Show cast all come every time they are in NY.
Where Bruce Willis eats donuts with the staff at 4am.
Where Donatella Versace, Christina Aguleria and Scarlet Johanson have rung in the New Year.
Where P Diddy carried the Olympic Torch.
Where Mike Tyson, Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield came on fight night.
Where Sean Penn drank cosmos with Tim Robbins the week before he won as Oscar.
Where Andre Balazs and Uma Thurman made their first club appearance.
Where Cameron Diaz and Justin Timberlake hosted a Halloween bash dressed in an "Eyes Wide Shut" costumes.
Where sports legends Tom Brady and Derek Jeter met for the first time.
Where Mariah Carey, Danny Masterson (aka DJ Donkey Pizzle), Ricky Martin, Usher, Kelly Osborne, Debby Harry, and Glen Close have moonlighted as DJ's.
Where Leonardo DiCaprio partied after the premiere of the Departed with Matt Damon, Bono, Mick Jagger, Janet Jackson, Mark Wahlberg and others.
Where Tim Robbins brought his son Miles to see the Stanley Cup during a NHL Party.
Where Micha Barton shot the Bebe adds currently running all over the world
Where Paris Hilton canoodled with Stavros Niarchos, Paris Lastis, Travis Barker, Marcus Schakenberg, Simon Rex, Lenny Kravitz, and others.
Where Britney and K Fed made their first club appearance as a couple after they wed.

Come celebrate three years of Marquee this Thursday as they begin the next three years of milestones.

MARQUEE 3rd Anniversary
287 Tenth Ave.
December 14, 2006
11pm - 4am"

Personally, we think Sean Penn's performance as Oscar was kind of hammy and overrated. Also, Paris Hilton seems like kind of a slut. Also, can somebody burn this motherfucker down?

Earlier: Gawker's coverage of Marquee

Matt Leinart's Big Post-Heisman NYC Adventure [Deadspin]

[Marquee] is where they all come, until 4 in the morning. And unlike L.A., where it s only people from television or from the movies, here you ve got all these type-A personalities from fashion, Wall Street, the media, music, and they all come here and they all know each other. And they can talk about everything they can talk about fashion, they can talk about Madison Avenue. It s where hype meets hype, and the expectations are met, and you all know what you re talking about. It s cross-pollination you say, I ll take what this group is talking about over drinks in this corner, and I ll take it back to my corner. You look for someone to give you that catalyst to keep you going, that little spark.

Let us remind you, this glorious praise of Marquee is coming from the bathroom boy. How does he know anything about the joint's cross-pollination? Ew, as he been out on the main floor? Does management know?! OMG, someone call security — THE HELP MIGHT BE MINGLING!

The Transom [NYO]

• "Most of these people waiting in line are not likely to get in."
• "One night I was dancing right next to George Clooney," squeals a woman named Margaret who is wearing red stilettos and a miniskirt the size of a headband.
• "Customers spend extra money to be near the image tables," Mr. Tepperberg says. Pointing to a piece of wood no bigger than a suitcase, he says, "On average this table is worth $1,000 - that's three bottles of vodka, plus tax."
• Tonight, Mr. Shahbaziyawaz has already spent $900 on alcohol, including a $600 bottle of Johnny Walker Blue, his favorite. "It's $200 in the store, but it's more fun here, and when you're having fun, you don't mind to pay."
• Wednesday is the only night that Marquee, open Tuesday through Saturday, loses money, Mr. Tepperberg says. "It's filled with hipsters that night, and they don't spend a lot."
• Not all are ready to call it quits. "Do you have any condoms?" one man can be overheard asking several partygoers leaving the club.

Okay, we're not sure that last quote best exemplifies the nature of Marquee's patronage. But we're trying to be fair.

Club Stays Hot at Ripe Old Age of 2 [NYT]