Wisconsin Writer Explores ‘100 Heroes’ Who Changed the World

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Photo by David Giroux

Dean Robbins

Dean Robbins

Dean Robbins wasn’t born in Wisconsin but has lived here for half his life by now and became familiar with Badger history through his long tenure at Madison’s alternative paper, Isthmus. Marveling at the number of well-known Wisconsinites, he assembled several dozen mini biographies into his new book, Wisconsin Idols: 100 Heroes Who Changed the State, the World, and Me.

Robbins will speak about Wisconsin Idols at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 23 at Boswell Book Company.

Long before moving here, Robbins recalls, he was already fascinated with famous Wisconsinites such as Harry Houdini, Hank Aaron and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The list grew longer the more he learned about the state and as his concept for Wisconsin Idols evolved. What began as “a fresh look at famous Wisconsin residents who’d made a mark in the wider world” expanded to include memorable moments in the state by visiting celebrities. Elvis Presley? On his final tour shortly before his death in 1977, Elvis broke up a fight at a Madison gas station, not by deploying his vaunted martial arts moves but … simply by being the King.

Beatles at the Arena

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Wisconsin Idols by Dean Robbins

'Wisconsin Idols: 100 Heroes Who Changed the State, the World, and Me' by Dean Robbins

And yes, Robbins includes The Beatles’ 1964 show at the Milwaukee Arena (but misses the really interesting story about the concert’s promoter, Milwaukee activist Nick Topping). Oh, and here’s one that’s almost a complete unknown: Bob Dylan hung around UW-Madison for a few weeks before pushing on to Greenwich Village.

“It was gratifying to tell little-known stories about such well-known people who aren’t often associated with Wisconsin,” Robbins says. “Another revelation was discovering a number of relatively obscure subjects with Wisconsin ties who deserve a place in the history books. Jeffrey Erlanger, the boy in the electric wheelchair from perhaps the most famous episode of ‘Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,’ went on to serve as an activist for the disabled. Viola Smith emerged from small-town Mount Calvary to become the first female star of jazz drumming, known as the Fastest Girl Drummer in the World. I hope readers will fall in love with these and other less familiar figures, as I did.”

But there are many familiar faces in the book: Les Paul, Orson Welles, Woody Herman, Hattie McDaniel, Georgia O’Keefe … the list is long and Robbins handles each with a few swift, informative pages.

Robbins was happy to learn that most of the state’s world-changing figures “retained ties to—or at least affection for—Wisconsin. Justin Vernon certainly stands out for his enduring commitment to Eau Claire. But Milwaukee’s Spencer Tracy returned to his college town of Ripon for a special tribute after becoming an Oscar-winning actor. Celebrated jazz saxophonist Frank Morgan moved back to Milwaukee. Joyce Carol Oates followed up her National Book Award by gratefully accepting an honorary degree from UW-Madison. Frank Lloyd Wright anchored himself in his Spring Green architectural masterpiece, Taliesin. And Abigail Van Buren spoke fondly of Eau Claire after becoming the world’s most popular advice columnist. Even Welles, the cosmopolitan writer-director-actor, referred to himself as ‘a confirmed Badger!’”

Of course, any confirmed Badger will find a local hero or two omitted from the roster of Wisconsin Idols. How did Robbins choose who to include? All were “personally meaningful to me, displaying exceptional courage, integrity, and self-expression,” he explains. “They just happen to represent a wide range of human endeavors: authors, actors, scientists, visual artists, comedians, musicians, political activists, farmers, soldiers, athletes and more. They also happen to fall across a wide geographical range, from Bart Starr in the north to Abraham Lincoln in the south to Ann Landers in the west to Laurel Clark in the east to Willem Dafoe in the middle. The book makes a case for the state of Wisconsin as a notably influential place: a crossroads for people who changed the world.”