Boc’s Story
1993 – Boc is Born
A squiggly line, two eyes and a beak… half a beak. One day of doodling in class and Boc is born.
1995 – Boc is Redrawn
Maintaining the hand-drawn look, Boc is digitized. Losing one peak on top of his head but gaining the bottom of his beak, Boc officially leaves the ranks of “doodle.” But he wasn’t quite Boc yet…
1995 – Who’s Bo C. Chicken?
Appearing in his first Christmas card, Boc’s original name was Bo C. Chicken. The idea was to play off the famous chicken sound. (Get it? Bo C. spells boc.) It was eventually decided that Boc Chicken simply had a better ring to it.
1997 – Boc Smiles
The initial concept behind Boc was to keep the “doodle” feel, never to be more than an incomplete head with the same grimace of an expression. But it became apparent that Boc needed more personality… and the rest of his head.
1999 – Boc Gets a Body
In 1999, Boc creator, Ernie Cavazos, had an idea for a Halloween party invitation that required a body for Boc. The first draft resemble something of a Muppet reject…
1999 – Boc Gets a Body
So back to the drawing board. After referencing actual chicken drawings, draft number two was considerably better. Boc had a body…
1999 – Boc Gets a Body
…And his head was immediately lopped off.
Christmas Time
Including his Christmas card debut in 1995, Boc has been featured on 23 custom cards (thru 2019) sent to Ernie’s family and friends. The only missed years were 2003, the year he was hospitalized for colon cancer (Ernie, not Boc) and 2019, when he moved during the month of December (Ernie, not Boc). Both years, digital compilations of past Boc favorites were sent instead.
Boc has also been used for a number of Christmas gifts, including ornaments, stockings, t-shirts and more.
You’re Cordially Invited
Ernie features Boc on party invitations and promotions for fundraising events. Halloween parties. House warming. Boc and Clarissa were even used for Ernie’s wedding invitations.
A Nod to Pop Culture
Ernie and Boc share an appreciation for pop culture. Boc often pays tribute to favorite characters and pop culture moments from television, cinema, and print. From a full homage to Indiana Jones to a subtle reference to Felix the Cat’s magic bag.
World-wide Phenomenon
Okay, maybe not a phenomenon, but Boc has made a small splash around the globe. A very small splash. Boc merchandise–from T-shirts to underwear to coffee mugs–has been purchased in Nova Scotia, Scotland, Australia, and across the U.S.
2009 – Imagine the Day
In 2009, Ernie wrote and illustrated his first children’s book featuring Boc Chicken. Imagine the Day is a character-driven story of adventure through imagination steeped in pop culture references.
The book has yet to be published, so if you know an agent or a publisher…