Interview: Governor Tommy Thompson on signing Wisconsin’s polka state dance law in 1994
Thompson joined DJ Shotski in the WVMO-FM studios to share his recollections of the bill signing event in Pulaski, Wisconsin.
In April, Wisconsinites have a special reason to roll out the barrel, put on their dancing shoes, and do the polka.
The law that made polka Wisconsin’s state dance was quietly enacted on April 21, 1994. The bill signing by Governor Tommy Thompson on April 29 in Pulaski, Wisconsin was more of a party fitting this lively dance tradition than a solemn ceremony in the state capitol.
To share his memories of that event, Governor Thompson visited the 98.7 WVMO radio studio in Monona, Wisconsin to speak with Stacy Harbaugh, the host of Polka Time with DJ Shotski. Their conversation explored the scene inside and outside Zielinski Hall in Pulaski, and why polka music is so deeply entwined with Wisconsin’s traditions.
Shotski: Tell me what the polka dance law signing event was like.
Shotski: How did you feel about signing that law?
Shotski: Where did the idea of making the polka our state dance come from?
Shotski: Why do you think polka endures as a part of Wisconsin’s culture?
Roll out the Barrel bonus clip
DJ Shotski is a passionate collector of records and lives in Madison, Wisconsin. She shares her collection with others — particularly Dutchman-style recordings from Wisconsin and the upper Midwest — at events and on Polka Time on 98.7 WVMO Sunday nights at 7 p.m. and on radio stations across Wisconsin.