Mark Fleischman, former owner of Studio 54, plans assisted suicide in Europe

The man who once ran a New York nightclub told the media that he would wrap up the party in July.

Mark Fleischmann, owner of Manhattan Studio 54, once the most exclusive club in the world, is now 82 years old and in a wheelchair. He told her in the New York Post that he plans to use a Swiss suicide non-profit organization Dignitas to end his life on July 13. The group helps suicides with a lethal dose of barbiturates after a long selection process.

“I can’t walk, my speech is messed up and I can’t do anything for myself,” Fleischman told The Post. “My wife helps me in bed and I cannot wear or wear shoes. I take a smooth road. This is the simplest solution for me. “

Flashman now lives in Marina del Rey, California. He said neurologists were unable to diagnose his illness, which began in 2016.

He took over Studio 54 in December 1978, when partners Steve Rubel and Ian Schrager were searched and charged with tax evasion, miscarriage and conspiracy. Allegations of undisclosed revenue of nearly $ 2.5 million have leaked from the club’s takings.

Rubel and Schrager were each sentenced to 3.5 years in prison with a $ 20,000 fine for tax evasion. They were sent to jail in February 1980 and Studio 54 was sold in November of that year for $ 4.75 million to Flashman, who had extensive experience in the hotel and nightlife industry. He reopened it and sold it to new owners in 1984.

The club finally closed in 1986.

Fleischmann wrote a book about his experiences for Rare Bird Publishing. Inside Studio 54 Chronic A place where celebrities, friends and wonderful people drank champagne and shared cocaine using hundred dollar bills.

Studio 54 is at the heart of a new part of FX American criminal history Now in development. Study 54: American Criminal History Explore the fabulous nightclub that has become the nightlife avatar of the rich and famous.

Fleischmann said he had been thinking about suicide for some time.

“I slowly came to a decision,” he said. “Two years ago I decided that life wasn’t worth living. I took a lot of Xanax and went to the hospital ”.

He was then revived. But he said, “I read a book about the end of life. I’ve read that the simplest way is to drown. But I didn’t want the pain. I was going to buy a shotgun. But my wife was mediating. We started looking for a place where it was legal to find someone to do it with. “