Bill Miller's Riviera: America's Showplace in Fort Lee, New Jersey - Paperback

by Thomas Austin (Author), Ron Kase (Author)

From 1920's Speakeasy to mid-century haunt of the famous and infamous, discover the tantalizing history of a legendary New Jersey Nightclub.

Where did Frank Sinatra, Mickey Mantle, Sugar Ray Robinson, Joan Crawford and hundreds of other A-listers along with mobsters like Meyer Lansky eat, drink and dance? It wasn't in Hollywood or at the Copacabana but at Bill Miller's Riviera in Fort Lee. The Riviera's breathtaking views of New York, its stunning showgirls and its gambling hall drew the famous and infamous to its tables. After it was originally run as a speakeasy by Ben Marden during the 1920s, Bill Miller, a Russian Jewish immigrant, attracted the most sought-after performers and turned it into one of the most popular nightclubs during the 1940s and 1950s. Relive Bill Miller's Riviera and experience the excitement of his lucky patrons.

Author Biography

Tom Austin has spent his lifetime pursuing artistic endeavors. Tom has written dozens of published songs, the most popular being an international hit called Short Shorts� that he cowrote with Bob Gaudio. He has recorded as an artist on ABC Paramount, Capitol and Old Town, as well as many other labels over the years. Tom and his band, known as the Royal Teens, have toured with everyone from Buddy Holley and the Crickets to Paul Anka, the Everly Brothers and Jerry Lee Lewis. The stage clothes Tom wore back in the 1950s are on permanent display at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio. Tom excels in painting in oils, watercolors and pen and ink drawings. Five of his nautical paintings are part of the permanent collection of the United States Coast Guard in Washington, D.C. Tom is currently the resident artist at the prestigious Salmagundi Club in New York.

Ron Kase is a sociologist who has written books and articles, edited collections and consulted on a variety of social issues and social programs, as well as for policy creation venues. He is also a novelist, writing conspiracy stories resulting in three published novels (Fiddler's Elbow, Fiddler's Revenge and Fiddler's Return), which have been optioned for motion picture development. He is writing a new novel set in Tampa, Florida's Ibor City in the 1930s, the former site of the Cuban cigar industry in America. Ron has been a sociology professor, senior college and university administrator, magazine publisher and local history writer.