Patrick Anderson

panderson@argusleader.com

Buck’s Muffler Shop is for sale, along with the memorable smiling giant Mr. Bendo.

The towering statue on Cliff Avenue has greeted passing drivers for decades, holding a dented muffler out toward one of the busiest thoroughfares in the city.

Now, with his building up for sale, Buck’s owner Jerry Wallenstein is selling the business. The 60-year-old isn’t sure what he’ll do next. But he is sure about one thing: Mr. Bendo belongs with Buck’s.

“Mr. Bendo goes with the business,” Wallenstein said.

As Wallenstein looks for prospective buyers, here are five things to know about the red-shirted behemoth who has spent decades looking out over Sioux Falls.

HE'S NOT ALONE: Dozens of statues like Mr. Bendo stand at posts across the United States. Some hold mufflers, but others hold beer mugs, or axes like Paul Bunyan, or makeshift rockets like the so-called “Gemini Giant” standing outside of a restaurant in Wilmington, Ill. They’ve been cataloged and blogged about by curious and adventurous travelers for years.

HE'S MADE OF FIBERGLASS: California-based International Fiberglass mass produced the synthetic giants, using slightly different designs and molds depending on the buyer, according to the website, American Giants. Mr. Bendo holds a muffler, ala the “Muffler Men” nickname given to the statues by enthusiasts, but his fiberglass brethren aren’t limited to car parts, Wallenstein said.

HE’S 53 YEARS OLD: Maybe 54. Darlo Buckwalter, who founded Buck’s muffler, purchased the statue in 1963 as a way to advertise the business, Wallenstein said.

DOWNTOWN WAS HIS FIRST HOME: After making the journey to South Dakota on a train, Mr. Bendo stood at a post near Phillips Avenue and 13th Street. He went with the business to its current location on Cliff in the mid-1960s, Wallenstein said.

HE'S A SURVIVOR: The statue was damaged when a drunken driver crashed his van into the side of Buck’s. By the next day, more than 1,000 people joined a Facebook group in favor of repairing Mr. Bendo. He was eventually repaired after losing his leg in the crash.