In September, the Pabst Theater Group announced that, in honor of its 10th anniversary running the Riverside Theater at 116 W. Wisconsin Ave., a new marquee and 40-foot vertical sign would be installed.
The sign will be officially unveiled at a 4 p.m. event on Monday, Dec. 14, but a Poblocki Sign Co. crew is out there today working on the marquee, which Mayor Tom Barrett said in the announcement is designed to evoke West Wisconsin Avenue when it was lined with theaters and their glowing marquees.
The vertical, or "blade," sign has been completed and is expected to be installed over the weekend, but will remain covered until the unveiling event Monday.
The Riverside opened in 1928. You can take a behind the scenes tour of it with me here.
The marquee is also meant to serve as the icing on a year full of renovations at the 87-year-old theater, including replacement of doors, installation of "air curtains," plaster repair, work on the subterranean pilings, reconstruction and sanding of the stage floor, remodeling of artist dressing rooms and carpet replacement in a number of locations.
The sign being created. (PHOTO: Pabst Theater Group)
While it was expected that the crew would add the letters spelling out the theater's name today, it appears that work won't occur until Thursday morning. In the meantime, the workers are attaching gold-colored curlicues filled with classic-style theater bulbs.
Barrett, County Executive Chris Abele and other city notables are expected to attend Monday's event, which is free and open to the public. Colectivo coffee and hot chocolate will be served. The event takes place outside, so dress accordingly if you attend.
If you want to learn more, Pabst Theater Group CEO Gary Witt and John Kersey, executive vice president of Zilber, Ltd., which has owned the building since 1961, spoke about the project to WUWM's "Lake Effect" program recently.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
