Pictured: David Smith in his Kellogg Ct. yard, with the Fork no longer in the Road
The Fork in the Road is no longer in the road.
The international sensation -- a giant plywood utensil at Pasadena and St. John Avenues in Pasadena, which sprang up mysteriously overnight last November -- was taken down today -- twice.
The Fork was erected in tribute to the 75th birthday of Bob Stane, owner of Altadena's Coffee Gallery Backstage, and quickly became a favorite local piece of alternative street art.
Caltrans agreed to let it stand for awhile, but today was the day one could call, "Fork Over."
The Fork was fabricated by Altadena contractor David Smith and his partner-in-crime, Ken Marshall. Smith and Marshall call themselves "The Naked Donut Boys" (long story, don't ask), and they're used to starting unusual projects -- they are the forces behind the Naked Crow Mountain Bike Challenge that starts at Loma Alta Park each September.
According to Smith, Caltrans told them yesterday that they were going to move it today, and the Fork conspirators decided that "the thing has to disappear as mysteriously as it appeared." So they planned the extraction for this morning.
But the removal contractor was already there, and by 10:30 the fork was removed. But they found that the media couldn't make it until 11:30, and Stane, always in favor of publicity, had the Fork replaced so it could be removed again under the gaze of the television cameras -- kind of like the re-enactment of the Iwo Jima flag raising, Smith said.
The Fork was loaded on a flatbed truck and taken to Smith's yard at Kellogg Ct., where it remains in state.
What's next for it? Smith says they're talking about refurbishing it, maybe in fiberglass, and putting it somewhere else. Or they may stick it on Ebay.
And, Smith said -- he and Marshall have been talking about a project for four years that he refuses to reveal, only to say, "The Naked Donut Boys may strike again."
