The Thirsty Whale Never Forgets

By Tankboy in Arts & Entertainment on Nov 25, 2008 6:00PM

If you are of a certain advanced age, and were ever into the rock and/or roll of the hair metal variety, chances are you patronized The Thirsty Whale. It closed in 1996 after a long run of playing host the the harder rocking bands throughout Chicago and it's suburbs. O.K., and Indiana too. Our band once played there but we didn't quite fit the mold since we sang wearing a hockey mask and a black one-piece dress ... but we did at least have the prerequisite long hair.

A friend of ours just directed our attention to a website memorializing The Thirsty Whale and it is bursting with memories of the venue just like a can of aerosol hairspray held over a fire. If you're looking for a way to while away the time before you finally get cut loose for the holiday break, this is a great site to wander even if you have never heard of The Thirsty Whale.

We recommend starting with the photos...

Thanks to Sweet Lou for bringing this historical document to our attention