New
Dog,
Old
Tricks

PHOTO BY GLENN TRIEST

STN Entertainment

An MSU grad plans to
add a little spit and
polish to the eclectic
Magic Bag Theater in
Ferndale.

DE TRO IT J EWIS H NEWS

JULIE EDGAR STAFF WRITER

LIJ

91

S teve Milgrom got offers to buy the Magic
Bag Theatre in Ferndale almost as
soon as he opened the place six years
ago.
Some of them he entertained; others he
flatly rejected.
Jeremy Haberman had the goods,
though.
"The right offer came along from the right person who
wanted to keep a similar style of programming, want-
ed to keep the name, wanted to maintain the tradi-
tion I started. I felt I turned the place around and gave
it a really good name," said Milgrom, who will turn over
the reins to the 23-year-old Michigan State Universi-
ty graduate on April 1.
Haberman, a Royal Oak resident, worked for Mil-
grom at Sam's Jams, a record-CD store :hat closed in
1994 after a 16-year run in Ferndale. Upon graduation
from MSU two years ago, he worked for a computer soft-
ware company in East Lansing in marketing and pub-
lic relations. In December, Haberman joined the Magic
Bag with the intention of buying it.
"I decided to buy it because the role was so multifac-
eted. I wanted to get in there myself and learn as much
of it as I could," said Haberman, who's embarking on
his first experience as a business proprietor.
He and Milgrom have trod the same path. Both grew

up in Detroit, both love music, and both saw firsthand few weeks of April to repaint the exterior and replace
the grueling and often rewarding consequences of run- the marquee. He'll rip out the movie theater-style seats
ning a small business. Milgrom's parents, Harry and inside, replacing them with tables that will be raised
Eileen, ran a sportswear manufacturing outfit
on wide-tiered platforms. Interior designer Ron
in Detroit, and Haberman's folks, Sam and
Rea of JPRA Architects/Peterhansrea Design
The Magic Bag's
Toby, own Haberman's Fabrics in Royal Oak.
will design new fixtures for the place.
new owner, Jeremy
Oh, they share a distant relative, too.
Haberman will top off the new look with an
During the past few months, Haberman's Haberman: Young aggressive advertising campaign.
been learning the ropes from Milgrom on how and ready to rock
"By bringing it up, making it nice, having acts
and roll.
to book and promote acts, hire and train reli-
that aren't that expensive but are national, by
able people and, of course, advertise.
gaining that reputation, it'll be a cool place for
He wouldn't disclose how much he paid for the Mag- people to go on a regular basis," Haberman said.
ic Bag except, he said, it cost less than The Palace. He
Under the aegis of Haberman Productions, Haber-
saved a bit of money on his own and convinced his dad man is bringing in legendary bluesman Junior Wells
to give him a loan.
and His Ten-Piece Orchestra in mid-April and Tead-
"I'll be paying it back for the next 30 years. I won't be
ross Avery & Blacknote, two jazz acts, a week later.
so young once it's all paid off," he quipped.
Trumpeter Roy Hargrove, considered one of the hottest
Haberman intends to stay true to the format Milgrom jazz artists around today, will play the Magic Bag on
set for the Woodward Avenue theater; he'll keep the
June 1.
schedule mixed but consistent, offering regular cheap
Milgrom attributes his own success to good instincts
beer-and-movie nights, local music acts and a retro film about what's hot, interesting or progressive in music.
series during the week, and weekend performances of He hopes Haberman's tenure at Sam's helped him de-
national jazz, blues, rock and roll, reggae and folk acts velop the same sense.
— "anything eclectic I can get my hands on."
"He seems pretty sharp to me and he'll get better as
But he does have his eye on a different crowd, the he goes along. For what he's booked so far, he's got a
kind that likes its restaurants and theaters plush.
clear idea. I expect him to do very well with it," Milgrom
Haberman will shut down the theater during the first said. 1=1