Michael Feldman

Since 1985, Michael Feldman’s Whad’Ya Know? has been a comedic mainstay on Wisconsin Public Radio, a two-hour, wisecrack-filled dessert next to the (grass-fed) meat and (organic) potatoes of typical public radio programming. For perspective, that 31-year run is longer than Johnny Carson, Larry King, or Merv Griffin helmed their iconic talk shows. At one point, Feldman’s call-in/comedy quiz show was broadcast on more than 300 stations nationwide, reaching more than 1.5 million listeners. Sadly, back in March, WPR decided to pull the plug on Feldman at the end of June – which means humorous audience banter and piano- and bass-driven jazz will no longer be listeners’ Saturday morning soundtrack. If there’s a silver lining to the bad news, it’s that you can have the historic privilege of being a member of the live audience for the show’s final tour date on Saturday, May 21, at the State Theatre. (The very last show will be broadcast from Madison on June 25.) The just-announced guest lineup features a smorgasbord of Chippewa Valley culture: Bill Nolte, owner of The Joynt, a venerable Water Street watering hole; Eric Anderson, founder of the U.S. National Kubb Championship; Bob Adrian of Rump’s Butcher Shoppe in Altoona and the new Hanger 54 Grill in Eau Claire; and musical guest J.E. Sunde, formerly of The Daredevil Christopher Wright. Expect lots of Feldman’s inimitably quick wit as well as the Whad’Ya Know? Band, All the News That Isn’t, the Town of the Week, plus two rounds of the weekly quiz. If you’re a fan of Feldman, what’s the cost of a ticket compared with the memories of being in one of his final radio audiences? To riff on a familiar quip, “Not much.”

Michael Feldman’s Whad’Ya Know? • Saturday, May 21, 9:30am-noon • The State Theatre, 316 Eau Claire St., Eau Claire • $35 • 715-832-ARTS (2787) • info@eauclairearts.com • eauclairearts.com