Lazy Ike Corporation

• 1897 - Joseph Kautzky starts a small gun shop in Fort Dodge, Iowa.  This was the beginning of what would later become Kautzky Sporting Goods.
• 1912 - Joseph Kautzky decides to expand store to sell Sporting Goods as well.²
• 1919 - Kautzky Sporting Goods moves to 522 Central Ave., Fort Dodge, Iowa.²
• 1938 - The believed date when Joseph Kautzky Jr. first saw that "lazy ike" on the Des Moines River being fished by Newell Daniels.
• 1938/1939 - First Lazy Ike whittled from block of wood.  Per Lazy Ike catalogs this date is reported differently as either 1938 or 1939.
• 1940 - Newell Daniels leaves the Kautzky Company and turns over the rights.
• 1943 - Kautzky Lazy Ike established (taking the dates in 1961 announced sale backwards we arrive at this date).
• 1945 - Approximate date of the beginning of lathe production
• 1945 - A second building was purchased at 510 Central Ave. near the main store.  Boats, motors, engines, marines supplies, etc. are sold and serviced there.²
• 1947 - 60,000 Lazy Ikes produced¹
• 1948 - 75,000 Lazy Ikes produced²
• 1949 - 600,000 Lazy Ikes produced²
• 1953 - 900,000 Lazy Ikes produced²
• 1954 - 11 "cutting machines" / lathes, 60 workers in lure production and another 15 in the sporting good store²
• 1956 - On December 8th a fire completely destroyed Kautzky Sporting Goods.  To this day charred Lazy Ikes that remain are collected and displayed as "Fire Ikes".
• 1957 - November 18th-23rd was the Grand Opening of the New Kautzky Sporting Goods at 510 Central Ave in Fort Dodge, Iowa.  The new store is over 7,500 square feet far surpassing the 2,820 square feet of the previous store.  After sixty years, Kautzky Sporting Goods remains in a fixture in town.
• 1961 - August 28th - announced sale of the Kautzky Lazy Ike Corp. to the newly-organized West Des Moines firm known as Lazy Ike Corp.  Company will continue operations without change in operations at Fort Dodge. 
• 1962 - May 22nd - Official recorded assignment (sale) of Kautzky Lazy Ike over to Lazy Ike Corporation.⁷
• 1962 - Lazy Ike was awarded one of "Fishing's Deadly Dozen" by Popular Mechanics magazine.  See the award presented to Kautzky here.  (Thanks to Bruce Engler for use of this photo.  His father Jack worked at Kautzky's and saved this plaque from the trash when Kautzky's was sold!  Thank you Jack for saving a big piece of history!)
• 1978 - Lazy Ike Corporation purchases Creek Chub Bait Company out of Garrett, Indiana. (December 11, 1978)⁷
• 1979 - September 11th - Lazy Ike Corp files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy.³ They will continue to operate under the terms of the bankruptcy agreement until being acquired by Dura-Pak.
• 1981 - September 30th -  Announcement that Dura-Pak Corporation out of South Sioux City, Nebraska has acquired Lazy Ike Corporation and will now become the producer of the famous Lazy Ike fishing lures.⁴
• 1981 - November 13th - Lazy Ike Corporation officially transfers over to Dura-Pak⁷
• 1987 - May 28th - Dura-Pak enters into agreement with First National Bank of Sioux City taking out an operating loan and putting the company up as collateral.⁷
• 1988 - February 10th - Dura-Pak defaults on loan.  Assets turned over to First National Bank of Sioux City.  They assign the rights Great American Fishing Supply Company on same day while still retaining a lien.⁷
• 1988 - The Great American Fishing Supply Company is formed in January as a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal American Trading Company.  In February it acquires the assets of Dura-Pak Corporation thus becoming the new owner of Lazy Ike.  Operations continue in Sioux City.⁵ ⁶
• 1990 - Great American Fishing Supply Company defaults on loan.  Assignment of assets goes back to First National Bank of Sioux City.  First National on same sells / transfers to Product Research and Devlopment Corporation (PRADCO).⁷
• 1990 - PRADCO purchases the rights to Lazy Ike and Creek Chub.  08/30/1990 is exact assignment date.⁷

Sources:

1:  1954, December 7th: Des Moines Register

2:  1954, June 6th: Des Moines Register

3:  1979, September 11th: Des Moines Register

4:  1981, October 1st: Des Moines Register

5:  1988, March 7th:  Des Moines Register

6:  1988, March 27th:  Sioux City, Iowa Journal

7:  Information retreived from official USPTO - Trademark Assignment records.

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