Occasionally, I confuse myth and fact. So the following short narrative is factual as I understand but there’s been limited fact-checking. Use with care, usual disclaimers apply.
From reading early Kinky Friedman books, there’s the Lone Star Cafe – or Lone Star Bar – in NYC. The sign over the door – or something – was a giant Bob Wade iguana. The city of New York insisted that it was a sign, and it needed to be regulated and licensed as a sign, and the Lone Star Cafe – or Bar – said the sign was artwork, and good art requires no license. Apparently, neither does bad art, but that’s not part of the question.
A few years later, Tango opened in Dallas with much fanfare and six or seven dancing frogs on the roof. Animated, in a limited manner. A sign, a sign of the times. The City of Dallas insisted that it was a sign, a trademark. Tango insisted it was art. At the same time the lawsuit made front page news, the advertising for the club stopped. Why pay for advertising when the city’s frivolous lawsuit was generating much better attention?
Tango flourished then floundered. (Yeah, we’ll skip the other details.)
The frogs, at first, were part of the Dallas Chuy’s downtown location. Eventually, they wound up, at least a few of them, at a truck stop, trumpeting Willie’s Bio-Diesel. Carl’s Corner, on the interstate, up, just south of Dallas.
While I was in Jupiter, the other afternoon, I had a great idea. The owner is a kindly soul with an obsessive epicurean twist that produces the best damn coffee, and Sagittarius, as well. I suggested a similar idea, a something, perhaps a coffee cup, just paper mache item.
“San Antonio. As in, ‘this is,’ and if there was a paper mache thing hanging up? How long before some guys with sticks were blindfolded and started swinging at it?”