Plato's Retreat

[Lockbar]

I went to Platos II in Ft. Lauderdale about ten years ago. It was really wild. Wish I could have seen the NY Platos when it was open.

[silverbullnyc]

Before it was called Platos Retreat it was THE CONTINENTAL BATHS which is where legendary House Music djs Frankie Knuckles n Larry Levan got there starts.

[TVGirl64]

@silverbullnyc WRONG, The Continental Baths was for gay men, Plato's Retreat was for heterosexual couples and women.

[silverbullnyc]

@TVGirl64 ,

Im not disputing the gay/hetero aspect, im simply stating that before it was platos retreat it was the continental baths which was gay and closed in 1977 but in early 70s was where Frankie Knuckles and Larry Levan were spinning music before moving on with their careers as i stated in my post.

[LietMonty]

her voice is pretty, reminds me phoebe legere

[mediamadman747]

I hear the buffet featured all the cold-cuts and potatoe salad you could eat.

[beecharmer32]

Would love to visit this era of Plato's Retreat.

[MichaelHansenFUN]

isnt this on MIDNIGHT BLUE or AMERICAN SWING?

[BreezesofConey]

So it's like a bath house for straight people! Reminds me of the Continental Baths.

[Trekker1801]

Don't forget about the infamous "film" on the surface of the heated pool. Fun for all!

[MediaWatchDawg]

According to the documentary "American Swing," it even had potatoe salad.

It's now a parking garage.

[aduntoridas80]

It has been mentoined in "Bored to Death" (s02e02) too. I saw the documentary, I needed 10 years more to be born, but... it looks nice, hehehe...

[kovacenko]

fine  c 18 mem,ber romania

[bjroberts65]

I left plenty of DNA in that place.

[A64thProduction]

In the Documentary, they say guys would even hook up with their sisters. Nice!

[A64thProduction]

This place was mentioned in Summer of Sam, by Spike Lee. The Documentary of the place is hilarious.

[stargate121]

Would've made a great Aaron Spelling tv series.

[reinacarolina]

Why are they cutting the auido when telling the contact phones numbers and blurring the images when showing them???

The palce does no exit enymore, it is actually a garage!!! An if it was a secret thing going on under the garage... It does not sound logical... Come on people!!!

[ruthenasia]

@reinacarolina someone probably now has the number that it used to be.

[jamcarolita]

@ruthenasia yeahm the parking place has it! What would be the problem?

[stargate121]

What was that number again? BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP???

[drunkenstooge]

Can you imagine how disgusting the pool and mattresses were? You couldn't pay me to lay down on one of those mattresses.

[CodyC6969]

I smell AIDS...

[WendelThompkins]

what I find funny is the natural inclination of mankind to point out the "wrongness" of others and the "rightness" of self. Check out the posts below. If you came to the video it is likely because you saw the documentary (or potentially were there) and wanted more. Why fight about it?? Who cares really??? If the lifestyle works for you - enjoy... If it doesn't - that's ok too. No need to insult and degrade each other. No one asked for permission any way...

[EMCEMITCH]

i worked there in 1978 and at the 34th establishment in 1982

[d4seasons]

@EMCEMITCH oh wow. i'm sure you had fun. i'm a single 54 year old man. i would still want to go to a swing club but i know any places now that admit single guys in new york. i need to travel. any advice ? thanks.

[talltom1973]

Heated swimming pool, no doubt a cesspool of bacteria.  Probably a nice film on the surface.

[Monarch730]

and like most things of this nature and other similar stories...The man that opened this place died pretty early, broke, and without a dime.

[sebbbo77]

COCK AND PUSSY .....

A simple yet effective philosophy

[xxxmichaelking]

. . it does or not isn't the point--the point if you want to state your opinion that this kind of establishment is wrong, great . . . knock yourself out. but do it with intelligent arguments, not by twisting facts. in the three posts it took me to write this, i haven't even stated my own position, btw . . . all i did was correct the misinformation in your post.

can you admit that people who didn't see the documentary are better informed after reading this rather of your post?

[xxxmichaelking]

. . was ANTI-adultery--a place you could go WITH YOUR SPOUSE, the both of you consenting, so as NOT to be cheating, or hiding something, from him or her. in fact it was a place FOR COUPLES ONLY . . . *not* for singles. if you were single you weren't even admitted.

all of this is made clear in the documentary you refer to as well, by the way, as is the fact that what levenson said was that the CHLORINE in the water killed the aids virus . . . not the damn soap (?!).  whether (continued next)

[killbill402]

I watched a documentary about this place and in the documentary a guy said the madrass rom( a place where many people had orgy sex) was the moraly hardest rom for people. I noticed he used the word moraly. People who engage in activities like this are fighting their own conscience. Adultery is wrong. The guy who owned the place said that it was scientificaly proven the soap in platos retreat killed AIDS, he didn't care about other people.

[xxxmichaelking]

@killbill402, you need to get your facts straight; you are doing a disservice to the people reading your post wanting to actually learn something. first, it's the "mattresses" room, i.e. a room with mattresses on the floor ( i have no idea what you think a "madrass" room might be). and yes, it was the "hardest" room to get over one's natural shyness, not because of "adultery", but because of the sheer number of people in it having sex at once. the whole premise of plato's (continued next)

[killbill402]

What you call the natural shyness is in this case the conscience. It was the house of immorality.

[xxxmichaelking]

well we could debate that point, killbill402 . . . we could look at other examples . . . eg. someone who may have a natural aversion to roller coasters which can then be erased by joining in and doing it, i don't know . . . heck you may even be completely right, man . . . 'cause as i said my point wasn't whether it was right or not . . . in fact note for the record i *still* haven't made my position known on this issue . . . my point was to take a bit more time reporting the facts straight.

[elevatormechanic]

@killbill402 the bible is a book of jokes

[WatchVenusSpa]

Midnight Blue was awesome for the commercials alone. When you're advertising "that great disco beat" you aren't gonna last all that long.

That said, to be upper middle class living in Manhatten must have been the cat's ass back then. What a glorious era!

[EnriqueH]

Is there a longer version of the song that's played during this video?

[labloomfie]

DAMN thats the good old days, gotta love it

[dino328]

New York is a cesspool of rejects of society....still is and always will be.

[jbmayer]

it also created some of the most important minds of all time. every city has their scum, including yours.

[thatgirlinnewyork]

sez you in...sioux city?? please.

[killbill402]

I just heard about this in a documentary. It was a sinnfull wrong place. I couldn't belive it. Thanks to AIDS this place was stopped. People who got AIDS can thank them selves.

[manhattan85]

Most of the people here probably weren't that attractive, which clearly takes everything away from it. Most good orgies take place in private residences with beautiful, rich people, not unlike myself.

[flinkin]

See you this Saturday night, Irving?

[Keyo717]

Just think of all the fun we'd be having now had they not created AIDS! Thats right CREATED!

[livenonli]

When I think back to those days, I hear the Eurythmics song..."Sweet Dreams" (are made of this)......Interesting place

[colosseum120]

Does anyone know the the name of the artist for the Platos Retreat song? Not the song thats on this video... but the song they used to play on the radio in the 70's.

[henhao1972]

platos retreat by joe thomas

[kromen10]

Spike Lee recreated this place in "Summer of Sam" Mira Sorvino was getting drove while her husband watched. LOL

[CertifiedGwopBoy]

Ive heard about places like this, but even now they'd be kept underground and more on a hush hush type tip. For these guys to advertise it and do a commericial for the damn thing really shows you how free and open the 70's were.

[GordonMorrice]

The Reagans soon put an end to all that fun. Ironically, Ronnie used to fuck owls at Bohemian Grove.

[GordonMorrice]

Nah, AIDS only drove this type of idiocy back underground.

[BabesandBeer]

I bet the floors were really sticky!!!

[tkelly03]

I find it hilarious that they actually advertised this place...the good old days.

[pinkrose73]

i danced on that very same dance floor with my gin and tonic in my hand,lol!

[pinkrose73]

i was there once in the late 70's , wow! veryerotic and sexy! a wild club!! i had fun but did not participate in any sex orgies. i just partied and had fun. i bought a t-shirt as a souviener. the owner hit on me,lol!

[LickMyCuntMoFo]

I went there too, and i'm still paying for it.

It's called Herpes.

[LickMyCuntMoFo]

I went there in the 70s and ALOT of people died of AIDS........

[ReturnofRetroBoy]

Just got done watching the same special. Loved the one panelist saying, "There was always a layer of film over the water in the pool", lmaooo. And, "It was mostly dentists from New Jersey, with zits on their back".

[BCoriginal1]

During the 1977 episode of VH1's I Love the 70's volume 2,there was a song that played during the Plato's Retreat segment that goes ''Get it on,break of dawn,Get It On!''. Does anybody know the name of this song?

[tegan71969]

Dante Thomas - Get it on

[xcguy1006]

The song you're looking for is called 'Bang A Gong (Get It On)' by T.Rex

[grillnsheekn]

gross infested discusting man whoers and scabby tricks

[marisolchow]

Hard to say which is more offensive: your judging or your really bad spelling.

[bodhitaichi]

Goddamn, are you fucking retarded? Stupid people shouldn't have computers. You should be put in concentration camps. I bet you have a two-way phone that you use in public as well.

[tkelly03]

don't be upset becaause you weren't there

[Keyo717]

Dumbass.... !

[smdad]

Thank you so much. I thought Video ads from Plato's & places of that era were a thing of a lost & treasured past. Thank you, Lenny Waller

[mik19mazz]

The D.J. that played all the Disco Hits of the 70's and 80's was Bacho. I and my wife were there at least twice a week. Anyone remember Marty and Madeline? Marty dress in black,and she was a scremmer! I remember A gemtleman named Dick,always with an Asian lady,plus many other not to mention. Ah! the GOOD old days. By the way Yes I do have the Disco verision of Platos Retreat, By joe thomas

[magicuno]

"I remember a gentleman named Dick"

I'm sure you do.

[RecordCity]

The Joe Thomas song was a lot better than the song used in this commercial.

[flannagan11]

I've been on the hunt for that Joe Thomas track. Not easy to find.

[RINLEW]

Very easy indeed. Many TK Disco CD complilations has PLATO'S REATREAT.

[henhao1972]

definately should have used joe thomas!!!

[daytona1948]

searching for the following:

rick faro

mike the magician

butchy

arty o

joe rubino

many people i partied with died of aids

well they were right to close it.

[adcentro83]

Yuck, cold cut buffets and nasty wild circus sex sounds like a nauseating combo.

[bagel90210]

God Damn it I wish I was an adult in the 70's!!

[fishfan67]

was there a DJ playing all night with a club thimpimg system in plato's retreat? also why did it close. thanks for listing this, Allan

[baztastik]

AIDS

[daytona1948]

yes many people died of aids that went there

[xxxmichaelking]

they closed it because its time came to pass. levenson was indicted for tax evasion and the place was never the same after that, because the soul of the man that created it wasn't there anymore. and after he got out and came back, times had moved on . . . there was no more disco for one thing . . . and yes aids was another factor. everything has a peak, then falls. the late 70's was the right time and place for a plato's retreat. by the early 80's, it wasn't really anymore.

[ErrolBarnes]

awesome

[shopstersucks]

OMG!!! I'm in this video. I'm on the dance floor. I had a membership to Plato's Retreat back in 1978. At the time, they filmed me on the dance floor. This place was a great place to meet porn stars and hot chicks. They had a great pool and a cold cut buffet. Private rooms with big pillows and plenty of areas to have "Fun".

[flannagan11]

Thanks for making it all worth it, shopstersucks.

[daytona1948]

did you know rick faro, you know the tall guy that always wore black and had a mustache.

I am trying to locate him, butchy, mike the magician and steve neager.

[stargate121]

@shopstersucks I think I have your socks.

[edt558]

This is fantastic! Where did you find these?

[eyeh8cbs]

There's 5 DVDs of the "Midnight Blue" cable show out that include the commercials that were on the show. Most addresses and phone numbers are obscured, as you can see here.