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The Last Good Time: Skinny D'Amato, the Notorious 500 Club, and the Rise and Fall of Atlantic City
The Last Good Time is a richly layered epic that brings to life a fascinating place, its politics, people, and culture, through the portrait of one of Atlantic City’s most famous families—the powerful, flamboyant, and ultimately tragic D’Amatos. Paul “Skinny” D’Amato created and presided over the 500 Club, the celebrated supper club that entertained thousands of Americans and helped guide the careers of the great Rat Pack performers—Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., and Frank Sinatra. Skinny was at the center of it all, hovering behind the scenes during the zenith of one of the world’s most notorious playgrounds.
Veteran magazine writer Jonathan Van Meter captures the volatile history of twentieth-century Atlantic City—from the days of Prohibition and smoky speakeasies to the city’s heyday of imported Hollywood glamour and glitz after World War II; from the near demise of the resort in the 1970s to the city’s current era of legal “gaming” and dazzling high-tech hotel/casinos.
Skinny D’Amato avoided the public eye whenever possible, though he was perhaps the most important person in the history of Atlantic City, where his nightclub served as the ultimate backroom for the big players of entertainment, politics, sports, and the Mob. Skinny is rarely acknowledged as part of the Rat Pack, but he was at the center of its creation, its mentor. It was Skinny who taught Sinatra how to hold a cigarette, tip big, be cool. He paired Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin for the first time at his 500 Club, and on any given night back in the 1950s and 1960s, you’d find Elizabeth Taylor, Toots Shor, the Gabor sisters, Joe DiMaggio, Milton Berle, Liberace, Grace Kelly, Nat King Cole, and just about every big player in the underworld hanging out by the bar or in the back rooms. Skinny was a link between politicians—including John F. Kennedy—entertainers, and the Mob and was the subject of constant surveillance by the FBI and tax investigators. Whether he was in the Mob or not, Skinny was the ultimate connected guy, a gentleman’s gentleman, a passionate gambler who had a special touch that brought bigpeople together so that they could have a good time.
As Van Meter evokes the ever-evolving landscape of Atlantic City, he shows us how the D’Amato family, like other larger-than-life American families during the last century, experienced a changing wheel of fortune, seeing great moments of wealth, power, and personal attainment, as well as all manner of human tragedy. In the space of a few years, Skinny’s beloved wife, Bettyjane, died of a brain aneurysm at a relatively young age; the 500 Club burned to the ground; and, perhaps most devastating of all, his son, Angelo, was convicted of brutally murdering two people. With the last of the good times behind him, Skinny retreated to his Ventnor, New Jersey, mansion, taking his card game with him, emerging to see his Rat Pack friends, and, in the process, becoming a living symbol of how cool it all was once upon a time in America.
Van Meter expertly renders one of the great untold tales of modern America, a character portrait of both an extraordinary time and place, and the Zelig-like man who hovered over it all. The Last Good Time is a classic tale of the whiskey-soaked dark side of America’s mid-century popular culture.
From the Hardcover edition.
Veteran magazine writer Jonathan Van Meter captures the volatile history of twentieth-century Atlantic City—from the days of Prohibition and smoky speakeasies to the city’s heyday of imported Hollywood glamour and glitz after World War II; from the near demise of the resort in the 1970s to the city’s current era of legal “gaming” and dazzling high-tech hotel/casinos.
Skinny D’Amato avoided the public eye whenever possible, though he was perhaps the most important person in the history of Atlantic City, where his nightclub served as the ultimate backroom for the big players of entertainment, politics, sports, and the Mob. Skinny is rarely acknowledged as part of the Rat Pack, but he was at the center of its creation, its mentor. It was Skinny who taught Sinatra how to hold a cigarette, tip big, be cool. He paired Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin for the first time at his 500 Club, and on any given night back in the 1950s and 1960s, you’d find Elizabeth Taylor, Toots Shor, the Gabor sisters, Joe DiMaggio, Milton Berle, Liberace, Grace Kelly, Nat King Cole, and just about every big player in the underworld hanging out by the bar or in the back rooms. Skinny was a link between politicians—including John F. Kennedy—entertainers, and the Mob and was the subject of constant surveillance by the FBI and tax investigators. Whether he was in the Mob or not, Skinny was the ultimate connected guy, a gentleman’s gentleman, a passionate gambler who had a special touch that brought bigpeople together so that they could have a good time.
As Van Meter evokes the ever-evolving landscape of Atlantic City, he shows us how the D’Amato family, like other larger-than-life American families during the last century, experienced a changing wheel of fortune, seeing great moments of wealth, power, and personal attainment, as well as all manner of human tragedy. In the space of a few years, Skinny’s beloved wife, Bettyjane, died of a brain aneurysm at a relatively young age; the 500 Club burned to the ground; and, perhaps most devastating of all, his son, Angelo, was convicted of brutally murdering two people. With the last of the good times behind him, Skinny retreated to his Ventnor, New Jersey, mansion, taking his card game with him, emerging to see his Rat Pack friends, and, in the process, becoming a living symbol of how cool it all was once upon a time in America.
Van Meter expertly renders one of the great untold tales of modern America, a character portrait of both an extraordinary time and place, and the Zelig-like man who hovered over it all. The Last Good Time is a classic tale of the whiskey-soaked dark side of America’s mid-century popular culture.
From the Hardcover edition.
- GenresHistoryNonfiction
304 pages, Paperback
First published June 17, 2003
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
February 2, 2008
I wore a suit, smoked cigars and called my girlfriend sweetheart for a week straight after reading this book....
January 18, 2008
This was the perfect book to read en route to a Tom Jones-infused getaway in Atlantic City (which I did), as it documents everything that was cool, sexy, and un-geriatric about that fabled town. The book focuses on Skinny D'Amato, the club owner whose entrepreneurial know-how and possible mob connections helped build Atlantic City into its glory. He is a pretty interesting character, and as the king of the East Coast's premier resort town, he attracts a whole slew of other interesting characters, like Frank Sinatra, President Kennedy, and other 50s and 60s playboys. But anecdotes about those storied celebrities (steamy as they are) don't manage overshadow the real meat of the book--the meteoric rise and fall of Atlantic City itself, which is reflected in D'Amato's business- and family-life. If I'm making this sound too dry, let me just throw out a few juicy bits--murder, dismemberment, boob-jobs, Miss America! I would recommend reading this and then watching "The King of Marvin Gardens" to get the full AC experience. And then wear your best sweatsuit out to the nearest shopping mall or parking ramp, to give you an idea of what the Atlantic City pleasure palaces are like today.
June 21, 2020
Having grown up in Atlantic City I was naturally attracted to this book especially because it depicts the pre-casino Atlantic City that I loved. My only quibble is that author has spent the time and effort to write a book about a place, and many people, that he just doesn’t seem to like much. I also have a problem when he presents speculation and rumors, about the Kennedys or Sinatra for example, as facts. That gives the book a gossipy tone that I don’t care for. All in all though, a very good read.
November 17, 2023
A wonderfully entertained, meticulously researched book.
If you're a fan, like me, of Atlantic City and its history, the Mob (does that really exist?), Frank Sinatra and Joe DiMaggio, this book is for you.
If you're a fan, like me, of Atlantic City and its history, the Mob (does that really exist?), Frank Sinatra and Joe DiMaggio, this book is for you.
April 25, 2018
Interesting stuff.
Van Meter occasionally goes first person to describe the reporting process, which is a stylistic mistake. Didn't stop me from reading it though.
Van Meter occasionally goes first person to describe the reporting process, which is a stylistic mistake. Didn't stop me from reading it though.
January 23, 2020
An engaging and thought provoking book on Atlantic City with major emphasis on Skinny, the five and other cast of characters!
September 1, 2020
A very insightful look into “Nucky” and “skinny”. There was a good understanding on what the 500 club was like back in the old days of AC. A good book!
March 13, 2024
From 1946, when Dean and Jerry improbably turned off-the-cuff stage tomfoolery into magic, until 1962 or so, when affordable air travel pulled the plug on fading Northeast resorts like AC and the Catskills, the 500 Club was the place to be. You drove in with your wife on a Friday night, wore a suit (with tidy pocket hanky!) to the club, said hello to Joey Bishop at the serpentine bar (zebra-stripe motif! UV light! a waterfall!), ate the house special (strip steak on buttered toast!), drank more martinis than would be humanly possible today, and had a big time. Jonathan Van Meter has done his research and tells the story with insight and genuine enthusiasm.
July 14, 2025
Interesting story on the rise and fall of Atlantic City, by following the life and times of Skinny D'Amato. The writer's style is very fun and that makes this a very enjoyable read.
April 10, 2012
Ah, the glamour of postwar nightclub life: men in well-cut suits with perfectly coordinated silk pocket squares, chic women in beautiful dresses, waiters bringing stylish cocktails, movie stars in the front row, and showgirls and a famous singer on stage. I like the clothes, the cocktails, and the music, and I wish we had a similarly stylish nightclub in town where I could be a regular, but I wouldn't want the world that came with these things at all. And Atlantic City would be about the last place I'd choose for a holiday as I have no interest whatsoever in gambling (I can't think of a stupider way to spend one's time and one's resources) and there is now absolutely nothing else there except giant casinos. But there used to be. For one brief period, it was one of the most glamorous places in North America.
June 29, 2013
Since I personally know many of the characters in this book, along with the author, I may not be the most objective person to review it. But I've always been fascinated with the history of Atlantic City, particularly the period from the 1920-50s. Skinny was a true character and his interactions with the rich and famous were legendary. Loved the way his story is a real cautionary tale about how good things always come to an end. Van Meter brings the characters to life. Don't miss this one if you have any feelings for Atlantic City, the Rat Pack or a good time.
January 6, 2008
awesome insight into underworld in the 40s...
February 29, 2012
Loved this book! Poor, Atlantic City. Total dive now.
February 4, 2013
pop history. Mostly fluff, but some interesting tidbits.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews