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Burger Merger: Fatburger Owner Is Buying Johnny Rockets for $25 Million

Popcorn and Inspiration: ‘Moonrise Kingdom’: Sweet Nostalgia for American Innocence

PG-13 | 1h 34min | Comedy, Drama, Romance | 29 June 2012 (USA) World-renowned acting coach Michael Chekhov (nephew of playwright Anton Chekhov) said that the main thing missing from most modern theater productions is “atmosphere.” By “atmosphere,” he meant that rare, mystical feeling generated by all great works of art. A work with atmosphere becomes a world unto itself and creates a longing in the soul, as well as a desire to revisit. It’s as if a living being with personality inhabits or overshadows that statue, play, book, painting, and so on. Director Wes Anderson created a bit of this type of atmosphere in 2012’s “Moonrise Kingdom.” Sam (Jared Gilman) is a gifted young draftsman in “Moonrise Kingdom.” (Focus Features)The time is 1965, and the location is mostly Rhode…

Burger Merger: Fatburger Owner Is Buying Johnny Rockets for $25 Million

Burger lovers, rejoice: FAT Brands, the owner of Fatburger, is buying the 1950s diner-themed chain Johnny Rockets for $25 million.

Like much of the restaurant industry, FAT Brands has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic: The company said last week that sales for the second quarter plunged nearly 50 percent, and its stock was down nearly 25 percent this year before the deal was announced.

But FAT Brands’ stock more than doubled in early trading Thursday on the news of the Johnny Rockets purchase. FAT Brands also owns Elevation Burger, Hurricane Grill & Wings, and the Ponderosa and Bonanza Steakhouses chains.

Johnny Rockets, which had been owned by private equity firm Sun Capital Partners, is known for its retro feel as well as decadent burgers and milkshakes. The company opened its first restaurant in 1986 on LA’s famous Melrose Avenue.

However, Americans’ tastes have changed. More consumers, especially younger diners, are shunning meat. Johnny Rockets’ menu does include a black bean burger, but there are no trendy plant-based offerings such as those popularized by Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods.

FAT Brands hinted that it might shake things up at Johnny Rockets. Andy Wiederhorn, CEO of FAT Brands, said in a statement Thursday that FAT Brands is “eager to take the brand to new heights.”

Once the deal closes, which should be in September, FAT Brands will have more than 700 restaurant locations worldwide and total annual sales of more than $700 million.

And in case you were wondering, the FAT in FAT Brands isn’t meant to describe what happens if you eat the company’s burgers. It’s an acronym that stands for Fresh. Authentic. Tasty.

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Focus News: Burger Merger: Fatburger Owner Is Buying Johnny Rockets for $25 Million

Trini Lopez, 1960s-Era Singer Mentored by Sinatra, Dies

RIO RANCHO, N.M.—Trini Lopez, a singer and guitarist who gained fame for his versions of “Lemon Tree” and “If I Had a Hammer” in the 1960s and took his talents to Hollywood, died Tuesday. He was 83. Filmmaker P. David Ebersole, who just finished shooting a documentary on Lopez with Todd Hughes, confirmed that Lopez died from complications of COVID-19 at Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs, California. Business partner and musician Joe Chavira said he and Lopez just finished recording a song “If By Now,” a tune meant to raise money for food banks during COVID-19. “And here he is dying of something he was trying to fight,” Chavira said. Lopez crossed over into acting, appearing in the World War II drama “The Dirty Dozen,” the comedy “The…