The Importance of a Giant Doughnut

It may not have the flashy movie-star credentials of the enormous sign at Randy’s, up the road near Los Angeles International Airport. But the giant pink doughnut that marks the former site of a Mrs. Chapman’s Angel Food Donuts chain is a beloved Long Beach landmark nonetheless.

It was erected in the 1950s, when fancifully shaped roadside signs were a common marketing ploy. And it endured even after the shop sold its last pastry more than 10 years ago. But in a strange twist of fate, the arrival of a new doughnut behemoth – national chain Dunkin’ Donuts – threatened to consign it to the trash heap.