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Park Profile
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The Greek
Hades is one of three wooden
coasters at the park today
success
story in
Wisconsin
Dells
It all started with a hot dog
stand. But how did a family
of Greek immigrants build
up a successful theme
park, waterpark and hotel
business in Wisconsin
Dells? Gary Kyriazi
reveals the Laskaris’
fascinating story
T
he story reads like a James Michener multi- name the new Wisconsin Dells venture? That's easy
generational novel. In 1935, a young Greek enough. Dimitrius had recently purchased a 25ft tall
boy by the name of Dimitrius Laskaris comes to fibreglass Indian, just because he liked it, although he
America to join his uncle, newly an American citizen didn't know what he would do with it. Problem solved:
himself. Dimitrius, or Jim (the American name he he places his proud Indian statue in front of his new
gave himself upon arriving in the States), manages to hot dog/hamburger stand and names it Big Chief Hot
make it through to the tenth grade while learning to Dogs.
speak English. After serving in the Navy he lands in “Yeah, that was Pop!” Nick Laskaris smiles today.
Chicago, he briefly owns a bar, which he closes the “He made decisions that way, but they were always
day after a customer breaks a beer bottle over his good ones. He saw what Wisconsin Dells was, but
head. more importantly, what it would become. He decided
Now sporting an attractive scar on his forehead, to get in on the ground floor, quickly.”
Dimitrius meets and marries Fatoula, herself a Greek But it looked like that ground floor would cave in
immigrant. They have two children, Penny and Nick, just as quickly. Big Chief Hot Dogs opened in June of
and in typical Greek American food service 1970, and made five dollars on the first day.
entrepreneurship, they open a hot dog stand in “The next day Pop fired all the employees, and he
downtown Chicago named Big Nick's. The young and my mother ran the stand. That second day they
Laskaris family lives in the apartment above the hot didn't make a penny. Nothing. Pop said 'Well, I guess
dog stand, and the kids work at the stand as soon as we're going to have to move back to Chicago!'”
they can walk. Dimitrius is still working on his English.
The hours at Big Nick's are long, but the Laskaris Big Chief’s Next Stand
family still finds time to attend baseball games at The Laskaris family started packing up for the move,
Wrigley Field, swim in Lake Michigan and visit one of and in the midst of moving the furniture, a sock fell
America's premier amusement parks, Riverview Park. out from under a cushion of the couch. It hit the floor
BELOW: “Jim” and a young
The Chicago institution makes an indelible impression with a resounding thud. Inside the sock was $700.
Laskaris outside Big Chief
on Dimitrius, and in the spring of 1970, three years “My mom said 'Oh, I forgot about that! I was hiding
Go-Karts
after Riverview Park had closed, the Laskaris family money in that sock in case we ever needed it for an
visits Wisconsin Dells, a busy lakeside resort little over emergency. I guess I stuck it in the couch and just
150 miles northwest of Chicago. forgot about it!' Well, dad saw that sock as a gift, an
While Big Nick's is still a great success, the omen that we were meant to stay in Wisconsin Dells.”
neighborhood is getting rough, and Dimitrius and The Wisconsin Dells summer season had started just
Fatoula want to raise their young children in a safer a few days after Big Chief Hot Dogs opened, so
environment. So Dimitrius says “Hey, this would be a business got better. In fact, it did well enough for
good place to open a hot dog stand. Let's close the Dimitrius to eventually purchase 20 acres of land next
one in Chicago and move here!” to Big Chief. There were four cabins on the land;
Dimitrius purchases a dilapidated food stand just Dimitrius built four more himself and opened a modest
off the Wisconsin Dells strip, renovates it and prepares resort.
it for the 1970 summer season. But what should he But what to do with the rest of the land? There were
36 FEBRUARY 2010
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