Bill Miller Adds The Southern Turf Building To His Downtown Real Estate Holdings
This Fourth Acquisition Also Houses Skull’s Rainbow Room Where He Serves as Majority Interest Owner
Bill Miller, President and Founder of Icon Entertainment, closed on the historic Southern Turf building in Nashville today making this his fourth acquisition in the downtown area in the last three years. Located at 222 Fourth Avenue North, the four-story, Southern Turf building is on the National Register of Historic Places because of its location in Printers Alley Historic District.
“Today we take ownership of the legendary Southern Turf building; one of the most aesthetically-significant, architectural Crown Jewels in downtown Nashville,” says Bill Miller. “It’s a pleasure and an honor to add this important property to our portfolio.”
The Southern Turf building currently houses Miller’s latest business acquisition, Skull’s Rainbow Room, in which he acquired a majority interest in June. “I prefer to fire the landlord in the buildings in which our businesses operate,” Miller joked. “As a practical matter, it makes sense to own the real estate in which our ventures operate in order to help control our destiny.”
This acquisition brings Miller’s holdings to 73,872 square feet of commercial property in downtown Nashville. Built in 1895, this commercial, Queen Anne style building was built by bookmaker Marcus Cartwright. Over the years, it was home to saloons, gambling halls and even the former home of The Tennessean newspaper. Today, the Southern Turf building is home to Skull’s Rainbow Room, a bar and lounge that first welcomed patrons in 1948 and recently re-opened its doors in 2015 after a 17 year hiatus with patrons seeking the Printers Alley escape to a period fueled by jazz music and classic burlesque.
About Bill Miller
Bill Miller is the founder of Icon Entertainment Group which owns and operates the Johnny Cash Museum, Music City Threads, Nudie’s Honky Tonk, Patsy Cline Museum and Skull’s Rainbow Room. This California native began his professional career at the age of 18 when he was selected to launch CBN Cable (now the Fox Family Channel) to cable systems across the United States. Later, he founded his own consulting firm which advised cable programmers and operators on marketing and expansion strategies before he moved on to own his own cable TV system. Beyond the business arena, as a result of being elected to the Corona, CA city council, Bill became the youngest Mayor in California’s history at the time. He would diligently serve his constituents until he retired from politics in 1993 after 12 years in an elective office. Moving out of the network and small screen business, Bill found an autograph and memorabilia company, Odyssey Group and publishing company, Odyssey Publications which he would sell in 2004. His preservation and musical history passions lead him to author the critically acclaimed Simon & Schuster book Cash An American Man, which Larry King called “the best celebrity biography coffee table book ever done.” Bill currently resides in the greater Nashville area with his wife Shannon. He has three sons; Will, Jordan and Blake.