The Crowd: Exhibit recalls when Bob’s was big on Balboa Island’s Marine Avenue

The main gallery of Balboa Island Museum welcomed the community to an opening reception viewing the local history of the “Bob’s… Home of the Big Boy” eatery present on Balboa Island and serving enthusiastic crowds in mid-century America.

Lines of locals and tourists alike stepped up to the street-front counter to order their prized Bob’s burger and an “extra thick” shake. Add hot fries (perhaps with blue cheese dressing on the side for dipping purposes) and it was the ideal treat for strolling Marine Avenue and then finding a bench or cement wall on the bayfront to take in the view and share burgers.

All of those memories come rushing back as museum curator and executive director of Balboa Island Museum, Tiffany Pepys Hoey, collected and assembled a photo display along with narration on the history of the fast-food business on Balboa Island before all the big chains such as McDonald’s became American fast-food phenomena. Bob’s, (originally called Bob’s Pantry) founded by Bob Wian and his team in 1936, first opened in Glendale. It was built by Bob Peterson (father of Balboa Island local Judy Tucker); the business eventually expanded to more than 240 locations.

Bob and Kim Miller at the Balboa Island Museum exhibit.

(Ann Chatillon)

The Wian family lived in the Los Angeles area and also had a beach home in Newport and loved life on Balboa Island. Bob’s was located in the orange-colored building in the 300 block of Marine Avenue in the 1960s. Bob Wian was often in the Island store greeting visiting customers and neighbors alike. The business was sold in 1967 to Marriott Corporation. Today, four Bob’s locations still serve customers in Southern California: Burbank, Downey, Norco and Northridge.

Credited with creating the three-decker hamburger, Wian’s sandwich quickly became a hit, but it had yet to be named. According to restaurant lore, a chubby 6-year-old named Richard Woodruff had been doing chores at Bob’s Pantry in exchange for free burgers. When Wian called him “Big Boy,” the name stuck, and the rest is hamburger history.

Another regular customer, Ben Washam, a movie studio animator for Warner Bros., sketched the now famous character on a napkin. The Big Boy burger craze that ensued prompted Bob Wian to change the diner’s name to Bob’s Big Boy and to introduce the now-iconic Big Boy mascot.

John Scudder, from left, with Jim and Erin Moloney at the Bob’s Big Boy opening gallery exhibit.

(Ann Chatillon)

Among the special items on display in the museum gallery is an original statue of “Bob” on loan to the museum from a local collector on Balboa Island. Balboa Island Museum staff produced a lively hamburger-themed open house as museum members and guests poured in for the recent mid-week opening catered by museum board member Cynthia Shafer, talented restaurateur and proprietor of the Royal Hen on the Island.

Burgers, fries, and ice cream treats delighted the crowd sharing memories. Checking out the photographic and memorabilia display in the main Gallery were Museum chief executive Shirley Pepys, John Conners, president of the museum board and his wife, Diana; Sue Sibley, Renee Pepys Lowe and Christine Tillet. Also there were John Scudder, Jim and Erin Moloney, Andrea and Tom McElroy, Bob and Kim Miller and Jack Callahan.

John Conners, from left, Jack Callahan with Andrea and Tom McElroy at the Bob’s Big Boy opening gallery reception.

(Ann Chatillon)

The exhibit will run through June and into July, open free to the public daily. For more information, visit balboaislandmuseum.org.