Tony Dee
Entrepreneur and businessman
Tony Dee and Andy Martin. Photo provided by Andy Martin.
By Steve Rothaus
Anthony De Riggi, 88, died last March 23, his passing noted in his hometown of Farmingdale, New York, but virtually unreported in Wilton Manors, the city where he made his name: Tony Dee.
Dee, a longtime Broward real-estate developer, 33 years ago co-founded Chardees, among the very first gay-oriented supper clubs along Wilton Drive.
“He was a shrewd, shrewd businessman. The shrewdest businessman I ever met,” said Paul Hugo, owner of The Venue on Wilton Drive. “I first met him at Chardees. Always dressed to the nines. A showman. He was always the funny guy, charming guy, a witty guy, a wise guy. All those things. A guy you liked to be around.”
Dee grew up in Long Island’s Farmingdale. As a younger man, he became a barber and eventually owned three Nassau County hair salons, according to his widower, Andy Martin.
In 1990, Dee and his then-life partner, Charlie Mielke, bought a gay restaurant at 2209 Wilton Dr. called The Palms and re-opened it as Chardees (Char for Charlie; dee for Tony).
Among the attractions at Chardees: big-name entertainment. Entertainer Eartha Kitt was the first star Dee brought in, later followed by such acts as comedian Judy Tenuta, the Glenn Miller Orchestra and singer Sam Harris.
Dee sold Chardees in 2005, shortly after he and Mielke broke up.
After selling the supper club (now home to Eagle Wilton Manors), Dee concentrated on his commercial real estate business. He also owned the old Schubert Resort for gay men in Victoria Park near Sunrise Boulevard.
Dee and Mielke remained friends and in 2012 they got back into the supper club business, purchasing Tropics, an established restaurant at 2000 Wilton Dr.
Martin, originally from North Carolina, moved to Fort Lauderdale in 2011 and met Dee the next year at Tropics. “We weren’t official until New Year’s Eve going into 2013.”
The couple had a 36-year age difference. “There was an attraction for both of us. He liked younger guys, I liked older guys. All of my partners were older.”
Dee sold Tropics in 2014.
Martin and Dee also bought and sold homes in Wilton Manors, the Carolinas and Boca Raton.
In January 2022, Dee had knee surgery. His health deteriorated and died less than a year later.
Martin turned 53 on Oct. 17. Dee would have been 89 on Oct. 21.
