1953 Midway Drive-In Ad Campaign for Oh Boy

A few days ago I mentioned that I enjoyed my usual Midway Oh Boy out at the Lorain County Fair over the weekend. Well, over the weekend, an anniversary related to this iconic double-decker sandwich quietly came and went.

It was on Tuesday, August 25, 1953 – sixty years ago this past Sunday – when something special appeared in the Chronicle-Telegram. Mixed in with the radio and television news and movie ads on page 4 was a small boxed ad (below).

That's all it said: Oh Boy!

It was followed by another ad about a week later, on Monday, August 31, 1953. This one was a little more descriptive (below).

The "An Eaten Treat That Can't Be Beat" ad continued to run during September. I'm not exactly sure how long readers were kept waiting and wondering when Oh Boy would arrive.

Eventually, the teaser campaign came to a close and it was time for the big reveal. Thus this ad (below) appeared in the Chronicle on October 30, 1953.

Check out the price: 50 cents!

So there you have it – the advertising campaign that launched Lorain County's most beloved sandwich. Sixty years later, it's still being served up on Lake Avenue and is as popular as ever.

Here's hoping that the sandwich and the restaurant are both around for another sixty years!

The "Best Ever" Oh Boy

Have you ever eaten something and decided that whatever it was (a steak, a salad, a pizza, etc.), it was the best you'd ever tasted?

The spouse and I do that a lot. A few years after we got married, we travelled to Connecticut for a wedding and while we were there, we had some bagels that we still talk about more than twenty years later.

I guess when you hit middle age, you start to reminisce about food – oh well.

Here's another example, closer to home. In the mid-1990s we bought some glazed fried cakes at Bob's Donuts on a rainy Sunday afternoon, and they were hands-down the very best donuts we ever had – anywhere. They were warm, and the sugary glazed coating didn't shatter when you bit into them. We still talk about those too.

So now, whenever the spouse and I eat something really, really good, we joke about adding it to this running list of "the best ever." And I usually add, "I might as well never eat another one, because it'll never be as good as this one."

Which brings me to the latest addition to this "best ever" list.

Last weekend the spouse and I stopped in at Midway Oh Boy. It'd been a while since we were there.

While I was enjoying my Oh Boy (we sat on stools at the counter since the booths were all full), I sensed something different. Now, to me Oh Boys are always good – some better than others – but this one was fantastic. The twin patties were cooked to perfection; slightly pink inside and literally melt-in-your-mouth delicious with plenty of Oh Boy secret sauce.

My Oh Boy was so good I had to flag down a longtime employee and pepper her with questions: Why is this Oh Boy so fantastic? What did you do differently? Is it just my aging taste buds?

She smiled and explained that they had changed their meat supplier and were now serving an even better quality of meat, delivered fresh daily from Amish country.

Needless to say, that Oh Boy was added to the "best ever" list.

But perish the thought that I would never eat another one lest it not measure up to the last one. I intend to keep on eating Oh Boys and looking for the next "best one ever."

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Do you have a "best ever" food experience? If so, please leave a comment and tell me about it!

Midway Oh Boy Part 5

As the 1970's drew to a close, Midway Oh Boy entered a period in which it changed hands a few times.

According to the Elyria City Directory, Larry Burgess took over after the Wrackers around 1980, followed by James Ryan in the mid-1980's. Finally, around 1991, David and Carole Disbrow became the latest owners of the beloved restaurant.

A 1992 Midway Oh Boy ad from the Elyria phone book 

The Disbrows enhanced the Midway Oh Boy brand by standardizing the logo with appealing type to go along with the classic burger boy mascot (see ad above). From there, they gave the restaurant's fans what they apparently wanted all along: Oh Boy merchandise! A wide variety of Oh Boy branded promotional products appeared, including T-shirts, caps, mugs, and even a Cat's Meow® wooden keepsake. New merchandise appears periodically; currently, a nifty travel mug and a water bottle are available.

Enjoying an Oh Boy at the 2010 LCF

By my math, the Disbrows have now owned Midway Oh Boy longer than any of the other previous owners. They have also taken Oh Boy on the road, with their food trailer appearing at local festivals, as well as continuing the restaurant's satellite operation at the Lorain County Fair.

My wife and I always hit the Midway Oh Boy booth at the fair as soon as we arrive at the Fair (see photo at left). It's a tradition that I don't intend to end anytime soon. The booth is easy to find – it's right under the Grandstand.

Happily, the restaurant continues to thrive at its Lake Avenue location and looks like it will be around for a long time – which is a relief to me, as it has become much more than just a mere burger joint to me. I've celebrated several major birthdays there, and the restaurant has been the scene of many family gatherings over the years. My father would always rave about his burger after one of our Oh Boy dinner get-togethers, and I think of him every time we eat there.

I hope you enjoyed this look at one of my favorite places.

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For more Oh Boy fun, check out local journalist and photographer Rona Proudfoot's first-ever encounter with an Oh Boy at the 2009 Lorain County Fair, which you can find here.

And visit this great blog with a mother's well-written account of her visit to Midway Oh Boy with her sons while passing through Lorain County on a trip.

Midway Oh Boy Part 4

1974 Tiny Pines advertisement in the Lorain Journal; note the burger-boy yelling FORE!

For a while, Midway Oh Boy had an added dimension to the restaurant experience: golf. Take a look at this April 15, 1974 article from the advertising section of the Journal.

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Tiny Pines Golf & Oh Boy: An Unbeatable Combination

About eight years ago Jim and Pat Wracker made an important decision to purchase Nel's Oh-Boy Drive-In, the home of the first double-decker sandwich in the county.

This year the sandwich celebrates its 22nd anniversary and the relocated Midway Oh-Boy Drive-In is going strong, along with other enterprises at the 6604 Lake Ave., Elyria, location.

Wracker and his assistant, Steve Frank, completely redesigned and renovated the "Tiny Pines" miniature golf course that the Wrackers bought a few years ago. The renovation has transformed the course into the best mini-golf course in the entire area. In addition, a mini-arcade is operated in conjunction with the mini-golf course.

Last year, Wracker and Frank constructed the Tiny Pines Driving Range, which includes a shelter area for golfers who wish to practice their driving in a light downpour. Also included with the driving range is a large patio area where golfers can relax before or after hitting a basket of balls.

This year Wracker and Frank have constructed another addition to the growing Wracker enterprises. The Tiny Pines Pro Shop carries a complete inventory of all types of golfing equipment and accessories, including such famous names as Hagen, Wilson Burke-Worthington, Wilson, Uniroyal and Worthington.

Frank, who manages the pro shop, indicates the Midway Oh-Boy drive-in is perfect for businessmen who want to practice their golf in the Tiny Pines complex, while waiting for lunch to be prepared. By the use of an intercom, golfers can order their lunch when they first arrive at the driving range, hit a bucket of balls, and then enjoy a delicious lunch prepared and served in the Oh-Boy Drive-In.

So if you enjoy golf and good food, stop by the Wracker's Midway Oh-Boy Restaurant Tiny Pines Golf complex, and have a heaping helping of both.

The Tiny Pines Golf complex is open daily from 11 a.m to 9 p.m.

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I remember playing mini-golf at Tiny Pines during my high school years, long before I ever started eating at Midway Oh-Boy. Alas, all those wasted years! (Not eating at Oh Boy, that is – not high school.)

Later when I was learning how to play golf, I would hit many a bucket of balls at the Tiny Pines driving range. I don't know if I accomplished anything, but at least I could pick up an Oh-Boy afterwards.

Next: I wrap up this Oh Boy Love-fest!

Midway Oh Boy Part 3

1967 Elyria phone book ad

By the mid-1960's, the restaurant had been sold to Pat and Jim Wracker and was now known as the Midway Oh Boy Drive In. The mayonnaise-based secret sauce that Millie Krugman created was now described in ads as "the tantalizing sauce". (The sauce really is unique – mildly onion-flavored – and great for dipping french fries in as well.)

Here's another phone book ad from 1970.

1970 Elyria phone book ad

In the early 1970's, the Wrackers moved the restaurant to its present location at 6620 Lake Avenue. Here's a 1971 ad with a nice drawing of the new building.

1971 Elyria phone book ad

Next: Fore!

Midway Oh Boy Part 2

Nelson and Millie Krugman, the original owners of Midway Oh Boy (photo courtesy Chronicle-Telegram)

Midway Oh Boy was founded back in 1953 by Nelson and Millie Krugman.

Where Midway Oh Boy began back in 1953

The restaurant wasn't originally located where it is now; it was a little bit north down Lake Avenue near where Fenik's Corn is today. (The addresses in that neck of the woods were renumbered at some point, so the restaurant's original Lake Avenue address doesn't officially exist anymore. But the building is still there.)

When the restaurant opened, it was originally known as the Midway Drive In. This name can be found in early phone book ads, as well as on a vintage ash tray that I purchased at a Castalia antique shop more than twenty years ago.

Here's an early Elyria phone book ad from 1955.

And here's that ash tray that I mentioned.

Next: Midway Oh Boy History Continues

Midway Oh Boy Part 1

Midway Oh Boy at 6620 Lake Avenue

Several times my wife and I have watched the TV news, and heard about an execution that just took place. Occasionally the news report includes what the condemned person had for their last meal, such as a steak or a lobster tail.

More than once, I've turned to my wife and matter-of-factly remarked, "Well, if it was me on Death Row – I'd want an Oh Boy and fries."

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I guess you can tell I 'm a big fan of Midway Oh Boy and have been for years.

You see, if we're in the mood for great burgers, we go to Mutt & Jeff's. Or, I might even cook some on the grill myself. But when you have a hankering for an Oh Boy, there's only one place to go.

It's not just the one-of-a-kind taste of an Oh Boy, which is somewhat similar to a Big Boy double-decker sandwich, that I enjoy. It's also the atmosphere of the place itself, casual and unassuming, so anyone can feel welcome in there, no matter what they're wearing. Plus, there's the whole local aspect of it, the fact that there is a real family running it and depending on customers to come back.

They never have to worry about that, though – because once you've enjoyed your first Oh Boy, you're hooked.

Vintage Oh Boy Sign

While growing up, my family never went to Midway Oh Boy. We would pass it on the way to Midway Mall, and I would notice the unique burger-boy sign (at left), but the place just wasn't on our restaurant radar. Why? Probably because Dad cooked out hamburgers on the grill almost every Saturday night during the summer months. When we did have to go out for hamburgers, we would head to Sandy's which was minutes from our home.

It wasn't until the mid-1980's, when I was living on my own, that I stopped in at Midway Oh Boy on a whim while Christmas shopping, not knowing what to expect. Soon I was dragging my future bride there.

Fortunately, she passed the Oh Boy litmus test. We've been there many times since.

Next: Midway Oh Boy History

Oh Boy! Look what I'm serving up next week!

If you live in Lorain County, then no doubt you know who this is. It's the advertising mascot of Midway Oh Boy!

This winking burger boy has been the symbol of the popular Midway Oh Boy restaurant on Lake Avenue since it opened in 1953, and his appearance hasn't changed one bit. An Oh Boy double-decker hamburger serves as his body, and he makes the 'OK' sign with his thumb and index finger to express his approval.

Midway Oh Boy's fans express their approval by regularly jamming the booths of the restaurant while they enjoy the one-of-a-kind Oh Boy with its top secret sauce. It's one of my most favorite places to eat. (That's the link to the restaurant's website on the right side of this blog's home page.)

So stop back here at the blog next week to learn about the history of the restaurant and see some vintage Midway Oh Boy advertising. And maybe even a few surprises!

(But don't expect to see the secret recipe for Oh Boy sauce.)