If you placed a wager in 1926 that the establishment at 222 14th Street in Miami Beach would still be thriving today, well your legacy would be as legitimate as Mac's Club Deuce. Originally named Club Deuce, an ode to the location's address, Mac Klein added his name upon purchasing the business on February 3, 1964. From that day to his last, Mac went to work at "The Deuce" 7 days a week, all while becoming a Miami Beach legend himself. Mac pasted away at the age of 101 on March 25, 2016. His legacy and that of Mac’s Club Deuce is now carried on by his beloved wife Mary. This is the story of Mac and Club Deuce.

 

Born on September 19, 1914, Mac Klein was actually older than the city of Miami Beach, even if only by 6 months. Born in Brooklyn, New York to Russian parents, Mac grew-up with seven siblings in a two bedroom apartment. In New York, Mac opened a card room without the permission of the crime syndicate. He eventually ended up in front of a judge and was given a choice; jail or the army. It wasn’t until World War II that he left New York, discovering Miami Beach when he was sent here for basic training. Shipped off to Europe, Mac served in the U.S. Army for 5 years until being wounded in The Battle of the Bulge, serving as a Sargent and interpreter, speaking Russian and German. Mac was hit with shrapnel from a blast that killed his friend. He spent the following year in a hospital in Scotland where doctors initially were uncertain he would live. The doctors replaced his ulna (forearm bone) with a rib bone. Once recovered, doctors suggested warm weather would help him continue to heal. With that recommendation, Mac head back to Miami Beach in 1945.

 

Once established in Miami Beach, Mac Klein became a regular of the 14th Street establishment, Club Deuce, eventually calling owner Harold Schwartz a friend and business partner. Harold was a Colonel in the Air Force and the two men hit it off. Mac came to own half of the liquor license of Club Deuce while also working at the bar. It was here that Mac went to celebrate the birth of his daughter in 1964, only to find the club closed. His friend and business partner Harold had died and the bar would not reopen. Harold left Club Deuce to Mac in his will. Mac contacted Harold’s wife and bought the remaining half of the liquor license. Adding his name to the business was one of the few changes Mac made. Beyond replacing the singer and pianist with a jukebox and building the curved bar we know today, Mac’s renovations ended there until a certain television show came to town. 

 

You can say Mac Klein saw it all in his years as a regular, partner, and then owner of Mac’s Club Deuce. From a time when the community of Miami Beach was troops training for World War II, to an older Jewish community, to Cubans fleeing Castro, to the days of the Cocaine Cowboys, nothing prepared locals for the phenomena of Miami Vice. A television show that showed the glitz, glamour, and darkness of Miami starring Don Johnson and Phillip Michael Thomas as Crockett and Tubbs, a crime fighting duo on the Vice Squad. Miami Vice had people around the country staying in on Friday nights to tune in. Truly the early years of Miami Beach’s renaissance, the impact of the #1 show on television also left it’s mark on Mac’s Club Deuce. With the cast and crew frequenting The Deuce during their down time, the bar was featured in the episode Freefall, Season 5 Episode 17 with Sonny Crockett (Don Johnson) sitting at the pink curved bar Mac built. It was then that the bar’s famous neons were added; Mac having struck a deal with the producers that at the end of filming it all stayed. These neon strips and images were put up by a local artist whose girlfriend modeled for the Beloved Lady of The Deuce neon. Miami Vice also held the series’ final wrap party at Mac’s Club Deuce; an open bar affair with Johnson and Thomas bartending the event. 

 

With the renaissance of Miami Beach in full effect, celebrity sightings at Mac’s Club Deuce became frequent and continue decades later. You never know who might pull up the stool next you at The Deuce. Actors, singers and musicians, models, artist, writers, and celebrity chefs, have all found their way to Mac’s; from Cameron Diaz, DJ Paul, Tarantino, Matt Damon, Lauren Hutton, Anne Burrell, Bobby Cannavale, Pete Davidson, Travolta, Matt Smith, Guy Fieri, and Kate Moss who infamously didn’t make it through the front door. By far, our favorite is Anthony Bourdain who stopped by every time he was in town not just for a drink, but to meet up with Mac. Bourdain gave Mac’s Club Deuce the distinction of one of his favorite bars in the world, writing and featuring The Deuce multiple times in his books and television shows. Everyone is welcome at Mac’s Club Deuce and is a celebrity in their own right; but our more known customers appreciate the bit of normalcy and anonymity in our Shangri-La provides.

 

At the time of this writing it’s been a decade since Mac Klein passed away. While he is dearly missed by everyone, Mac’s Club Deuce remains the same; sticking to his winning formula, open from 8:00 a.m.–5:00 a.m., a friendly staff serving cheap, stiff drinks, a jukebox at the ready, pool table stacked, and a legendary 2-4-1 Happy Hour from 8:00a.m. – 5:00p.m. 7 days a week. Dive bar, a-z, all are welcome. Cash Only.