New Commonwealth Hotel - Chicago

The New Commonwealth Hotel is located on North Pine grove Avenue in Chicago, Illinois.  Comedian Joe E. Lewis was living here, in room 332 of the New Commonwealth Hotel, as he was making a name for himself in show business. He had been working at the Green Mill, an Al Capone run nightclub, but was offered a contract to move over to the New Rendez-Vous Cafe at considerably more.  He was approached by Capone employee "Machine Gun" Jack McGurn to rethink this offer, but stood fast.  After playing to sold out crowds for a week, Lewis was visited in his room, 332, by three men, on the evening of November 9, 1927.  He was slashed ear to ear by one of the men, probably McGurn, but survived the attck and, after several weeks of recovery, went on to resume his career.

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