American Giants Episode #1

Finally at long last we have completed and released the first episode of the series “American Giants” The episode covers the details of how muffler men got their name as myself and two of my friends head north in the state of IL near old route 66 in pursuit of muffler men. We discover the soda jerk in Macon and learn about it’s connection to the shorter muffler men that International Fiberglass built. This episode has been a long time in the making and I just want to thank everyone who was involved for your help. Big thanks to the guys at Roadside America for helping me get my facts right and for what they started so many years ago. Also to Debra Jane Seltzer for all her help and countless e-mails in helping me in my research and also for the use of many of her pictures she has taken on her travels. The episode runs 15min and because it was the first one we needed a bit more time to lay some foundation. Future episodes will run closer to 8-10 minutes in length and now that the groundwork is done there should be a new one every 3 to 4 weeks.

Big John

If your interested in muffler men it’s very likely you have run across these guys known as “Big Johns”. They are the step brothers if you will of muffler men and although they are not  related by “blood” they seem to be part of the extended family. Standing over 5 feet taller then muffler men they are some of the largest giants mass produced back in the golden age of the 1960′s roadside giant architecture era. Their roots are far from the streets of Venice California and they were made in Cape Girardeau, MO at the General Sign Co. Back in 1960 two men Bob Martin and Frank Bayley formed a partnership and started opening grocery stores in rural southern Illinois towns. After about 7 years they started placing giant statues at their store locations. General Sign Co. started turning out the Big Johns around 1967 and I am guessing 10-15 were ordered altogether. These guys are taller and much heavier then muffler men and each of them held 4 giant grocery backs in their arms. The original paint job included a checkered shirt with an apron painted on. The grocery bags were filled with large fiberglass grocery’s and in some locations name brand stickers even appeared on the outside of the bags. At the peak of Big John’s Grocery they had locations in much of southern Illinois as well as a few stores in Tennessee and Kentucky. There is a statue in Cape Coral, FL but I am not sure if that is because there was a grocery store there at one time or it was just purchased and moved there from Illinois. Today there are 9 left that I know of an 2 of them still stand at operating Big John Grocery stores in Southern Illinois. In the 70′s Bob Martin and Frank Bayley slowly moved out of the grocery store industry and started Hucks Gas stations and convenience stores that now cover much of Illinois. As the grocery stores started to close their doors the giant grocery clerks were sold at auctions and start appearing at other businesses. Some have stayed in the grocery store ocupation like the guy in Carmi, IL that stands in front of the Little Giant Grocery Store. In Lakeview, MS one stands on the state line at a seasonal fireworks stand while another guards a strip mall in Florida and was just recently repainted.  They have also become popular with collectors and 4 of them can be found today in private collections. There is a Big John in St Louis, MO that is currently in two pieces. Also the former Benton, IL Big John is now part of the Farnham collection in Ungar, WV. And of course there are the two huge Big Johns that now live in Gainsville, TX and are part of Glen Goode’s giant family. Glen’s Big Johns came from the few grocery locations that were in Tennessee and he picked them up off their backs in an empty lot after the closing of their stores in the 80′s. His Big Johns no longer hold their grocery bags but he still has them in storage. I hope to one day learn more of the story behind these giant grocery clerks and find out exactly how many were made, perhaps there are more that still exist that we have not found yet. Although often confused with muffler men these guys are a breed all of their own and along with what is known as the Beach Guy they tower over their muffler man friends. Recently Roadside America did a story on me and mentioned “my rules” of what constitutes a muffler man sighting or not. I don’t count my Big John sightings as muffler man because they were made by a different company. However I do count Uniroyal Gals and the smaller bunyans because they were made by International Fiberglass. I bend the rules a bit for copies of muffler men if they are exact because although not made by I.F. they still look like muffler men, for example Mark Cline’s soda jerks all get a # on my list. Special thanks to Debra Jane Seltzer for the use of her picture of the Farnham collection in Ungar, WV that includes the former Benton, IL Big John.

#45 Montpelier, IN M Man

It seems International Fiberglass made two kinds of indians you could order. One was an indian brave with a bare chest and normally one or 2 feathers and a serious face. This version seems to be the more common today and was the indian chosen by the mohawk gas stations to be their mascot. The second indian was almost the same but actually had a different head mold with a fierce facial expression and a full indian headdress. Other then the head both versions are the same from the neck down. One of the more uncommon full headdress indians can be found in the small town o Montpelier, IN and he has lived here since January of 1984. Like many indians his life started out at a Pontiac dealership. I have heard this over and over now in my travels and when asking about the history of an indian the answer is often “oh we got him from a pontiac dealership”. Somewhere back in the day Pontiac must have decided that an Indian muffler man would make a good mascot and at least a dozen of these guys were ordered and stood at lots scattered across america. Both head versions were used at Pontiac lots and the idea seemed to die out and lots sold the indians mostly in the early 80′s. The name Pontiac was first used around 1893 by the Pontiac Buggy Company later becoming Spring and Wagon Works Company. The Pontiac Buggy Co. originated in Pontiac, MI and got it’s name from the location named after Indian Chief Pontiac. In 1906 the Oakland Motor Car Co. merged with them and in 1909 GM acquired both brands. Seventeen years later in 1926 GM marketed it’s first Pontiac car and it set an automobile industry record selling 76,000 cars the first year and priced under $900.

The Montpelier indian stood at a lot in Indianapolis during the 70′s and I have yet to find a picture of it during those early days. He was given to the city by Larry P. Godfroy who is the great grandson of Francois Godfroy, the last war Chief of the Miami indians who once lived in the area. Today muffler man stands on the main intersection in town and is in very good condition and still proudly wears his International Fiberglass label clearly on his leg.

#44 Muncie, IN M Man

The Muncie M man seems to have called this town home for a very long time. As far back as I have been able to dig he has always been somewhere in Muncie. Obviously he came to Indiana at some point but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was during the 70′s when he was more then likely sold. Earliest sightings placed him on on Broadway Ave at a local car lot and I have seen one rare picture of him at that location. Sometime before 1997 that lot went out of business and it is likely that he was sold to the guys at  Smith and Sons RV Sales along I-69 because thats where he ended up.  Smith and Sons RV Sales was located off of exit 41 on the west side of the interstate and it was during this time that he was modified to hold things in his hands. Realizing that although muffler men boast rippling muscles and bulging veins their arms aren’t really all that strong the guys at Smith and Sons poked holes in the back of his elbos and ran steel supports down their forearms and out their hands. This steel structure is connected to the large pole behind the giant to hold him up. So in reality the giant isn’t really holding anything with his fiberglass arms but the steel skeleton inside is doing all the work. This is common in muffler men and you can see this in others like the Pahrump big friend in Nevada. In fact the guys at the disposal plant got him because of the large steel structure that was inside him holding him up and planned to recycle it. However once realizing his value they have left him the way he is for now, although some damage was done in the move. The Muncie muffler man soon received a sign to hold in one hand an a mini RV in the other and appeared this way with his accessories and white shirt until the business was sold and the property purchased by MacAllister Machinery in 2005. At that point the sign and RV disappeared and the giant was left empty handed and has remained that way till today. Around 2007 he received a new paint job and was given black pants and a bright yellow shirt which makes him nice and easy to spot when driving by on the interstate. I have actually visited him twice now on my travels. He appears to be a service man version but it is possible he was a cowboy at one time. I don’t seem to have a close up of the international fiberglass logo in my files which probably means I was not able to find one. He’s got cowboy legs so he should have one, sometimes these logo’s get sanded off when muffler men are restored or repainted. Thanks as always to Roadside America for the information they provide on their website and Debra Jane Seltzer for letting me use her pictures of the muffler man in 2005 when he was still with Smith and Sons RV Sales.

Pahrump Big Friend Update

I have followed the unfolding story in Pahrump, NV concerning their extremely rare Big Friend very closely over the last few months. Thankfully due to those of us with an interest for this sort of thing, made it known to various key players in that town how rare this guy was. Earlier this year the news and paper got involved and soon everyone in town realized what they had (or did have). By that time the big guy had already made his way to the Pahrump Valley disposal where he still resides today. Two reporters, Deanna O’donnell and Mark Waite have been very instrumental in telling his story from the start in mid December last year when he came down. In fact channel 46 did one story that heavily used this blog and 3 of my pictures appeared in the story, including one with me in it (although it’s a wide shot) Needless to say I was surprised when I watched that clip. I’ll keep updating this blog from time to time on the developments with this Texaco Big friend. Currently none of the remaining big friends are in their original paint scheme for Texaco and it is our hope that he’s restored back to the days when he wore the Texaco star, colors, cap and all.

#43 Livingston, IL M Man

Known today as the Livingston muffler man this guy has had an interesting life and is still holding a few secrets. His roots have been traced back to the state of Kentucky which has never been a popular place for muffler men. Interestingly it has only housed 15ft versions and they don’t seem to originate there or stay there. In 1999 Roadside America received it’s first muffler man tip for Kentucky about a 15 ft muffler man overlooking highway 90 in Monticello. In 2003 Nick Catron the owner must have stumbled upon the website and posted a tip acknowledging ownership and suggested he might turn him into a Jesus Christ (that would be a first).

By 2007 the giant seemed to have vanished with a report coming in of failed attempt by some muffler men spotters. And that is the official end of what is known as the Monticello muffler man. However in 2005 a new muffler man appeared in Somerset, KY and quickly was reported on Roadside America. The guys at RA were immediately suspicious that this was the guy from Monticello but up until this point as far as I know, no one has confirmed the connection. We learned they named him “Hank the muffler man” and for two years reports came in of his movement from the ground to the roof and of a recent paint job. In August of 06 he was up on e-bay and by April of 07 the report came in that he was gone. It would seem at that point the state of Kentucky was muffler manless but we would learn much later that one actually had been residing in Mortons Gap since 95.

Hank however was on his way to the much more populated state. Illinois currently boasts a total of at least 19 muffler men and if your math doesn’t add up just trust me, of course there possibly could be more. He arrived in Livingston sometime in 2006 and was first reported on RA in November. Initially he was kept painted the way he was and set up inside the large Antique store called the Pink Elephant Antique Mall. At one time it was a school and if you look closely you can still see the stage and realize your standing in the gym. Sometime between then and 2010 he was repainted and moved outside and stood next to the brick wall of the building. “Harley Davidson” was painted across his now orange shirt and whoever restored him did a great job. I’ve even seen a picture on Flicker of his arrival back at the store after getting repainted with his body on the trailer and his head in the passenger seat! In June of 2010 he was relocated to the middle of an adjacent field and today he watches the traffic pass by on the interstate. If your ever in the area be sure and stop by and check out the other large fiberglass figures they have including an Elephant and what is known as “Beach guy”.

I want to thank Roadside America as always for all the information they post on their site and Darren Snow and his “plasticfootball” flicker page for allowing me to share the rare pictures he was able to snap after the muffler man arrived back at the Pink Elephant following repainting and restoration. Thanks Darren!

Second Muffler Man Trip Complete

As you may have noticed the blog has been silent for almost two weeks now and that is due to the second road trip for American Giants. Overall I made 15 new sightings and that brings me up to #97, obviously I have some catching up to do here on the blog. We started out in West Virginia with a visit to the Parkersburg Indian who stands at a car lot. I have a habit of showing up at places when they are closed and that was the case with Parkersburg. We got some good pictures and video anyhow and a call to the office will fill in the blanks. From there we headed up to PA and hit all 4 of the muffler men located on the western side of the state. I learned some interesting history on the giants as well as some good news out of Greensburg, that their headless giant will soon no longer be headless. As roadside america puts it, “it’s always nice to see a muffler man re headed” Along with his freshly painted head the muffler man will be returned to his original colors for a classic bunyan. Next we hit the western side of New York stoping in Irving for an update on the Indians as well as visiting Mark Clien’s soda jerk nearby. In Syracuse we found the bunyan in Liverpool and unearthed some really interesting history on him. Like many muffler men he’s got some travel under his belt and even spent some time high above I-81 on a bill board for many years before settling down to where cars are mostly parked and not driving.

 

The next stop was a big one for me as I have always wanted to see the canadian headed muffler men and I was finally able to visit Mr Furnace in Ontario. We are still working on trying to find out the history for these guys (the other is located in Montreal) I believe they were made by international fiberglass because we have found post cards dating back to the 60′s of them. The trip started to wrap up with stops in Wisconsin to check out the restoration of the Wabeno muffler man and meet the man behind his restoration as well as some history on the Oshkosh bunyan.

Finally we visited two indians in Indiana, the one in Toto and also Brookston. The indians are both in great shape and we learned that the they both have migrated south from the Gary, IN area. It seems like the 70′s and 80′s was a migratory period for many muffler men and it is during these years that I have learned that many of them were sold and relocated. These days they tend to be more permanent fixtures as owners are very reluctant to sell them. Allot more time was given on this trip to video production and interviews with owners and much of this trip will appear in the second season of American Giants with many more details then I have shared here. As always we met allot of new people and made some great finds! Season one is just weeks away and due to my heavy work load and this latest trip it has been pushed back a bit but we are still very close. Thanks for your patience!