The man who once dominated New York City’s nightlife told the media he plans to end the party in July.
Mark Fleischman, who owns Studio 54 in Manhattan, once the most exclusive club in the world, is now 82 years old and confined to a wheelchair. He told the New York Post that he planned to use Dignitas, a Swiss nonprofit assisted suicide group, to end his life on July 13. After a lengthy screening process, the group used lethal doses of barbiturates to aid in assisted suicide.
“I can’t walk, my speeches are terrible, I can’t do anything for myself,” Fleischman told the Post. “My wife helps me to bed and I can’t put on clothes or shoes. I’m taking a gentle approach. It’s the easiest way out for me.”
Fleischman now lives in Marina Del Ray, California. He said neurologists have been unable to diagnose his disease, which began in 2016.
He took over Studio 54 in December 1978 when partners Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager were raided and charged with tax evasion, obstruction of justice and conspiracy. The charges were reportedly due to the theft of nearly $2.5 million in unreported revenue from the club’s receipts.
Rubell and Schrager were sentenced to 3 1/2 years in prison and fined $20,000 each for tax evasion. They were sent to prison in February 1980, and in November of the same year, Studio 54 was sold for $4.75 million to Fleischman, who has an extensive background in the hospitality and nightlife industries. He reopened it, then sold it to new owners in 1984.
The club finally closed in 1986.
Fleischman has written a book for publisher Rare Bird about his experience. Inside Studio 54 recorded Celebrities, friends and beauties sip champagne and share cocaine on rolled up hundred-dollar bills.
Studio 54 is the focus of the new issue of FX american crime story, Currently under development. Studio 54: American Crime Story Will examine the legendary nightclub, which has become the embodiment of nightlife for the rich and famous.
Fleischman said he had been contemplating suicide.
“I made the decision slowly,” he said. “Two years ago, I didn’t think it was worth living. I took a lot of Xanax and ended up in the hospital.”
Then he was resurrected. But he said, “I read a book about ending a life. I read there that the easiest way is to suffocate. But I don’t want pain. Was going to buy a gun. But my wife mediated. We started Find a place where you can legally find someone to do it with.”