Hide Article Text (OCR)
By STERLING SORENSEN Joe Mercedes, the effervescent, colorful publicist, of the Badger [state's recreational, resort, scenic ,and hunting, and fishing ad vantages—a showman who made his theatrical debut here 40 years ago—is bringing the world pre miere of a motion picture, This is Wisconsin,” to the state capitol Wednesday. Executive director of the Wis consin Tourist bureau, with a plushy display office on Chicago's Michigan ave, Mercedes will show the 80-minute color film —~ “a scenic wonderland captured in film —at 5 p.m. in the hearing room of the state house. ++ + DISTINGUISHED BY HIS ever present carnation boutonniere and his lumberjack-style weol shirt, Mercedes invited Gov. Walter J. Kohler, other state officials, and members of the legislature as guests at the premiere. For the state's chief executive, he had a special “key to the city” type of souvenir, inscribed with greetings to the governor, along with data on ‘This is Wisconsin,” “The film was 4 year in the mak ing, but it took me 20 years to record the script,” the indefatiga ‘bie drum beater for the state said. '““'phig is Wisconsin’ is a verit able Cook's tour of our state, in cluding scenes of the capitol, the niversity, the conservation com mission's game farms and, of ‘course, its wonderland of south western scenery and northern lakes and playground areas,’ MERCEDES 18 AT home in Madison and the statehouse. He holds a commission as colonel, giv en by former Gov. Oscar Renne bohm in recognition of Mercedes’ work in promoting Wisconsin. For two decades, Mercedes has been working to lure summer tourists to the Badger state, , through the tourist bureau. “This color film is my answer to the thousands of questions con cerning our state that have been asked me over the past 20 years,” he explains. “In this is shown the real, substantial, lasting and per manent things of which we have a right to boast—our scenery, our lakes, our rivers, our glorious northern woodland areas and our fish and game. “It is not a glamorized version, such as you see in publicity in the slick magazines describing the ad vantages of certain areas, but a factual recording of America’s dairyland.”” +t + WISE IN THE WAYS of show business and of things theatrical, Mercedes and his wife, known pro fessionally as Mile Stantone, made their debut here in the old Orphe um, now the Madison theater, back 40 years ago. They had a “mental telepathy” act, and the couple gained wide publicity when they performed their act for Gov. Francis E. Mc Govern. They went on to play theaters of the nation, and likewise per formed in England and on the continent. i n Madison gave us our start in the ‘big time’ and so, when we re tired in England in 1923, Mrs. Mer cedes and I returned to the United States to make our home in Mi nocqua,” he related, “I was always intrigued by the recreational and scenic possibili ties of this state, and so I have subsequently devoted my time and ‘energy to publicizing and exploit ing them.” The Mercedes act, old time thea ftergoers will recall, was known as “Musical Telepathy.” Mercedes would go out into the audience and ask a patron to request a song title. Through the medium of their “mental telepathy,” Mlle. Stantone would then play the re quested selection from the stage. “And it was all done without ‘verbal communication, wires or tricks, and it was long before the days of the walkie-talkie,” he said. Joe Mercedes
Newspaper Details
Madison Capital Times
Madison, Wisconsin, US
Tue, Feb 20, 1951
Page 2
Full Page
Clipped by
Kerry B.
USA 10 Jul 2026
Other Publications Near Madison, Wisconsin
Peoples News
Madison Patriotic Crusader
Madison Democrat
Madison Password
Our Church Home
