Headlines & Tidbits from the 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s & 80s

American Experience:

1945 - Newspaper strike in NY begins, lasts 17 days

1956 - The Interstate Highway System was authorized by the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956, popularly known as the National Interstate and Defense Highways Act of 1956, and signed by President Eisenhower.

1959 - America’s new 49-star flag honoring Alaska statehood unfurled

1960 - America’s new 50-star flag honoring statehood of Hawaii unfurled

1963 - US postal service institutes the Zip Code (Zone Improvement Plan)

1964 - Civil Rights Act of 1964 passed after 83-day filibuster in Senate

1966 – Lyndon B Johnson signs Freedom of Information Act

1966 - Medicare goes into effect

1971 - Washington becomes the first state to ban sex discrimination

1986 – Statue of Liberty re-opens after refurbishment; Nancy Reagan cuts the ribbon at the ceremony

Movies & TV:

1941 - Commercial TV authorized by the FCC. Licenses granted to W2XBS-WNBT (NBC) & WCBW (CBS), NYC

1941 - Bulova Watch Company pays $9 for 1st-ever network TV commercial

1941 - CBS Television Quiz premieres as television’s first regular game show

1951 - “Amos ‘n’ Andy” premieres on CBS TV

1952 - Soap Opera “Guiding Light” moves from radio to TV

1955 - “Johnny Carson Show,” debuts on CBS-TV

1955 - “Lawrence Welk Show” premieres on ABC

1956 - Elvis Presley appears on the Steve Allen Show wearing a tuxedo

1958 - “Andy Williams Show” premieres on ABC

1964 - 1st draft of Star Trek’s pilot “Cage” released

Music & Radio:

1940 - “Quiz Kids?” premieres on radio

1963 - “From Me to You” Beatles’ 1st song hits UK charts

1964 – The Beachboys’ “I Get Around” climbs to #1

1967 – The Beatles’ “Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,” goes #1 for 15 weeks

1970 - Jimi Hendrix has his first recording session in New York City

1970 - “American Top 40″ with Casey Kasem debuts on LA radio

1978 - Supreme Court rules 5-4 that the FCC had a right to reprimand NY radio station WBAI for broadcasting George Carlin’s “Filthy Words”

1981 - “Bette Davis Eyes” by Kim Carnes returns to #1 slot

Hollywood Headlines:

1971 - Jim Morrison, lead singer for The Doors, dies of heart failure at 27

The Arts:

1936 - “Gone With the Wind” written by Margaret Mitchell, published

1967 - “Funny Girl” closes at Winter Garden Theater NYC after 1348 performances

1972 - “Hair” closes at Biltmore Theater NYC after 1750 performances

1977 - Marvel Comics publish a tribute to the rock group Kiss with their “Kiss book”

Sports:

1937 - Joe DiMaggio’s hit his 1st grand slammer

1950 - US beats England in a World Cup soccer game 1-0. They will not win again until 1994.

1983 - Calvin Smith of US becomes fastest man alive (9.93 for 100m)

Technology & Inventions:

1934 - Dr. Warren Sausser made the first x-ray picture of the entire skeleton of an adult human. The Eastman Kodak Company made a special 20 x 70 inch film for the project.

1939 - Pan American Airlines (Dixie Clipper) completes 1st commercial plane flight to Europe

1931 - Ice vending machines were introduced in LA. 15 cents for 25 lbs

1948 – Bell Labs announces the Transistor as a substitute for Radio Tubes

Automobile News:

1953 - 1st Corvette manufactured in Flint, Michigan.

Snap! Crackle! Pop! Rice Krispies®

The cute gnomes we all know as Snap, Crackle and Pop are advertising icons. They were the very first advertising characters that the Kellogg Company used to sell their products, and they are the longest running character advertisement to date for Kellogg.

Rice Krispies® Cereal hit the market in 1928. The cereal is made of rice grains that are cooked, dried and toasted resulting in crisped rice. When milk or cream is added, the thin walls of the rice collapse, making the famous sounds Snap! Crackle! and Pop! ® These sounds became the slogan for Rice Krispies® and was featured on radio ads such as this one:
“Listen to the fairy song of health, the merry chorus sung by Kellogg’s® Rice Krispies® as they merrily snap, crackle, and pop in a bowl of milk. If you’ve never heard food talking, now is your chance!”

In 1932, an illustrator was listening to the radio when he heard this jingle, and was inspired to create animations to match the sounds. Vernon Grant sat down and brought to life the magical gnomes Snap, Crackle and Pop. He brought his idea to Kellogg, and the company loved the characters so much, they bought the advertising concept that very day.

Snap was the first of the trio to appear on Rice Krispies® boxes. He wore a huge baker’s cap and held a spoon just like he does today, but his ears and nose were much bigger. Crackle and Pop joined their older brother a few years later. Crackle wore a red and white striped stocking cap and Pop donned a bandleader’s hat and uniform. The trio was even given individual personalities. Snap, the oldest brother, solves the problems his younger brothers create. Crackle is the middle child with a fun-loving personality that helps keep order between his brothers. Pop is the jokester, clumsy and never serious.

The three gnomes first made it to the big screen in 1939 where they were featured in one-minute shorts called Breakfast Pals, in which they sang and danced and fought their enemies; Soggy, Mushy and Toughy. In the 1940’s, Snap Crackle and Pop were the heroes of their own comic strips on the back of Rice Krispies® boxes. This is when their appearances began to change. Their hats, ears and noses got smaller and more human looking, and they started to look more like the characters we know today. They also began to sing the song, “Snap! Crackle! Pop! Rice Krispies,”® which is the jingle we all associate with Rice Krispies Cereal.®

The popularity of Snap, Crackle and Pop has spread all over the world, with advertisements and commercials shown internationally. It’s fun to see how people in other countries say the famous slogan “Snap! Crackle! Pop! ®”
* Sweden: Piff! Paff! Puff!
* Germany: Knisper! Knasper! Knusper!
* Mexico: Pim! Pum! Pam!
* Finland: Poks! Riks! Raks!
* Canadian French: Cric! Crac! Croc!
* Holland: Pif! Paf! Pof!
* South Africa: Knap! Knaetter! Knak!

Snap Crackle and Pop have been representing Kellogg’s Rice Krispies Cereal® for 76 years. Their notoriety has grown to international status, and their popularity shows no sign of decreasing. Collectibles, figures, and memorabilia of these famous gnomes have been available for many years. Check out our website for signs and vinyl figures of the much loved Snap! Crackle! and Pop! ®

The 5-Cent Coca-Cola

In 1886, when Coca-Cola was first invented and placed on the market, the price for a glass at the soda fountain was 5 cents. When Coca-Cola was put into bottles, the price was still 5 cents. It remained so for more than 70 years despite cost increases to produce Coca-Cola. Why was this?

Mainly because it would have cost too much to retrofit all of the soda vending machines that were designed only to accept nickels. In addition, there was the massive amount of signage that would have to be replaced. And don’t forget the consumer that would have revolted against a 100% increase from a nickel to the alternative—a dime.

Because of the way Coca-Cola was distributed through various bottlers, it’s difficult to track exactly when the price increase occurred. By the late 1940’s, bottlers that had been charging 80 cents per case were now charging dealers 90 cents to $1 a case. Where Coke was sold over the counter, this resulted in per bottle prices of 6 to 10 cents. The change for vending machines did not come until 1959 when vendors were produced that could take dimes. To remedy this, storeowners installed “honor boxes” beside the machines where the customer was expected to drop an additional 1 to 2 cents, to make up the price difference after they placed their nickel in the vending machine.

It’s interesting to note that Bob Woodruff, the head of Coca-Cola in 1953, wrote to his good friend and the newly elected president, Dwight Eisenhower, asking him to influence the Treasury Department to issue a 7.5 cents coin to solve his perplexing price problem. Obviously this didn’t happen and in 1959 there was the first official price hike for bottles of Coca-Cola in vending machines in more than 70 years from 5 to 10 cents.

Technorati Profile

Headlines & Tidbits from the 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s & 80s

American Experience:

1931 - Wiley Post & Harold Catty took off for flight around world, aiming for a world record

1934 - Federal Savings & Loan Association created

1938 - Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) was passed. This law originally set a minimum wage of $0.25 per hour and also set standards regarding overtime pay and child labor.

1944 - FDR signs “GI Bill of Rights” (Servicemen’s Readjustment Act) providing college or vocational education for returning World War II veterans, as well as one year of unemployment compensation. It also provided many different types of loans for returning veterans to buy homes and start businesses.

1949 – 1st 12 women graduate from Harvard Medical School

1967 - Mohammed Ali (Cassius Clay) sentenced to 5 years in prison after being convicted of violating the Selective Service Act. He was denied a license to fight anywhere in the United States. He was released on appeal, and returned to boxing in 1970.

1972 - Hurricane Agnes is costliest natural disaster in American history

Movies & TV:

1933 - Don McNeill’s Pepper Pot (Breakfast Club) begins 35 year run on NBC

1949 - “Hopalong Cassidy” becomes 1st network western (NBC)

1951 - 1st color TV broadcast-CBS’ Arthur Godfrey from NYC to 4 cities

1951 - “Amos ‘n’ Andy” premieres on CBS TV

1955 - Walt Disney’s “Lady & the Tramp” released

1956 - “Jimmy Durante Show,” last airs on NBC-TV

1957 - “I Love Lucy,” last airs on CBS-TV

1960 - “Pat Boone Show,” last airs on ABC-TV

1970 - “Catch 22″ opens in movie theaters

1980 - “David Letterman Show,” debuts on NBC-TV daytime, lasts 3 months

Music & Radio:

1938 - “A Tisket A Tasket” by Ella Fitzgerald with Chick Webb hits #1

1940 - “Quiz Kids?” premieres on radio

1963 - “Little” Stevie Wonder (13) releases “Fingertips”

1966 - Beatles’ “Paperback Writer,” single goes #1 & stays #1 for 2 weeks

1971 - “American Pie” by Don McLean received its first airplay this week

1977 - Elvis Presley sings in Indianapolis. It was the last performance of his career.

1978 - The Sweet had their final chart successes this week when “Love is Like Oxygen” made the top 10 all over the world.

1979 - Little Richard quits rock & roll for religious pursuit

Hollywood Headlines:

1969 - Judy Garland, actress (Wizard of Oz, Easter Parade), dies at 47

1975 - Cher divorces Sonny Bono

1987 - Fred Astaire, actor/dancer (Royal Wedding, Let’s Dance), dies at 88

1987 - Jackie Gleason, comedian (Honeymooners), dies of colon cancer at 71

1989 - Melanie Griffith & Don Johnson marry for 2nd time

The Arts:

1959 - “West Side Story” closes at Winter Garden Theater NYC after 734 performances

1965 - John Lennon’s second book, A Spaniard in the Works, was published

1983 - “Evita” closes at Broadway Theater NYC after 1568 performances

Sports:

1972 - Bernice Gera becomes 1st female umpire in pro baseball

1973 - Marlene Raymond (15), limbos under a flaming bar at 6 1/8″

1975 - Golfer Lee Trevino is struck by lightning at Western Open (Ill)

1979 - Muhammad Ali retires as boxing champ

Technology & Inventions:

1963 - 1st demonstration of home video recorder, at BBC Studios, London

Automobile News:

1955 - 1st automobile seat belt legislation enacted (Illinois)

1985 - Route 66 (Chicago to Santa Monica), is decertified

Tony The Tiger

Have you ever sat eating a bowl of Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes and wondered why there was a tiger promoting the cereal? How on earth did they come up with Tony The Tiger to sell boxes of sugar-covered corn flakes?

Well, in 1952, there was a contest to decide who would grace the front of the box of Sugar Frosted Flakes. A competition was held between Tony the Tiger, Katy the Kangaroo, Elmo the Elephant, and Newt the Gnu. (A wildebeest!) The competition was to see who would be most popular with the American public. Tony the Tiger won, and has been the mascot for Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes ever since.

Martin Provensen, an illustrator of children’s books, created the design for Tony. Originally, the tiger started out with a football-shaped head and he walked on all fours. This was replaced by a Tony figure that walked upright and could sing songs and dance. At this time, the cereal was called Sugar Frosted Flakes, which changed to Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes when sugar started to get a reputation for being unhealthy and leading to obesity.

As the nation became more health conscious, Tony’s physique became stronger and leaner, and he grew in stature from a small cereal box-sized cat to a 6 foot tall figure showing kids how to better themselves through sports.

Tony even went through a period where he had a family. His son, Tony Jr. is the best-known family member, but at one time there was a mother, wife, and daughter Antoinette. These characters fell by the wayside, as Tony became the face associated with Frosted Flakes and the Kellogg’s company itself.

Although Tony has been redrawn many times, some things have remained the same. Always present is the red kerchief he wears around his neck and his famous line “They’re Grrrrrrrreat!” Tony’s signature voice comes from Thurl Ravenscroft, an actor and voice artist also known for his songs in the movie “The Grinch.”

Tony the Tiger is an American advertising icon. He has lasted for 56 years as the mascot for Frosted Flakes, and shown no signs of slowing down. Nowadays, he is featured in Frosted Flakes commercials as the driving force behind kids achieving their dreams by being active and playing sports.

Tony the Tiger has been a favorite character for many years. Over his lifetime many objects were created in his likeness. There are dolls, coin banks, vinyl figures, signs, and many more items available for collectors. You can see a variety of these Tony the Tiger collectibles and Kellogg’s memorabilia on our website.

Coca-Cola’s Sprite Boy

The Coca-Cola Company used a lively little character in its advertising in the 40’s and 50’s called “Sprite Boy”. He was created by their staff artist, Haddon Sundblom. He was the artist who created the Coca-Cola’s version of a jolly Santa.

Due to his name, there has been some confusion about the origins of Sprite Boy. He has nothing to do with the Company’s soft drink, Sprite, as some people think. The soft drink Sprite was created much later than Sprite Boy’s use in Coca-Cola’s advertising. Sprite was invented in 1961. This character was called “Sprite Boy” because he was a sprite, or elf. He first appeared in a Coke ad in 1942 introducing the name “Coke”. The purpose of the ad was to help consumers identify the name “Coke” with their familiar favorite Coca-Cola. In 1943, the Sprite Boy appeared in ads encouraging Americans to “Buy United States War Bonds”. He appears to have been phased out shortly before the drink by the same name was released.

Blog in if you have anything interesting to add. We’d love to know if you have more facts about the origins and use of Sprite Boy, as so little is available.

Headlines & Tidbits from the 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s & 80s

American Experience:

1935 - US Congress accepts FDR’s “New Deal”

1947 - Pan Am Airways chartered as 1st worldwide passenger airline

1950 - 1st kidney transplant (Chicago)

1954 - Televised Senate Army McCarthy hearings ends

1966 - Sheila Scott completes 1st round-the-world solo flight by a woman

1982 - Supreme Court rules all children, regardless of citizenship, are entitled to a public education

1983 - Space Shuttle Challenger 2 mission launched; Sally Ride becomes the first American woman in space.

Movies & TV:

1937 - Marx Brothers’ “A Day At The Races” opens in LA

1948 – The Ed Sullivan Show, originally named “Toast of the Town” premieres on CBS-TV

1960 - “Psycho,” opens in NY

1961 - Dave Garroway is fired as Today Show host

1974 - Homer Simpson & Marge Bouvier wed

1975 - “Jaws” by Steven Spielberg opens

1980 - “Blues Brothers,” with Dan Akroyd and John Belushi premieres in Chicago

Music & Radio:

1948 - 33 1/3 RPM LP record introduced (DR Peter Goldmark-Columbia Records)

1956 - John Lennon (15) & Paul McCartney (13) meet for 1st time as Lennon’s rock group Quarrymen perform at a church dinner

1961 - CBS radio cancels Gunsmoke

1961 - Pat Boone had his final number 1 hit this week with “Moody River.

1965 - Bob Dylan records “Like a Rolling Stone”

1965 - Kinks arrive in NYC beginning their 1st US tour

1967 - The Monterey International Pop Music Festival took place from June 16 to June 18, 1967. Over 200,000 people attended, and it is often regarded as the precursor to Woodstock. The festival became legendary for the first major American appearances by Jimi Hendrix and The Who. It was also the first major public performance for Janis Joplin, who appeared as a member of Big Brother and The Holding Company, and Otis Redding, backed by Booker T. & The MG’s. The Monterey Pop Festival embodied the themes of the counter-culture of San Francisco and is generally regarded as one of the beginnings of the “Summer of Love” in 1967

1971 - Carole King struck gold when her Tapestry album hit number 1 in the U.S. for the first of 15 consecutive weeks.

1978 - Andy Gibb hit number 1 on the singles chart in the U.S with “Shadow Dancing.” At the time, he was the only artist to hit the top spot with his first three singles.

Hollywood Headlines:

1947 - Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel, gangster, shot dead in Beverly Hills California

1959 - George Reeves, actor (Superman, Gone with the Wind), shoots self at 45

The Arts:

1963 - “Sound of Music” closes at Lunt Fontanne Theater NYC after 1443 performances

1946 - “Annie Get Your Gun” opens at Imperial Theater NYC for 1147 performances

1973 - “American Graffiti” opens in NYC

1973 - “Rocky Horror Picture Show,” stage production opened in London. This was the very first time the musical had been performed.

1977 - “Beatlemania” opens on Broadway

1978 - Andrew Lloyd Webber & Rice’s musical “Evita,” premiers in London

1978 - “Best Little Whorehouse…” opens at 46th St NYC for 1577 performances

1978 - Garfield, created by Jim Davis, 1st appears as a comic strip

Sports:

1939 - NY Yankees announce Lou Gehrig’s retirement due to his diagnosis of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, later to be named Lou Gehrig’s Disease

1946 - 1st TV sports spectacular-Joe Louis KOs Billy Conn

1950 - Joe DiMaggio gets his 2,000th hit

1960 - Ted Williams hit his 500th HR

1973 - Pete Rose & Willie Davis both get career hit # 2,000

1978 - 1st 6 teams of Women’s Pro Basketball League (WBL) granted-Iowa, NJ, Milwaukee, Chicago, Minnesota & Dayton

Technology & Inventions:

1941 - Cheerios Cereal invents an O-shaped cereal

1946 - AT&T begins offering mobile telephone service. With a single antenna serving a region, no more than 12 to 20 simultaneous calls could be made in an entire metropolitan area.

1970 - Edwin Land patents Polaroid camera

1987 - Ben & Jerry Ice Cream & Grateful Dead’s Jerry Garcia announce new Ice Cream flavor, Cherry Garcia

1988 - Microsoft releases MS DOS 4.0

Automobile News:

1948 – The Tucker Torpedo automobile was introduced. The idea was a safety car with innovative features and modern styling. The specifications for the design called for an air-cooled, flat 6-rear engine, disc brakes, fuel injection, the location of all instruments on the steering wheel, and a padded dashboard. The car even had a Cyclops-like centered headlamp that turned with the front wheels. After 50 cars were built, Preston Tucker’s company folded, and the Tucker Torpedo was never built again. This rare 1948 Tucker 48 was sold at the RM Arizona-Biltmore auction for $495,000.

Reproduction Fisher-Price Pull Toys

In 1931 Fisher-Price released its first product line, consisting of 16 wooden toys, at the International Toy Fair in New York City. These new toys were very successful, despite tough financial times for most Americans. The Fisher-Price values were to make durable action toys that children would want to play with and were a good value for the money. What they created were a line of whimsical push-pull toys. The wonderful characters that these original toys were modeled after were taken from books illustrated by the founder’s wife, Margaret Evans Price. She was the company’s first art director as well as an accomplished illustrator, writer and muralist.

Fisher-Price currently produces reproductions of several of their classic pull toys that we carry here, at Retroplanet.com. These toys have survived the test of time and make great gifts for grandparents to give their grandchildren. Tell them how you played with them, or perhaps how their mom or dad did. Our selection of authentic-looking reproductions ranges from a 1938 Snoop N Sniff toy dog to the 1962 Chatter Telephone pull toys. Due to its popularity, the Chatter Phone was made by Fisher-Price for almost 30 years! And the chatter telephone lets them pretend they’re talking on the phone. Pulling it along can help toddlers become more assured and coordinated walkers. Dr. Duck (originally called Doctor Doodle), and Drummer Bear were two of the first toys released by Fisher-Price in 1931.

In addition, the 1968 Teaching Clock is an excellent learning tool for young children. It’s a great device to teach young kids how to tell time, and also entertains by playing music. More musical toys include the 1966 Two Tune Television and the 1957 Xylophone that allows children to create their own music.

Hula Girl Dashboard Nodder

Ever since Hawaii became a popular tourist attraction in the early 1900’s, the Hula Girl has been a symbol of Hawaii. Visitors loved to collect the Hula Girl Doll and bring her home as a souvenir or gift for friends and family.

During the 1920s and 30s, some of the earliest hula dolls were made of bisque or redware, a clay material lacking any glaze. She was hand painted and wore a grass skirt and a flower-patterned halter or a lei made of cloth flowers strewn across her chest.

In the 1940s and 1950s some of Hawaii’s best artists, like Delee, Julene & Hakata, took to creating some of the finest Hawaiian hula dolls of the time. These are still some of the most sought after hula dolls by Hawaiiana collectors today.

In the 1950s, the Hula Girl Nodder or Dashboard Doll was created. The influx of American soldiers into Hawaii during World War II, along with the visiting tourists after the war helped make this doll one of the most popular souvenirs of all time. In fact, the Dancing Hula Girl Dashboard Doll became so popular that factories in Japan capitalized on the craze and began producing them in bulk.

The doll was made of plastic and had springs in her legs so that she could wiggle her hips as the car drove along. She was made in different versions and sizes, with the ukulele pose and the hands in the hair pose as the most common. The original Hula Dashboard Doll had a hole in the bottom where a magnet could be inserted so that the doll could be attached to the metal dashboards of cars in the 1950s. California surfers and beach-goers were the first to carry on this fad, and the Hula Girl Dancing Dashboard Doll officially became a part of American Pop Culture.

The Dancing Hula Girl Doll is still a popular dashboard accessory today, although she is attached with double sided tape instead of a magnet. She still wiggles her hips and holds her ukulele and will always bring a smile to the faces of those who see her.

Check out our website to see the Dancing Hula Girl Dashboard Doll available in different colors and poses, along with the Hula Guy Dashboard Doll.

The Big Boy Restaurants and How They Got Started

The legacy of the Big Boy Restaurants started in 1936 when Bob Wilan began a small enterprise in Glendale, CA. He sold his car for $350 and opened up a small, 10-seat diner called Bob’s Pantry. According to the history of the original restaurant, the famous Big Boy hamburger was created one day when members of an orchestra stopped in and asked if Wilan could come up with something different from the usual hamburger. What Wilan created was a “Double-Deck Cheeseburger” with two beef patties and a special sauce. They loved the burger and other customers that were there that day asked if they could try this new burger too.

The name “Big Boy” came about when Bob Wilan had a chubby young boy come into his restaurant one day. “He was about six and rolls of fat protruded where his shirt and pants were designed to meet. I was so amused by the youngster—jolly, healthy-looking and obviously a lover of good things to eat, I called him Big Boy.” Wilan decided to name his new hamburger Big Boy, after the boy. Due to the burger’s success, he was inspired to rename his diner “Bob’s Big Boy”.

The restaurants became so successful, they captured the attention of the Marriott Corporation, who bought the Big Boy chain in 1967. In 1987, one of the largest franchise operators, the Elias Brothers, purchased the chain from Marriott and moved the headquarters to Warren, Michigan. The Elias Brothers operated the restaurants until they declared bankruptcy in 2000. The chain was then sold to Robert Liggett Jr., who is the present CEO of the company. He renamed the chain Big Boy Restaurants International. The headquarters have remained in Warren, and the franchise is currently made up of more than 455 Big Boy Restaurants in the US and Canada. The different names under which these franchises run include Abdow’s, Bob’s, Shoney’s, and many more. Big Boy Japan owns and operates more than 216 locations under 4 different names, including Big Boy, Milky Way, Victoria Station and Grill Dan.

The oldest remaining Bob’s Big Boy in America is in Burbank, CA. It was established in 1949 and was designed as a drive-in where carhops brought the food out on trays.

Although the name Big Boy was originally applied to the famous double-decker hamburger, the Big Boy restaurants are also noted for their signature food items like onion rings, shakes and strawberry pie. With a menu like that, I’m sorry we don’t have a Big Boy restaurant here, in New England. However, we do have an original, beautifully restored Big Boy that stands guard in the Retroplanet offices. He was restored by Vintage Vending and installed in the offices during construction. Because of his enormous size, the walls were put up around him. Watch for a future blog entry about Big Boy’s restoration process.

Have you had the good fortune of enjoying a Big Boy hamburger? Maybe you have memories of eating in one of these diners. Please blog-in and let us know.