Deceased Category - Inducted 1987
Antoinette Blazonczyk was born and raised in the
southern mountainous part of Poland in a village called Chocholow. Also
known as "Gazdzina z Chocholowa" - Antoinette was a "goralka"
and extremely proud of her Polish Heritage.
Back in the 1940's Antoinette Blazonczyk
recorded four 78 rpm records as a vocalist featuring authentic "goralska"
music on the Podhalan Record label. In 1948 she had purchased the
Pulaski Village located at 17th & South Ashland Avenue. It was here
where Antoinette began promoting and strictly enforcing polka music
exclusively. Music, dancing, and polka lovers filled Pulaski Village
five days a week.
Every Wednesday through Sunday, famous names
such as Frankie Yankovic, Eddie Zima, Steve Adamczyk, Eddie Wojcik, Li'l
Wally, Johnny Bomba, Johnny Hyzny, Marion Lush, Joey Jarosz, The Polka
Dot 5 and the East Coast’s Frank Wojnarowski, all appeared at Pulaski
Village. And, that is just to name a few. Always welcoming new artists
with help and encouragement, Antoinette continued to promote and spread
the word of polka music.
Li'l Wally was a regular feature at the
Pulaski Village from 1951 through 1961. Live broadcasting was in effect
with Li'l Wally 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. every Sunday over radio station WOPA.
In the 1950's Antoinette returned to the
Tatry Record label, which was owned by popular radio disc jockey, Zeb
Zarnecki. Here she recorded another four 78 rpm singles. At one of the
picnics sponsored by Antoinette Blazonczyk, over 9,000 people attended
in the Justice Park Gardens.
Antoinette became temporarily inactive
when the popular Pulaski Village was destroyed by fire in 1966.
However, a year later, in 1967, she purchased the Club Antoinette at
4559 S. Richmond Street in Brighton Park. It was here that polka music
again resumed on weekends.
The Polka field as well as
the Polish community was shocked in June of 1972 by the sudden death of
"Gazdzina" Blazonczyk. Antoinette was the proud mother of two
children, daughter Louise Kurek, who now resides in New York, and son,
Eddie Blazonczyk, popular polka band leader and disc jockey from
Chicago.
Deceased, she is greatly missed by all.