Billy Goat Tavern

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The Billy Goat Tavern

The Billy Goat Tavern is a famous chain of taverns located in Chicago, Illinois, founded in 1934 by Greek immigrant Billy Sianis. Its original location was across the street from the old Chicago Stadium and later moved to the lower level of the Magnificent Mile between the offices of the Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Sun-Times. This led to the Tavern's being mentioned in any number of newspaper columns, particularly those of the late Mike Royko. On New Year's Eve 2005, the tavern fittingly held the farewell party for the famed City News Bureau of Chicago, whose reporters were a fixture at the Billy Goat for decades. A small sign commemorating America's first news service still hangs near the northwest wall. Another sign reads "Cheezborger Cheezborger Cheezborger No Pepsi. Coke". These words were originally spoken by John Belushi in an early Saturday Night Live sketch that was inspired by the tavern; however, it contains a misquote--the drinks are reversed^[1] (See also Olympia Cafe).

The tavern is also known for its involvement in the Curse of the Billy Goat (also known as the "Cubs Curse"). It now has several locations in the Chicago area and expanded to Washington, D.C., in 2005. The D.C. location is the first outside of the Chicago area and is intended to appeal primarily to politicians, lobbyists, and other D.C. workers who are originally from Chicago. The D.C. location, however, is not the first to be proposed outside the Chicago area. In the 1970s, owner Billy Sianis wrote a letter to the mayor of Chicago petitioning for the first liquor license for the moon. His hope, according to the letter that currently adorns the establishment's wall, was to best serve his country by serving delicious cheeseburgers to wayfaring astronauts as well as raising moon-goats.

[edit] History

The first location was opened in 1937 when William "Billy Goat" Sianis bought the Lincoln Tavern for $205 with a bounced check (he made good on it with the proceeds from the first weekend they were open). When the 1944 Republican Convention came to down, he posted a sign saying "No Republicans allowed" causing the place to be packed with Republicans demanding to be served. Of course, a great deal of publicity followed and Sianis took advantage of that fact. In 1964, they moved to the current location under Michigan Avenue. ^[2]

Although made famous by Belushi on Saturday Night Live, he claimed in an interview with Chicago radio icon Steve Dahl that he'd never set foot inside the Billy Goat. Audio of the interview (recorded when Belushi was in Chicago filming "The Blues Brothers") can be heard on Dahl's Podcast. ^[3]