By Molly Snyder Senior Writer Published Feb 15, 2020 at 12:45 PM

Those of us who have seen the Milverine stride-with-purpose through numerous Milwaukee neighborhoods had limited knowledge about the man behind the local legend. Until now, that is.

In a nine-minute documentary video, Vice unearths new details about the Milverine that Milwaukeeans who are already fans of the burly, often-shirtless, fast-walking man – whose real name is John Hamann – will find incredible.

Interesting factoids include the identification of an ad guy in the Third Ward who allegedly gave Hamann the superhero nickname because he thought he looked like Marvel's Wolverine character, played by Hugh Jackman.

"I look like the comic more (than the character in the movies). Jackman looks like a pretty boy dancer type. If he and I got in a fight, he'd lose," says Hamann in the clip.

Hamann also says he's never left Milwaukee and never will. He plans to "haunt everybody forever," presumably meaning after he dies. Other gems include Hamann saying "you can tell the Milwaukee Art Museum was done by geniuses," that Bradford Beach is far superior to Waikiki Beach in Hawaii, and that Milwaukee, in general, "is where all the intelligent people are" and is "the height of civilization."

Check out the wonderfully detailed Milverine video here (and download OnMilwaukee's Milverine emoji here). Nice job, Vice. This is definitely Milwaukee-approved.


Molly Snyder started writing and publishing her work at the age 10, when her community newspaper printed her poem, "The Unicorn.” Since then, she's expanded beyond the subject of mythical creatures and written in many different mediums but, nearest and dearest to her heart, thousands of articles for OnMilwaukee.

Molly is a regular contributor to FOX6 News and numerous radio stations as well as the co-host of "Dandelions: A Podcast For Women.” She's received five Milwaukee Press Club Awards, served as the Pfister Narrator and is the Wisconsin State Fair’s Celebrity Cream Puff Eating Champion of 2019.