Inside the Studio 54 in Manhattan, New York City in the Late 1970s and Early '80s _ us

Studio 54 is a New York discothèque that was the place to be and be seen, as the celebrities, partygoers, and those crazy for dancing who filled it every night were happy to prove. From between 1978-80 photographer Tod Papageorge made it inside the New York City's legendary disco club and documented the beautiful people he found – in all their debauchery, glamour and cool.

“Only the famous or socially connected could assume they’d find themselves shooed around the flock of hopeful celebrants milling on the street side of the velvet rope and guided through the door; otherwise, the thing most likely to help was to be beautiful. Once inside, though, everyone there seemed thrilled by the fact, no matter how they’d managed it, an excitement fed by the throbbing music and brilliantly designed interiors, which, on a party night, could suggest anything from Caliban’s cave to a harem.” – In Papageorge’s own words.