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(These incidents
at the Viper Room are but a few on a long list of Hollywood
tragedies and scandals But the club has survived the scandals. It was owned (in part) for years by none other than actor Johnny Depp, star of "Pirates of the Caribbean," "Sweeney Todd" and "Edward Scissorhands" - which may account for the club's celebrity following.
But the Viper Room
temporarily shut its doors over New Years of 1999 for a makeover. It reopened
with a concert by Courtney Love to
show off the club's new, completely different Art Deco interior design.
The room is no longer a black hole. Now, the formerly black walls are a
creamy white, with cherrywood floors and a larger bar downstairs. Attending the Courtney
Love concert was Tom Hanks
and wife Rita Wilson,
Although most acts here are unlisted acts, big names have been known to drop in unannounced and jam on stage: Counting Crows, Oasis and the Wallflowers have dropped by recently. Other stars may be in the audience. The Pussycat Dolls event in May of 2001 had No Doubt's Gwen Stefani on stage and Cameron Diaz, Christina Aguilera, and Alicia Silverstone in the crowd. The night Johnny Cash
played at the club, the audience included Sean Penn,
Tom Petty,
Juliette Lewis,
Dwight Yokum,
and Johnny Depp.
Mick Fleetwood
("Fleetwood Mac") has been spotted here several times.
Christina Applegate
tended bar one night (and was there the night River Phoenix
died). When Joan Osbourne
played the club, Michael Keaton
did the announcing. In September of 1995, Bruce Springsteen dropped by for an impromtu concert. In March of '99, the Stone Temple Pilots performed together for the first time in two years, to an audience that included Chris Rock and members of Marilyn Manson's band. In July on '99, the Go-Go's staged a "secret" concert at the Viper Room. Recently, Smashing
Pumpkins' singer Billy
Corgan did a solo concert here. John Mayer
unexpectedly took the stage. Other acts
that have performed here have included Matchbox
20, Oasis,
Green Day,
Billy Idol,
Sheryl Crow,
The Kult,
The Knack,
the Red Hot Chili Peppers,
Everclear,
Run-D.M.C.,
Deus,
The Black Crowes,
Iggy Pop,
and Lenny Kravitz.
But often big name acts aren't even d, they just show up. Lines
can get long outside, so if you wanna get in, show up when they open, at
9 p.m. Johnny Depp's ownership of the club came to an end in 2004, when he signed it over the daughter of his missing partner in the club, Anthony Fox. In 2008, the Viper Room was purchased by Harry Morton, son of Peter Morton who founded the Hard Rock Cafe. Following in his father's footsteps, Harry (who has dated Lindsey Lohan) plans to open versions of the Viper Room in other major cities around the world. Cover varies, so phone for info. No one under 21 allowed.
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