MUSTARD MAN: BARRY LEVENSON

Walk Of Fame | Martin Bierens

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As the semester goes on and we become overwhelmed with assignments, many of us are stressed and we are all taking our work very seriously. Sometimes, it is good to take a break and remember how much fun museums are! For this reason, I have chosen to give Barry Levenson a star on the Walk of Fame.

Barry Levenson Curator of the National Mustard Museum. (Source)

To be clear, Barry Levenson has not always been a museum professional; for many years he was a very successful lawyer until he found his true calling. On October 28, 1986, Barry Levenson was in mourning. His Boston Red Sox had just lost the World Series. Barry found himself walking through a 24-hour supermarket in Madison, Wisconsin feeling lost, with tears running down his face. Eventually, he stood in front of the mustard section when he heard the mustard proclaim, “If you collect us, they will come.”

Barry then began, what would eventually become his life’s work, though he did decide to keep his day job as a lawyer for five more years. The highlight of his law career came in 1991 when Barry argued a case in the Supreme Court. Before the case began he found a small jar of mustard left on an empty room service cart in his hotel, he decided to take it. Barry would argue his case and eventually win with this jar of mustard in his pocket. This, along with his moment in the grocery store, sealed his fate. Barry committed himself full time to collecting mustard.

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Anyone who can guess how many mustards we carry gets a free visit to the museum...oh but isn’t it always-

A post shared by National Mustard Museum (@nationalmustardmuseum) on Feb 19, 2018 at 6:54pm PST

In 1992 the Mustard Museum opened to the public in Mount Horeb, Wisconsin. Due to the success of the museum, and the ever-expanding collection in 2009 the museum moved to Middleton, Wisconsin and changed its name to the National Mustard Museum. If you ever find yourself in Middleton the museum is open from 10:00 am – 5:00 pm daily.

The tale of Barry Levenson is a tale of passion. Listening to Barry speak about mustard and the museum, you can tell how much he loves his job. In 1999 Barry was even featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show, during his interview he lets Oprah and the audience try a few different kinds of mustard. To me, the most intriguing mustard would have to be the raspberry honey mustard, Oprah’s favourite was the walnut mustard.



Oprah even checked in on Barry in 2016 on her Where Are They Now program. During the short clip, Barry leaves viewers with some inspiring words about following your dreams and turning your passions into reality.

“Now if you have an interest which seems to overwhelm you, it can become a passion. Act on it. Don’t wait. Don’t look back at your life and wonder what would have happened if I had started a museum about mustard?”

Barry’s story shows the joy that museums can bring, the reward of taking risks, and most importantly listening to your heart. Or in Barry’s case, listening to the mustard.