Magikist

Magikist

Industry	carpet cleaning
Fate	Dissolved
Defunct	2001
Headquarters	Chicago, Illinois, United States
Key people	Wilbur Gage

Magikist was a U.S.-based rug cleaner manufacturer and cleaning company. After the company went out of business in 2001, the name was sold and is currently used by a Canadian manufacturer of car wash equipment. The original company was notable for its large advertising signs which were a part of pop culture in the Chicago area.

History

Magikist was founded by Wilbur "Bill" Gage.^[1] Subsequently, Mr. Gage operated Magikist in the Chicago area South of Howard and Lionel and Shirley Gelfand operated Magikist in the area North of Howard Street. In the Chicago area, the Magikist Lips (in the form of huge signs on the Edens Expressway, Dan Ryan Expressway, Kennedy Expressway,^[2] and Eisenhower Expressway which lit up and flashed) were well-known landmarks. Chicago journalist Eric Zorn wrote a piece about the Edens sign (the last existing) after it was torn down in 2004.

Travelers from the early 1960s through the late 1990s, when the company moved and the signs were shut off (and eventually demolished), tended to use them as landmarks to figure out how much longer it would take to arrive at their destination.^[3]

Chicago musician/artist Wesley Willis frequently mentioned Magikist in his song lyrics,^[4] although he used the word as a term of high praise, akin to "magician".

Gallery

• 

  Magikist Lips sign formerly located on the Kennedy Expressway at Montrose Avenue in Chicago

References

1. ^ Cordts, Michael. "Wilbur `Bill' Gage; founded Magikist, adopted `lips' logo." Chicago Sun-Times July 11, 1987
2. ^ Chicago Tribune web edition (Tribune file photo) [1]
3. ^ Zorn, Eric. "Magikist lips gave Chicago reason to smile." The Chicago Tribune January 29, 2004
4. ^ Staff. "Wesley Willis discusses his career, demons." The Tartan October 21, 2002

External links

Main

Other

• Magikist in pop culture
• Bemoaning the loss of a local icon
• A father recalls the Magikist lips sign in a letter to his astronaut son, at the time stationed on Mir space station
• Magikist Museum - Memorabilia