The Kooky Cooky House
Discover a Milwaukee Holiday Legend!
Make your family’s festive season truly unforgettable with a visit to the legendary Kooky Cooky House, proudly hosted right here at Shady Lane Greenhouse!
As one of our premier holiday attractions, this whimsical, life-sized animatronic wonderland invites generations old and new to step inside “Santa’s electronic cookie factory” and experience the pure joy of a classic hometown Christmas.
Whether you are reliving fond childhood memories or introducing your own kids to this mechanical marvel for the very first time, the Kooky Cooky House is a must-see stop on your winter wonderland tour at the greenhouse.
The Magical Attraction Experience
Step through the doors and into a frantic, festive assembly line straight out of a Rube Goldberg cartoon!
- The Automated Gingerbread Factory: Watch life-sized gingerbread men wearing chef hats and aprons hard at work stirring giant bowls of cookie dough.
- The “Boss” Robot: Marvel at the square-headed, green-eyed metal “Boss” robot as he mans the control panels.
- The Whimsical Assembly Line: See sheets of dough pounded by boxing gloves, stamped into shape by piano keys, and moved via toy trucks along a conveyor belt straight into a massive baking oven.
- A Visual Feast: Explore the walls lined with vintage toy displays and playful signage curiously intertwining English and German text.
From Capitol Court to Shady Lane
A Peek Into the History:
The story of the Kooky Cooky House is woven directly into the holiday history of Greater Milwaukee.
The Birth of a Tradition (1960)
The attraction was originally designed in 1960 by Walter E. Kroening, the general manager of Milwaukee’s historic Capitol Court Shopping Center. Built by a team of clever mall carpenters, the display was a masterpiece of creative engineering. Kroening constructed the entire Rube Goldberg machine using cast-off materials, including an old radio, player piano rolls, a converted beer sign, thermostats, and a car carburetor! Special sound records simulated bongo drums and press machinery to bring the factory to life. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, hundreds of thousands of families waited in long, cold outdoor lines just to catch a glimpse inside.
Preservation and Resurrection
When Capitol Court remodeled in the late 1970s, the house was placed in storage. Decades later, as the mall faced demolition in 2001, local media personality Gino Salomone stepped in to rescue surviving pieces, signs, and the iconic robot from being lost forever. Thanks to his dedication and community partners like Discovery World, the house was meticulously reconstructed and restored as an authentic, living replica.
A New Forever HomeToday.
The beloved holiday icon has found its permanent holiday home at Shady Lane Greenhouse in Menomonee Falls! Supported by local builders who gave it a permanent floor and roof, we are honored to preserve this beautiful piece of Milwaukee history for future generations to enjoy.
The Kooky Cookie House is open!
The Kooky Cooky House is open during the holiday season at Shady Lane Greenhouse in Menomonee Falls, WI.
You can visit us on Facebook, too, to see the history of the House.
The House is born
The Kooky Cooky House still lives in the memories of those who grew up in Milwaukee during the Sixties and Seventies.
This “futuristic” Cooky House was designed in 1960 by Walter E. Kroening, the general manager of Capitol Court.
Contact us
We’d love to hear from you. Share your comments and/or questions at the email below. Or give us a call if you’d like to sign up to attend one of our seasonal classes or have any questions or comments to share.
We look forward to hearing from you and seeing you!
Thanks!