The Hot Dog Giant
Atlanta (formerly Cicero), Illinois
Hamlet A.
Stephens has owned and operated "Bunyon's,"
a hot dog establishment outside of Chicago, for over 40 years. So naturally
he was dismayed when he saw roadsideamerica.com had declared his roadside
statue "not really a Bunyan."
The Bunyon's building was constructed by Hamlet, a former self-employed mason
and builder. He augmented his fast food business with the eye-catching muffler
man in the 1960s, ordered with the custom giant Hot Dog accessory (likely
from International Fiberglass in CA).
"He used to be on top of the building, and I took him down so the
kids could touch him and sit on his feet," Hamlet noted. "You could
walk thru his legs to get into the restaurant." Big Paul Bunyon has been
a beloved fixture on Ogden Avenue, only suffering when "some teenagers
shot arrows into him one night."
Hamlet can't deny the big guy is an effective advertisement -- and tasty road
food helps. "My most popular item is the hot dog, although we are very
well known for our hot beef and sausage sandwiches. We also have people
coming from afar just to buy our homemade hot giardinair, which we sell by
the gallon -- once rated by the Chicago Tribune as the best in all
of Chicagoland!"
We explained to Hamlet that the Bunyan category of muffler man is clearly
defined by the beard and the wool cap, while his muffler man obviously has
the head and body of a classic muffler man. But he pays tribute to the mighty
tree-biter with"Bunyon's" -- a misspelling that is part oversight
and part-trademark differentiation.
This is a great muffler man, so we don't want Hamlet climbing up there to
paint on a beard just to meet our criteria. In the interests of commerce and
in the true spirit of Mufflerkind, we've declared Paul Bunyon a provisional
"Bunyan."
Get a life -- yeah, we know, we know...
Oct.
2003: The town of Atlanta,
Illinois is the new home of the Hot Dog Muffler Man. After Bunyon's closed,
several towns vied for the big statue. Atlanta made a free, long-term loan
arrangement with the owners to display the statue on Arch Street as a symbol
of Route
66. Latest word was the concrete base was being poured and the M-Man was
stored in an "undisclosed location."
Oct. 2002: Bunyon's closes - Hot Dog Muffler Man for sale.Elise Star, daughter of Bunyon's owner Hamlet Stephens, informed us the restaurant is being sold, and the famous Hot Dog Muffler Man will be evicted, or at least sold separately. "The neighborhood has changed over the past 40 years. My father built this hot dog joint himself and made it what it is today."
Hamlet Stephens turned 80 years old October 26th. "He still puts in 55 hours/week because his manager has been too ill to work."
Bunyon's (a mispelling of Bunyan for trademarking reasons) has been a landmark in Cicero for decades. "I can't tell you the number of people who are crying about the closing of Bunyons. I am talking about customers; where are they going to get the best beef and hot giardinair? My father is really touched."
