A Look Back At The Great South Philly Bars and Clubs From The 1970s

My social life in the 1970s was spent mostly in some great South Philadelphia bars and clubs. 

After hanging on the corner of 13th & Oregon Ave and JT's luncheonette in South Philly in the late 1960s as a teenager, my crowd moved one block north to the great Lamplighter bar on 13th & Shunk in the early 1970s. I was a regular there after I got out of the Navy. I became good friends with Gene, the co-owner.

When the Lamplighter closed, we moved to the Sportsman on Broad and Oregon Ave. When the Sportsman closed after a fire, we drank and danced at Angelo’s, a corner bar on 9^th and Federal. 

When Angelo’s closed at 2 am, we went on to the after-hours clubs like the Roman Gardens, the OBL and La Dolce Vita on South Street. 

We also often went to Sharkey's on Broad and Porter Streets. The crazy bar, which always seemed to host bar fights, was frequented by sailors from the nearby naval base. outlaw bikers and South Philly young people, including a good number of mob guys.  

I later spent a lot of time at the Loft on 20th & Oregon Ave, which was across the street from the Defense Department compound known as the Quartermaster, where I worked for many years. I went there for lunch most days and I spent my weekends there drinking, dancing and flirting with beautiful girls.

One beautiful girl who worked at the Quartermaster and spent time with me at the Loft, later became my wife. And we are still together after all these years.

I loved the Loft and had a great time there until it closed. 

I had a fine time in my 20s drinking and dancing at the great South Philly bars and clubs. 

Note: The above photo is of me at the Loft in the late 1970s.

The Real CSI: Garry Gurroldo, Retired Philadelphia Police Officer, On Chazz Palminteri Podcast

I enjoy watching Chazz Palminteri's podcast, as he always has on interesting guests and there are always interesting conversations. 

I found his latest podcast to be especially interesting, as he had on Garry Gurroldo (seen in the above screenshot), a retired CSI Philadelphia police officer. 

In addition to his fascinating stories about his time in CSI, Gurroldo, like me, a South Philadelphian, spoke of places in South Philly most familiar to me, such as the old 1970s club, The Loft and The Twin Smoke Shoppe.

I hung out at The Loft, a great club, when I was a young man, and I often visited The Twin Smoke Shoppe and enjoyed a fine cigar with my late friend, Mark Tartaglia, a retired Philadelphia detective who recently died. 

You can listen to the podcast via the below link:

The Real CSI with Garry Gurroldo - Chazz Palminteri Show | EP 69 - YouTube    

I interviewed Chazz Palminteri in 2016 for the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News when he performed his outstanding one man show, A Bronx Tale, in Atlantic City.

My wife and I, along with my friend Mark Tartaglia and his wife Donna, met Chazz Palminteri backstage after his brilliant performance.

You can read my Q&A interview with Chazz Palminteri below: