20's, gangster, mafia, speakeasy

A large sign of the show's name marked the entrance to the New York premiere party for Boardwalk Empire. Produced by Invision Events for HBO, the event took place Wednesday, September 15, at the Rockefeller Center Rink Bar, Sea Grill, and Rock Center Café.

Much like the set decorators for the TV show, Invision Events spent time researching Prohibition-era Atlantic City to create historically appropriate scenery for the New York premiere party. One example of this was the Rink Bar's 40-foot-long bar, which was resurfaced with vintage posters from the storefronts that lined the boardwalk during the 1920s.

The venue for the New York post-screening event was divided into three distinct areas, one of which was the black- and white-toned Rink Bar. The producers built custom cabanas in this area, using striped draping to cloak the elevated seating and votive candles and seven-watt globe lights for illumination.

Boardwalk Empire's New York premiere party turned the Rock Center Café into a speakeasy-style lounge, replete with red lighting, burgundy linens, and red roses in gun-shaped vases.

There was certainly no shortage of food at the New York event. The spread, catered by the Patina Group, included passed clams casino and oysters Rockefeller, and an enormous buffet set up at the foot of the rink's fountain, which consisted of dishes like grilled lobster tail, cracked king crab legs, steamed mussels, roasted vegetables, and grilled corn on the cob.

In its valet areas, Caesars Atlantic City set up vintage cars for the guests of the Atlantic City Boardwalk Empire premiere and party to pose alongside. In attendance were a number of cast members from the show, including (from left to right) Michael Stuhlbarg, Michael K. Williams, Kelly Macdonald, Aleksa Palladino, Paz de la Huerta, and Vincent Piazza.

In the Atlantic Room of One Atlantic, the Atlantic City event's producers looked to create a modern-day speakeasy using cabaret-inspired seating areas and lamps, 1920s-style furniture, chandeliers, and blue velvet linens.

The Atlantic Room at the Atlantic City premiere party also held a stage for the Vince Giordano and the Nighthawks orchestra.

The study at One Atlantic was turned into a gambling den for the Atlantic City event. The concept was reminiscent of the underground joints frequented by the show's central character, Steve Buscemi's Nucky Thompson, and included a cigar roller.

Much like the New York effort, Atlantic City's premiere party featured a large array of food. One Atlantic catered hors d'oeuvres such as clams casino, braised short ribs, and Alsatian flatbread with roasted Bartlett pears, Roquefort, and white truffle honey. A raw bar offered items like shrimp cocktails, blue claw crab legs from Chesapeake Bay, and oysters.