From The Vault:

Volume 6 Number 3 – Summer 2026

A NOTE FROM YOUR DISTRICT HISTORIAN

Greetings Friends of the Illinois District!

All throughout 2026, and particularly around the beginning of July, thoughts are centered on celebrating America’s semiquincentennial (or 250th anniversary) as a nation. Certainly a milestone, this year’s festivities remind us of the last time we celebrated America in such a way – 1976. During that “Bicentennial” year, much of society’s culture, particularly music, centered around patriotic themes. The Barbershop Harmony Society and the Illinois District’s activities reflected this attitude.

As a result, I decided to devote this summer’s newsletter to a retrospective of that historic year of 1976. In this issue, a timeline of events is featured (gathered from the pages of Attacks & Releases). In addition, we highlight our 50th anniversary quartet champions, the Valley Four-gers, as well as dig through some old photos and misc. artifacts related to our spring convention held in Aurora that year. We remember a special encounter with celebrities and a youth concert held in the suburbs. Finally, we unearth a recording of a district quartet from central Illinois that caught a lot of attention at the time.

My thanks to Carl Missele, who provided invaluable information about the Valley Four-gers that is useful for this newsletter and will reside permanently in the archives.

I hope you enjoy this fifty-year anniversary issue!

Sing-cerely,

Rich Hansen

District Historian

"The Spirit of '76"

A BICENTENNIAL BARBERSHOP CELEBRATION

(The following is a timeline of major events taken from the archives of the 1976 Attacks & Releases issues)

January-February

The district launched a new edition of Attacks & Releases, with a redesigned logo by Dick Johnson in red, white, and blue to celebrate the nation’s bicentennial. The usual quarterly publication now became available as a bi-monthly edition. The International Society’s “Young Men in Harmony” program was promoted among the district to entice young singers into the art form of barbershop harmony. The 1973 district champs, Saturday’s Heroes, had a personnel change adding Rick Anthoney and Doug Smith. District Secretary Jim Vliet streamlined the publication of the district directory so that each member received it on time. The Little Egypt Chorus in Carbondale gained special exposure when they sang the National Anthem at the SIU-Carbondale vs. New Mexico State basketball game while also performing a set at half-time. On February 7, the annual Chicago Area Barbershop Chapters (CABC) show was held at the McCormick Place featuring the Lombard & Arlington Heights Chapter Choruses, the 1971 Sweet Adelines Queens Fourth Edition as well as the 1961 Barbershop Harmony Quartet Champs, The Suntones.

March-April

A special evening of barbershop harmony among the youth of the district was highlighted on March 20th when the DuPage Valley hosted a concert featuring the Hinsdale Spartones and the Bloomington H.S. Barbershoppers. The district adopted a new service to its competitors, videotaping their competitions, shows, or sing-outs – allowing each chapter or quartet to critique themselves in order to improve their performance. The spring convention was held in Aurora with ’68 District Champs Grandma’s Boys coming in first in the quartet competition. The Coles County Chorus, under the direction of Dr. Tom Woodall, took top honors in the chorus contest performing a “bum” set. The newly-formed Princeton Chapter held its licensing show at Princeton High School. To assist, the Sterling-Rock Falls Chapter, Close Harmony Committee, Harmony Brigade, and Phase IV quartets agreed to perform.

May-June

Two prominent district quartets announced in May that they were disbanding – the Accutones & Harmony Brigade. On June 15th, the Beverly Hills Chapter hosted a quartet jamboree for the Metro Division, with six quartets from four chapters participating. The district got some exposure in the June issue of “See Illinois” magazine, which contained a short article on barbershopping, featuring the Valley Four-gers quartet.

July-August

Governor Dan Walker signed an official proclamation at the State Capitol in Springfield designating July as “Barbershop Harmony Month” for the state of Illinois. The district put together a public relations display containing photos and general advertising for the International convention held in San Francisco, CA. An interesting decision made by the Society board which would affect all districts was a new rule that all Society shows must contain at least 75% Barbershop music (“Barbershop” being defined as contestable, non-spiritual, non-folk style music with no solos or instrumentals, etc.). Needless to say, the announcement was received with mixed reviews! Illinois boasted more quartets in the Top 20 in San Francisco than any other district – Grandma’s Boys (6th), Saturday’s Heroes (8th), Soundtracks (14th), & Chord’s Unlimited (19th). The Chicago No.1 Chapter hosted a quartet jamboree at the Germania Club on July 23. 51 members of the district attended Harmony College in St. Joseph, MO in August. At the district board meeting on August 22nd, Walt Martin was nominated to be the next president with Jim Vliet serving as Executive VP. The annual campout in Ottawa was a huge success with over 160 barbershoppers and their families in attendance. Popular composer and arranger Mac Huff visited several chapters during a swing through the state in late August/early September.

September-October

The district’s fall convention was hosted by the Coles County Chapter and held on the campus of Eastern Illinois University in Charleston. Bloomington’s Sound of Illinois took top honors in the chorus contest and the Valley Four-gers rose to the top of a field of 35 quartet competitors. In mid-October, Society HQ staff member Joe Liles dropped in from Kenosha to visit with several chapters across the state. Central division chapters hosted a quartet jamboree at the Sangamon Valley Fair Grounds in New Berlin, IL on October 17th.

November-December

On November 1, the Arlingtones surprised their director, Doug Miller, with a special “roast.” Special quartet appearances by the Schizo Phonics, Chords Unlimited, and Doug’s own Soundtracks made for a memorable evening. The annual COTS (Chapter Officer Training School) was held in Champaign November 6-7 and was well attended. As the district leadership began the transition period between administrations, both the outgoing president (John Mulkin) and the incoming president (Walt Martin) stressed four areas for improvement among chapters – 1) increase membership, 2) focus on public relations, 3) support the Young Men in Harmony program, & 4) continue supporting the Society’s charity, Logopedics. The Illinois District as well as the Barbershop Harmony Society mourned the passing of Leo Frank Ives the day after Christmas. Leo was the lead of the 1943 International Champions Four Harmonizers from Chicago and had been, up to that point, the oldest living member of the Association of International Champions (AIC).

Quite a year for the Illinois District…

The January/February issue of Attacks & Releases, with the new district logo, featuring District President John Mulkin

The Joliet Chapter, like many in the district, put on a bicentennial-themed show

The Bloomington High School Barbershop Chorus, one of the performers at a special YMIH event in March, 1976

IL Governor Dan Walker (seated, right) signs a proclamation declaring July as "Barbershop Harmony Month", with him are District Public Relations Officer Burt Schindler and District President John Mulkin

Illinois barbershoppers gather in St. Joseph, MO for the annual Harmony College event

Ron Leathers (far right), of the Coles County Chapter, receives the district's Central Division Barbershopper of the Year award as director Tom Woodall looks on

The 1976 District Quartet Champions - The Valley Four-gers

Bloomington's Sound of Illinois Chorus, under the direction of Sam Anliker (center), chorus champions of the Fall '76 District contest

The Arlingtones as they appeared in 1976 during a special Bicentennial show

QCA Spotlight

THE VALLEY FOUR-GERS (1976)

(taken from the recollections of Carl Missele)

You’ve heard the old question, “How many guys are in your quartet?” Well, in the case of our 1976 champs, one could almost say five. Though they won the championship in 1976, the history of The Valley Four-gers goes back to the 1950s.

It was in 1953 that a recent high school grad named Carl Missele was invited to sing in a former high school barbershop quartet that lost their baritone who went off to college. The boys knew they had something special and subsequently all took memberships with the Elgin Chapter of the Illinois District. At some point during the next few years, three members of the chapter asked Carl to sing with them in a quartet. They called themselves The Houligans and the members included Don Lowe on bass, Sheldon Levy on Bari, Carl on lead, and Gail Eiklor on tenor. When Sheldon decided to leave the quartet, Walter Martin joined the group. Walt became the tenor and Gail took the baritone.

The quartet rehearsed in the homes of their members, getting together at least once per week. It was Walt (the history teacher) who decided to name the quartet The Valley Four-gers – part for history and part for Elgin being in Fox Valley. Carl recalls that “many of my memories are from the fun we would have at our rehearsals doing crazy things that sometimes would become part of our ‘schtick.’ ”

In 1959, Carl left the quartet to finish his studies at NIU. While he was gone, the quartet continued singing. Carl rejoined The Valley Four-gers in 1963 and sang with them for a few more years. Later, Gene Anthony had joined the quartet and was singing tenor while Walt sang the lead. Gail and Don sang bari and bass, respectively. However, Gail Eiklor was diagnosed with colon cancer and died in 1973. Carl was asked to return to the quartet and fill in on the baritone part. He accepted and learned the songs they were doing on shows. It was a good fit. In the summer of 1976, the quartet received quality coaching at the annual Harmony College event. The group also coached several times with Jay Giallombardo ahead of the fall competition. They came back to the district contest and won that fall.

Carl recalls that, “The Four-gers did a lot of gigs over the years. We were good teammates who were dependable and responsible. On stage, we trusted each other. Unless you have been a performer, you might not understand how important that is.”

After logging numerous shows and more than forty contests that spanned three decades, the quartet eventually disbanded when Gene Anthony decided to retire. How appropriate that the district quartet contest in America’s bicentennial year was won by a group whose name embodied the “Spirit of ’76”! We salute our 1976 (once and always) district champions, The Valley Four-gers!

The Four Houligans from Elgin - from L to R: Carl Missele (Lead), Sheldon Levy (Bari), Gail Eiklor (Tenor), and Don Lowe (Bass)

The original version of the Valley Four-gers - Clockwise from the top: Eiklor, Lowe, Missele, Martin

A later version of the Valley Four-gers - this time with Gene Anthony (bottom center), circa late 1960s

The Valley Four-gers at Harmony College, August '76

The Valley Four-gers on stage in the Fall '76 district contest

"Simon Says"

What are the odds of sharing barbershop harmony with both a politician AND a Hollywood celebrity at the same event??

It was at the 1976 Mid-Winter convention held in Washington D.C. that Illinois District President John Mulkin, Immediate Past President & International Board Member Bill Everitt, and Attacks & Releases staff member Dick Neely rubbed elbows with two very famous individuals.

The politician was Illinois Congressman and former Lt. Governor Paul Simon. Simon, his wife Jean and son Martin were guests of President Mulkin for the performance of the “Salute to America” barbershop show at the Kennedy Center held during the convention week. In addition to being a politician, Simon was also known as a music lover and sang bass.

The Hollywood celebrity was Mr. Burt Mustin. Old-timers will recall Mustin from his work on television with several guest appearances on The Andy Griffith Show, The Twilight Zone, The Beverly Hillbillies, Bewitched, Gunsmoke, and The Dick Van Dyke Show to name a few. His acting career also included roles in over a dozen films from the 1950s through the 1970s. What you may not have known is that in addition to being a popular actor, Mustin was also a member of the Reseda Valley, California Chapter of the Barbershop Harmony Society.

It was because of this encounter that Congressman Simon formally included the importance of Barbershop Harmony into his remarks before Congress. The March 24, 1976 Congressional Record contains a “Tribute To Our Nation’s Barbershoppers.” In his remarks, Simon said, “Barbershop quartet singing is an American institution that I have personally enjoyed participating in and thoroughly enjoyed listening to, and the concert the other evening was a great example. It was a tribute to the history of our Nation and it had a good mixture of what goes together to make the American tradition.”

From L to R: District President John Mulkin, Congressman Paul Simon, Dick Neely, Burt Mustin, Bill Everitt

Barbershopping in Aurora

Recently, the district archives received numerous boxes of materials relating to the Aurora Lamplighter Chapter. Among the many interesting pieces of history was a photograph album that one of the members filled with personal photos taken at the 1976 spring convention, which the Aurora Chapter hosted.

For this issue, we include not only some of those rare photos, but combine them with other unique artifacts from that convention weekend already housed in the archives, such as a program booklet, LP recording, and an attendee name badge to name a few.

The convention was held the weekend of April 9-11. The headquarters hotel was located at the Holiday Inn on Route 31 and the contest site was nearby Batavia High School. Bill Worst served as the general chairman of the event, assisted by Tom Lancaster and Chris Johnson. International Treasurer Ernie Mills of Medford, Oklahoma was on hand as a representative from the Society. Judges included Alan Baker & Buzz Haeger (Arrangement Category), Don Lang & M.O. Newgard (Sound Category), Melvin Harris & Ken Warner (Interpretation Category), and John Galloway & Roger Steffens (Stage Presence Category) with Russ Foris serving as Judges’ Chairman.

27 quartets and 20 choruses took the stage with Grandma’s Boys taking first place in the quartet contest and Coles County taking first place in the chorus division.

The “Spirit of ’76” was alive and well in Aurora that weekend!

An advertisement for the spring convention to be held in Aurora

Aurora's Holiday Inn served as the convention headquarters

An example of the name badges that were worn by attendees of the convention

The Soundtracks ('71 District Champs) sing in the International qualifying competition

Grandma's Boys ('68 District Champs) warm up in the men's room before heading to the stage

Saturday's Heroes ('73 Champs) perform on stage

The Coles County Chorus, under the direction of Tom Woodall, perform as bums during their contest set

The host chapter, Aurora, sings under the direction of Harvey Sterkel

A Night to Remember

(taken from an article by Dick Neely for Attacks & Releases, May/June ’76 issue)

On Saturday, March 20th, 1976, a special Young Men in Harmony show was held at Downers Grove North High School. The concert, sponsored by the Illinois District and the Du Page Valley Chapter, was a huge success, nearly 800 in attendance. The show featured the Spartones from Hinsdale Jr. High School directed by John Tantillo (see FTV Winter ’25 Issue). Next up were the boys of the Bloomington High School Barbershop Chorus under the direction of Sam Anliker (see FTV Spring ’22 Issue).

From there, the Du Page Chapter, under the direction of George Peters, took the stage. They performed a “Salute to America” package narrated by Master of Ceremonies Don Thorpe. Following their performance, the On Stage Majority and Chords Unlimited quartets entertained the audience. The night concluded with the singing of “Keep America Singing” directed by John Tantillo.

A large part of the credit for the entire evening was due to show committee chairman Tom Lancaster, who together with Bill Everitt, spent many hours reaching out to music educators, traveling to schools, and promoting the concert. John Tantillo and Dick Neely even appeared on a March 12th local radio broadcast to inform listeners about the Young Men in Harmony program.

Audience members were entertained by the Spartones (top picture) and Bloomington HS Barbershoppers (bottom pictures)

The Good Time Music Shoppe (1976)

The Good Time Music Shoppe was a district quartet that spanned just a couple of years, from 1975-77. Representing the Pontiac and Bloomington Chapters, the members included tenor Loren Cremer, lead Jack Aldridge, baritone Al Draper, and bass Jerry Hawbacker. Both Aldridge and Draper were previous district champions with the Ideals in 1970 (See FTV – Spring 2021 Issue). For the time they were together, the group performed for chapter shows as well as competed in the district, beginning in the fall of 1975. From their initial 14th place that year, the group jumped into the top ten in the spring of 1976, placing 7th, and then climbing to 3rd place in the fall of 1976. The quartet fell a few slots the following spring and disbanded thereafter. Here for your enjoyment is one of their more popular tunes, “There’s a Brand New Gang on the Corner” recorded at the height of their success.