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Mr. Kelly’s was an iconic nightclub on Rush Street in Chicago. For thirty years, before it closed on August 25, 1975, it was a springboard to fame for countless entertainers. As reported in the Chicago Tribune, “It was a supernova in the local and national nightlife firmament.” Mr. Kelly’s was owned and operated by the late brothers, Oscar and George Marinthal, whose Chicago empire included the London House (Chicago), an upscale jazz supper club and the theatrically oriented Happy Medium.
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The Early Days
Mister Kelly’s opened on November 24, 1953 on Rush Street in Chicago as a restaurant featuring steaks and Green Goddess salad as a house special. In 1954, entertainment was added with two singer pianists, Buddy Charles and Audrey Morris as the first entertainers. The nightclub was destroyed on December 8, 1955 when a fire started in grease chute and spread through a ventilator into the nightclub.2 Mister Kelly’s was rebuilt and reopened on August 29, 1956 with a new policy of standup singers. Previously the nightclub specialized in singers who played their own accompaniment. Recording star Jeri Southern was one of the first standup singers to appear in the nightclub. The nightclub also had a completely new décor but retained an original Mister Kelly’s feature, stairways which went nowhere for casual enthusiasts who simply wanted to sit and watch the show.2 Mr. Kelly’s became a springboard to fame for countless entertainers.
In November, 1956, the Marienthal Brothers’ nightclubs made their debut on Channel 5 (NBC) in Chicago. The new color television show was entitled “Here’s Music – At London House and Mister Kelly’s.” The set duplicated the décor and many of the appointments of Mister Kelly’s as an authentic supper club setting for the show. Entertainers appearing at Mr. Kelly’s begin to record albums at the nightclub. By 1958, Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy King, Della Reese, Buddy Greco, Anita O’Day, Sarah Vaughn and comedian Mort Sahl had recorded there.
The Later Years
In 1959, Mr. Kelly’s instituted a new entertainment policy which combined a musical act and a comedy act. This combination remained the nightclub policy for the next sixteen years. New talent and established entertainers were featured. For example, in April, 1960 comedian Bob Newhart, and songstress, Janice Halpern, were featured. In 1963, Oscar Marienthal discovered a young songstress at a small New York nightclub and booked her several months before she was to appear. Oscar Marienthal died suddenly at the age of 50 before the new talent, twenty year old Barbara Streisand made her singing debut at Mr. Kelly’s on June 11, 1963.
The list of other enterainers who played the club early in their career included Woody Allen, Lenny Bruce, Flip Wilson, Bill Cosby, George Carlin, Richard Pryor, Shelley Berman, Nancy Wilson (jazz singer), Shecky Greene, Jackie Vernon (comedian), Jackie Mason, Eartha Kitt, Mike Nichols and Elaine May, Barbara Streisand and Bob Newhart. Established stars too, such as Ella Fitzgerald, the Kingston Trio and Billie Holiday.2
On the night of February 8, 1966, about 200 patrons fled Mr. Kelly’s as fire engulfed an entire block on Rush Street in Chicago. The fire which had begun in a drugstore swept through the buildings and completely destroyed Mr. Kelly’s. The nightclub reopened on May 15, 1967. It was rebuilt on its original site and redesigned to increase seating capacity at tables from 165 to 180 seats. The old stairways now known as “bleachers” were reinstalled with cushions and additional seating space. The bleachers continued to be a no-minimum, no-cover area where a customer can see and hear the show for a price for a drink or two. Among the stars who returned to perform were Woody Allen and Mort Sahl for whom the initial appearance at Mr. Kelly’s was a stepping stone to their star status.
In 1969, Mr. Kelly’s was sold to Arts and Leisure Corps. entertainment division begin and things began to change. In 1971, new policies were instituted with informal friendly service that the maître d' wore a casual suit instead of a tuxedo. Young entertainment was featured with a low price package deal. In July, 1974, Paul Wimmer, who had been employed by Arts and Leisure Corps., and a group of investors, purchase the nightclub. Due to financial problems the nightclub closed on August 25, 1975. Its demise was not sudden. Security issues and late night TV took its tole and top talent commanded top fees to appear there. This required a volume of patrons and Mr. Kelly’s had less than 200 seats including the “bleachers.”
Recorded at Mr. Kelly’s
1955 – Buddy Greco at Mister Kelly’s
1957 – Sarah Vaughn and Trio at Mister Kelly’s
1957 – Mort Sahl
1958 – Della Reese at Mr. Kelly’s
1958 - Ella Fitzgerald Live at Mr. Kelly’s
1958 – Anita O’Day at Mr. Kelly’s
1960 – Ruth Olay
1963 – Smothers Brothers
1964 – Woody Allen Live at Mr. Kelly’s
1964 – Bill Cosby
1968 – Flip Wilson, You Devil You
1971 – Muddy Waters Live at Mr. Kelly’s
1974 – Cass Elliot – Don’t Call Me Mama Anymore
1975 – Freddy Prinze
Notables Who Performed
Among the notables who performed at Mister Kelly’s were Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Duke Ellington, Aretha Franklin, Ramsey Lewis, Dinah Washington, John Coltrane, Barbra Streisand, Julie London, Anita O'Day, Thelonious Monk, Cannonball Adderley, Nancy Wilson, Muddy Waters, Rufus with Chaka Khan, Carmen McRae, Rod McKuen, Buddy Greco, Bette Midler, Liza Minnelli and Barry Manilow. Comedians who also performed at Mister Kelly's included the likes of Lenny Bruce, Woody Allen, Moms Mabley, Richard Pryor, Joan Rivers, Bill Cosby, George Carlin, The Smothers Brothers, Freddie Prinze, Dick Gregory, Redd Foxx, Totie Fields, Flip Wilson, David Steinberg, Rudy Ray Moore, Stiller and Meara, Buddy Hackett, LaWanda Page, Robert Klein, Mike Nichols and Elaine May, Tim and Tom, Phyllis Diller, Bob Newhart, Don Rickles, Rodney Dangerfield, Jackie Mason and Lily Tomlin. Musical directors at the club included Dick Marx, Marty Rubenstein and Larry Novak.