Oscar Mayer Wienermobile Draws Curious Crowd

Grand Terrace residents got a treat for the eyes last Wednesday when the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile pulled into town. Residents young and old got to visit with the 27-foot-long hot dog as it made a stop in the old Stater Bros. parking lot on Barton Road on Sept. 4. Two Oscar Mayer “hotdoggers,” or those who drive the mobile cross country, greeted Grand Terrace residents as the Wienermobile made its way around the Blue Mountain city last week. As a promotion, the Wienermobile drives cross country and attends large events and business grand openings, noted Sylvia, a Kraft Foods customer representative for six years. At times, the Wienermobile will also give out samples of hot dogs for residents’ enjoyment. The first Oscar Mayer Wienermobile made its way to the streets in 1936 of Chicago, where it became a local staple, as the brainchild of Carl Mayer, nephew of the company’s founding father, from whom the iconic meat and cold-cut production company takes its name. The original Wienermobile was a 13-foot-long metal hot dog set on wheels with an open cockpit used to transport the company spokesperson, known colloquially as "Little Oscar," around, and the open cockpit meant extra seating for excited locals. Another Wienermobile was made in 1969, this time 23 feet long and featuring microwaves, and the most recent Wienermobile was fashioned in 2004. There have been more than 10 Wienermobiles to hit the streets throughout the country throughout the company's history. Twelve hotdoggers take turns driving the vehicle around the country; each year there is a new class of hotdoggers—this year, Class 26 drives the Wienermobile around. “It was a surprise to see such a staple in our little city,” said lifelong Grand Terrace resident Terri Manz of the Wienermobile. Bobbie Forbes, a 33-year resident who remembers seeing the Wienermobile in her home state of Pennsylvania as a child, shared, “The novelty to me is that when I was a kid, the Wienermobile would park near a warehouse under the Walt Whitman Bridge, so it really brought back some memories.” Her earliest memory of the Wienermobile was around 1968, when she recalls first seeing it. Grand Terrace’s REC Center Director Jennifer Araiza said she and her children came across the Wienermobile on the way to the Center last Sept. 4. “My son spotted it and asked to take a picture,” said Araiza. “He was very excited and curious about it, asking all kinds of questions.” Araiza spotted the Wienermobile again on Saturday at a hotel across from the Sam’s Club in San Bernardino. “This time our younger children were there and were just as excited. They searched for the door, asked tons of questions and took pictures as well,” Araiza said. If you are interested in requesting the Wienermobile come out for your business opening or large event, visit our website at www.citynewsgroup.com and find this article on our website for the appropriate link.