Atlanta in Logan County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
The Biggest Friend Your Car Will Ever Have!
Photographed by Jason Voigt, February 16, 2026
1. The Biggest Friend Your Car Will Ever Have! Marker
That was the claim of Texaco's mid-1960s ad campaign - and it meant to carry it out in a big way of hiring International Fiberglass to make 300 Texaco Big Friends for this nationwide marketing effort.
Roughly seven giants were deployed per state, each visiting a Texaco station several days before owners moved them to the next town. Challenges arose. Dealers balked at this responsibility. Big Friends were unstable and difficult to keep standing. In a letter to the editor, a disgruntled woman complained, "He looks in my living room!"
Texaco cancelled the campaign and ordered all 300 giants destroyed.
The Big Friend reputedly deployed at a Texaco station on the Las Vegas strip, somehow evaded the roundup and went into storage for 10 years. Converted into a Robin Hood character, it advertised Valley Mobile Homes at different Nevada locations for 25+ years.
When the business sold, the giant barely escaped the cutters torch in a landfill and was donated to the Pahrump Valley Museum. Joel Baker purchased the giant in 2016. By 2024 he was restored.
The American Giants Museum building motif is meant to help our
this page online
Erected 2025 by American Giants Museum.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Arts, Letters, Music • Industry & Commerce. A significant historical year for this entry is 2016.
Location. 40° 15.665′ N, 89° 13.849′ W. Marker is in Atlanta, Illinois, in Logan County. It is at the intersection of Southwest Arch Street and Southeast Vine Street, on the right when traveling north on Southwest Arch Street. Marker is outside the American Giants Museum. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 100 SW Arch St, Atlanta IL 61723, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Central Illinois and in Greater Springfield. It is also in the American Midwest and in the Corn Belt. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture and also the Northwest Territory.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Snerd Giant (a few steps from this marker);
Photographed by Jason Voigt, February 16, 2026
2. The Biggest Friend Your Car Will Ever Have! Marker
close-up of marker and Muffler Man statue
Also see . . . American Giants Museum (official website). (Submitted on February 17, 2026, by Jason Voigt of Glen Carbon, Illinois.)
Photographed by Jason Voigt, February 16, 2026
3. The Biggest Friend Your Car Will Ever Have! Marker
Marker and statue are outside the American Giants Museum (far left)
Credits. This page was last revised on February 17, 2026. It was originally submitted on February 17, 2026, by Jason Voigt of Glen Carbon, Illinois. This page has been viewed 60 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on February 17, 2026, by Jason Voigt of Glen Carbon, Illinois.
