Author Matt Wild

Let’s take a moment to recognize that the guy who voiced Howard the Duck is from Milwaukee

January 24, 2018

If you've ever stumbled across one of those "47 celebrities you didn't know were from Milwaukee" things, you've probably seen the usual suspects: Gene Wilder, Heather Graham, the nice lady who played Mrs. Garre...

Dream Lab aims to blur the line between coffee shop and artist studio

Matt Wild

January 23, 2018

"I want to be the creative hub. I want to have a hand in everything creative that goes on in this city. I want it to happen here."So says Shawn DeKay, owner, creator, and dreamer-upper of Dream Lab, a hybri...

Here’s the full Milwaukee Psych Fest VI lineup and schedule

Matt Wild

January 23, 2018

Since 2013, Milwaukee musician Andrew Shelp has given the city a loud, fuzzed-out, and reverb-drenched gift every spring: Milwaukee Psych Fest. Returning for its sixth year May 4 and 5 at Boone & Crocket (n...

Foo Fighters will play new Milwaukee Bucks arena October 17

Matt Wild

January 22, 2018

Hey! Remember when Foo Fighters played Milwaukee but didn't play Milwaukee? Well, now they're going to play Milwaukee, but for real! Dave Grohl and company (Taylor Hawkins, Nate Mendel, Chris Shiflett, Pat Smea...

Mandatory Milwaukee: Betty Brinn Children’s Museum is a hands-on haven for restless rugrats

Matt Wild

January 22, 2018

Some places come and go, while some places become icons. Mandatory Milwaukee is all about the latter. Join us as we revisit beloved and well-worn local staples with fresh eyes, and explore how they might figure...

Milwaukee isn’t getting that Amazon headquarters, but here’s some stuff it is getting

Matt Wild

January 19, 2018

Every Friday, Off The Record looks to other Milwaukee publications (and beyond) for bits of news we missed throughout the week.• Milwaukee isn't getting that Amazon headquarters. https://www.youtube.com...

Troma legend Lloyd Kaufman will help judge this year’s Twisted Dreams Film Festival

Matt Wild

January 18, 2018

Milwaukee's Twisted Dreams Film Festival is coming soon—April 13-15 to the Times Cinema, to be exact—and the homegrown indie horror fest has already nabbed some solid judges. Chief among them is Lloyd Kauman, c...

Fine, let’s use Google’s “art selfie” thing on some famous Milwaukee faces

Matt Wild

January 18, 2018

Let's just get this out of the way before it disappears from your Facebook feed like so many other "10 bands I've seen live...but 1 is a lie!" time-wasters: Over the weekend, everyone got really into using Goog...

News, ‘Jurassic Park,’ anti-vaccination stories come together in this TMJ4 video from 1995

Matt Wild

January 17, 2018

Sweet, sweet nostalgia comes in many forms, but few forms are sweeter than television commercials. Want to relive your misspent youth? Enjoy it by reliving the exact way you misspent your youth: watching televi...

The heat is on in this Kohl’s “get it to go on cassettes” ad from 1984

Matt Wild

January 16, 2018

The first Kohl's store opened in Milwaukee in 1927. It was little more than a corner grocery store, and it wouldn't be until 1962 that Kohl's got into the full-fledged department store business. Since then, Koh...

Enjoy new ads and jingles from Joshua Jones, creator of the Milwaukee Record theme song

Matt Wild

January 11, 2018

Back in 2016 we stumbled across a local auto detailing and carpet cleaning commercial that was, in a word, the best. Created by Milwaukee-by-way-of-Memphis entrepreneur Joshua Jones, the no-budget, catchy-as-he...

Check out this gloriously ’80s commercial for the Milwaukee Public Library

Matt Wild

January 10, 2018

Remember last year when some goof tweeted that "nobody goes to libraries anymore," and that all public libraries should be closed? Remember when the internet put him on blast, pointing out that, hey, everyone—e...

Listen to the Milwaukee theme song that never was in this HealthReach ad from 1984

Matt Wild

January 9, 2018

Any Milwaukeean worth their salt knows all about that old "Hello Milwaukee" song—a.k.a. that 1977 Channel 12 jingle that went on to inspire dozens of other versions for dozens of other cities. (If not, enjoy it...

Former Hello Falafel chef will launch family-inspired brunch pop-ups, Cyril&Alice

Matt Wild

January 8, 2018

Hello Falafel may have closed its doors (for now) this past weekend, but that doesn't mean the former Chef de Cuisine of Hello Falafel is resting on her laurels. Today, chef Theresa Schuenke announced a series ...

In case you blinked last week, here’s all the new shit they’re building in Milwaukee (Jan. 1-6)

Matt Wild

January 8, 2018

Depending on which news sources you follow, Milwaukee is going through either a "renaissance" or a "reinvention." Or maybe it's a "reboot" or a "reimagining," like that crappy Tim Burton version of Planet Of Th...

Ex-Sheriff Clarke will face trial January 22 for threatening a guy who shook his head at him

Matt Wild

January 5, 2018

Remember when a Riverwest man, Daniel Black, encountered then-Sheriff David A. Clarke Jr. on a flight from Dallas to Milwaukee? Remember when Black asked Clarke if he was indeed Clarke, and, after Clarke replie...

Recently closed La Fuente will become a (temporary, maybe permanent) Nomad

Matt Wild

January 5, 2018

Every Friday, Off The Record looks to other Milwaukee publications (and beyond) for bits of news we missed throughout the week.• One of the final blows of 2017 was the closing of longtime Mexican restaurant...

In case you missed it, Black Cat Alley’s newest mural features an alcoholic Santa Claus

Matt Wild

January 5, 2018

Since opening in September 2016, the East Side's Black Cat Alley has seen its fair share of controversy. Well, one of the pieces in the outdoor mural gallery has seen its fair share of controversy, at least. Ad...

Could Lake Michigan freeze over? And if so, could you bike or drive across it?

Matt Wild

January 4, 2018

Spend enough time on Facebook and you might come across an event titled "Bike or drive across Lake Michigan?" Set for Saturday, February 10, 2018 in the Milwaukee Harbor, the brazen event claims that "at some u...

Here’s what Milwaukee needs to accomplish in 2018 (according to 8 Milwaukeeans)

Matt Wild

January 3, 2018

Twenty-seventeen was...well, it was a year. The list of national outrages and horror stories could go on for days, and that's not even taking into account the international outrages and horror stories. Luckily,...