The seed was planted in the shower in 1972, as Dwight "Hairy" Heggenberger soaped his back with a palm full of Lava. 13 months later, The Lincoln Lodge,a dining and entertainment destination on the shores of Muskegon, Michigan, was born. A high-class restaurant and showroom featuring some of the top comedians, variety acts and musicians of its day, the dream was abruptly cut short in 1976 with the advent of pay cable and the sudden disappearance of Heggenberger (allegedly linked to the Muskegon underworld).

When The Lincoln Lodge mysteriously burned to the ground six days later, all that remained of the original establishment were a few tattered photos, a singed architectural rendering and yellowed racing form with some scribbled notes on the back. As fate had it, a Chicago aficionado of comedy came across these materials at a Battle Creek swap meet and immediately began working with his partner on scouting possible venues to revive the dream.

Through yet another coincidence, the two chanced upon the aptly-named Lincoln Restaurant, a fixture of Chicago's North Side for almost three decades. In the fall of 2000, after investing exhaustive amounts of labor and expense to rehab a shuttered banquet room and recreate Heggenberger's legendary showroom, The Lincoln Lodge opened its doors inside Lincoln Restaurant, and has been disrupting drinking habits across the North Side ever since.

Visitors to The Lincoln Lodge comedy and variety show, now in its ninth season, have fallen in love with the eclectic entertainment and intimate cabaret setting provided by the showroom's sumptuous, wood-paneled interiors, soft lighting and luxurious naugahyde chairs.