According to executiveproducer Pam Percy, visiting entertainers “played” the Boom-Boom Room, andguests were “interviewed” at the bar or in the coffee shop, or appeared inskits written by prominent playwrights such as Jonathan West, Dave O'Meara andJay Rath, among others. Over the years, the production evolved to consist offive acts interspersed with musical performances and guest appearances. A majorcomponent of the variety show included He-Man historian John Gurda, who wouldentertain listeners with tales of Milwaukee’s past.
"HotelMilwaukee" debuted in January 1996. It was taped in front of a liveaudience, first at Cafe Melange, the longtime lounge, cabaret and restaurantlocated on the ground floor of the old Hotel Wisconsin on Old World ThirdStreet. The show was a gypsy, recording at the Astor and Pfister hotels, HotelMetro and Northern Lights Theater at the Potawatomi Casino. For severalseasons, “Hotel Milwaukee” was aired from a studio in the Eisner Museum ofAdvertising & Design at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD).The radio program took to the road too, with the cast traveling to Madison, thePotawatomi Reservation in northern Wisconsin and other outstate locales.
“During each season, 40shows were taped in front of a live audience and then aired on the IdeasNetwork of Wisconsin Public Radio, locally known as 90.7 WHAD,” Percy explains.“It built a wide fan base because it was regularly aired on public radiostations around the country and in Canada, as well as on SIRIUS Satellite onthe A&E Channel.”
“Hotel Milwaukee” wonthe National Federation of Community Broadcasters’ prestigious Golden ReelAward for comedy in 2002. Over the course of its eight-year run, Percyestimates that 2,500 musicians, authors and other notable artists were featuredon the radio program. Often, internationally known performers would visit“Hotel Milwaukee” if their tours stopped in the city. Mayor Norquist, who couldbe considered one of Milwaukee’s infamous “singing mayors,” also occasionallysang on the program.
A “Hotel Milwaukee”reunion show will be taped in front of a live audience Saturday, Jan. 16, atTurner Hall Ballroom, with proceeds benefiting City Year Milwaukee, a nonprofitAmeriCorps organization that aims to build democracy through citizen service,civic engagement, leadership development and social entrepreneurship byoffering 17- to 24-year-olds the opportunity to engage in a year of full-timecommunity service.
Written by noteddirector and producer Jonathan West, and aided by Shepherd Express columnist Art Kumbalek and writer/actor MikeNeville, the reunion show is a five-act original comedy. Between acts, theaudience can expect interviews and musical performances featuring the JeannaSalzer Trio, Jim Liban, the Terry Coffman Trio, and jazz singer Adekola Adedapowith pianist Dean Lea. Historian John Gurda also returns with a segment onTurner Hall’s storied past.
The “Hotel Milwaukee” reunion will betaped in front of a live audience at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 16, at TurnerHall Ballroom.
