# Hippie Muffler Man aka Paul Bunyon



## SifuPhil (Sep 9, 2017)

Mentioning the Danbury (CT) State Fair in another thread got me wondering what happened to some of the large fiberglass statues that were so closely associated with the fair.

The fair started in 1869 and lasted until 1981, when it was torn down and made into a mall. 

The fiberglass sculptures? The most famous were Uncle Sam and Paul Bunyon.



Uncle Sam was, and still is, the largest statue of Uncle Sam in the world. 

He now stands tall at Magic Forest, a fairy-tale theme park in Lake George, NY. 

But it's Paul Bunyon that turned out to be the crowd favorite.



After the fair closed, the manufacturer of the statue began making multiple copies and sold them mainly to muffler shops, to be used for advertising. Paul ended up in dozens of incarnations across the country, happily holding a giant muffler.

But the original Paul Bunyan? He ended up at, of all places, Woodstock!

Yes, Paul has regressed into hippiedom, and now wears patched jeans, a tie-dyed shirt and a necklace and bracelet.  



He can be found at Yasgur's Farm / The Bethel Woods Center for the Arts.


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## Shalimar (Sep 9, 2017)

Cool, Philly!


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## SifuPhil (Sep 9, 2017)

Shalimar said:


> Cool, Philly!



Yeah ...

... evidently I've got a thing for big men ... ride:

Did a little more research - there are actually hundreds of these things around the country, including quite a few in Canukistan.


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## Pappy (Sep 10, 2017)

We have a Paul Bunyan at the Enchanted Forest in Old Forge, NY. I enjoyed reading the history of these big guys.


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## Shalimar (Sep 10, 2017)

SifuPhil said:


> Yeah ...
> 
> ... evidently I've got a thing for big men ... ride:
> 
> Did a little more research - there are actually hundreds of these things around the country, including quite a few in Canukistan.


Really, I didn't know we had any here.


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## IKE (Sep 10, 2017)

Paul just isn't complete without his faithful companion 'Babe the Blue Ox' by his side.....

Oops, looks like Babe ate a little too much 'Grass' or had too many of Shali's 'Special Brownies' last night......


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## Shalimar (Sep 10, 2017)

Lulz. Ok, Ike, have a brownie.


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## jujube (Sep 10, 2017)

We had a giant bikini-clad fiberglass woman at a business on the west side of Orlando for a long time.  The owner would change her bikini every few years.  I don't know what happened to it.


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## IKE (Sep 10, 2017)

jujube said:


> We had a giant bikini-clad fiberglass woman at a business on the west side of Orlando for a long time.  The owner would change her bikini every few years.  I don't know what happened to it.



This her Juju ?


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## RadishRose (Sep 10, 2017)

IKE said:


> Paul just isn't complete without his faithful companion 'Babe the Blue Ox' by his side.....
> 
> Oops, looks like Babe ate a little too much 'Grass' or had too many of Shali's 'Special Brownies' last night......View attachment 41938



I see cow-tipping is still popular!


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## jujube (Sep 10, 2017)

IKE said:


> This her Juju ?
> 
> View attachment 41942



She looked a lot like that, but that's not her.....no building that look like that were anywhere near.  The city or county made him put a dress on her for a while, but eventually it was back to the bikini.


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## Meanderer (Sep 11, 2017)

*Could she be the Uniroyal Gal?*












"One of the most sought after Muffler Men is the rare Uniroyal Gal made for the Uniroyal Tire Company in 1966. Over 20 of these giant ladies made rounds across the country that year, advertising at auto repair shops and tire centers. Today around 13 remain and it isn’t very often that one comes up for sale".


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## SifuPhil (Sep 11, 2017)

I read where International Fiberglass, the company that made most of the giants, received an order for 3,000 Texaco gas station attendants. The company made only 300, there were some problems with payments, and they ended up keeping the guys tied together in the back lot.


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## SifuPhil (Sep 11, 2017)

IKE said:


> Paul just isn't complete without his faithful companion 'Babe the Blue Ox' by his side.....
> 
> Oops, looks like Babe ate a little too much 'Grass' or had too many of Shali's 'Special Brownies' last night......



Paul looks like he takes too many steroids. 

Poor Babe - he's fallen and he can't get up!


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## SifuPhil (Sep 11, 2017)

Here's a Great Dane that used to be on the Orange Blossom Trail in Orlando. He now resides in Savannah, GA.


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## SifuPhil (Sep 11, 2017)

And who could possibly forget Chicken Boy in LA?


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## SifuPhil (Sep 11, 2017)

Hey, I remember this guy! He was (is?) on Saw Mill River Road in Elmsford, NY, not far from where I grew up.

I KNOW A GIANT! YAY!


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## IKE (Sep 11, 2017)

There's a Sinclair station across town that still has a big Dino sitting out front......it was stolen a few years ago by some college kids but it was eventually found and returned.


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## SifuPhil (Sep 11, 2017)

Here's International Fiberglass's marketing brochure for the dino ...


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## IKE (Sep 11, 2017)

SifuPhil said:


> Hey, I remember this guy! He was (is?) on Saw Mill River Road in Elmsford, NY, not far from where I grew up.
> 
> I KNOW A GIANT! YAY!
> 
> View attachment 41988



He musta been in one hell of a fight......what happened to his wings ?


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## SifuPhil (Sep 11, 2017)

IKE said:


> He musta been in one hell of a fight......what happened to his wings ?



LOL! 

*Scarecrow*: _[about the Flying Monkeys]_ They tore my legs off and they threw them over there. Then they took my chest out and they threw it over there.
*Tin Man*: Well, that's you all over.
*Cowardly Lion*: They sure knocked the stuffin' out of you, didn't they?

I seem to remember him with a different paint job and all his body parts intact. They probably got ripped off by the same guys that steal copper pipes.

... it's a tough town ... even giants aren't safe there anymore.


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## NancyNGA (Sep 11, 2017)

Duct Man - Cincinnati, OH 
  All metal, no sissy fiberglass.


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## SifuPhil (Sep 11, 2017)

NancyNGA said:


> Duct Man - Cincinnati, OH
> All metal, no sissy fiberglass.



Whoa!

I wouldn't want to stand next to HIM in a lightning storm!


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## IKE (Sep 11, 2017)




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## SifuPhil (Sep 11, 2017)

Bib!!!


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## Meanderer (Oct 13, 2017)

View of the Melbourne, Australia Skipping Girl Sign nicknamed Little Audrey where the jokes were very popular.
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