A Brief History of the Hawke’s Plaza Walking TV Repairman

If you've ever driven along Route 302 in Westbrook, Maine, you more than likely have passed an over-60-year-old road sign that has been added to the National Register of Historic Places.

Hawkes TV Repair Man

The 13-foot-tall Hawke's TV repairman is an iconic landmark that you can find on Route 302 near the intersection with Hardy Road. It was built in 1962 by Al Hawkes to attract customers to his TV repair and recording studio business. It worked.

The repairman is dressed in a red shirt with blue pants, a blue cap, and carries a toolbox full of TV parts for repairing broken TVs. His arms used to swing back and forth to make it appear as though he was walking.

According to Greater Portland Landmarks, the arrow pointing to the business was lit up with 385 lightbulbs, and a mechanical motor drove the serviceman’s arm back and forth to make him walk.

I still remember when my family would drive past the sign when I was a kid, and I was glued to the window watching the arrow light up and the repairman's arms swinging back and forth.

After the sign was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2019, it was preserved and is still on display at Hawkes Plaza today. It was repaired with some new bulbs; however, the moving parts that make the repairman's arms swing are currently not moving, and it's unclear if and when they might be moving again.

No matter what happens to the sign, it will be preserved, and hopefully, one da,y his arms will be swinging again as we explain to our kids what a TV repairman was.