I was minding my own business, taking a leisurely drive down South Vermont in Los Angeles, when I encountered a sign for Perfect Paint & Body. Now, I’ve never felt a need for help in achieving a perfect body, but the sign nevertheless caught my attention. I think it was the brown-painted silhouette that (figuratively) jumped out at me:
Now, before I get to the shape of that silhouette, isn’t it a little odd that a place that calls itself “perfect paint” has a sign that looks like it was painted by a four-year-old with a bottle brush and some muddy poster paints? I mean, if there’s one thing you want to emphasize when you’re a paint business, wouldn’t it be paint?
But let’s leave that critique aside. Of greater interest is the shape of the silhouette. Am I imagining things, or is this one of the elusive “Laughing Bears” that I discussed in an earlier post? Indeed, it turns out that this was part of the Bear network back in the 1940s. According to my research, the bear was still a legit, laughing bear as recently as the late 1990s. At that time the establishment was called Modern Day Auto Center. It was sold to the four-year-old kid at Perfect Paint in 2001.
So, what do we learn from all this? That the Laughing Bears are slowly eroding away, and we should enjoy them while they’re still around! Please send me any photos, or even simply your tips as to locations. Without eternal vigilance, we may find ourselves in a world without laughing bears.
Chasing Phantoms 
[Bear Manufacturing “Happy Bear” Signs | RoadsideArchitecture.com]
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I’ll keep my eyes peeled for the laughing bear. Saw one a couple of weeks ago in Mina, Nevada.
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Steve, So this really got my attention, not only because of our friends at Behr, but for one of your sub-themes. Often I will see a plumber’s truck whose sign has obviously been hand-lettered by the plumber. Or an electrician’s vehicle whose body repair work was clearly done by an electrician. My theory is that these people are telling us that they do not believe in the very principle which is responsible for their own business success. I hire plumbers to work on the water supply and drain systems in my house because they know better what they are doing. Same for electricians. They’re professionals, with education, training, and experience which benefits me. But they don’t believe a sign company, or an auto body and paint shop, knows anything more about painting a car than what they are able to read on the paint can. It’s perverse, I say! If you want me to hire you as an electrician, at least have the decency to pay the body shop to fix your van. Please! That the auto body and paint place wouldn’t hire a sign company to service their sign is the “height” of poor judgement…. Sorry.
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Excellent observation! Why hire someone to do a specialized job who isn’t willing to acknowledge his own limitations?
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Greetings OMOD:
Good job spotting the Laughing Bear on your drive the other day (Perfect Paint and Body). I have been on the lookout up here, but have not seen one.
When you return to Northern California, maybe we can continue the great donut hunt. BJ Cinnamon in Folsom has outstanding apple fritters. A magazine article (probably written by the owners) a while back said they have the best donuts in California. Also, based on comments on the Next Door site, Heavenly Donuts in Cameron Park may be even better. We haven’t been there yet, so that hasn’t been confirmed.
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Yes, a lot of business owners consider their business to be “the world’s best. Reminds me of that classic scene from Elf:
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