Big Boy Restaurants

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Big Boy
Type Restaurant
Industry Casual dining restaurant
Founded 1936
Headquarters Warren, Michigan, U.S.
Key people Bob Wian, Founder
Robert Liggett, Jr.
Keith E. Sirois, CEO
Website bigboy.com

Big Boy Restaurants International LLC is a restaurant chain with its current headquarters in Warren, Michigan, in Greater Detroit.1

Big Boy was started as Bob's Pantry in 19362 by Bob Wian in Glendale, California, USA. The restaurant became known as "Bob's, Home of the Big Boy Hamburger" then as Bob's Big Boy. It became a local chain under that name and nationally under the Big Boy name, franchised by Robert C. Wian Enterprises. Marriott Corporation bought Big Boy in 1967. One of the larger franchise operators, Elias Brothers, purchased the chain from Marriott in 1987, moving the headquarters of the company to Warren, Michigan, and operating it until declaring bankruptcy in 2000. Following the bankruptcy, the chain was sold to investor Robert Liggett, Jr., who took over as Chief Executive Officer (CEO), renamed the company Big Boy Restaurants International and kept the headquarters in Warren. The company is the franchisor for 126 Big Boy restaurants in the United States.3

Immediately after Liggett's purchase, Liggett Restaurant Enterprises dba Big Boy Restaurants International negotiated an agreement with the other large franchise operator, Frisch's Restaurants transferring to Frisch's exclusive, perpetual ownership of Big Boy marks in Kentucky, Indiana, and most of Ohio and Tennessee, and transferring all other Frisch's territories to Liggett.4 Big Boy International and Frisch's now are co-registrants of the Big Boy name and trademark. Thus Frisch's is no longer a franchisee but a substantially equal owner which operates almost as many units as Liggett. Frisch's is the owner or franchisor of 118 Big Boy restaurants5 in the United States.

Contents

Origin

The chain is best known for its trademark chubby boy in red-and-white checkered overalls holding a Big Boy sandwich (double-decker cheeseburger). The inspiration for Big Boy's name, as well as the model for its mascot, was Richard Woodruff6 (1932–1986), of Glendale, California. When he was six years old, Woodruff walked into the diner Bob's Pantry as Bob Wian was attempting to name his new hamburger. Wian said, "Hello, Big Boy" to Woodruff, and the name stuck. Warner Bros. animation artist Ben Washam sketched Richard's caricature, which became the character seen on the company trademark. The Big Boy character was revised in 1956 by an artist working for Ken Bird, a Big Boy paper products supplier and Manfred Bernhard, son of legendary graphic designer Lucian Bernhard.7 This 1956 Big Boy figure was used for large painted fiberglass statues placed outside the restaurants and was featured in The Adventures of Big Boy comic book, produced as a promotional giveaway for children visiting the restaurants. Bernhard produced the comic book for forty years until 1997 and the comic book has since been produced by Craig Yoe’s Yoe! Studio. Another longtime promotion was the Big Boy Kids' Club, offering coupons and premiums to members, who joined by sending in an application from the comic book.

In 1951, Wian's original franchisee Dave Frisch developed a slightly different Big Boy character. He was slimmer, wore a side cap and was portrayed in a skipping posture, with "Big Boy" written on the sleeve rather than the chest of his shirt. (The side cap allowed space for the franchise name.) Originally he wore striped overalls and had reddish or blond hair, but now usually has checkered overalls and dark brown hair. Known as the "East Coast Big Boy", he was registered to Frisch's and used for statues and comic books for Frisch's, and its subfranchisees Manners and Azar's. Before 1956, some franchisees, such as Shoney's, would use both versions, though never together. Since 1956, the Wian "West Coast Big Boy" design was used exclusively by all franchisees other than Frisch's, Manners and Azar's.

Bob's Big Boy restaurant in Burbank, California

The signature Big Boy hamburger consists of two thin beef patties placed on a three layer bun with lettuce, a single slice of cheese, and either mayonnaise with red relish, Big Boy special sauce (thousand island dressing), or (in some locations) tartar sauce on each slice of bun. Wian used a sesame seed bun while Frisch's used a plain bun. For its opening in 1949, Eat'n Park of Pittsburgh advertised its Big Boy hamburgers including a sliced (slice of) tomato.8 The Big Boy hamburger originally called for a quarter pound (4 ozs.) of fresh ground beef, but later, franchisees were permitted to use frozen beef patties, and the minimum content reduced to a fifth of a pound (3.2 ozs.) of beef, perhaps in response to McDonald's Big Mac. Unlike the similar Big Mac, which was patterned after the Big Boy, onions were not included in the original recipe. They had to be ordered as an extra.

Big Boy restaurants also became known for two special dessert items: Strawberry Pie and Hot Fudge Cake.

Big Boy offers breakfast, salads, dinner combinations, and various desserts.

Regional Franchises

A Big Boy Restaurant in Chōfu, Tokyo, Japan.

In addition to the Bob's Big Boy name, the "Big Boy" concept, menu, and mascot were originally licensed to a wide number of regional franchise holders, listed below (with approximate licensed territories in parentheses). Because many of the early franchisees were already in the restaurant business when joining Big Boy, "Big Boy" was added to the franchisee name just as the Big Boy hamburger was added to the franchisee's menu. In this sense it is confusing when referring to a chain, as each named franchisee was itself a chain and Big Boy could be considered a chain of chains. People tend to know Big Boy not simply as Big Boy but as the franchise from where they lived such as Bob's Big Boy in California, Shoney's Big Boy in the south or Frisch's Big Boy in much of Ohio, among the many others.

Each regional franchisee typically operated a central commissary which prepared or processed foods and sauces to be shipped fresh to their restaurants. Other items were prepared at the restaurants daily, such as soups and breading of seafood and onion rings.

Through the 50s and 60s the emphasis changed from drive-in restaurant to coffee shop and family restaurant. New franchisees without existing restaurants signed on. A larger standard menu was developed. Most adopted a common graphic design of menus and promotional items, personalized to the franchisee. Stock plans of restaurant designs were provided by Los Angeles architects Armet and Davis. In the 60s and 70s Bob's, Shoney's and JB's opened Big Boy Jr. stores, designed as fast food operations which offered a limited menu.

Big Boy's origins as a drive in restaurant, required a much smaller investment to open and much lower costs to operate: a small building having no dining room or limited counter space. Thus persons of modest assets could become Big Boy operators. It was the profits from these operations which allowed not only additional drive ins, but operators to build the modern restaurants with large pleasant dining rooms. Many of the early successful franchisees would probably not have assets (converted to present value) sufficient to join Big Boy today.

By 1979 there were more than a thousand Big Boy restaurants in the U.S. and Canada,9 and about 20 franchisees. Shoney's, Elias Brothers and Frisch's—charter franchisees—controlled the vast majority. These mega franchisees paid practically no fees, e.g., Frisch paid $1/year for its core four state territory. After Bob's, the four original franchisees (in order) were Frisch's, Eat'n Park, Shoney's (originally Parkette) and Elias Brothers, all clustered near the state of Ohio. All, including Bob's, remain in operation today, albeit Elias Brothers is simply known as Big Boy, and Eat'n Park and Shoney's dropped Big Boy affiliation in the 70s and 80s.

Big Boy developed named franchisees in several ways. Very quickly the Big Boy name and even the Big Boy character were being widely used without permission. Bob Wian, needing diverse exposure for national (U.S.) trademark protection, offered very generous franchise agreements to Frisch's, Eat'n Park and Parkette (Shoney's). In 1952, Wian instituted a formal franchise process and Elias Brothers became the first such "official" franchisee. Bob Wian also settled trademark infringements allowing the rogue operator to become a licensed franchisee, such as McDowell's Big Boy in North Dakota.10 Subfranchisees often used their own name and operated independently: Frisch's licensed Manners and Azar's; Shoney's licensed Elby's, Becker's, Lendy's and Yoda's. Elby’s licensed Franklin’s Big Boy in eastern Pennsylvania. Acquisitions and mergers also occurred. In the early seventies Frisch's acquired Kip's Big Boy; JB's acquired Vip's, Kebo's and Leo's which were rebranded JB's. After buying Big Boy, Elias Brothers bought Elby's and TJ's. Elby's was unique in leaving and rejoining the Big Boy system. When Marriott purchased Big Boy (Wian Enterprises) in 1967, this included Bob's Big Boy. The name “Bob’s” would be used by all Marriott owned Big Boys and became common in parts of the eastern U.S. and elsewhere, far away from Bob’s historic territory.

Frisch's now owns the "Big Boy" name in a defined four state region, and Azar's and Bob's are licensed users by Frisch's and Big Boy Restaurants International, respectively. Many of the other former franchise owners (Shoney's, particularly) have expanded into the former territories of other franchise holders. Prohibiting franchisees from publically using their own names 11 is intended to strengthen the trademark but also prevent defections, such as happened with Shoney's Big Boy retaining identity as Shoney's.12 The same occurred with Eat'n Park, Elby's, Lendy's, JB's, and Abdow's who kept their names after leaving Big Boy.

Unlike most modern franchises, the historic Big Boy franchisees differed somewhat from one another in pricing and menus. When Elias Brothers purchased Big Boy in 1987, intentions were to standardize the name and menu, but Bob's, Frisch's and McDowell's (now known as Bismarck Big Boy) continue to offer distinctions from the standard Big Boy menu.


Named Big Boy Franchisees are listed below with territories, time span, founders and additional notes, as known:

  • Abdow's (Massachusetts, Connecticut, 1959–1994, founded by George and Ron Abdow) now defunct, many converted to Elixi Corp's Bickfords Family Restaurants or remain vacant.
  • Azar's (Northern Indiana, Colorado, 1954+,13 founded by George and Alex Azar) One Azar's Big Boy remains in operation in Ft. Wayne, IN. Alex Azar became an original member of the Big Boy Board of Directors.
  • Becker's (Buffalo & Rochester, NY area before TJ's, 1956-?, founded by Abe Becker) Shoney's opened a restaurant in Rochester in the mid 50s which may have became Becker's Big Boy.14 Trying to expand too quickly created a financial crisis and the end of the franchise.15
  • Bob's (California, Arizona, Nevada, Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, and Indiana and Pennsylvania turnpike and airport locations operated in several states by the Marriott Corp., 1936+, founded by Robert C. "Bob" Wian) The original Big Boy chain, which in Wian's time was confined to Southern California, Arizona and Nevada. Because Marriott developed and acquired Big Boy restaurants elsewhere, principally the northeastern U.S., "Bob's" developed a more diverse territory and identity. Presently, "Bob's" is again used only in Southern California, and no others under the domain of Big Boy Restaurants International are permitted to use franchise names for public identity. Wian became the original chairman of the Big Boy Board of Directors.
  • Bud's (Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, 1966-?)
  • Eat'n Park (metro Pittsburgh, 1949–1975, founded by Larry Hatch & William Peters) Hatch and Peters were supervisors at Isaly's in Pittsburgh.16 On Isaly's business in Cincinnati, Hatch saw the success of the Frisch's Big Boy Drive-In prompting contact with founder Bob Wian, who needed national exposure to gain national trademark protection.17 Eat'n Park soon became the second Big Boy franchisee. When the 25 year franchise agreement expired Eat'n Park dropped Big Boy, attributed to the loss of drive-in popularity.18
  • Elby's (Northern West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Eastern Ohio, Maryland, Virginia, 1956–1984, 1988–2000, founded by George, Ellis and Michael Boury) Named after ELlis BourY. Originally acquired the Big Boy rights to northern West Virginia through Shoney's.14 In 1966 Elby's expanded Big Boy into bordering Ohio counties, licensed through Frisch's, and into Pennsylvania. A long running trademark battle with Frisch's19 over Ohio operations caused Elby's to drop Big Boy affiliation in Ohio in 1971, and for all Elby's units in 1984 when Shoney's—franchisor for Elby's West Virginia stores—broke affiliation. Opened units in Maryland and Virginia after leaving Big Boy. Elby's was sold to Elias Brothers in 1988 becoming Big Boy again. Although officially stripped of the Elby's name,11 identity was so strong that the Elby's name continued in print advertisements.20 The last remaining Elby's closed in 2000 in response to the Elias Brothers financial crisis.
  • Elias Brothers (Michigan, Northeastern Ohio, Ontario, Canada, 1952–2000, founded by Fred, John and Louis Elias) In 1938 the brothers opened Fred's Chili Bowl in Detroit and later the Dixie Drive-In in Hazel Park, which would become the first Elias Brothers Big Boy. Considered the "first official franchisee"21 because they were the first to formally apply to Bob Wian. Worked with Wian, Schoenbaum and Manfred Bernhard to create the iconic 1956 Big Boy character design and launch the comic book. Owned the Big Boy parent from 1987 through 2000. Many units continue operations but none use Elias Brothers name. Fred Elias became an original member of the Big Boy Board of Directors.
  • Franklin's (Eastern Pennsylvania, 1966-1985, founded by Marvin Franklin) Subfranchised by and originally operated as Elby's. After dropping Big Boy affiliation, Franklin's adopted a Benjamin Franklin theme renaming the signature hamburger "Big Boy" as "Big Ben". Sold the 12 unit chain to Hershey's Foods & Friendly's Restaurants in 1985.
  • Frejlach's (Illinois, 1954-196?, founded by Irvin Frejlach) Added Big Boy to their established chain of ice cream shops.22 Unlike other franchisees, the stores didn't directly use the Big Boy name; they remained Frejlach's Ice Cream Shoppes not Frejlach's Big Boy.23 Irvin's brother Lucian "Lou" Frejlach became an original member of the Big Boy Board of Directors.
  • Frisch's (Ohio, Kentucky, S. Indiana, Tennessee; Florida until the early 1990s, 1948+, founded (as Big Boy) by David Frisch) The Cincinnati restaurant chain and first franchisee, began serving Big Boy hamburgers in 1948; Frisch's now operates 88 Big Boys & franchises 32 Big Boys to others. Frisch's subfranchised to Azar's and Manners, which used the Frisch's styled Big Boy, and also licensed Elby's to operate two Big Boy units in the upper Ohio Valley until 1971.19
  • JB's (Arizona, Utah, Idaho, Montana, South Dakota, Wyoming, Washington, California, New Mexico, Nebraska, Kansas, New Jersey); 1961-1988, founded by Jack M. Broberg) In 1984 JB's attempted to break from Big Boy but settled in exchange for additional territory. Citing the sale of Big Boy to Elias Brothers, in 1988 JB's allowed its Big Boy franchise to expire, removing 107 units from the Big Boy system. Currently 22 JB's Restaurants operate in six states.
  • JB's (Canada - Ontario, Alberta and Quebec, 1969-1979, founded by John Bitove, Sr.) Bitove, a well known Canadian businessman, was the franchisee for Canada generally, along with Roy Rogers Restaurants, both Marriott owned brands. JB's of Canada grew to 32 Big Boy restaurants before selling to Elias Brothers.24
  • Kebo's (Seattle & Tacoma, Washington area before Leo's, JB's and Bob's, ?-1974, founded by W. Keith Grant.) "Kebo" came from the owners, Keith, Ed and BOb. Two units were sold to JB's in 1974.
  • Ken's (Maryland - suburban Washington DC, 1963-?, founded by Bill Bemis) named in honor of Bill Bemis' father Ken Bemis, who founded the White Log Coffee Shop chain. "Ken's" became "Bob's" in the late 1960s.
  • Kip's (Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, 1958–1991, founded Fred Bell, Thomas W. Holman & James Reed) Bell owned & operated Kip's of Texas, while Holman and Reed owned & operated Kip's of Oklahoma & Kansas 25) Acquired by Frisch's in 1972. Kip's territory was transferred to Liggett/Big Boy Restaurants International in 2001. Bell became an original member of the Big Boy Board of Directors.
  • Lendy's (Western Virginia, 1959–1964, founded by Leonard Goldstein) Owned by Goldstein but operated as Shoney's 1955-1959. Territory conflict with Yoda's and concurrent franchise with Kentucky Fried Chicken prompted Lendy's to leave Big Boy.2627
  • Leo's (Spokane, Washington; Montana, 1966-1971, founded by Leo A. Hansen, Jr.) Acquired by and renamed JB's in 1971.
  • Manners (Northeastern Ohio (Cleveland TV market), 1954–1979, founded by Robert L. and Ramona Manners) franchisee through Frisch's, used the Frisch styled mascot design. Like Frisch's, Manners was already established having opened Manners Drive-In in 1939, 15 years before becoming a Big Boy franchisee.28 Paid Frisch's $10 per month for each location. In 1968 Manners Big Boy was sold to Consolidated Foods (now known as Sara Lee Corporation). Marriott purchased the 39 units in 1974 and five years later dropped the name "Manners".29
  • Marc's (Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, Illinois, 1958–1995, founded by Ben Marcus and Gene Kilberg) were owned by the Marcus Corporation. Some were sold, others were converted to Marc's Cafe & Coffee Mill and later Annie's American Cafe. Most now operate as Perkins.
  • McDowell's (North Dakota, 1954-1960 independently as "Big Boy Drive-Inn", 1960+ as franchise, founded by Harley McDowell) A trademark infringement suit against McDowell was filed by Wian in 195910 ultimately resulting in a franchise agreement. Operates exclusively as a drive through. McDowell's name was dropped and the remaining store is now called the Bismarck Big Boy.
  • Mr. B's (New Hampshire, 1963-1969,30 founded by Manfred Bernhard)3132
  • Shoney's (Tennessee, Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana, Georgia, Virginia, South Carolina, North Carolina, West Virginia, Maryland, Missouri, New York, Philadelphia, PA, 1952–1985, founded by Alex Schoenbaum), Originally called the Parkette, in 1952 it became Parkette Big Boy Shoppes. In 1954, a public contest for a new name resulted in Parkette becoming Shoney's,33 which was also a reference to founder Alex "Shoney" Schoenbaum. Shoney's was a charter Big Boy franchisee and by 1984 became the largest franchisee operating 392 Shoney's Big Boy units. Shoney's also subfranchised to Becker's,14 Elby's,14 Yoda's and Lendy's.).34 Shoney's dropped its relationship with Big Boy in 1984 in order to expand into neighboring states where other franchisees owned the trademark. Schoenbaum became an original member of the Big Boy Board of Directors.
  • Ted's (Rhode Island, Massachusetts)
  • TJ's (Rochester & Syracuse, NY, founded by Anthony T. Kolinski, John Gazda & John Giamartino, 1972-?)35 The four stores were purchased by Big Boy (Elias Brothers). The two Rochester stores were closed in 1992, and one Syracuse store was sold to a local investor.
  • Tops (Illinois, 1956-1993)
  • Tote's (St. Louis area before Shoney's, founded by Edward R. Todtenbier)
  • Vip's (New Mexico, Texas, Oregon, 1962-1972. founded by Daniel T. Hogan & James O'Conner36) Purchased by and renamed JB's in 1972.
  • Yoda's (Western Virginia, founded by Jack Young & Bill Schroeder) Young was Leonard Goldstein's (Lendy's) brother-in-law. Merged with Lendy's.27

There were various franchisees and subfranchisees who operated under another franchisee's name or simply as Big Boy.

  • Big Boy of Florida37 (Exclusive rights to the Central Florida territory) Now defunct.

Mady's Big Boy of Windsor, Ontario was not a franchisee, though sometimes identified as one and using a similar looking mascot.38 In 1965 Bob Wian sued Mady for trademark infringement but failed because (his) Big Boy was judged not widely known in Canada. The case is considered important in Canadian and international trademark law. In 1973 Elias Brothers bought Mady's and established an Elias Big Boy on Mady's original site.39 John Bitove, Sr. owned the rights to Big Boy for the remainder of Canada, which he sold to Elias Brothers in 1979.24

Outside of North America, Big Boy Japan owns and operates 296 locations (as of September 2007) throughout Japan under four restaurant names: Big Boy (199 stores), Milky Way (50), Victoria Station (43), and Grill Dan (4).40 The Japanese Big Boy Restaurants don't offer the Big Boy hamburger or most other American Big Boy menu items, offering a distinct menu instead.41 They also offer beer and wine.41

In addition, Big Boy established @burger, a new concept casual dining restaurant in Ann Arbor, Michigan, which is now closed.42

References

  1. ^ "Comments." Big Boy. Retrieved on November 23, 2012. "4199 Marcy St. Warren, MI 48091"
  2. ^ Hansen, Christian (2002). The Big Boy Story: "King of Them All". Santa Barbara: Haagen Printing. p. 11. ISBN 978-0967194363. 
  3. ^ "Big Boy: My Locations." Total number of locations displayed. Retrieved on May 8, 2012.
  4. ^ "Transfer Agreement between The Liggett Restaurant Group and Frisch's Restaurants, Inc.", January 12, 2001.
  5. ^ "Frisch's FAQ." How many Frisch’s Big Boy Restaurants are there? Number of units on September 2, 2010. Retrieved on May 8, 2012.
  6. ^ "Richard Woodruff Dies at 54; Model for 'Big Boy' Statues". The New York Times (New York). October 28, 1986. Retrieved October 3, 2012. 
  7. ^ Hansen, Christian (2002). The Big Boy Story: "King of Them All". Santa Barbara: Haagen Printing. p. 12. ISBN 978-0967194363. 
  8. ^ "Bring Your Family to Eat'n Park (advertisement)". The Pittsburgh Press (Pittsburgh). June 4, 1949. p. 3. Retrieved October 3, 2012. 
  9. ^ Glassett, Janie. "[Big Boy Progress Image at] Janies's Big Boy Webpage: Big Boy Family Newsletter". Archived from the original on July 19, 2008. Retrieved February 11, 2013. 
  10. ^ a b "'Big Boy' Trademark Suit Opens, Glendale Firm Asks Verdict". The Independent Star News (Pasadena). July 26, 1959. p. 11. 
  11. ^ a b "Elby's rejoins Big Boy chain". Observer Reporter (Washington, PA: Observer Publishing Company). Auguat 3, 1988. p. C-6. Retrieved February 14, 2013. 
  12. ^ Frisch's Restaurant, Inc. v. Shoney's Inc., 759 F.2d 1261, 1265-6 (6th Cir. 1985) (“In the case at bar, the district court concluded that the "Big Boy" mark was neither an indicator of origin nor distinctive, but was "a relatively weak mark". ... By emphasizing "Shoney's Big Boy Restaurants", as it did in its advertising, Shoney's has identified itself as the source of the services.”).
  13. ^ Seltzer, Debra Jane. "Big Boy (page 2)". RoadsideArchitecture.com. Retrieved March 3, 2013. "In 1954, the first Azar's opened in Fort Wayne" 
  14. ^ a b c d Schaffer, Frank (April 17, 1962). "Charleston Drive-In Zooms To Huge 10-State Business". Charleston Daily Mail. pp. 12, 17. Retrieved February 26, 2013. ""Then came the expansion outside West Virginia with franchised stores. Before 1956, Shoney's restaurants were operating in Richmond, Salem, Hampton, Norfolk and Newport News, Va., Rochester, N. Y., Philadelphia, Chattanooga, Charlotte and Wheeling [WV]." [In this list, the Rochester franchise is Becker's and the Wheeling franchise is Elby's.]" 
  15. ^ Baker, Jim (March 18. 2010). "Out of the Past: Johnson's Drive-In, Route 5 in Athol Springs, 1957" (PDF). The Sun (Hamburg (NY)). p. 12. Retrieved April 12, 2013. 
  16. ^ "Peters, co-founder of Eat'n Park, dead at 87", Nation's Restaurant News, August 28, 2000.
  17. ^ "Obituary: William D. Peters / President of Eat'n Park restaurants". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. August 20, 2000. Retrieved 15 February 2013. 
  18. ^ Kapner, Suzanne, "After 46 years, Eat'n Park still revs sales, appetites", Nation's Restaurant News, Sept 18, 1995.
  19. ^ a b Frisch's Restaurant, Inc. v. Elby's Big Boy, 661 F.Supp. 971 (S.D. Ohio, E.D. 1987).
  20. ^ "Elby's Big Boy Strawberry Festival (Advertisement)". Observer Reporter (Washington, PA: Observer Publishing Company). April 26, 1994. p. B-2. Retrieved February 14, 2013. 
  21. ^ Hansen, Christian (2002). The Big Boy Story: "King of Them All". Santa Barbara: Haagen Printing. p. 111. ISBN 978-0967194363. 
  22. ^ "Big Boy Hamburger Now At Frejlach's". Arlington Heights Herald (Arlington Heights, IL). October 7, 1954. p. 12. Retrieved September 30, 2012. 
  23. ^ 1956 Oak Park Telephone Directory. 1956. p. 133. 
  24. ^ a b "Executive Summary: John Bitove, Sr.". Retrieved September 29, 2012. 
  25. ^ "EZ’S COFFEE SHOP (formerly KIP’S BIG BOY)at Northwest Highway & Hillcrest, North Dallas TO BE DEMOLISHED?", Preservation Dallas web site.
  26. ^ "Lendy's Web Page, part 4". Archived from the original on 5 August 2011. 
  27. ^ a b "Lendy's Web Page, part 2". Archived from the original on 5 August 2011. 
  28. ^ "Restaurants", The Encyclopedia of Cleveland History online.
  29. ^ Feran, Tom, "Manners Big Boy's secret is on the tip of my tongue", The Plain Dealer, September 2, 2005. Here reprinted in blog at cleveland.com.
  30. ^ "New Hampshire Corporate Record: Keene Big Boy, Inc.". Retrieved February 12, 2013. 
  31. ^ Hansen, Christian (2002). The Big Boy Story: "King of Them All". Santa Barbara: Haagen Printing. p. 75. ISBN 978-0967194363. "On a plane trip to Keene, New Hampshire . . . to visit with [Big Boy] franchisee Manfred Bernhard, creator of the Big Boy Comic Book. . . . . Manfred greeted us at the plane in his car, loaded us in, and we drove in an opposite direction to his restaurant, Mr. "B's"." 
  32. ^ Glassett, Janie. "(Mr. B's Image at) Janies's Big Boy Webpage". Archived from the original on July 25, 2008. Retrieved February 11, 2013. 
  33. ^ "Print ads in The Contest of the Century", The Charleston Gazette and The Charleston Daily Mail (Charleston, WV), 1952-55, retrieved June 27, 2012 
  34. ^ Zuckerman, David, "Shoney's secedes from Big Boy system", Nation's Restaurant News, May 7, 1984.
  35. ^ "91 A.D.2d 860 (1982): Gazda v. Kolinski"
  36. ^ "New Restaurant Is Planned Here". Albuquerque Journal (Albuquerque: Journal Publishing Co.). January 19, 1962. p. 2. Retrieved October 19, 2012. 
  37. ^ Big Boy Restaurants of Florida
  38. ^ Advertisement, (March 23, 1968)."Mady's Big Boy advertisement", The Windsor Star, p. D3.
  39. ^ Kent, Jack (December 26, 1973), "Business Highlights: Elias Big Boy to open here", The Windsor Star (Windsor, ON, Canada): 20 
  40. ^ Matsutani, Minoru, "Family restaurants falling from flavor", Japan Times, 25 January 2011, p. 3.
  41. ^ a b "Big Boy Japan Menu Items". Big Boy Japan. Retrieved February 9, 2013. 
  42. ^ Big Boy's @burger restaurant closes on East Liberty Street in Ann Arbor

Further reading

  • Hansen, Christian (2002). The Big Boy Story: "King of Them All". Haagen Printing. ISBN 978-0967194363. 
  • Langdon, Philip (1986). Orange Roofs, Golden Arches: The Architecture of American Chain Restaurants. Knopf. ISBN 978-0394741291. 

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