Patrick Grieve
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Happy 80th Birthday, Oscar Mayer Wienermobile!

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Oscar Mayer Wienermobile

Photo Credit: Larry Darling

Break out the diamond and pearl-encrusted sausages: it’s time to celebrate the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile’s 80th anniversary!

That’s right, today marks the eighth decade of existence for the famous frankfurter on wheels, which was first conceived in 1936 by Oscar Mayer’s nephew, Karl G. Mayer. The original model cost just $5,000, and was merely 13 feet in length. Today’s Wienermobiles are more than twice as long, stretching out to 27 feet (or 60 hot dogs, which is the preferred unit of measurement, in much the same way that horses are correctly measured in “hands”).

original 1936 Oscar Mayer Wienermobile

The original 1936 Oscar Mayer Wienermobile

During World War II, the Wienermobile was sidelined due to gas rationing, but new models were built on Dodge and Jeep Willys chassis’ in the 1950s (the “German Wieners” label now conspicuously absent from the vehicle). These postwar versions were driven by brand spokesman “Little Oscar,” a little person who made public appearances in the Wienermobile for twenty years, often handing out plastic “wiener whistles” at these events.

Today, the six active Wienermobiles are driven by a select group of graduating college seniors, who are known as “hotdoggers.”

There are not many famous hotdogger alumni, although Speaker Paul Ryan did reportedly once get behind the wheel of an Oscar Mayer Wienermobile, back when he worked as a Kraft sales rep one summer.

Comedian Jon Stewart also once piloted the iconic vehicle for his MTV show, but repurposed the footage for a lewd joke that nearly cost a hotdogger his job.

Last December, Oscar Mayer released a limited edition number of remote control Wienermobiles, just in time for the holiday season. Hardcore fans can also download the Wienermobile app, which allows users to see exactly where the various Wienermobiles are located at any given moment.

No word yet on how the sausage company will be celebrating today’s milestone, but we expect they have something planned. Their social media presence is pretty good: