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As Owner Retires, Ocean City's Big Pink Restaurant Goes On Sale

By Mike DeNardo

OCEAN CITY, N.J. (CBS) --  An icon at the South Jersey shore is up for sale.

For nearly 77 years, the Chatterbox Restaurant, at Ninth Street and Central Avenue in Ocean City, has been a meeting spot for locals and visitors.

"The Chatterbox has a long history in Ocean City," says Chamber of Commerce head Michele Gillian, "and it has always been a place to go, especially in the summer.  People go on the boardwalk and get that nice, big cheeseburger and milkshake."

But 82-year-old Marie Repici, who has owned the unmistakably pink restaurant since 1972, plans to sell the business and retire.

Gillian hopes any new owner will continue the tradition.

"I think carrying on the Chatterbox, and I'm sure putting their own personality on it, would be great," Gillian said today.

Repici has said if she doesn't sell by February, she'll put the Chatterbox up for auction.

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