It has to be considered the most one of the most iconic nightclubs in Chicago entertainment history. It exuded class. Throughout the ‘50s and ‘60s it was a mecca for name entertainers to come to Chicago and perform in an intimate cabaret atmosphere. The club became the signature of Chicago and anchored a Rush Street entertainment district. It is also a club that, like a cat, seems to have nine lives. The club is Mr. Kelly’s.
The club closed in 1975. But its memory has never faded. And now David Marienthal has breathed life into it once again. The son of one of the original owners, roughly eight years ago David set out to archive the history of the club. He started collecting artifacts, oral histories and other memorabilia with hopes of possibly writing a book or creating a film documenting the life of the club.
In an original prospectus, David wrote, “In the shark pit of Chicago’s 1960’s Rush Street, two Jewish brothers struggle to build their dream of a glamorous, romantic nightclub that spotlights controversial young talent…but first they’ll have to dance with critics, comedians, Irish cops, the IRS< Robert Kennedy, the color barrier and the mobsters who run the street.”
Like his father’s dream, David’s has become a reality as his treasure trove of artifacts, historical documents and research has found a home at Chicago’s Newbury Library. And the film has become a reality, with Live at Mr. Kelly’s, which will premiere tonight (May 27) at 8 p.m. on local PBS-TV station WTTW (plans for a nationwide broadcast in the works).
The list of celebrities that appeared at Mr. Kelly’s reads like a who’s who of the entertainment industry in that era – Ella Fitzgerald, Lena Horne, Peggy Lee, Sarah Vaughan, Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday, Ramsey Lewis, Barbra Streisand, Julie London, Anita O’Day, Abbey Lincoln, Lou Rawls, Eartha Kitt, Oscar Peterson, Liza Minnelli, Dionne Warwick, Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, Nancy Wilson, Carmen McRae, Nina Simone, Dinah Washington, Morgana King, Rufus with Chaka Khan, Lainie Kazan, Carmen McRae, Rod McKuen, Buddy Greco, Bette Midler, the Pointer Sisters, Spanky and Our Gang, The Association, Sergio Mendes and Brazil ’66, Harry Chapin, Maynard Ferguson, Lily Tomlin, Woody Allen, Bob Newhart, the Smothers Brothers, Dick Gregory, Lainie Kazan, Dick Cavett, Shecky Greene, David Steinberg, Robert Klein, Ramsey Lewis…the list is endless. Plus, artists who recorded live albums there including Muddy Waters, Bill Cosby, Sarah Vaughan, Della Reese and Woody Allen.
Mr. Kelly’s first opened in 1953. Brothers George and Oscar Marienthal open the club with the intent of providing rising young talent an outlet to share their wares with the public.
Their dream almost died two years later as the club was destroyed by a fire in a grease shoot. Undeterred, they rebuilt and re-opened a year later.
Throughout the ‘50s and early ‘60s, Mr. Kelly’s became one of a triumvirate of clubs the brother’s operated, cementing their position of providing elegant entertainment environments with both the London House and Happy Medium.
The club lost another life in 1963 when Marienthal brother Oscar passed away. George continued on, introducing an entertainment policy the teamed a name comedian with a popular entertainer.
In 1966, the club was again destroyed by a fire that had started up in a neighboring business and ended up engulfing the whole block. George rebuilt the club again.
He continued on through 1969, when battling health issues himself, sold the club. Sadly, he passed away three years later.
The club continued operations through the mid-‘70s, but suffered the plight of the evolution of late-night TV, the seediness that had infiltrated the Rush Street area, and the high cost of bringing in name entertainers.
In the end, “It was changing times, changing scene; a different clientele, a new era” remembered Arts & Leisure Entertainment Group principal Paul Wimmer who had taken over Mr. Kelly’s and the London House. “The new generation had a whole different set of values and isn’t interested in seeing the old standard and traditions,” as the classic cabaret-style venues, aging motifs and changing tastes in entertainment were no longer in vogue. Couple that with the cost of entertainment and with the size of the club, they could no longer economically survive. “You can’t do like Mr. Kelly’s did and have groups like the Pointer Sisters and Blood, Sweat and Tears at $25,000 a week with $2.50 drinks and a cover charge of $9, $10 or $11 a head and survive.”
Mr. Kelly’s closed in 1975.
The club is alive once again, thanks to the diligent work of David Marienthal to preserve the history. Live at Mr. Kelly’s debuts on TV tonight. Here’s a preview: https://youtu.be/yNcbJuqvNS4. And more has been preserved on the club’s Facebook page Mister Kelly’s Chicago – www.facebook.com/misterkellyschicago and website – Misterkellyschicago.com – www.misterkellyschicago.com/