Last Sandy’s Restaurant girl found in area

By SAM EGGLESTON, Journal Ishpeming Bureau
NEGAUNEE — When Clark Gravedoni first built the C & P Lounge  in 1973, he knew he was going to need a sign. Little did he know that the sign he purchased would be one of kind 35 years later.


Gravedoni, who’s lounge later became Pasquali’s in Negaunee, purchased a sign from a burger drive-in known as “Sandy’s.” The store was located near the intersection of Washington and Cole streets in Marquette where the Burger King and Mandarin Garden restaurants are.


“They had the best burgers there,” Gravedoni said. “I used to go there all the time before it closed.”


In the late 1960s and the early 70s, Sandy’s was known to be one of the largest competitors of the rapidly growing McDonald’s chain. By 1973, the Sandy’s chain was purchased by Hardee’s, which included the Marquette location.


When Gravedoni found out the sign was for sale, he did so without hesitation, stripping it down to only include the marquee and the Sandy’s girl that traditionally stood at the top of each of the former burger joint’s signs.


“It was huge,” Gravedoni said of the sign. “I had to take most of it apart before I turned it into the lounge’s sign.”


Gravedoni had no idea the sign was unique. He said he was surprised when he received a call from Rich Birley, who runs a Web site dedicated to Sandy’s.


“The one piece of memorabilia, the one that tops it all, is that Sandy’s topper,” Birley said during a phone interview from his office in East Moline, Ill. “She stood on top of each one of those big neon signs. She was a Scottish dancing girl. Up until three days ago, no one knew any were left.”


For 35 years, Birley and other Sandy’s fans have looked for original memorabilia. They’ve come across original buildings, postcards, commercials and photos. It wasn’t until a few years ago that they found an original sign at a “Sandy’s” in Montana. The only thing missing? The Sandy’s girl topper.


“The odds of her existing still were virtually nil,” Birley said. “When I confirmed there was a Sandy’s topper in Negaunee by talking to the owner of the restaurant, I nearly fell off my chair.”


According to the current owner of Pasquali’s, Clark Gravedoni Jr., the sign was given a coat of paint to cover up the Scottish kilt the woman is wearing, but he suspects it’s all ready to be turned on and ready to go.


“The lights were taken out of it and the fan belt was cut to stop it from turning,” he said. “I think all we’d have to do is get some lights back in there and turn it on and it should work fine.”


The announcement on Birley’s Web site that the topper had been found has already drawn some interest, the younger Gravedoni said.


“I’ve already received an email asking me to sell it,” he said, laughing. “I never thought anyone would get so excited over that old sign.”


The news of the sign’s existence also brought back some memories for someone who was near and dear to the Sandy’s franchise.


“I can’t believe there’s still one out there,” said Eleanor Lundberg-Milnes, the widow of Gust “Brick” Lundberg, who was one of the founders of the Sandy’s chain. “I hadn’t even realized we had one in Marquette. I think this is wonderful.”


While no decision on what to do with the sign has been made, Gravedoni indicated he felt it was time for a new sign, anyway.


“I had considered replacing it last year,” he said. “And then I considered having a different girl put up there instead of having a Scottish girl over an Italian restaurant. I’m sure glad I didn’t do that now.”