Who was going to the go-go, 52 years ago

During the 1966 Oktoberfest, go-go nights were set up at the Avalon Ballroom on Copeland, to attract a younger crowd. But on the first of the three nights, attendance was low. Scheduling might have been to blame. That first go-go night was a school night, and it had to compete with a Sawyer Auditorium show featuring the popular comedy team of Marty Allen and Steve Rossi.

Jack Ruby’s conviction for killing Lee Harvey Oswald was overturned by an appeals court in Texas, because an alleged confession by Ruby should not have been allowed in court. One newspaper story claimed 140 million Americans saw Ruby on TV, shooting Oswald just two days after Oswald allegedly killed President John Kennedy in Dallas. Ruby died in jail before he could get another trial.

Movie theaters in La Crosse were showing dueling British-style comedies with similar names. The Hollywood had “The Knack, and How To Get It”…while the Rivoli was showing “The Pad, and How To Use It.” Groovy comedy in 1966, yesterday in La Crosse.