Chance of a Lifetime: Nucky Johnson, Skinny D'Amato and how Atlantic City became the Naughty Queen of Resorts [Paperback]

Grace Anselmo D'Amato (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 7, 2003

A history of Atlantic City during its heyday as the nation's center of popular entertainment, Chance of a Lifetime focuses on the first half of the 20th Century. This was the city's zenith, when celebrities and tourists flocked to ''America's Playground'' -- and political corruption, illegal gambling, bootlegging, and prostitution were all sanctioned as part of the Atlantic City experience. Beginning with the early attractions of the anything-goes resort, the author explores the rise to power of notorious political boss Enoch ''Nucky'' Johnson. This sets the scene for the rise of entrepreneurial Paul ''Skinny'' D'Amato and his famed 500 Club -- a venue that encapsulated everything good, bad, and fun about the legendary resort. As D'Amato is quoted in the book, ''Atlantic City was Las Vegas. This town was wide open.'' We are given an intimate, nostalgic tour of the city's storied history by insider Grace Anselmo D'Amato, whose husband managed the 500 Club for his brother Skinny. The book includes a foreword by renowned Atlantic City historian Vicki Gold Levi. Chance of a Lifetime is extensively illustrated with 178 images of celebrity, 500 Club, and historic Atlantic City photographs, in three lengthy gallery sections -- with additional images throughout the text.

Editorial Reviews

Review

''A rollicking account... There were few in the city as flamboyant as Skinny D'Amato. The book chronicles his career from his start as a precocious street hustler to his time as the owner of a nationally known nightclub. At the peak of the 500 Club's popularity, Skinny D'Amato was as much of a celebrity as Sinatra and the other entertainers who filled its showrooms nightly. ...a trove of pictures from...the 500 Club. The general public has never seen many of the photos published in this book.'' --The Press of Atlantic City

''Chance of A Lifetime rings true because it is a firsthand account. Grace Anselmo D'Amato takes us on an exhilarating ride through the extravagance, pathos, and optimism of Atlantic City's rise, fall, and resurrection.'' --Whoot

''Chance of A Lifetime boasts dozens of Willie [D'Amato]'s photos. Among those depicted are Jackie Gleason, Sammy Davis Jr., Danny Thomas, Zsa Zsa Gabor and Milton Berle, as well as Martin & Lewis and, of course, Sinatra.'' --The Courier Post

"Chance of A Lifetime rings true because it is a firsthand account. Grace Anselmo D'Amato takes us on an exhilarating ride through the extravagance, pathos, and optimism of Atlantic City's rise, fall, and resurrection." --Whoot

"Chance of A Lifetime boasts dozens of Willie [D'Amato]'s photos. Among those depicted are Jackie Gleason, Sammy Davis Jr., Danny Thomas, Zsa Zsa Gabor and Milton Berle, as well as Martin & Lewis and, of course, Sinatra." --The Courier Post

From the Inside Flap

The breaks are everything. It¹s the roll of the dice, the flip of a coin, the cut of the cards, the turn of the wheel.... You have to be in the right place at the right time. - Skinny D'Amato

In her glory days, Atlantic City was a sideshow on piers, a carnival on the Boardwalk, a house of women for hire, a back room full of cards and money. A world where visitors shed clothes at the beach and inhibitions at nightclubs, where more people came for sin than sun. She was a place where anything goes and everyone went, where the rules did not apply. Atlantic City was the birthplace of American Cool in mid-century, the first home of the Rat Pack, a haven where a down-and-out Frank Sinatra was always welcome - and never forgot it.

This book is the history of an iconographic American resort that explores showbiz greats who got their start there, real-life excesses that strain even the wildest imaginations and the outrageous characters who made it all happen. In this city of paradox, imbalance generated stability, mobsters were welcome, and recklessness brought people happiness.

Look closely at the details - the rumrunners, the Boardwalk and the clubs, and at their sepia images fading into time gone by - in the pivotal decades from Prohibition to the Jet Age. These were the golden years, when celebrities and tourists filled the days and nights of Atlantic City, when political corruption, illegal gambling and prostitution were all part of the Atlantic City Experience. Chance of a Lifetime details the rise and fall, and rise again, of Atlantic City¹s glorious glitz and guts.

Chance of a Lifetime is the inside story of that fantastic time by one who saw and heard it firsthand. Author Grace Anselmo D'Amato was married to Willie D¹Amato, manager of his brother Skinny's 500 Club. In this intimate account of the city, the club and the famous and infamous people who passed through, the author shares a very personal view of the naughty Queen of Resorts. The reader can almost imagine sitting in a zebra-print booth at the old Five when she drops by to tell the storied history of this 20th-century playground by the sea. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 247 pages
• Publisher: Down The Shore Publishing (July 7, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1593220073
• ISBN-13: 978-1593220075
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #234,528 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inside history of how Atlantic City earned its reputation, August 9, 2003

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Chance of a Lifetime: Nucky Johnson, Skinny D'Amato, and How Atlantic City Became the Naughty Queen of Resorts (Hardcover)

Chance Of A Lifetime is the inside history of how Atlantic City earned its reputation for being the Queen of Resorts, especially focusing upon the lives and labors of political boss Enoch "Nucky" Johnson and 500 Club owner Paul "Skinny" Johnson who founded an economy on vice as a matter of civic pride. An engaging, uproarious true tale of sin, scrambling, and glittering legacy, Chance Of A Lifetime is a unique and welcome addition to 20th Century American History in general, and New Jersey State History in particular.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great book on Atlantic City in the pre casino days!!, May 5, 2002

By 

Mary Miller (mays landing, nj United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Chance of a Lifetime: Nucky Johnson, Skinny D'Amato, and How Atlantic City Became the Naughty Queen of Resorts (Hardcover)

Being a native New Jerseyan, I really appreciated this book. the author makes you feel as if you have a front row seat at the "Queen of Resorts" a.k.a. Atlantic City, New Jersey! The reader will get a close up view of the "Rat Pack" boys,Frank Sinatra and Dean Martine..and the close relationship they had to "Skinny" D'Amato. This wonderful book is packed with photos of life Atlantic City back in the 40's and 50's...how different life was then in the "nightclub" era..when people dressed up and went out in search of entertainment..how different we live now with cable TV, computers, etc. This book can almost be an historical document..into the past..and what a contrast between the Atlantic City of today with her towering casinos, and the Atlantic City of yesterday!

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting subject matter...rambling prose, September 11, 2002

By 

Yarby "yarby" (Medina, OH United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Chance of a Lifetime: Nucky Johnson, Skinny D'Amato, and How Atlantic City Became the Naughty Queen of Resorts (Hardcover)

While the subject matter of this book is quite intriguing, the writing style of Ms. D'Amato leaves a great deal to be desired. Quite frequently the text goes off on a tangent, then quickly returns to the subject at hand, and the reader is left scratching their head, wondering why the author even brought up the "sidebar".

As it is probably the only book available (to my knowledge) on Mr. Johnson and Mr. D'Amato, I can recommend it from a subject perspective. Just be prepared to have to go back and re-read sections trying to make some sense of them.