The Halloween Party at Uncle Sam’s – 31 October 1977

“It was around 11pm and needless to say, the floor was packed with humanity, much of it comprised of those who had visited other venues earlier who had finally made their way over to the club for the evening. If you were there on that night, look closely, you might see yourself in this photo. Enjoy the memories, folks!”

– Steve Laboe, Halloween Party at Sam’s Minneapolis, 31 October 1977

 

 

Steve Laboe was club photographer at Uncle Sam’s in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. Before we see more of his work and hear his memories (and maybe call to some of yours) a word on the club.

The building was constructed in 1937 as the Minneapolis depot of the Greyhound Lines bus system and operated for 31 years. Allan Fingerhut (1944-202), heir to the now defunct Fingerhut mail-order merchandise company, purchased the facility in 1970 and converted it into a nightclub. He opened The Depot on 3 April 1970, with performances from English singer Joe Cocker (20 May 1944 – 22 December 2014).

As tastes changed and disco rose, The Depot closed in 1971 and in July 1972 became Uncle Sam’s, a national franchise of the American Avents Corporation of Cincinnati, Ohio. This red, white and blue patriotic-themed club played recorded dance music supported by a drummer, a DJ for patrons dancing on a light-up plexiglass dance floor. Club doorman Richard Luka described as “Studio 54 for the discriminating Kmart shopper”.

 

The club’s name was shortened to Sam’s in March 1980 and got its third name change on New Year’s Eve 1981 when it became First Avenue. It became the place where Minneapolis-born sensation Prince played nine full shows.

Journalist David Carr wrote in The New York Times that First Avenue’s cultural weight and history is matched by only a few clubs in the United States: CBGB, Maxwell’s (both New York), Metro Chicago and the 9:30 Club (Washington DC).

That was later, of course. On Halloween 1977, 701 N 1st Ave was home to Uncle Sam’s. An article in Billboard magazine of December 21, 1974, sets the scene:

Dancing to records backed by the live drummer is the whole lure. Each Uncle Sam’s has a large dance area averaging about 60 by 12 feet. A computerized chase-rotate-and-flash electric circuit matches the 40-foot wall of lights and multi-colored lighting under the foot-high transparent plexiglass dance floor with the rhythm of the record played. Overhead, six strobe lights are calibrated to match the rhythm. There are stationary black lights and several bubble machines in the dance area.

 

 

Halloween at Uncle Sam’s, 31 October 1977

“Pictured here you’re seeing the start of the contest,” says Stephen Loeb. “Folks lined up on the perimeter of the dance floor and one by one walked across the floor. Big Louie (featured in the above photo stood on the left side of the floor in the yellow Uncle Sam’s t-shirt) was responsible for lining up the contestants. A physically big guy was needed to keep things from getting out of hand. The rowdy crowd reaction was one of the factors in determining who would win.”

 

 

“I had been over at the St. Paul Civic Center earlier that evening to attend the Crosby Stills and Nash concert, and rushed back to the club to witness the insanity taking place inside. By the time I arrived around 10:45, there was still a line halfway down 7th Street towards Hennepin, with folks just waiting in line to get inside. Many, if not most, of the costumes were homemade creations, and it was one amazing visual after another….

“Enjoy the memories, folks.”

– Steve Loeb

 

 

“The momentum of the release of Star Wars just a few months earlier, was STILL a thing back in 1977, by the time Halloween rolled around. The DJ that evening at the club was Larry Davidson, pictured here dressed up as a Jedi Stormtrooper.”

– Steve Laboe

 

 

“France…Tell them we’re from France”
The Coneheads

“For those of you too young to understand the quoted reference here, the Coneheads were a fictional family of extraterrestrials with bald conical heads, created for a series of recurring sketches on Saturday Night Live. They first appeared on January 15, 1977. They were portrayed by Dan Aykroyd as father Beldar, Jane Curtin as mother Prymaat, and Laraine Newman as daughter Connie. They were also known for drinking massive quantities of beer.

Everyone KNEW who they were the instant they entered the club that evening.

– Steve Laboe. Uncle Sam’s, Halloween 1977

 

 

“I’m assuming this was supposed to be some alien being, all decked out in some crazy @$$ colors. It’s impossible to ignore the presence of the classic pinball and video games in the background in this one. Rife Sport, eat your heart out. 😜😛😝😁

“Notice his nearby partner holding on to the battery pack, which provided the lighting and noise effects all night, wherever they traveled? This was 1970’s high-tech effects at its finest.”

– Steve Laboe

 

 

“The story with the guy in the coffin was that his friends actually carried him through the front door like that and once the music started, they positioned him standing up next to the dance floor and yes, even though he was supposedly dead, he had a drink in his hand. 😁

“NOTE: Apparently the prospect of having your wallet pick-pocketed while on the dance floor wasn’t really much of an issue of concern back in 1977. 🤔😉😎”

– Steve Laboe

 

 

All photo via Steve Laboe. You can keep up with him on his Facebook Page.