Manny, Moe, Jack May Not Have Been Born Here, but They’re Part of California Culture

Southern Californians might think that the Pep Boys--Manny, Moe & Jack is a Los Angeles institution, born and bred, but the granddaddy of auto parts retailers actually has its roots in Philadelphia.

In 1921, four friends named Maurice (Moe) Strauss, Emanuel (Manny) Rosenfeld, Moe Radavitz and W. Graham (Jack) Jackson pooled $200 each to open an auto supply store.

Just days from opening, the store still had no name, and the fellows started casting about for one. During a brainstorming session, one of the men was seated on a case of Pep Valve Grinder Compound, which provided half the name.

According to company literature, the “Boys” part originated with a cooperative policeman who would ticket Philadelphia motorists near the store for equipment violations and advise each driver to go “see the boys down the hill at Pep” to find parts.

Soon after the Philadelphia store opened, Moe Strauss decided to visit California to see what potential this market had. He liked the sound of a local dress shop called Minnie, Maude & Mabel’s, and the boys decided to add their nicknames to the corporation.

An artist named Harry Moskovitz was commissioned to design a piece of art to symbolize the partnership, and here’s where it gets tricky: Jackson left the business, and Moe Strauss’ brother Isaac, known as Izzy, came on board. So it is actually Izzy, not Jack, depicted in the cheerful trio. (Radavitz also departed, leaving Strauss as the only Moe. Brother Isaac left the business in 1928.)

By the early 1930s, the boys decided to enter the Southern California market. They opened two stores in Los Angeles--one on Figueroa Street near Pico Boulevard and another on Vermont Avenue--in 1933 and set up headquarters at the Biltmore Hotel. Despite the Great Depression and damage from the 1933 Long Beach earthquake, the business thrived.

At the onset of World War II, the chain had grown to 16 stores in California. When supplies were cut off during the war, Pep Boys turned to selling apparel, bicycles and lawn and garden equipment. After the war, the company resumed its growth and today has about 200 stores in 11 states and the District of Columbia. Its 1986 revenue was nearly $500 million.

The West Coast flagship store is next to the white West Coast headquarters building, under the Harbor Freeway on West Washington Boulevard at the edge of downtown Los Angeles. With 40,000 square feet and 23 service bays, it is considered to be the largest auto supply store in the world.

Tom Gutierrez, who owns Golden State Auto Parts, a small competitor across the street, recalls meeting the mustachioed Moe Strauss years ago. “I was helping friends put bikes together,” Gutierrez said. “Moe came over and gave me a $100 bill.” Today, Gutierrez doesn’t mind operating in the shadow of Pep Boys. The increased shopper traffic, he says, “has boosted our business by at least 40%.”

Manny Rosenfeld died in 1959, and Moe Strauss, the last surviving member of the original Pep Boys team and considered to be the father of the automotive “aftermarket,” died in 1982 at 85. His son, Benjamin Strauss, continues as chairman of Pep Boys, and his grandson, Scott R. Isdaner, is the company’s executive vice president and the chief operating officer for the Western and Southwestern divisions. Stuart M. Rosenfeld, Manny’s grandson, is assistant vice president of Eastern warehousing and distribution.