The History of Mold-A-Rama Inc., Brookfield, Illinois.

The inventor, Tike Miller (J.H. Miller), did not set out to create one of the most unique vending machines ever constructed. He merely wanted to replace a broken piece for his Holiday Nativity set. When he went to the department stores, they only sold complete sets. Seeing the need, he and his wife started making plaster Nativity pieces in their basement. Soon, he had a factory, making dozens of plaster figurines that he sold in those same department stores.

In later years, Miller crafted additional lines of figurines. They made a line of Space Invaders, Jungle Animals, Holiday Specialties, and his famous Dinosaurs. The difference in these figures was that they were made with waxy plastic instead of plaster. It is thought that this is where Miller first started his experiments with plastic and his new plastic injection process. Using his plastic injection molding machines, Tike made hundreds of wax/plastic dinosaurs in his Quincy, Illinois, factory.

1965

In the late 1950s, Tike Miller sold the rights to his idea of a souvenir-making machine to Automatic Retailers of America Inc. (ARA). For the next few years, he worked with ARA to develop a new vending machine that could make a wax souvenir for anyone with a quarter. A new division of ARA was born, and the term Mold-A-Rama entered the public vernacular.

Debuting at the 1962 Seattle World's Fair, the bubble-topped machines created waxy, plastic models of the Fair's showcase building, the Space Needle, a monorail, a Buddha, a 3D sculpture of the Fair's logo, and other fun designs. At 50¢ each ($5 today), the souvenirs weren't cheap, but the experience of watching the statue created before your eyes must have convinced fairgoers they were seeing the future of manufacturing. 

The William A. Jones Company was founded on April 22, 1971, when Jones purchased his first Mold-A-Rama machines from Roy Ward in Chicago.

Roy was an employee of the original Mold-A-Rama Inc. and purchased several machines and two operating locations, Brookfield Zoo & The Museum of Science and Industry, both in Chicagoland, from ARA. When they decided to dissolve the Mold-A-Rama division of ARA, he operated for only a few years and then decided to sell his machines and retire.

Jones was a Michigan State Graduate working as a supervising accountant at Interstate United, a vending & food service Company much like ARA. After a particularly long day, Bill told soon-to-be retiring coworker Doris Ward, "Why don't you have your husband sell me his business so I can get out of this rat race the same time you do." She replied, "Roy and I were discussing finding a buyer last night." A year and a half later, after working with Roy on weekends, Bill Jones acquired all the Mold-A-Rama machines in the Chicago area.

The production of the Mold-A-Rama machines ended in the mid-1960s.

By 1971, the original Mold-A-Rama Inc. had dissolved entirely, and ARA grew. Today, that company is known as Aramark Food Company (worth $10.5 Billion today). A handful of small businessmen saw the potential in Mold-A-Rama machines and kept them out and running. One of them was Paul Nathanson, an operator out of Minnesota. Paul and Bill soon began working with each other, sharing purchases of custom-made parts. They loaned each other materials and helped each other when needed. Paul Nathanson was one of the original franchisees of Mold-A-Rama and had several working accounts and many more machines than William. But in the early eighties, Paul decided he wanted to call it quits, and William bought him out and became the Midwest's biggest operator of Mold-A-Rama machines.

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Some years after Mold-A-Rama Inc. was dissolved by ARA, Tike Miller was back to wearing his inventor hat. Recognizing Aluminum's value and popularity, his newest creation reclaimed this precious metal and then paid the recycler cash for the aluminum cans they had deposited. Years ahead of its time, the “Golden Goat,” as it was called, could fit in any supermarket parking space, taking up only a couple of parking spaces. Tike Miller was truly ahead of his time.

William A. Jones Co. had expanded from just the Chicago area to four states, and William brought in his sons Paul and Bill Jr. to help run the business. The Mold-A-Rama machines just keep getting older and older but are a favorite for visitors at major attractions nationwide.

At one time in the early 1970s, Mold-A-Rama machines were ubiquitous in museums, zoos, and other attractions all over the US. They were injection molding machines, and the plexiglass bubble allowed you to see a tiny part of the process — basically, the two halves of the mold coming together. Then, when they separated, you saw your molded statue in all its shiny plastic glory as a spatula-like device scraped the statue off the base underneath, dumping it into a slot for your convenient retrieval. There were dozens of designs in various colors — some specific to the place — like Disney theme parks and Sea World — while others were more generic.

The Complete Set of Disney Characters. ©Moldville

Mold-A-Rama — Disneyland Toy Factory. 25¢

There were animals, vehicles (including the Space Shuttle), things like Santa, Christmas trees, and even the Houston Astrodome. The statuettes grow frail as they age and become more susceptible to catastrophic breakage after a couple of decades. 

The Mold-A-Rama figures were a delightful treat from childhood. People remember the excitement fondly at feeding quarters into the machine, waiting while the loud rumbling and hissing of the pneumatics involved, and finally, seeing the molded creation revealed before it was unceremoniously dumped into the retrieval slot. It was still quite warm at this stage, and the instructions on the machine cautioned the new owner to hold the figure upside-down by the base until it had cooled to prevent any still-liquid plastic from spilling out through the two holes in the base. The hot plastic smell was unique and highly memorable even to this day.

In 2011, Jones Co. changed the company name to Mold-A-Rama and incorporated. Now, the largest operator of Mold-A-Rama machines in the Midwest is once again known as . . . Mold-A-Rama Incorporated.

Bill Jr. died in 2014. In 2015, William A Jones decided to step back into semi-retirement.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

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2022 MOLD-A-RAMA MACHINE LOCATIONS

        Mold                                        Location

 

BROOKFIELD ZOO, CHICAGO, IL

3 Monkeys (Teal)             Tropic World Entrance

Tree (Green)                     Bookstore Annex

Santa (Red)                     Bookstore Annex

Reindeer (Brown)             West end of Pachyderm Building

Choir Girl Ornament (Blue)     Bookstore Annex

Rhino (Army Green)     East end of Pachyderm Building

Seal (Pink)                     Bookstore Annex

Gorilla (Black)                     Tropic World Entrance

Large lion (Orange)            Restrooms Coast Gifts & Café Del Sol

Penguin (White)             Restrooms Coast Gifts & Café Del Sol

Walking Bear (tan)             Underwater viewing Great Bear Wilderness

Polar Bear (White)             Underwater viewing Great Bear Wilderness

Otter (Silver)                     Just inside the Swamp exit

COMO PARK ZOO, ST. PAUL, MN

Gorilla (Black)                     Primates Building

Sea Lion (Red)             Aquatic Animal Building

Vintage Lion (Yellow)     Large Cats Building

Polar Bear (Light Blue)             Aquatic Animal Building

FIELD MUSEUM, CHICAGO, IL

Quetzalcoatlus (Light Blue)     Upper level in front of Evolving Planet

T-Rex (Red)                     Upper level in the rear hall of Evolving Planet

Apatosaurus (Green)             Main level in front of Africa

Bushman Gorilla (Brown)     Main level in front of Becoming Jane

Stegosaurus (White)     Ground level by Sea Mammals

Ankylosaurus (Green)             Ground level by Sea Mammals

HENRY FORD MUSEUM, DEARBORN, MI

Weiner Mobile (Orange)              In front of Plum Market Kitchen

Mustang (Orange)            In the back of Liberty & Justice for All

Abraham Lincoln (White)    In the back of Liberty & Justice for All

Rosa Parks Bus (Green)             Corner of Liberty & Justice for All

Mickey Mouse (Red)     Giant Screen Theater

Henry Ford(Gray)             Giant Screen Theater

Model T (Black)             Made in America Manufacturing

Kennedy Limo (Black)             Presidential Vehicle Wall

Train (Silver)                     In front of the Allegheny Train

Gasser (Blue)                     In front of the Allegheny Train

MILWAUKEE COUNTY ZOO, MILWAUKEE, WI

Bat (Black)                                  Outside exit of small mammals building

Elephant (Grey)             Outside of Conservation outpost

Tiger (Orange)                     North end of Feline House

Giraffe (Red)                    Across from Giraffe yard west side of the Mall

Gorilla (Black)                     Indoor Gorilla Exhibit

Lion (Yellow)                     South end of Feline House

3 Monkeys (Brown)             Outside the west wall of Primate House

Skull (White)                     In front of the Polar Bear exhibit

Ghost (Purple)                     On the East side of the mall, across from the Giraffes

Panther (Tan)                     Walkway near Flamingo Cafe’s Patio

Standing Frank (Green)             Under the Mold-A-Rama tent next to the train station

Eagle (Blue)                     Under Mold-A-Rama tent next to the train station

Seahorse (Silver)             Outside the west wall of Primate House

MUSEUM OF SCIENCE & INDUSTRY, CHICAGO, IL

Tractor (Green)             By the farm exhibit

U505 (Gray)                     Lower level near U505 entrance

Baby Chicks (Yellow)     Main level in Genetics across from hatchery

Train (Black)                     Main level by Great Train story

Chicago Skyline (Red)             Main level near the silver elevator

Robot (Silver)                     Inside Mold-A-Rama exhibit

Monorail (Green)             Inside the Mold-A-Rama exhibit

HMS Bounty                     Inside the Mold-A-Rama exhibit

Choir girl ornament (White)     Inside the Mold-A-Rama exhibit

SAN ANTONIO ZOO, SAN ANTONIO, TX

Elephant (Gray)             Across from the Jaguar before Riverview

Giraffe & Baby (Orange)             Across from the Jaguar before Riverview

Flamingo (Red)             Next to the Crossroads Cafe

3 Monkeys (Green)             Next to the Crossroads Cafe

Rhino (Brown)                     Near Carousel Ticket Booth

Lion (Yellow)                     Across from Lory Landing

Hippo (Blue)                     Across from Lory Landing

Kangaroo (Pink)             Near Carousel Ticket Booth

The History of the Tom Tom Tamale Manufacturing Company, Chicago, Illinois.

The tamale is recorded to have originated in “Mesoamerica as early as 8000 to 5000 BC” in Pre-Columbian history. As making tamales is a simple method of cooking corn, it may have been brought from Mexico to Central and South America. However, according to some archaeologists, the tamales date from the year 100 AD. They found pictorial references in the Mural of San Bartolo, in Petén, Guatemala.” Although the tamales may have moved from one country to another, as many other countries in South and Central America seem to have their own version of tamales, there is no evidence of “where the migration of the tamales went from north to south” or vice versa within the Americas.

Modern-day manufactured tamales, called corn roll tamales, became popular in the early 1940s.

A Frozen Tom Tom Tamale

Tom Tom Beef Tamales have been a staple of Chicago since 1937. Served straight from metal steamers at Italian beef and hot dog stands across the city of Chicago. Corn roll tamales were invented in Chicago, and we have found ways to love them.

Unlike traditional tamales, usually made with masa (cornmeal dough), stuffed with vegetables, meat and or cheese, and then rolled in a natural wrapper, like a corn husk or a banana leaf, before warming, frequently by steam. Unlike anything you'll find in Mexico, Chicago’s corn roll tamales are an industrial product. 

Hand-made Corn Tamales.

Chicago’s original tamales are manufactured on equipment that extrudes cylindrical shafts of brownish-colored cores of lightly seasoned beef, cornmeal, and yellow cornmeal wrapped in a yellow cornmeal exterior. The two big Chicago corn roll tamales brands are Tom Tom Tamale Manufacturing Co., Chicago (est.1937) and Supreme Tamale Co., Elk Grove Village (est.1950).

Tamales were brought to the United States in the late 1800s or early 1900s by Mexican workers who may have pocketed a few before heading off to work in the fields, according to the Southern Foodways Alliance, part of the University of Mississippi’s Center for the Study of Southern Culture.

In those fields, specifically in the Mississippi Delta, Mexican workers likely encountered Black workers with whom they shared the tamales.

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Tamales were immortalized by Delta bluesman Robert Johnson, of the Faustian bargain at the crossroads, in “They’re Red Hot:”

Hot tamales and they’re red hot,

yes, she got ’em for sale.

I got a girl, say she is long and tall.

She sleeps in the kitchen with her feet in the hall. 

Hot tamales and they’re red hot,

yes, she got ’em for sale.

During the Great Migration, Blacks brought along their tamales. The first documented sale of tamales in Chicago was at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, a hotbed of the culinary invention that also introduced such landmark innovations as Brownies, Aunt Jemima pancake mix, and a few other new food inventions.

However, the spread of corn roll tamales in Chicago may have less to do with Mexican and Black food traditions and more with Greeks and Armenians. The Petros family bought the Tom Tom Tamale & Bakery in 1937, and the Paklaian family bought Supreme Frozen Products in 1950.

Supreme Tamale Company, Inc., 1495 Brummel Avenue, Elk Grove Village, IL.,
got its start out of a factory in Chicago on the corner of Chicago
and Washtenaw Avenues in 1950.

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The brand name came about, or so the story goes, because the company was once owned by two Greek fellows named `Athanasios,' explains company president Nick Petros. "Since 'Athanasios' is somewhat of an exotic name. In English, they were called 'Tom.' So, two Toms became Tom Tom. Whether or not this is a true story I don't know," Petros admits, "but it's a good story."

The “bunch” tamales, a variant of corn roll tamales still available at places like Superdawg's on Devon and Milwaukee Avenues in Chicago. Bunch-style tamales are 1/4 the size of corn roll tamales and divided with origami-like precision into four baby tamale fingers.

Bunch Tamales

This carb-heavy street food seems designed to fill up whatever belly space remains unoccupied after one puts away an Italian beef sandwich or a Chicago-style hot dog with all the fixings. Chicago corn roll tamales are usually one of the least expensive items on a menu, though it’s not exactly a value: at Superdawg, tamales are $3.50 each, and their jumbo (their regular size is 6 hot dogs to a pound) hot dog with fries is $7.25.

Corn roll tamales are the star of another Chicago food, the “tamale boat,” also called “chili cheese tamales,” in which tamales are submerged in chili to become a kind of lush, spongy cornmeal dumpling that absorbs flavors beautifully. This version of corn roll tamales is usually served with sports peppers, chopped onions and cheese, which add even more flavor.

Corn roll tamales are also used in other Chicago original foods, like the Mother-in-Law (a tamale in a hot dog bun, ladled with chili, dressed with standard Chicago hot dog condiments), as served at many hot dog joints. 

Sidebar

Bourdain brought the national spotlight to Chicago's southside "Mother-in-Law" sandwich, claiming it to be “disturbing in design, but strangely compelling." Back in 2009, when No Reservations aired its Chicago episode, he called the city “a colossus right smack in the middle of the country” with “everything that I love about a city — tall towers, hard corners, and sharp elbows. And, of course, food.”

The Mother-In-Law Sandwich

Few deem Chicago corn roll tamales to be a culinary masterpiece on the level of a Chicago Italian beef or a Chicago hot dog. Still, it’s Chicago, and it's ours. I recommend you have your Chicago corn roll tamales in a boat with chili, onion and cheese. Many also add sports peppers, but, of course, toppings are your choice.

Tom Dziedzic sent me some photos of his mother working at Tom Tom in 1939 or 1940.

"Mom often talked about working at Tom Tom Tamale Bakery and how much fun these women had while working together." writes Tom Dziedzic, "My mom is standing second from right, in the different uniform."

Mrs. Dziedzic, center, and Tom Dziedzic's future Godmother,
Jean Mazur, on the right.

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An honorable mention goes to Veteran Tamale which began in 1946 at 33rd and Morgan streets in Chicago. In 1947 they bought the building at 3133 South Archer Avenue. The family stopped using meat in the 1960s after inspectors with the United States Department of Agriculture continually hassled them. Veteran Tamale switched to spiced, textured soy protein cooked in lard, then ditched the lard for vegetable oil. The final vegetarian recipe was ideal for Catholics abstaining from meat during Lent. Veteran Tamale closed in January 2017.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.