Gus Stevens Seafood Restaurant & Buccaneer Lounge was a restaurant and

supper club A supper club is a traditional dining establishment that also functions as a social club. The term may describe different establishments depending on the region, but in general, supper clubs tend to present themselves as having a high-class image ...

on US Highway 90 in

Biloxi Biloxi ( ; ) is a city in and one of two county seats of Harrison County, Mississippi, United States (the other being the adjacent city of Gulfport). The 2010 United States Census recorded the population as 44,054 and in 2019 the estimated popu ...

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

. Gus Stevens, the

Greek-American Greek Americans ( el, Ελληνοαμερικανοί ''Ellinoamerikanoí'' ''Ellinoamerikánoi'' ) are Americans of full or partial Greek ancestry. The lowest estimate is that 1.2 million Americans are of Greek descent while the highest es ...

owner, came to the Gulf Coast in 1946.

History

The restaurant building was constructed with a

Moroccan architecture Moroccan architecture refers to the architecture characteristic of Morocco throughout its history and up to modern times. The country's diverse geography and long history, marked by successive waves of settlers through both migration and military ...

style turret. It was famous in the 1950s and 1960s and hosted many famous entertainers, including

Andy Griffith Andy Samuel Griffith (June 1, 1926 – July 3, 2012) was an American actor, comedian, television producer, southern gospel singer and writer whose career spanned seven decades in music and television. Known for his Southern drawl, his character ...

, LOTHIER WANTS OLD CLUB DEVELOPER NEEDS CITY TO GRANT A VARIANCESun Herald - December 3, 1999 - A1 LOCAL-FRONT "IN THE 50s and 60s, stars gravitated to Gus Stevens' nightclub in Biloxi. Today, the wrecking ball is closing in on a piece of history."

Mel Torme Mel, Mels or MEL may refer to: Biology * Mouse erythroleukemia cell line (MEL) * National Herbarium of Victoria, a herbarium with the Index Herbariorum code MEL People * Mel (given name), the abbreviated version of several given names (including ...

Jerry Van Dyke Jerry McCord Van Dyke (July 27, 1931 – January 5, 2018) was an American actor and comedian. He was the younger brother of Dick Van Dyke. Van Dyke had a long and successful career mostly as a character actor in supporting and guest roles on pop ...

Martha Raye Martha Raye (born Margy Reed; August 27, 1916 – October 19, 1994), nicknamed The Big Mouth, was an American comic actress and singer who performed in movies, and later on television. She also acted in plays, including Broadway. She was honored ...

Rudy Vallee Rudy or Rudi is a masculine given name, sometimes short for Rudolf, Rudolph, Rawad, Rudra, Ruairidh, or variations thereof, a nickname and a surname which may refer to: People Given name or nickname *Rudolf Rudy Andeweg (born 1952), Dutch poli ...

, Professor Backwards,

Mamie Van Doren Mamie Van Doren (born Joan Lucille Olander; February 6, 1931) is an American actress, singer, and sex symbol. She is perhaps best known for the rock 'n' roll, juvenile delinquency exploitation film ''Untamed Youth'' (1957). Early life Van D ...

Johnny Rivers Johnny Rivers (born John Henry Ramistella; November 7, 1942) is an American musician. His repertoire includes pop, folk, blues, and old-time rock 'n' roll. Rivers charted during the 1960s and 1970s but remains best known for a string of hit sing ...

and

Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as " rock & roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis ma ...

. It is also well known as the last place where

Jayne Mansfield Jayne Mansfield (born Vera Jayne Palmer; April 19, 1933 – June 29, 1967) was an American actress, singer, nightclub entertainer, and ''Playboy'' Playmate. A sex symbol of the 1950s and early 1960s while under contract at 20th Century Fox, Man ...

performed; she died early the next morning in a car crash while being driven from the club. The establishment closed in 1975 and the building was empty until 1977 when it was rented and revamped for an El Palacio Mexican Restaurant. That closed in 1985 and the building was empty until 2000, when it was demolished and the location slated to become a Surf Style store. ANSFIELD MEMORIES MANY KNOW THE LEGEND, BUT UNTIL NOW, FEW KNEW THE TRUTH BEHIND THAT FATAL NIGHTSun Herald - June 25, 2000 - A1 LOCAL-FRONT "Jayne Mansfield, Hollywood's heir-apparent for the blonde bombshell throne after Marilyn Monroe's death, entertained at the Gus Stevens supper club in Biloxi 33 years ago this week. Fate stepped in that hot, muggy night. History concentrates on Mansfield's untimely death, but this, too, is the story of shattered youthful dreams and the altered lives of two Mississippi Coast families."

History

See also

References

Further reading