Burger Meister

Carl Karcher, the right-wing nut who parlayed a single hot dog pushcart into the Carl’s Jr. chain of more than 1,000 fast-food restaurants bearing his name, has died at the age of 90. In 1941, he borrowed $311 against his Plymouth, spent another $15, and bought a hot dog cart. He made $14.75 his first day, and soon had a fleet of them. After the war, he added walls and opened Carl’s Drive-in Barbeque, then opened two smaller restaurants, dubbed Carl’s Jr, in 1956. Carl Jr’s, the Hardees of the Southwest, took off and by 1979, sales topped $100 million, fueling his vast right-wing conspiracy. He added proselytizing to his sales pitch, handing out coupons for free hamburgers wrapped in Scripture verses. He supported California Congressman and John Birch Society member John Schmitz and Wisconsin Commie hunter Joe McCarthy and thought Richard Nixon got a “bum rap” in Watergate. He donated heavily to anti-abortion organizations and supported a ballot initiative that would have allowed schools to fire homosexual teachers. In the 1980s, the company's railroad-themed Carl's Whistle Stop Cafes, Mexican-themed Taco de Carlos restaurants and economical Scot's coffee shops all bombed. Also, the company’s decision to go public allowed Karcher to get nailed for insider trading. The combined mismanagement resulted in Karcher getting axed.

Mark’s Eat, Drink and Be Buried scores the solo hit and pulls into a first place tie.