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‘Saturday Night Fever’ 2001 Odyssey disco returns to Bay Ridge for one-night only dance party

For
For “Saturday Night Fever’s” 40th anniversary, New Yorkers danced at the original location of the 2001 Odyssey Night Club in Bay Ridge on Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2017. Photo Credit: David Handschuh

Disco fever was (stayin’) alive in Brooklyn Wednesday night, as hundreds of polyester-loving dancers celebrated the 40th anniversary of “Saturday Night Fever.”

The iconic movie, filmed in Brooklyn and released Dec. 16, 1977, starred John Travolta as Tony Manero, who spent his weekends dancing at a Bay Ridge disco.

On Wednesday, the sight of the club once known as the 2001 Odyssey disco (famous for its multicolored light up floor), reopened to funky tunes, flared costumes and a celebration of all things 70s.

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing to have this night brought back for us, it’s a dream come true,” said Dyker Heights resident Michael Harkins, 48, who donned his 6-inch red platform shoes and full costume. “This club was the place to be on a Saturday night.

“That floor, years ago for me, was a dream,” he added. “Once I got on that floor I was John Travolta, nobody could touch me.”

Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams declared Wednesday as Saturday Night Fever Day in Brooklyn.

“I brought my special plaid disco pants,” he said. “The disco movement started in Brooklyn and . . . it changed the music all over the globe.

“Good music, good dance, we just had so much fun,” he added.

Fans danced the night away on that infamous lighted floor for one night only in Brooklyn, getting down to “Disco Inferno” by the Trammps, who reunited to perform their Grammy-winning hit from the movie. They did the hustle, and ate Lenny’s Pizza and White Castle burgers.

Karen Lynn Gorney, who played Stephanie, Travolta’s girlfriend in the movie, said while she doesn’t dance disco anymore, she does do ballet.

“They’ve recreated the feeling,” she said.

Frank Gaeta, 48, who grew up in Canarsie and now lives in Howard Beach, said seeing the club reinvented was “iconic.”

“This was pure fun, everyone knew everyone. You couldn’t wait to get to the dance floor,” he said, adding that on Wednesday he was able “to relive life again. It’s never over, it’s always around.”

Sabrina Giordano, 27, came carrying a few dozen pizzas from her dad’s shop, the famous Lenny’s Pizza.

“We love to see the history go on — the history of the neighborhood, the movie,” she said. “It’s just lived on. We get customers from all over the world who just want to relive the moment.”