Encyclopedia Dubuque
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Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
FUHRMAN, Gus
FUHRMAN, Gus. (Dubuque, IA, Mar. 12, 1909--Dubuque, IA, Oct. 14, 1993). As a teenager pursuing his dreams of becoming a professional musician, Fuhrman traveled by train to Chicago for piano lessons and Milwaukee for accordion lessons. In 1926 while still in high school, Fuhrman performed in a trio at the Hilltop Casino in East Dubuque, Illinois. He enrolled at the University of Iowa and in 1927 founded his first orchestra, Gus and His Merry Mad Gang of Collegians.
In 1936 Fuhrman married Mary Jane Corbett. For the next several years, they traveled south for the winter tourist season to play in the nightclubs of South Florida. There he played at the then famous Jimmy's Bar in Fort Lauderdale in the early evening and then drove to Miami for late evening "gigs." These "Gold Coast" nightclubs featured dinner, dancing and wide open (although illegal) gambling. Later he traveled the East Coast with Cato and His Vagabonds.
Between the late 1920s until about 1980, while serving as the Dubuque postmaster and being active in real estate, Fuhrman enjoyed an active musical career. (1) Fuhrman provided his audiences with a wide variety of music--a full orchestra, small trio, or combo. Audiences included high school proms, Christmas parties, private occasions, or holiday parties. He was very well known in the small towns in Iowa, Illinois and Wisconsin and dance halls like The Dell in Durango, MELODY MILL and the Fairyland Ballroom east of DeWitt. As a life-long member of the Elks, Fuhrman also played for many Elks clubs in the Tri-State area.
For over fifty-years Gus Fuhrman shared the stage with many Dubuque area musicians. Some of these included Ralph "Whitey" WOELK , "Skinny" Ellis, Willy Sutter, Ronnie Pline, George Flanders, Mssrs. Luckritz, Dewey and Ferris, Art Trannel, Roy Bowman, Bob Hein, Dick Spautz, Joe Chevalier, Mark Gavin, Joe Schmidt, and Russ Evans on the drums and his wife, Fanny.
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Source:
1. Obituaries. Telegraph Herald, October 18, 1993, p. 7
(Photo and information courtesy: Stevens Orchestra Project--http://stevensorchestra.tripod.com/id40.html)