Save the Skeleton Biker! Petition Wants to "Keep West Town Weird"

Local artist works with owners of shuttered bar, city officials, to relocate iconic skeleton figurine near Ogden and Grand
West Town neighborhood resident wants cool thing to survive
The iconic "Skelly" at Ogden and Grand Photo credit Jon Satrom

There's a movement to save "Chicago's favorite skeleton."

The Twisted Spoke, a bar and restaurant at Grand and Ogden, has closed its doors after thirty years. It's a recognizable place,
with a skeleton on a motorcycle out front.

Jon Satrom, an artist, resident of Chicago's West Town neighborhood, and longtime patron of the Twisted Spoke, is fighting to keep the skeleton, known as "Skelly," on its post, telling WBBM, "we need to (remember) some of the quirky, fun, and really rough edges of Chicago."

With support of the bar's owners, Satrom has launched an online petition to relocate "Skelly" to a spot nearby, so that the Westown neighborhood's "quirky vibes" stay alive, saying, "in this time that's pretty stressful and we don't feel like we have much control over things, having people excited about something quirky and positive at a hyper-local level is motivating."

Several hundred people have signed the petition and Satrom is in talks with City officials, saying "they've got a lot of other stuff that's much more pressing on their plates than saving a kooky skeleton, but I do think it's important."

Featured Image Photo Credit: Jon Satrom