Harold Butler
Harold Butler (1921 – July 9, 1998) was an American entrepreneur. He co-founded the Denny's casual dining restaurant chain with Richard Jezak and helped develop numerous other chains, including Winchell's Donuts, Naugles, and Jojo's.[1]
He began in 1953 with a doughnut shop in Lakewood, California.[1][2] Originally Danny's Donuts, the name was changed to Denny's to avoid confusion with another restaurant, Coffee Dan's.[2] With his second shop, in Garden Grove, California, he added hamburgers to the menu. In 1963, Butler began franchising Denny's.[3] Under his leadership, the chain expanded to 800 locations. He once explained, "I love to feed people."[1]
Butler got into trouble in 1969 when he tried to buy Caesar's Palace in Paradise, Nevada. The Securities and Exchange Commission accused him of offering some Caesar's shareholders a secret (and illegal) deal.[1] When the deal collapsed, Denny's stock price steeply declined. He sold his Denny's stock, once worth $80 million, for $3 million in 1971.[1]
Butler died of a heart attack on July 9, 1998 in La Paz, Mexico, where he owned a resort.[1] He was survived by his wife Jean (a Denny's waitress and later manager) and daughter Cheryl.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f Myrna Oliver (July 11, 1998). "Harold Butler; Founder of Denny's Chain". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ a b Michael Corkery (May 12, 2010). "Daughter of Denny’s Founder Slams Company". Wall Street Journal.
- ^ Scott Allen (May 4, 2011). "Humble origins of 10 favorite restaurants". CNN.
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