Gasoline Gus is a character that was popular in cartoon strips, a record single, and films. The comic strip was written by O.P. Williams and was syndicated by the Philadelphia North American between 1913 and 1914. The character Gasoline Gus was a taxi driver and car fanatic who constantly wrecked his early automobile.[1] Billy Murray and the American Quartet recorded the song "Gasoline Gus and his Jitney Bus" in 1915.[2] It was recorded on Edison Record phonograph cylinder.[3] It was one of several songs about jitneys in the U.S. as they became popular in the lead up to World War I.[4]
Two films were made based on Gasoline Gus. The first in 1915[5] with a cast that included Fay Tincher and Elmer Booth,[6] and the second Gasoline Gus (1921 film). The 1921 film was based on a Saturday Evening Post story by George Pattullo (writer).[7]
The petroleum scientist and Director of Universal Oil Products, Gustav Erloff, was nicknamed Gasoline Gus from 1915.[8]