by laura beth

We just had to go to the Pest Stop in Plano on our way back through Dallas. It's a pest control business, but may be better known as the Cockroach Hall of Fame or the Cockroach Museum. The shop is tiny, but big on style, and the owner, Michael Bohdan was happy to tell us his story:

The pest business was slow, so to drum up some interest, Michael advertised a $1000 prize for the biggest cockroach in the Dallas area. Apparently this caught the attention of the Johnny Carson Show. After Micheal's appearance on the show with the winning roach, the pest control product company Combat, hired him to judge dressed-up roaches for a promotion. Michael ended up keeping the contest entries, which now adorn his shop. He has made several appearances in the media and entertainment world, and "Hollywood" still looks him up from time to time. Apparently Samantha Brown is coming for a visit soon.

There are some super clever and intricate roach scenes. I really enjoyed "Don't Drink & Fly" (even though roaches don't fly), "The Combates Motel" (modeled after the Bates motel from Psycho), and :"Norman Roachwell".

Michael is a super friendly guy, and made some general statements about retiring someday. We talked about traveling, and he seems interested in Arizona. He also seemed like an honest business man and cares about his customers. It's primarily a do-it-yourself shop. As customers came in he would excuse himself from visiting with us and gave them prompt attention and fair advice on how to take care of their pests (everyone was having carpenter ant problems) easily, efficiently, and in the least expensive manner. I was honestly impressed with his customer service. So if your in the area and have roaches or ants, look up the Pest Stop in Plano on West 15th.