Skagway is a town of great paradoxes.

During the summer tourist season, it bustles like the streets of Manhattan with more than a million cruise-ship visitors who are happy they came to the lovely town of homey shops, Gold Rush-themed surroundings, and majestic mountain scenery.

During the winter, Skagway is as quiet as a fireplace warming friends at the Historic Skagway Inn.

While the town of about 1,200 teems with tourists in "season,” about 800 stalwarts remain after the colder weather approaches. They revel in the warmth of summer and brave the brutal winters together in fellowship and the mutual feeling of goodwill with a sense of survival that brings them together.

Winter or summer, Skagway has all the charms of friendly people, unique surroundings, and lots to do to enjoy the Last Frontier.

Who would have guessed that 100 years ago, Skagway was ruled by organized crime?

Charity Pomeroy and Meredith Schmidt know Skagway’s sordid past well. They have made it their mission to keep history alive through their "The Days of ’98 Show,” a production celebrating its 100th anniversary and billed as the longest-running show in the world.

"Skagway was a completely lawless place," Pomeroy said. "The whole reason the city exists was the Gold Rush, but the people who came here had no laws to speak of. It was described as 'little better than hell on Earth."

Skagway? Hell? The two words just don’t go together.

The author of that little epithet was Soapy Smith, a guy with a seemingly harmless moniker who was actually awful, though charming, scalawags.

"He was a bad guy and a con man and a mob boss, but he was so likable," Schmidt said. "People liked him even though he was such a bad guy. But another group rose up, which was the last straw for Skagway as the wild west. In a way, that was the outcome of the Gold Rush."

It was also the outcome for Soapy. No spoilers here. But you have to attend the show to find out what happened.

Pomeroy and Schmidt, actors and producers who no longer have roles in the play, took over the rollicking show in 2019, and the hour-long production is a Skagway must-see. Some actors are not permanent Skagway residents, but many in the town have participated as actors.

"We ask how many people have been in the show, and about half the audience stands up," Pomeroy said. "Just about all the elders in town have been in the show. The tradition of the show is interwoven with Skagway itself."

The show isn't just about Soapy and Skagway's sordid past. A highlight of the show is the can-can kick line. Usually, four to five actors form the kickline, but audience members are welcome to join. Once, as many as 20 people crowded the stage.

"The kick line is absolutely fabulous," Schmidt said.

It should be noted that both Schmidt and Pomeroy are full-time, permanent Skagway residents. They met at Weber State University in Utah when they were aspiring actors. They decided to take a chance and use their talents in Skagway, and they've been in town ever since.

Pomeroy said that some actors in the show decide to take the same route and stay in the rustic town. 

"The place is so addictive that it calls you back when you leave," said Pomeroy, who, like Schmidt, wept when she first saw the beauty of Alaska and the magic of Skagway.

"The scenery here is breathtaking," Schmidt said. "It never gets old. It's a small town, then during the summer, there are four cruise ships on our docks, and it's a big city. It's the hustle and bustle, and it's exciting. But then it goes back to being a small town."

As for "The Days of 98 Show," both feel a sense of how important the product is to Skagway.

"The fact that this show has been a tradition that has been going on for 100 years brings with it a lot of responsibility; it's quite a bit of weight," Pomeroy said. "We're only the stewards of something that extends so much before our time. It encompasses the whole town."

Shows begin April 30.