The Peculiar Truth about Pet Rocks

• 1975: Gary Dahl lived in Los Gatos, a town nestled in the hills between San Jose and the Pacific Coast. Even in laid-back Northern California, the mood was somber that year after the national turmoil of Watergate and Nixon’s resignation.

• Gary worked as a freelance copywriter. He helped market other people’s products - writing slogans and other text for advertising. In keeping with the times, he sported a thick head of hair and a bushy beard.

• One night he sat at a bar having more than a few drinks with friends, shooting the breeze, and the topic of pets came up. Someone called them a nuisance. Pets needed constant care and attention - feeding, walking, cleaning litter boxes and collecting poop.

• Gary joked that his pet needed no special treatment. No walks, no poop cleanup, not even meals. Because he kept a pet rock.

• That was good for a chuckle from friends at the bar. Then Gary went home, thought about it, and had an epiphany.

• As a copywriter, he could market anything. Even a joke. People purchased all sorts of ridiculous items, like Silly String in a can and the Slinky. So could he promote and sell… pet rocks?

• Gary’s plan went into effect. First, he coerced two investors to pony up $10,000 each in his idea. Next, he needed packaging. He conceived a simple, small brown cardboard box with air holes and lettering that read, “This box contains one genuine pedigreed Pet Rock.”

• Then he needed rocks. But not just any old rocks. Nice, smooth, curved types that fit nicely in one’s palm. They came from a beach in Mexico for less than a penny apiece. The final touch was a bed a straw inside the box for the rock to rest on.

• There had to be more to the gag than just a rock in a box, though, so Gary wrote an owner’s manual.

• “The care and training of your Pet Rock. If when you remove the rock from its box it appears to be excited, place it on some old newspapers. The rock will know what the paper is for and will require no further instruction... Once you have transcended the awkward training stage your rock will mature into a faithful, obedient, loving pet with but one purpose in life – to be at your side when you want it to, and to go lie down when you don’t.”

• “Simple Obedience. Come. It is essential that your Pet Rock learn this command. A rock that doesn’t come when it’s called will cause its owner endless embarrassment... Praise your Rock and give it a pat of approval… A healthy rock is a happy rock, everybody knows that! It is, therefore, extremely important that you learn heath care and emergency first aid techniques… If your Pet Rock appears nervous and fidgety, it’s a better than even chance it’s suffering from dreaded Rock Bottom.”

• In late summer of 1975, Gary Dahl took his gimmick product to a gift show in San Francisco. Then he waited to see what might happen.

• Orders came in right away from novelty shops and even from top-brand department stores like Bloomingdale’s and Neiman Marcus.

• When Newsweek magazine featured an article about Pet Rocks in November, sales exploded.

• Gary cranked out 100,000 Pet Rocks per day, and in a few months he moved 1.5 million units. It became one of the bestselling Christmas items of 1975.

• At a cost of $3.95, Pet Rocks made Gary a profit of roughly $1 each. He became an instant millionaire.

• Unfortunately, the Christmas miracle didn’t last. The fad faded after a few months and then died out. Like any weak joke, it was good for a quick laugh but fell flat when repeated over and over.

• Gary’s initial investors felt they were owed more money, so they sued him and won.

• In the end, though, Gary had made his mark. He gave up the Pet Rock business and bought a bar in Los Gatos which he called Carrie Nation’s Saloon (named after a historical figure who railed against alcohol). It still exists today, but Gary died in 2015.

• Pet Rocks can still be purchased today, but they’re usually knockoffs, not Gary Dahl’s original products.