Oddball Wisconsin

Chatty Belle, the World's Largest Talking Cow. The Mendota Monster. Apostles on Parade. The UFO Capital of the World. Romeo, the clown-stomping elephant. Car-washing octopi. Other travel guides suggest the same old scenic driving tours, homey bed-and-breakfasts, and the best fall foliage—Oddball Wisconsin offers offbeat travel destinations and little-known historical tidbits. Where was Liberace born? What is a hodag and where do you catch one? Who invented the hamburger? And will a Polka Hall of Fame ever be built? This is the guide to the real Wisconsin, birthplace of the snowmobile, the typewriter, and the ice cream sundae, home to Jimmy the Groundhog and home of the Rudolph Grotto and Wonder Cave—the state where people proudly wear the moniker “cheesehead.”

Updated and even stranger, this new edition boasts more than 400 unique destinations for tourists looking for attractions off the beaten path. Bizarre locations and landmarks include Chainsaw Gordy's Garden of Saws, Smokey Bear's head, the World's Largest Soup Kettle, the Toilet Bowl Parade, and the world's only upside-down White House. This book offers fascinating and little-known historical tidbits and answers burning questions such as Where was Liberace born? What is a hodag, and where do you catch one? Who invented the hamburger? and Will a Polka Hall of Fame ever be built? This is the real guide to Wisconsin, birthplace of the snowmobile, the typewriter, and the ice cream sundae. The address, phone number, hours, cost, directions, and website of each oddity accompany its description.

In this updated edition, it's plain to see that the state of Illinois has only gotten weirder. Where there was once just a single Popeye statue in downstate Chester, today the town has monuments to Olive Oyl, Swee' Pea, Bluto, the Sea Hag, and more. The creepy Piasa Bird petroglyph on the bluff in Alton now has a roadside pullout with picnic tables, and the two-story outhouse in Gays has a new contemplative garden. With almost twice as many destinations as its predecessor, this edition boasts detailed information on each site—address, phone number, website, hours, entry fees, and driving directions—as well as maps, photos, and a wealth of regional history in the descriptions. Some new sites include Henry's Rabbit Ranch, the World's First Jungle Gym, Ahlgrim Acres (a miniature golf course at a funeral home), the Leather Archives and Museum, General Santa Ana's two wooden legs, the World's Largest Sock Monkey, the Friendship Shoe Fence, a truck stop with a marionette show, and a coin-operated fire-breathing dragon. There is more between Chicago and St. Louis than cornfields and plenty of fascinating places in the Windy City that aren't on Michigan Avenue, and here is a chance to see these underappreciated sites throughout the state.

Land of the world's largest prairie chicken, birthplace of Spam, and home of the world's oldest rock, this is Minnesota, where summers are short, winters are long, and back-road wonders abound. This entertaining guide wastes no time with descriptions of scenic lakes, pristine bike trails, or quaint cafes. Instead it directs travelers (and residents) to the spot where Tiny Tim strummed his last notes on the ukulele; to the Cold Spring chapel where two grasshoppers bow down to the Virgin Mary; and to the McLeod County Museum, where the mummy on display could be from Peru or outer space. While ordinary tourists are fighting off mosquitoes in the Boundary Waters, oddball travelers can size up the world's largest ear of corn and admire the fourth Zamboni ever built. And one last thing: there aren't 10,000 lakes in Minnesota; there are 14,215. For travelers who are in search of the unusual, there is no better reason to park the bike and hiking boots in the garage, fill up the gas tank, and hit the road to Minnesota, where weirdness awaits.

Paul Bunyan and Babe, Native American legends, ghosts, river mysteries, and more populate the pages of Spooky Wisconsin. You'll meet the shrouded horseman of Milwaukee, the troll of Mount Horeb, the dark horse of the Dells, and more as you join folklorist S. E. Schlosser to discover the spooky stories from the Badger state, from the Illinois border to Lake Superior, and the Mississippi River to Lake Michigan.

Jean Shepherd (1921-1999) master humorist is best known for his creation ÊA Christmas StoryÊ the popular movie about the child who wants a BB gun for Christmas and nearly shoots his eye out. What else did Shepherd do? He is considered by many to be the Mark Twain and James Thurber of his day. For many thousands of fans for decades Shep talked on the radio late at night keeping them up way past their bedtimes. He entertained without a script improvising like a jazz musician on any and every subject you can imagine. He invented and remains the master of talk radio. Shepherd perpetrated one of the great literary hoaxes of all time promoting a nonexistent book and author and then brought the book into existence. He wrote 23 short stories for ÊPlayboyÊ four times winning their humor of the year award and also interviewed The Beatles for the magazine. He authored several popular books of humor and satire created several television series and acted in several plays. He is the model for the character played by Jason Robards in the play and movie ÊA Thousand ClownsÊ as well as the inspiration for the Shel Silverstein song made famous by Johnny Cash A Boy Named Sue. Readers will learn the significance of innumerable Shepherd words and phrases such as Excelsior you fathead and observe his constant confrontations with the America he loved. They will get to know and understand this multitalented genius by peeking behind the wall he built for himself ä a wall to hide a different and less agreeable persona. Through interviews with his friends co-workers and creative associates such as musician David Amram cartoonist and playwright Jules Feiffer publisher and broadcaster Paul Krassner and author Norman Mailer the book explains a complex and unique genius of our time. Shepherd pretty much invented talk radio ... What I got of him was a wonder at the world one man could create. I am as awed now by his achievement as I was then. ä Richard Corliss ÊTimeÊ magazine online

Featuring more than 70 museums, this is the quintessential guide to quirky, offbeat museums throughout the Midwest. Included are museums in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Indiana, Illinois and Iowa. From the Mustard Museum in Mt. Horeb, Wisconsin to the Super Museum in Metropolis, Illinois, and the Spam Museum in Austin, Minnesota, this guide is sure to amuse and entertain.