Zoo Bar

The Zoo Bar is a blues music venue and nightclub located in downtown Lincoln, Nebraska on 136 North 14th Street. Styled around the Chicago blues clubs, it is a long, narrow venue in a building built in 1921. Around 1971, Jim Ludwig, Bill Kennedy and Don Chamberlin purchased the bar. Larry Boehmer, a Master of Fine Arts student at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln at the time, promoted the bar to his fellow artists. He booked the first band in 1973 and was sole owner by 1977.

Boehmer met Chicago musician and promoter Bob Riedy and formed a connection that brought many revered Chicago artists to the Lincoln club. Because of this connection, the Zoo Bar was the first white club that Magic Slim ever played. In 1975, he'd never ventured outside the clubs in Chicago's African-American neighborhoods. In 1977, Boehmer was the sole owner and the Zoo was established as an important stop for bands on the touring circuit.