Tag Archives: Wisconsin

Muffler Man sketch by Chandler O'Leary

Kings of the road

Well, if I’m going to spend all this time talking about roadside attractions, I would be remiss if I didn’t include the legendary Muffler Men—guardians of gas stations, presidents of photo ops. If you’ve ever taken a road trip, you’ve probably seen at least one of these guys along the way.

These behemoths started appearing in the early 1960s (the very first one was on Route 66), to promote the brand new International Fiberglass Company in California. For whatever reason, they usually ended up in front of gas stations, holding giant mufflers—hence the nickname.

Muffler Man sketch by Chandler O'Leary

By 1970 there were thousands of them around the country, but the 1973 oil crisis forced the decline and eventual demise of International Fiberglass. These days the muffler men are an endangered species, down to just a few hundred stalwart lads (and a handful of lasses, too!).

Saloon Cowboy (Muffler Man) sketch by Chandler O'Leary

For me, finding them has turned into something of a quest—and not just because I’m a completist (though, of course I am). You see, the most fun thing about these guys is that they’re not identical—there are many, many variations on the original design (and a few knock-offs, to boot).

Paul Bunyan Muffler Man sketch by Chandler O'Leary

Probably the most common variation is the Paul Bunyan—they’re certainly the most recognizable, even when their axes get stolen.

Paul Bunyan Muffler Man sketch by Chandler O'Leary

And when they’re spiffed up to their original glory, they’re unmistakeable. (This one is a mobile muffler man! When he surprised me at the local Daffodil Parade a few years ago, it felt like Christmas had come early.)

Carpet Viking sketch by Chandler O'Leary

Though I’ll never pass up any iteration of Paul Bunyan, I’m most excited about the rare, extreme variants, the roadside sideshow—the Uniroyal Gals, the Happy Halfwits, the Carpet Vikings.

Harvey the Rabbit (Muffler Man) sketch by Chandler O'Leary

And best of all are the mutant modifications that have happened to some of these guys (you should have heard me squeal when I found this one!). Some have been altered so much as to be rendered almost unrecognizable. But you can’t fool me—once a muffler man, always a muffler man.

So tell me: have you found any muffler men in your travels? Do you have one in your neighborhood? I’m always on the look-out for a good one, so if you have any recommendations, I’m all (rabbit) ears.

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Airplane sketch by Chandler O'Leary

Captive audience

People always ask me why on earth I’d rather take a road trip when I could “save time” and fly. And sure, sometimes flying is fun—especially when I’ve got a clear day and a window seat. But while I could go on about all the annoying things about flying that drive me nuts, or extoll the virtues of getting to know the geography between points A and B, or wax poetic about how for me it’s not actually about “saving time” at all, but about “journey” vs. “destination,” etc. etc. blah-blah-blah…

Yeah. All of that is true, but really I just need to show them this sketch:

Airplane sketch by Chandler O'Leary

This. This is why I’m no fan of flying. There’s only so many times I can draw the same airplane wing, or so much detail I can add to a beige plastic wall, before I completely lose my mind.

Sign sketch by Chandler O'Leary

Speechless

There really are no words for this one—except that ever since I saw this sign, I’ve found ways to work in the term “ho-made” to as many things as possible. Comedic gold.

As an aside, I didn’t sketch it, but just a few blocks away is a bait shop that sells wine and spirits. Read that last sentence again, and let it sink in. The Tailor and I wanted to buy a bottle of wine for our host that evening, so we asked a local where we might find something. She gave us directions, but apologized for not being able to give more information than that. “I can never remember the name of the place, because I just call it ‘Wine & Worms,” she said.

Oh, yes, this is my kinda town.