Sunday, August 25, 2013

Excuse me, will you sign my buns: Tony Packo's of Toldeo, Ohio

 Tony Packo's, the pride of Toledo

 Toledo native Jamie Farr, Klinger from "M*A*S*H", immortalized Packo's by mentioning it in an episode.

I had a brand new camera when we visited and hadn't quite figured out the flash yet so these shots are embarrassingly amateurish, but there you will find autographed hot dog buns from the likes of Alice Cooper, Neil Sedaka and the Moody Blues, as well as among others...

 ...Jerry Seinfeld...

...Danny Glover...

 ...the cast of "M*A*S*H"...

 ...Barbara Bush...

 ...Ray Charles, and...

 ...Art Garfunkle.

On a cross-country trip back in 2006, we took a great detour off I-80 west toward Toledo and stopped at Tony Packo’s, an historic restaurant known for their Hungarian hot dogs and other delicacies since 1932. Already legendary with locals, Packo’s was given a huge boost by actor Jamie Farr. A native Toledoan himself, Farr played Corporal Max Klinger, a cross-dressing, Section 8-seeking medical corpsman who was also from Toledo on the TV series "M*A*S*H". In one episode, a man playing a television newsman talked to Klinger about his hometown. Farr ad-libbed, “If you're ever in Toledo, Ohio, on the Hungarian side of town, Tony Packo's got the greatest Hungarian hot dogs. Thirty-five cents...” "M*A*S*H" scriptwriters wrote Packo's into five subsequent episodes, including the two-and-a-half-hour final episode in 1983. In addition to its grub, Packo’s is also known for its collection of autographed hot dog buns. In 1972, Burt Reynolds visited the restaurant and commemorated the event by signing a bun. This started a tradition and was followed by scores of celebrities' autographed hot dog buns (actually, longer-lasting hot dog bun facsimiles) now enshrined on Packo's' walls. They even have one signed by the Iron Lady herself, former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher. They have a fun souvenir shop to commemorate your visit and make your friends envious, too, so if you're ever in Toledo, do as Klinger says, and give Packo's a try. It's the best deal in town, frankly speaking.

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