(updated 7/4/08)
(click all images to enlarge)
I opened the Viper Room for a single reason: I was looking for a bar worthy of the name. A place for good music and good host groups. A place where, if I wanted to have a drink with friends, we would not be left victims by ridiculous pounding beats by a “connected”, simple-minded DJ. Or there would none of this feeling of rage that invades you when you suffer the bad taste of others. A place where you would not feel insulted by the crushing of stupid, obnoxious music- and not escape, even in so-called adequate bars. I was looking for a place to escape.
-Johnny Depp, French Studio, February 2000 (my English translation)
In early 1993, Johnny Depp met Anthony Fox, who owned a nightclub called The Central in West Hollywood. The club existed on the site of The Melody Room, formerly owned by gangster Bugsy Siegel in the 1940's. Johnny and musician Chuck E. Weiss went into business with Fox, took 51% ownership in the club and reopened it as The Viper Room on August 14, 1993. Johnny's best friend from childhood, Sal Jenco, became a manager.
The opening night was a benefit for the Starlight Foundation, an organization that grants wishes to terminally ill children. Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers were among the acts; according to their website The Last DJ, they played a 60 minute set that included the debut performance of Mary Jane's Last Dance, Crawling Back To You (reportedly the only performance of this song with Stan Lynch on drums), Drivin’ Down To Georgia, and Something In the Air. Shane MacGowan is also said to have performed this night, according to a blog comment by backup musician Cindy Collins Smith. Other performers that night included Evan Dando, Maria McKee, and Weiss' band the G-ddamn Liars. Attendees included Quentin Tarantino, Julien Temple, Mary Stuart Masterson, Crispen Glover, and Tim Burton.
portion of a newspaper clipping from the Biography Silver Screen II: Mavericks DVD
Johnny; Chuck E. Weiss; The Heartbreakers at the Viper Room opening night
August 14, 1993
From a 1994 People magazine article, Johnny envisioned the club as a "cool little underground place" for him and his friends to hang out at and listen to good music, but for better or worse, it soon gained a much higher profile than this.
Tragically, River Phoenix died of a drug overdose outside the club in the early morning of October 31, 1993 (often misreported as Halloween night). Johnny has said in interviews that he was playing on stage with his band P at the time, and had no idea what had happened until being notified of it later. When he phoned the hospital to ask about the young man who had collapsed outside the club, he learned that it was River. Johnny closed the club for 2 weeks, placing a sign outside to express sympathy and condolences to River's family and loved ones. Fans were permitted to place flowers, candles, photos and other memorabilia outside the club while it was closed.
The days
following River Phoenix' death on October 31, 1993
Johnny's band P was said to have played at the Viper Room on a number of occasions, sometimes with help from the likes of Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Steve Jones of the Sex Pistols. They also reportedly threw Kate Moss a party there for her 21st birthday in January of 1995.
P plays the Viper Room; see the Photo Gallery for more photos.
Johnny was present for guest appearances by many
renowned
artists, including the great
Johnny Cash. On December 3, 1993, after hooking up with
producer
Rick Rubin with the intention of recording a new album, Cash did
something at the Viper Room that he had never done before: he played
solo. He famously debuted much of the solo material that was
later released on the Rubin-produced CD, American Recordings,
reportedly beginning with his own composition, Drive On. Johnny Depp
introduced the Man In Black by saying "Ladies and gentlemen, I can't
believe I get to say this: Johnny Cash!" Rick
Rubin recalls: "It was an incredible night. Dead silent.
You could hear a pin drop. People couldn't believe
that it
was Johnny Cash there in the Viper Room. He started playing,
and
I could see how nervous he was, but by the middle of the first song, or
the beginning of the second song, all of the fear was gone.
He
was in the music and it was beautiful. People who were there
that
night still talk about it as one of the greatest things they've ever
seen. And we recorded that night and I think one of those
songs
ended up on our first album." (Actually, two songs recorded
that
night were later released on American Recordings: Tennessee Stud and
The Man Who Couldn't Cry).
December 12, 1993
Another famous Viper Room guest was Hunter S. Thompson, in September 1996. Johnny and John Cusack joined Hunter on stage to discuss many things, including his fight against a DUI charge. Some of this Viper Room appearance has been documented on the DVD, Breakfast With Hunter.
September 1996
The club operated successfully for years, attracting many top music acts. However, it was not immune to controversy. In 2000, Anthony Fox sued Johnny for mishandling of profits, but while the suit was in progress, Fox disappeared in December of 2001 (he is still missing to this day). Meanwhile, by this time, Johnny was spending most of his time in France with long time love Vanessa Paradis and their two children, and had become less and less involved with the club.
Johnny at the courthouse, October 23, 2001
In 2004, Johnny and his lawyers finally settled the case, quietly selling his majority share to Fox's daughter Amanda, whose intent was to resell the club. The club was then owned by Darin Feinstein, Bevan Cooney and Blackhawk Capital Partners, Inc.
On February 15, 2008, it was announced that the club has been sold to Harry Morton, son of Hard Rock Cafe owner Peter Morton. Blackhawk will retain a minority share. Morton plans to open additional Viper Room clubs in such cities as Las Vegas, Miami, Portland, Seattle, New York, London and Tokyo. As for the original club, he plans "only minor cosmetic changes, and would not compromise its identity or culture." Read the article about the sale here.
The Viper Room is still open and thriving. The official Viper Room Website which once mentioned Johnny's involvement in the club, no longer mentions him by name anywhere on the site. One can only guess that this is by mutual agreement. Nevertheless, Johnny is still seen sporting a Viper Room knit cap on occasion.
London, April 2007
Check the Photo Gallery for more!
Here
is an article that appeared in a 2005 magazine called Club Systems,
telling about some of the history and also the sound system for the
club:
Some more articles, not all of them totally accurate, about the lawsuit and other controversies:
Some more articles, not all of them totally accurate, about the lawsuit and other controversies:
