Few locations were as well renowned as the Orchid Lounge on the West Side. As a center for music, entertainment, the community, and simply having fun, it's no wonder that newspapers touted that "Music's the Thing at the Orchid Lounge" and that the Orchid Lounge is "Where the Action is." Opened in 1965 by Odyssey Moore, the club placed an emphasis on music from the start. Many musicians frequented the place, like Lonnie Smith, Joe Dukes, The Jaywalkers, George Benson, and countless others. In one newspaper, it was described that "It's the music that greets you at the door," with the lounge's Friday-Sunday night live music definitely being one of its most famed trademarks.
However, music wasn't the only defining feature of the Orchid Lounge - Odyssey Moore himself was certainly a large part of its success. Described as "devilish, but kind; careless, but at the same time generous," Moore became known for offering miniature orchids on Mothers Day and always serving buffets to the community. The staff he hired also left an impression on people. Mark Wilson, a bartender, was described as being witty, upbeat, and energetic, always making his customers laugh. Robert Thomas, with 24 years of bartending experience, grew up and learned how to mix drinks from Odyssey Moore himself. Duval Moore, Odyssey's son and a manager of the Orchid Lounge, was made to clean and organize the lounge with his father, leading it to be the "pretty club" Duval reminisces.
In 1988, the Orchid Lounge was bought by Walter Jones, yet the club certainly remained a mainstay of the community after this transfer in ownership. As Vinny Curry Sr., a manager of the Orchid Lounge, describes, Jones "came in with new ideas, plans and new faces." Some of these new ideas included weekly pool tournaments, DJ dance parties, live entertainment, and live jazz music. Yet, some of the events that Curry looks most fondly upon were weekly Gong shows, where people could display their talents for everyone to decide whether to "Gong them off the stage," the Mr. Goodbar show, and the Halloween parties.
Unfortunately, however, the Orchid Lounge's fate would end in tragedy. In 1994, a fire would erupt in the Orchid Lounge, and while luckily no one was in the building at the time, the building itself did burn to the ground, resulting in the closing of the Orchid Lounge for good. Despite this melancholy ending, the Orchid Lounge still is reminisced about by many to this day. The impact the club had with its unique and community-driven events certainly contributed to its positive image even 30 years later. None can deny that the Orchid Lounge is "Where the Action is."
If you want to learn more about the Orchid Lounge, you can read about it here: https://create.passitdown.com/present/5e861cd2802f1730d242e9c9/david/story/5e869158802f1730d242f1f2
About the Author
Hi! I’m Ahan Iyer, a high school student from Holmdel, New Jersey. My interests include playing the oboe, jazz and chess. I’m a classically trained oboist, but have become interested in exploring various aspects of jazz, including jazz history and jazz composition for the oboe. Apart from exploring the jazz oboe, I play and teach chess. I’m currently working on a research project where I analyze data sets to find patterns that help us understand the wider influences that jazz has globally.
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