Pink’s Hot Dogs
and
Richard & Gloria Pink
and Beverly Pink Wolfe
Hollywood, California
Beverly Pink Wolfe, Richard Pink, and Gloria Pink
The communities we passed after leaving The Wigwam the next morning were seamless...one after another. Rialto blended into Fortuna (birthplace of the Hell's Angels Motorcycle Club), Fortuna was beside Rancho Cucamonga, and ten others continued the sequence until we reached Pasadena. We stopped there for lunch and shopped in one of the upscale consignment stores before taking the Pasadena Freeway to Los Angeles. The freeway, built in 1939 when it was called the Arroyo Seco Parkway, was California's first freeway and featured novel concepts such as 15-mph exit ramps and stop signs at the entrances.
Much of the original Route 66 remains in Los Angeles. It winds through Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Westwood, and Santa Monica, eclipsed in many places by the maze of Interstates and freeways crisscrossing the city.
When we reached Hollywood we checked into the Magic Castle Hotel.
Christine at entrance of the Magic Castle Hotel in Hollywood
On the hill above the Hotel stood the majestic 1910-era Gothic Renaissance Magic Castle, a prized landmark that is the headquarters of a members-only club dedicated to the art of magic. Called the Academy of Magic Arts, the doors of the castle opened in 1963, but its history goes back much further. Today, people come to this venue from around the world to see magic shows that combine illusion and mystery with Hollywood history.
The Magic Castle
We walked a few blocks to visit Graumans's Chinese Theater, a legendary Route 66 attraction, and the Hollywood Walk of Fame. We spent some time at the historic Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel before returning back to our Hotel.
Pink's Hot Dogs
Hollywood, California
We were invited to have brunch at Pink's Hot Dogs the next day by co-owner, Gloria Pink. We enjoyed our conversation with Gloria about her family's business and the history of the restaurant, located at 709 La Brea Avenue in Hollywood. Gloria made sure we had a good selection of limo dogs and accompaniments...it was a feast!
Carol Wallace and Gloria Pink at Pink’s Hot Dogs in Hollywood
Gloria at Pink's Celebrity Wall of Fame
Giada DeLaurentis Dog
Betty & Paul Pink
Written by Richard Pink Pink's Hot Dogs
Hollywood, California
In 1939, Paul Pink and his wife, Betty, borrowed $50 from Betty’s mother and purchased a pushcart to begin a hot dog business on the corner of La Brea and Melrose Avenues in Hollywood. At the time, hot dogs were 10¢ and Cokes were a nickel and the monthly rent was $15. This was the beginning of Pink’s Hot Dogs and is now a world-famous hot dog stand, but in 1939 it was just a way for Paul and Betty to earn a living. In those days, Paul and Betty were lucky to sell 100 hot dogs a day, and today Pink’s Hot Dogs sells over 2,000 hot dogs a day. In 1941, Paul and Betty’s landlord raised the monthly rent from $15 to $25, a 67% increase; way beyond what they could increase; way beyond what they could afford to pay in rent. Fortunately, a Bank of America branch was located across the street from Pink’s and the manager loved their hot dogs. The manager agreed to loan Paul and Betty the sum of $4,100 to buy the land on which Pink’s cart sat, and thus Paul and Betty were able to keep their hot dog business going. In 2011, the loan by BofA was the subject of a national ad campaign by BofA in 2011 to demonstrate that BofA is there to help small businesses get their start.
Pink’s essentially operated from their cart until 1946 when the existing Pink’s hot dog stand was built. The current location includes a dining room, a patio, seating for 80 guests and parking for 25 cars...Pink’s is the only hot dog stand with a parking valet. Pink’s dining room has become well known for its celebrity wall of fame with over 200 photos of celebrities that have dined on Pink’s hot dogs through the years.
Paul and Betty continued operating Pink’s until their children took over management in 1990. Richard’s wife, Gloria, has the lead position of operating and marketing Pink’s, Richard is in charge of licensing Pink’s around the country and Richard’s sister, Beverly, provides financial advice.
Pink’s is renowned for the hot dog that “snaps” when you bite into it and the long lines almost any time of the day or night--Pink’s is open every day from 9:30 a.m. to 2 a.m. The after-hours clubbing crowd comes to our establishment. Pink’s menu is filled with over 35 varieties of hot dogs and 12 varieties of hamburgers, including hot dogs created and named after Ozzy Osbourne, Martha Stewart, Emeril Lagasse and Giada De Laurentiis, Marlon Brando and Betty White. The celebrity list of diners is endless, but the all-time record for the most hot dogs downed at one sitting is held by Orson Wells - 18!!!
Patrons often ask, "Who were Paul and Betty Pink? Where did the name come from?" Paul was the son of Romanian Jewish immigrants and Betty was the daughter of Russian Jewish immigrants. Paul and Betty married in 1931. Paul did bookkeeping work through the 1930s and Betty worked in her brother’s flower shop while raising Beverly, who was born in 1933. The name Pink was shortened from Pinkowitz, a Romanian name that the security guard at Ellis Island could not spell. Most people assume the name is the color of Pink’s hot dogs, but it is the family name.
Richard, who was born in 1944, was encouraged, as most Jewish sons are, to get an education before working at Pink’s. Richard received a Bachelor’s Degree from UCLA, a Master’s Degree from USC and a law degree from Loyola--and that’s what it takes to run a hot dog stand today!
Gloria, Richard, and Beverly have been entrusted with the family legacy--Pink’s--and they are totally dedicated to ensuring that all that Paul and Betty worked long and hard for will continue into the future. They have preserved the original 1946 look of Pink’s so its atmosphere is viewed as unique among the hundreds of hot dog stands in Southern California. They have expanded the menu so customers have a reason to come back and try new varieties of hot dogs and hamburgers. However, they have retained the loyalty of their staff, the great majority of whom have worked at Pink’s for over 20 years--a phenomenon in the fast food industry.
Finally, Pink’s Hot Dogs has received the promotional benefit of many appearances in movies, television and guidebooks including the Food Network and the Travel Channel, all of which have brought hot dog lovers to Pink’s from around the country and all over the world. The Pink family owes much to the community and they give back through “Chili Dogs for Charity”...whether giving away hot dogs at charity events or selling chili dogs for charity during anniversary celebrations, Pink’s is now 76 years young and is called “A Hollywood Legend Since 1939,” but the family likes to refer to Pink’s as “The Little Hot Dog Stand That Could.” If you travel Route 66, you have to make Pink’s one of your stops along the way!
Gloria Pink: “People have their names in lights, why not mustard?”
Honoring Carol’s Preserve America venture
Lorie, Carol, Donna, Gloria and Christine holdng Pink’s hot dog purses
Carol presenting Gloria with a “Chef Daisy” print from her Daisy's Reality Show Adventure book
Carol presented Gloria Pink with a poster of an illustration featured in her book, Daisy’s Reality Show Adventure. "Chef Daisy," is preparing her signature dish, "All-American Dogs Prepared Eight Ways." The novella, launched at Pink's, is on the shelves of the well-known Hollywood bookstore, Booksoup, which is located on Route 66.
