what’s wrong with dying on the dance floor?

Sally Lippman and Studio 54

A Woman to Know profiles once-forgotten women from history. To support this work — but oh wait, if you’re reading this edition in full, you’re already doing it! Thank you for that!

And if you’re aren’t yet a paid subscriber but want to become one, hit the button below. You’ll get access to these subscriber-exclusive Friday editions, but you’ll also be able to read the entire back catalogue — that’s nearly 10 years of women to know!

---

Sally and her second husband take a break from the Studio 54 dance floor (image via The New York Historical Society’s phenomenal exhibit of Arlene Gottfried images)

When Studio 54 opened, Sally Lippman was in retirement — and in mourning.

Back in the 1920s, Sally was one of the first women in the state to get a law license. But by the 1970s, she and her first husband had retired early, hoping to live a life of contentment and cozy nights in. They devoted themselves to charitable causes and threw lavish dinner parties for friends.

But in 1975, Sally’s husband passed away, and a two-year period of mourning fell over her apartment. She dreaded nightfall, when the loneliness of a life without a partner, parties or purpose threatened to smother her.

Enter an unlikely savior: Studio 54.