2003-03-25 COLORADO -- ORIGIN OF FAMOUS STUFF by Pam North Colorado has spawned several well-knownAmerican institutions, with Denver being the mile-high birthplace ofthe majority of them. The popular barrel-shaped Humpty Dumpty Drive-In no longer exists, having burned down years ago at its location on Speer Boulevard, but in its heyday its owner, Louis Ballast, had a clumsy moment immortalized when he accidentally dropped cheddar cheese on his hamburger grill in the early 1930s. The fortuitous spill launched a new food idea, and by 1935, Ballast owned the patent for the name Cheese Burger for a number of years before his exclusive rights ceased. In the summer of 1871, a customer in Denver's Bauer's Restaurant had a craving for an awesomely cold soda. Otto P. Bauer, the restaurant's owner, was happy to fill the request, but discovered to his dismay that he was inconveniently out of ice. His ingenious substitution of ice cream netted him the distinction of subsequently being known as the inventor of the ice cream soda. In 1893, health fanatic and Denver resident, Henry Perky, originated a wholesome food product primarily intended for his own personal consumption by boiling, extruding, drying and baking raw wheat. As others became acquainted with his shredded wheat, a demand for large quantities of it was soon generated, forcing him to move production from his home to an industrial facility. After failing to find a suitable location for manufacturing it in Denver, he eventually opened his operation in a waterfall-powered factory in Niagara Falls, New York. Diagonal crosswalks were the brainchild of Denver traffic engineer Henry Barnes in the 1930s. His concept of the nation's "all stop" lights allowed pedestrians to cross diagonally at intersections when all cars were totally halted. The method was dubbed the "Barnes Dance." Barnes later also helped devise synchronized traffic lights. A simple locking device to prevent thieves from stealing tires from automobiles during rubber-hungry World War II was invented by metal worker Frank Marugg in 1944 at his Wazee Street shop location. While the original device, known as the Denver Boot, faded into obscurity after the war, Marugg's expertise was sought again in the early 1950s by Dan Still, head of Denver's traffic division. A need had arisen for an improved Denver Boot that could immobilize cars at the sites where the vehicles' owners had violated parking restrictions. The device has remained in use since 1955, much to the dismay of many who have had experiences with it. President Theodore Roosevelt's 1905 visit to Colorado was focused on a bear hunt, and during the three weeks of his stay the Hotel Colorado in Glenwood Springs functioned as his Western White House. His bear quest apparently resulted only in the shooting of a cub, one that his friends jested was too small for anything but a doily. Noticing that Roosevelt was disappointed with the results of the hunt, hotel maids supposedly fashioned a tiny stuffed bear from scraps of cloth to cheer him up and take away with him as a souvenir when he departed. Roosevelt referred to it as his "doily bear," but soon it became known as a "teddy bear," and toy manufacturers were quickly producing versions of it for the public. Ice cream sodas, shredded wheat, teddy bears, cheeseburgers and other unique ideas -- where else but from Colorado? Resource: Oddball Colorado, A Guide to Some Really Strange Places, by Jerome Pohlen