During the 1960s, the Marvel Comics Universe often mirrored the real world, with storylines that reflected the Civil Rights Movement, Vietnam War, and unrest on college campuses. The culture of the times was also prevalent, with Greenwich Village coffee shops, references to the Beatles, and the fashion of the decade finding their way into the mix. This was especially true of Spider-Man, as former high school outcast Peter Parker and supporting characters Gwen Stacy and Mary Jane Watson evolved into college-age representatives of their generation.
When Peter Parker arrives at his local coffee shop hangout in The Amazing Spider-Man #59, for instance, he discovers that not all of his friends are present, most notably Mary Jane. Much to Parker’s surprise, the happy-go-lucky MJ has found a job. “She’s knocking them dead at the Gloom Room A-Go-Go,” Gwen Stacy explains. Harry Osborne then adds, “We’ve got to catch her act one night.”
None of them is aware that the nightclub is a front for a new criminal mastermind called the Brainwasher. While Mary Jane may have been hired as a dancer at the club, her true job is taking pictures of the clientele with a special camera that places a hypnotic suggestion into their brain. The person photographed then unwittingly enters a back room at the Gloom Room A-Go-Go, where they are subjected to further brainwashing.
“The assistant D.A. released our three boys today an hour after we used the brainwashing machine on him,” the mad scientist who designed the device exclaims. “Our next step is to invite the city’s top officials here as our guests of honor,” the Brainwasher replies. “By brainwashing them, one at a time, I’ll soon have the entire government under my control!”
On the stage at the Gloom Room A-Go-Go, Mary Jane Watson – wearing a silver miniskirt and go-go boots – is practicing her dance moves. “Face it, female,” she tells herself. “You’ll knock ’em dead tomorrow!” Afterwards, the nightclub manager gives her instructions for in-between sets and asks Mary Jane to repeat them. “I waltz around the place snapping free pics of the pilgrims,” she replies. “How’szat?” The manager then reminds MJ that she is only to take photos of those sitting at tables with stars on them, and the fledging go-go girl says she understands.
In 1965, British glamor girl Jean Shrimpton was hired to model at the Spring Racing Carnival in Melbourne, Australia. Because of the sweltering heat, she arrived at the Flemington racecourse wearing a sleeveless white dress that she fashioned herself from material provided by clothing manufacturer Orlon. The small amount of fabric available to her, however, limited the length of the outfit.
“There she was, the world’s highest paid fashion model, snubbing the iron-clad conventions of fashionable Flemington with a dress five inches above the knee, NO hat, NO gloves and NO stockings!” the Sun News-Pictorial reported afterwards. “For my money, she looked tremendous – but Flemington was not amused. Fashion-conscious Derby Day racegoers were horrified.”
As Dominic Sandbrook notes in his 2007 book White Heat: A History of Britain in the Swinging Sixties, Shrimpton wasn’t trying to make a fashion statement, she just wanted to survive the blistering heat. “The day of the races was a hot one, so I didn’t bother to wear my stockings,” Shrimpton said at the time. “My legs were still brown from the summer, and as the dress was short, it was hardly formal. I had no hat or gloves with me for the very good reason that I owned neither.”
Although technically a “minidress,” Jean Shrimpton’s outfit gave rise to the miniskirt nonetheless, which was then perfected by fashion designer Mary Quant, who named it after her favorite car – the Mini. The miniskirt was also a favorite of Mary Jane Watson.
To show support for their friend, Harry Osborne reserved a front row table at the Gloom Room A-Go-Go for himself, Peter Parker, and Gwen Stacy. As they take their seats, Gwen notices that her father – a retired police captain – is also in attendance, as are at least a half dozen city officials, all of whom received special invitations.
By now it’s time for Mary Jane to take the stage, and she doesn’t disappoint. “Now we know what go-go means,” Gwen Stacy remarks. “She never stops!” MJ basks in the glory of her dancing performance, especially when Gwen Stacy tells her afterwards, “Your footwork was from Fabsville, twinkle-toes!”
“It must have been groovy if you admit it, blue eyes,” Mary Jane replies. She then makes the rounds to various VIP tables with the special camera she’s been given. She snaps a picture of a city councilman, who immediately feels dizzy. Next up is Gwen’s father, George Stacy. He likewise is affected and decides to get a “breath of fresh air” but heads to the back room of the Gloom Room A-Go-Go instead of outside, where the mad scientist tells him to take a seat.
It isn’t long before Gwen realizes that her father has been gone for a while and Peter Parker heads off to investigate. “I’ve had a funny feeling about this place all night,” Parker tells himself. “It all started with those free photos MJ was taking. Why should they single out certain guests? I’m probably just imagining things, but if there is something wrong, ol’ Spidey will be able to handle it lots better than Peter Parker.”
The first discotheque opened in Paris in 1947 and was named the Whiskey a Go-Go – “go-go” meaning “galore” in French. A second Whiskey a Go-Go opened in Chicago in 1958, with the most infamous premiering on Los Angeles’ Sunset Strip on January 16, 1964. Over the summer of 1965, cages were hung from the ceiling with go-go dancers inside.
That same year, a pair of copywriters named Terence Howard and Kevin MacDonald decided to create “the first Classic London Discothèque.” They had a list of fashionable friends with access to money and transformed a small, square basement near Piccadilly Circus into a technological wonderland filled with glass walls, modulated lighting and sound, and even an “emotional temperature” control. On opening day, the crowd included all four Beatles, three Rolling Stones, fashion photographer David Bailey, designer Mary Quant, actors Michael Caine and Julie Christie, and Cathy McGowan from the BBC series Ready, Steady, Go!
By 1966, a night of dancing and drinking at a discotheque was a staple of Swinging London. The Bago o’Nails in Soho featured live music by John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers and was a personal favorite of Paul McCartney, who met his future wife Linda Eastman there. The Cromwellian in South Kensington consisted of three floors for dancing, a quiet bar area for those looking for conversation, and even an upstairs casino.
The three most famous London discotheques were the Pickwick, the Ad Lib Club, and the Scotch of St. James. The Ad Lib was located in a penthouse loft and was an early favorite of George Harrison, Ringo Starr, the Rolling Stones, photographer David Bailey, and model Jean Shrimpton. Francis Wyndham of the Sunday Times wrote that the Ad Lib was “not so much a nightclub, more a happening – an unselfconscious, spontaneous celebration of the new classless affluence.”
After changing into his Spider-Man outfit, Peter Parker sneaks into the backroom of the Gloom Room A-Go-Go and is immediately confronted by a gang of hoodlums with their guns drawn. Mary Jane Watson overhears the commotion and ventures into the backroom as well, where she is grabbed by one of the gangsters and used as a shield against Spider-Man. After firing his webbing to jam the thug’s gun, Spider-Man swoops in to rescue MJ, who is thrilled by the sudden attention.
“What do you do for an encore?” she asks, to which Spider-Man replies, “I’ve got a groovy soft-shoe routine. I wowed ’em at the Bijou.”
Although she doesn’t realize it, Mary Jane’s career as a go-go dancer is about to end. It turns out that the Brainwasher is actually Spider-Man’s old nemesis the Kingpin, and the webbed crimefighter not only shuts down his latest criminal endeavor but the Gloom Room A-Go-Go as well.
Anthony Letizia