TOMMY BUILT IT; THEY CAME - AND ATE THE ORIGINAL HITS `SPECIAL SPOT' FOR COLLEGES KIDS, POLITICOS, MOMS ALIKE.

Byline: DANA BARTHOLOMEW Staff Writer

Students crave them. Dads devour them. And pregnant moms awaken at 2 a.m. for Original Tommy's World Famous Hamburgers runs.

On Monday, Angelenos queued up for hours to wolf down chili-slathered cheeseburgers -- at 60 cents each with a drink -- on the 60th anniversary of the famous L.A. shack.

``Worth the wait ... just delicious,'' said Rick Alvarez, 30, of Reseda, salivating at the end of one of two hourlong lines at the ramshackle landmark at Beverly and Rampart boulevards.

``The ultimate: Double it up. I'd say the best burger in L.A.''

Founded in 1949 by the late Tommy Koulax, the family-owned Original Tommy's has packed an estimated 50 million burgers onto L.A. waistlines.

With six stands in the San Fernando Valley and 29 in Southern California, the Glendale-based chain has grown synonymous with late-night burger runs by generations of high school and college students.

From noon to midnight Monday, thousands flocked to Original Tommy's for gooey chiliburgers at vintage prices.

But it was the original 21-by-12-foot shack that drew the ultimate fans -- and the ``ultimate fan.''

``That first burger, the chili, wow!'' said Ron Farris of Palm Desert, winner of the Ultimate Tommy's Fan Contest and a customer since 1949 who once made tamale runs at 2 a.m. to satisfy the cravings of his pregnant wife. ``It was something to behold.''

The USC Trojan band played fanfares for the Original Tommy's burger. Crimson and gold balloons wavered in the hazy afternoon sky. And city officials joined Koulax's heirs to celebrate the unchanged menu of chiliburgers, hot dogs, tamales and fries always accompanied by burning yellow chilis.

City Council President Eric Garcetti recalled the Tommy's of his youth and wielded an official ``Happiness is the Original Tommy's'' proclamation.

Councilman Tom LaBonge recalled when legendary Los Angeles politician John Ferraro cut deals over the greatest chiliburgers in town.

``They're right here,'' he joked, pointing toward his growing waistline. ``It's the special spot.''

Diane Koulax Craig, daughter of the original Tommy, remembered how her Greek-American father fled the Dust Bowl of Oklahoma with his family to buy the original shack for $500.

After a go selling flowers, he soon turned to burgers, often sleeping with his onion sacks to dish out chili treats 24/7.

Always tight with a buck, Koulax required that his five children and two stepsons work there and would drive across town for a deal on tires, Craig said.

Koulax died in 1992 after opening a series of German and Mexican restaurants, as well as a '60s go-go bar, on opposing street corners.

``Dad made the hamburger the way he liked it,'' said Craig, one of several family members who now run the company.

``He said, `... If they want more chili, give 'em more chili.' My dad would be proud that we keep (his) traditions going.''

Today, the original Original Tommy's ladles between 200 and 400 gallons of chili per day. Sodas, available in cans from outdoor coolers, are sold on an honor basis.

It was the Tommy's tradition that compelled Greg Bilan to ride his bicycle from North Hollywood to Los Angeles to scarf four 60th-birthday chili cheeseburgers -- the sale-price limit.

``It's the only place I go for chiliburgers,'' said Bilan, 50, who was fourth in line. ``It's fantastic.''

dana.bartholomew(at)dailynews.com

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(1 -- 2) Reveling in decades of chili-cheeseburger history, Richard Carranza of Santa Fe Springs wolfs down one of four burgers he bought from the first Original Tommy's World Famous Hamburgers in Los Angeles on Monday, the shack's 60th anniversary. Hundreds of customers waited in line, below, to buy combo meals for the vintage price of 60 cents.

Evan Yee/Staff Photographer