Ever wonder who was making those little wooden Mr. PG statues that keep popping up everywhere?
Doreen Denicola, at 61 years old, took over in 1990 when AiMHi shut down their woodworking shop where the little wooden statues had been made for years.
She didn’t stop making the little guys until 2012 when she was 83 years old.
Mrs. Denicola made 243 dozen of the little icon throughout those years. That’s 2,916 Mr. PGs in 22 years.
During the last 10 years Peter Melnik took over and Mrs. Denicola is forever grateful to him for doing that, she said.
Mr. PG was the brainchild of Harold Moffat in the 1950s who wanted to showcase the forest industry in the Prince George region and thought a local version of Oregon’s Paul Bunyan might do the trick.
Mr. PG has seen many variations over the years, including being a parade float mascot that was hinged at the waist so that he could avoid power lines and fit under bridges.
“He looked like he was bowing to the crowd – it was quite charming to see him in action,” Mrs. Denicola recalled.
There was a giant wooden version and even a telephone booth located at the old Prince George Tourism office where the downtown Wendy’s is located now.
A three-foot tall version of him that mysteriously disappeared during a Lions’ Club European tour was turned into a beer tap in a Scottish pub to be discovered by Prince George residents on holiday years later. After some negotiating with the pub owner he was brought back to where he belonged. He’s on display at Exploration Place right now and he’s wearing a kilt.
Finally for all to see is the metal version of the icon at the crossroads of Highway 16 and 97. He is made of metal because the wooden version was lit on fire so often the City of Prince George, who owns the trademark, gave up on it and made him fire proof.
In 1990 Mrs. Denicola couldn’t just let Mr. PG disappear as the face of Prince George when the AiMHi woodshop shut down and after many men were approached to create the miniature souvenir versions and everyone rejected the project as too much tiny detailed woodworking she decided she’d take on the task herself.
“He was about to disappear because we couldn’t get anybody to make the small guy,” Mrs. Denicola said. “I was craft oriented and did all manner of crafts and I didn’t see why I couldn’t do that guy so all I needed was a band saw and a drill press and I was in business.”
So beloved husband Armand Denicola got her the tools she needed and taught her how to use them and away she went creating the little wooden man with the tiny doweling feet by the dozens and dozens and dozens.
“You have to risk your fingers creating the tiny pieces with the bandsaw when you’re making him,” she said.
And why did she take that risk?
“Because I love Mr. PG,” Mrs. Denicola laughed.
