Elmwood Casino

The Elmwood Casino, once known as the "Showspot of Canada,"[1] was a nightclub situated on Dougall Avenue in Windsor, Ontario.

[6] Due to financial problems, owner Al Siegel voluntarily filed for bankruptcy and closed the nightclub in December 1974.

[8][9] Trumpeter Harry Gozzard was a member of the Elmwood Casino orchestra during the latter part of his musical career.

[14] In early December of 2024, a collaborative effort to create an event to commemorate the closing was put forth by a few former Elmwood employees.

[15][16] A reunion of some of the employees, including “Mark Brown, the general manager of the Elmwood at the time of its closure” took place on December 21, 2024.

[17] The event consisted of a group photo in front of the old Elmwood building and a get-together at the Windsor Sportsmen’s Club.

Whenever he did, he would rent out the entire sixth floor at the historic Gotham Hotel, as was mentioned in Earnest H. Borden's book Detroit’s Paradise Valley.

Even though his comedic performances didn't bring the house down, Newhart still managed to speak well of the Elmwood audiences, stating, "They were very polite...Canadians...very nice.

[29] Tom Jones, one of the final entertainers to perform in the Ambassador Room at the Elmwood, was paid $10,000 per show during his engagement in 1972.

[78] During his four years of service in the Canadian army (World War II), Madden wrote, produced and directed Fun Fatigues.

In addition to entertaining troops overseas during the war, Madden’s band also played at army bases across Canada.

He arrived in the Windsor area in 1935 with Rex Battle’s All Canadian Dance Band which was booked on Bob-Lo Island.

[82] Al Siegel, owner of the Elmwood and cofounder of the now-defunct Windsor Raceway, was a pianist for Bee Palmer during the 1920s.

Autographed Sammy Davis Jr. photo given to a member of the Elmwood Casino orchestra. Ticket reproduction of an actual ticket from 1972 show.
Ann-Margret , Tony Bennett and Patti Page photos given to a member of the Elmwood orchestra
Elmwood newspaper advertisements
Louis Armstrong with Elmwood band leader Jack Madden, 1950s
Siegel was married to Bee Palmer