National Chicken Boy Day

Chicken Boy’s story began in Los Angeles in the late 1960s. The giant fiberglass figure was commissioned to advertise a fried chicken restaurant called Chicken Boy, which operated in Downtown Los Angeles between Fourth and Fifth Streets. The figure used the familiar oversized form associated with the era’s roadside advertising statues but was transformed with a chicken head to suit the restaurant.

Standing approximately 22 feet tall, Chicken Boy became an attention-grabbing rooftop landmark. These enormous fiberglass advertising figures were part of a wider American roadside tradition in which businesses used oversized characters to attract passing motorists.

A major turning point came in 1984, when the Chicken Boy restaurant went out of business. Artist and designer Amy Inouye, who had admired the figure, became involved in saving it. Chicken Boy was removed from his original location and placed in storage while Inouye searched for a suitable permanent home.

The statue remained out of public view for more than two decades. In October 2007, Chicken Boy finally returned to the Los Angeles skyline when Inouye and artist Stewart Rappaport installed him atop Future Studio Gallery in Highland Park. The building sits along a historic stretch of Route 66.

Saving and restoring the statue became a community effort. In 2010, the preservation work associated with Chicken Boy received a California Governor’s Historic Preservation Award, giving official recognition to the effort to protect this unusual piece of Los Angeles heritage.

September 1 is now widely listed as National Chicken Boy Day or Chicken Boy’s Day, marking Chicken Boy’s ceremonial birthday. However, the person or organization that originally created the observance has not been reliably identified. National Day Calendar specifically states that the founder remains unknown.