Niteside caught up with infamous New York club kid Richie Rich to get his take on the city's transforming nightlife and his thoughts on the rebirth of the famed church-turned-nightclub The Limelight, once the premier venue for neo-Gothic debauchery and now a shiny new marketplace selling luxury wares and gourmet foods.
Back in those days parties thrown by the likes of Michael Alig brought out the untamed masses. Celebrities known to drop by these Limelight parties were Madonna, Michael Douglas, Eddie Murphy and many others.
Best memories from the Limelight when it was a club? So many. My friends Chloe Sevigny, Michael Alig. Just running around like kids in a candy store. We didn't even know what we were doing, just having the time of our lives. This was like the kindergarten of New York. We were allowed to do whatever we wanted. Just imagine thousands of kids coming from all of the boroughs, just coming here and doing whatever the wanted.
What was the craziest thing you saw? The craziest moments were just Keoki DJing. I can't even explain it. Whether it was RuPaul or Parker Posey or Madonna, whoever came here. We just got to be who we really are. We wore eyelashes and glitter lipstick -- like I said, kids in a candy store. One time me and Chloe [Sevigny] were invited to be in the movie "Kids" but we all slept though it. They saw us here and asked us to come by but I slept through the casting call or whatever. I think Chloe still got to be in it.
What do you think the Limelight turning into a shopping experience means for New York nightlife? I like New York nightlife all right now. I think when this was alive it was so different. You didn't really have any rules. I never did drugs. These days it's all about paparazzi and bottle service. I get, that's cool, but it wasn't like that before. You used to just be able to hang out with everyone and just chill.
Will there ever be a place like the original Limelight? Yeah, but not in America. I just went to New Zealand with Pamela Anderson and it was kind of like that out there. You can kind of just hang out and have fun. Definitely outside of America.
If you have to go out where do you like in New York? I guess Boom Boom Room because Boom Boom Room is fun because it's like a mini Las Vegas in the sky of New York. It's chill.
