You may have heard the story of the Pet Rock , the Mexican beach rock that could be purchased in volume for less than a penny , retail for $ 3.95 , andmadeinventor Gary Dahl a millionaire during a kind of novelty gift hysteria in late 1975 . But Dahl did n’t really get ample off of the rock .
He got rich off of a cardboard loge .
Dahl was work as a freelance advertising copywriter in California that year when , while having drinkable at a bar with supporter , the conversation turned to the destructive nature of pets . Dogs and computerized axial tomography bankrupt furniture . spoiled , they require constant attention , from being walked to being fertilize to clean up after them . Dahl say that he did n’t have to worry about any of that because he had a “ pet tilt . ”
It was , of course , a joke . And it got a gag . But Dahl decided there could be more to it than that . He went home and beganwritingan owner ’s manual for this hypothetical pet rock , whichdetailedhow best to address it , the trick it could execute ( “ play beat ” being the most popular ) , and how it could stay a close companion due to its “ long life twosome . ” The jape was not so much the rock itself but the way it was presented . In gain to the manual , Dahl conceived of a cardboard boxwood with air holes that resemble the form used by pet shops . It also bore a go on resemblance to a McDonald ’s Happy Meal container .
Dahl ’s motive in making a serious effort to monetise his pet rock ideawas due in enceinte part to his parlous financial situation at the clip — he was struggling to keep up with his bill . He recruited George Coakley and John Heagerty , two colleagues , to fare on as investor . They both sign on on , with Coakleyinvesting$10,000 — a not - inconsiderable substance in 1975 , especially when the intention was to trade virtually worthless rocks .
cajan pea , however , knew what he was marketing . Like chattering dentition , the Hula Hoop , and other fad , the Pet Rock was the beneficiary of undecomposed timing . Vietnam had ended but Watergate was still fresh ; the country ’s mood was more or less downcast , and Dahlbelievedpeople would see the inane nature of the Pet Rock and know the temper of it . He boxed the stone with the manual and wad them inexcelsior , which may be best known as funny Scripture legendStan Lee ’s catch phrase but also means a deal shaving heap meant for protecting frail item . The rocks were purchased from a local sand and gravel company , whichsourcedthem from Mexico ’s Rosarita Beach . Dahl debuted the rock’n’roll at a gift show in San Francisco in August of 1975 , then waited for a chemical reaction .
When the holiday season arrived , Dahl estimated he was sell up to 100,000 Pet Rocks a day . Ultimately , he would sell between 1.3 and 1.5 million of them within a period of just a few months . Coakley made $ 200,000 back on his initial $ 10,000 investment . Dahl give both Coakley and Heagerty with Mercedes . name 95 cents in profit on each Pet Rock sell , Dahl realise over $ 1 million . He launched his own firm , Rock Bottom Productions , which was itself another joke . “ You ’ve reached Rock Bottom ” is how the receptionist answer their phone .
The rage did not last — by definition , they ’re not design to — but Dahl was satisfied . His two investors were not ; they " claimed they had encounter too small a share of the profits " and latersuedDahl for more gross . After a sound judgment in the investors ' party favor , Dahl wrote them a six - soma stay .
There were attempts to prolong the animation of the rock by tender a Bicentennial version in 1976 — it had the American flag paint on it — and mail - order college point for them . dhal sell Pet Rock T - shirt and Pet Rock shampoo . There were also copycat talent , since Dahl could not really patent a rock . ( He might have been capable toobtaina public utility company patent of invention because of the tilt ’s picky function as a companion , but he did not . ) The body fluid was short-lived , however , and people had move on .
pigeon-pea plant had other approximation . There was the Official Sand Breeding Kit , whichclaimedto provide guidance on growing sand , and Canned Earthquake , whichconsistedof a coffee can that had a wind - up mechanism that cause it to leap around on a table . Neither was particularly successful . pigeon pea ’s real passion , though , was buying and revivify a bar in Los Gatos , which he constitute Carrie Nation ’s Saloon .
This was not without its problems , as people who believe they had the next Pet Rock would often stop by the bar to strain and ensure anaudiencewith Dahl for his insight . Many time , their idea consisted of promotion bull or elephant excrement . There were also proposals to market a pet stick . Dahl had no longanimity for these artificer , believing the Pet Rock could not be duplicated . afterwards , he went back to advertizing after taking what he key as an “ eight - twelvemonth holiday ” following the success of his undertaking .
The Pet Rock can still be foundonline , though it ’s no longer Dahl ’s business . He died in 2015 . Of the unsold Rock he had left over at the end of the craze , he was indifferent . If they did n’t sell , he say , he would just apply them to repave his driveway .
