The Forge is a nightclub / restaurant on Arthur Godfrey Road in the city of Miami Beach, Florida. Opened in the 1920s, it was purchased and remodeled in the late 1960s by Alvin Malnik. It was a hangout for both celebrities and organized crime figures. [1]
In 1977, Meyer Lansky's stepson, Richard Schwartz, was charged with the murder of his drinking companion, Craig Teriaca, in the bar at The Forge. The shooting reportedly occurred after the two argued over a $10 bill. Schwartz was killed a few months later in what police assumed to be a revenge killing. [2] A lawsuit by Teriaca's widow against The Forge, alleging that the restaurant had provided inadequate security, ended in a mistrial in 1980. [3] [4]
A fire closed the restaurant for three months in 1991. [5] The following year, the restaurant's extensive wine collection was severely damaged in Hurricane Andrew; this led to an extended legal battle between the restaurant and its insurers over the value of the collection, eventually settled in 1997 by a $2.75 million payment. [6]
Al Malnik's son Shareef Malnik owns and controls The Forge; it remains a location for Miami night life. [7] [8] The restaurant closed in 2009 for a year-long renovation, and reopened in 2010 with a redesigned interior by Francois Frossard. [9]
Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida. The municipality is located on natural and human-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the latter of which separates the Beach from the mainland city of Miami. The neighborhood of South Beach, comprising the southernmost 2.5 sq mi (6.5 km2) of Miami Beach, along with Downtown Miami and the PortMiami, collectively form the commercial center of South Florida. Miami Beach's population is 82,890 according to the 2020 census. It has been one of America's preeminent beach resorts since the early 20th century.
Meyer Lansky, known as the "Mob's Accountant", was an American organized crime figure who, along with his associate Charles "Lucky" Luciano, was instrumental in the development of the National Crime Syndicate in the United States.
Hard Rock Cafe, Inc. is a chain of theme bar-restaurants, memorabilia shops, casinos and museums founded in 1971 by Isaac Tigrett and Peter Morton in London. In 1979, the cafe began covering its walls with rock and roll memorabilia, a tradition which expanded to others in the chain. In 2007, Hard Rock Cafe International (USA), Inc. was sold to the Seminole Tribe of Florida and was headquartered in Orlando, Florida, until April 2018, when the corporate offices were relocated to Davie, Florida. As of July 2018, Hard Rock International has venues in 74 countries, including 172 bar or cafe-restaurants, 37 hotels, and 11 casinos.
Victoria Station was a chain of railroad-themed steakhouse restaurants. At the peak of its popularity in the 1970s, the chain had 100 locations in the United States. The firm filed for bankruptcy in 1986. The last remaining restaurant in the former chain was located in Salem, Massachusetts until it abruptly closed in December 2017.
Ocean Drive is a major thoroughfare in the South Beach neighborhood of Miami Beach, Florida.
Southland Mall, originally known as Cutler Ridge Mall, is a shopping mall in Cutler Bay, Florida. It opened in 1978 as an extension of the Cutler Ridge Shopping Center, which itself was opened in 1960. Subsequent additions extended the mall in the early to mid-1980s.
The Fontainebleau Miami Beach is a hotel in Miami Beach, Florida. Designed by Morris Lapidus, the luxury hotel opened in 1954. In 2007, the Fontainebleau Hotel was ranked ninety-third in the American Institute of Architects list of "America's Favorite Architecture". On April 18, 2012, the AIA's Florida Chapter ranked the Fontainebleau first on its list of Florida Architecture: 100 Years. 100 Places.
The Hotel Nacional de Cuba is a historic Spanish eclectic style hotel in Havana, Cuba, opened in 1930. Located on the sea front of Vedado district, it stands on Taganana Hill, offering commanding views of the sea and the city.
The Miami Design District is a neighborhood in Miami, Florida, United States, and a shopping, dining and cultural destination—home to over 130 art galleries, showrooms, creative services, architecture firms, luxury fashion stores, antiques dealers, eateries and bars.
Anthony Carfano, also known as "Little Augie Pisano", was a New York gangster who became a caporegime, or group leader, in the Luciano crime family under mob bosses Charles "Lucky" Luciano and Frank Costello.
The Delano South Beach hotel is an upscale resort located in Miami Beach, Florida, currently under renovations. The Delano was a part of the Morgans Hotel Group collection prior to MHG being purchased by SBE Entertainment Group. SBE Entertainment has since sold the hotel to Eldridge Industries, and the hotel has been closed to the public since March 2020.
The Biscayne Bay Campus (BBC), located in North Miami, Florida, is a branch campus of Florida International University. With a student body of more than 7,000, it is the largest branch campus in Florida's State University System.
Caesars World Inc. was a hotel and casino operator. It began as Lum's Inc., owner of the Lum's chain of restaurants. It shifted into the gaming business with the purchase of Caesars Palace on the Las Vegas Strip in 1969, selling off the restaurants and changing its name. Caesars grew to eight casinos and resorts over the years, until going through a series of ownership changes beginning in 1995 and was ultimately absorbed by Park Place Entertainment in 1999.
South Pointe Park, known locally as South Pointe, is a 17-acre (6.9 ha) county urban park in metropolitan Miami, in the South Beach neighborhood of Miami Beach, Florida.
The San Francisco crime family, also known as the Lanza crime family or San Francisco Mafia, was an Italian-American Mafia crime syndicate in San Francisco. The syndicate was organized in the early 1930s by Francesco "Frank" Lanza. The San Francisco family was a small organization with 20–25 made members.
Alvin Ira Malnik is an American businessman and attorney.
Casa Casuarina, also known as the Versace Mansion, is an American property built in 1930, renowned for being owned by and the place of the murder of the Italian fashion designer Gianni Versace; he lived there from 1992 until his death in 1997. It is located at 1116 Ocean Drive in the South Beach neighborhood of Miami Beach, Florida, in the Miami Beach Architectural District. Since 2015, it has been adapted into and operates as a luxury boutique hotel known as The Villa Casa Casuarina.
Paul Qui is a Texas-based Top Chef winner and James Beard award recipient. He operates restaurants East Side King (Austin), Thai Kun (Austin) and Pao (Miami).
On March 1, 2020, the U.S. state of Florida officially reported its first two COVID-19 cases in Manatee and Hillsborough counties. There is evidence, however, that community spread of COVID-19 first began in Florida much earlier, perhaps as early as the first week of January, with as many as 171 people in Florida who had shown symptoms now identified with COVID-19, prior to receiving confirmation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. By March 11, the CDC saw evidence to conclude that community spread of the virus had occurred within the state.
The 1973 Miami Beach firebombing occurred on February 2, 1973, when a man walked into the crowded Concord Cafeteria in Miami Beach, Florida. He poured gasoline out of a large jar, lit a match, ignited the gasoline, and ran out of the cafeteria. Three people were killed and 139 were injured, including many people who were severely burned.