The following article was written by Tim Gadzinski, a Marketing Associate at the Manitowoc Public Library.
If you’ve spent an extended amount of time in our stretch of the Lakeshore—or been to a Packers home game or two in the past twenty years—it’s more likely than not that you have an awareness of Bill Jartz: a WBAY-TV fixture for more than forty years and the “Voice of Lambeau” since 2005.
Simply stated, I’ve known about Bill the vast majority of my adult life. Even though I took what essentially amounted to a twenty-year break (for the most part) from living in Manitowoc, I was a consistent visitor when it came to holidays and special events over the course of that time. While I can’t say that I would tune-in to WBAY for the nightly news every time that I was in town, it was a fairly common occurrence. And every time that I did, Bill Jartz was there—first as the sports director passing along that day’s glory and/or agony for being a Packers, Brewers, and Bucks fan, then later as a news anchor, pretty much in any time slot the local nightly news required his presence, or so it seemed. If I was around for the annual televised Cerebral Palsy Telethon, Bill was there, too, hosting parts of the proceedings.
So, before the idea popped into my head to attempt to bring Bill to Manitowoc Public Library for a program, I was absolutely familiar with him as a local media legend—the easygoing demeanor, the relaxed and relatable style, the confident delivery, the chuckle that was certain to surface at some point in the broadcast. It was easy to feel as if I knew the person even though I had never been in the same room with him. Moreover, there were all these tales one would hear about him emceeing an array of events and making appearances for charitable causes. Bottom line was that Bill just seemed to be a regular guy whose heart was in the right place. Who also was instantly recognizable in this neck of the woods.
Flash forward to the NFL Draft coming to Green Bay. Naturally, MPL wanted to do an Adult Program that made us a part of the action. Nothing too crazy, though, because quite honestly, it’s hard to compete with the draw and spectacle of The Draft when you’re a small town library on the shores of Lake Michigan. But, maybe something a week or so prior to The Draft. Maybe an author event with someone who had written about the Packers organization or something fun that loosely tied into football.
Then, a thought popped into my brain. I’ve had the good fortune to have worked on many an occasion with another local broadcasting legend—WOMT’s Lee Douglas—and I recalled him casually mentioning that he was good friends with Bill Jartz. I figured that it couldn’t hurt to approach Lee and see if he would mind asking Bill if he’d be interested in doing something with me at the Library. Something low-key and fun. Nothing crazy—just a sit-down interview, discussing his life in the public eye as both a sports reporter and an anchor. Maybe talk some Packers. Maybe some audience Q&A, as well.
Tim Gadzinski
Lee said that he thought it sounded like something that Bill would be interested in doing and that he’d give him a call. I thanked him profusely and hoped that I’d hear one way or the other in a week or so. Imagine my surprise when my phone rang approximately a half-hour later and Bill Jartz was on the other end of the line!
“Tim,” he said, “This is Bill Jartz (I recognized the voice; there really wasn’t any need for him to identify himself) and Lee told me you’d like to do a program with me at Manitowoc Public Library.”
“Hello, Mr. Jartz,” I reflexively answered, “Thank you so much for calling me back.”
“Call me Bill. Mr. Jartz makes me feel like I’m in trouble with the law! So, what’s this program you want to do?”
I knew immediately that it was going to be a great conversation and a wonderful afternoon at MPL. He agreed on the spot once I pitched the idea of doing it on the weekend—because his time was more his own once he got past Fridays. We set the details and that was that!
I sincerely hope that you will be able to join us on Saturday, April 12, at 1 PM in the Balkansky Community Room for A Saturday Conversation with Bill Jartz. It’s going to be a casual, laid-back event—sort of like a back porch ramble moved inside. And we’ll be opening it up for questions from those attending, so if you’ve ever had something (appropriate) that you’ve wanted to ask Bill, this is a golden opportunity.
One final thought about why I’m looking forward to A Saturday Conversation with Bill Jartz so much—it dawned on me that while I’ve heard Bill talk on a wide array of topics, I’ve never heard his talk about himself. And with his life in broadcasting being the focus of the afternoon, it should, indeed, be an informative, interesting conversation. See you at 1 PM on Saturday, April 12!
