Aside from going into a coma, there’s no real way to avoid the current presidential primary. In particular, it’s been impossible to avoid the man striking terror – for different reasons – into both Democrats and Republicans: Donald Trump.
If nothing else, Trump has been a master of media. Talk bad about him, you become a punchline in his speeches. Compliment him and become part of his speeches. Want to talk about the 234th Republican debate? Trump may call in to your morning chat show to discuss it. Trump performs poorly in a debate? He’ll bring New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie to Fort Worth to endorse him. He’s irrepressible. Do a devastating impression of him on Saturday Night Live? He hosts the show and – much to the chagrin of his enemies – he’s not half bad. Better than many a host at any rate.
One of the news feeds we get comes from The Washington Post, where the columnists and other writers have spared no ink conceiving plans to take down Donald Trump. For months, their headlines have trumpeted that “Trump has finally gone too far.” Net impact? Zero.
I think my favorite story was “Authoritarian hold music: How Donald Trump’s rally playlist scores a toxic American moment.”
The article posits that Trump playing bland-but-loud music at his rallies somehow shows what a tyrant he is. If that’s the case, who do I complain to about the tyrant who programs the music when I get on elevators?
So what to do about Trump? Well, you can make fun of him. How many times have I read that some talk-show host has “taken down Donald Trump?” Oh really? Did someone forget to forward that email to Florida?
And then there’s Hillary Clinton. Like Donald, the former First Lady and former New York senator can send many – Republicans and Democrats, for different reasons – into fits of manic apoplexy. She’s also appeared on Saturday Night Live and while she didn’t host, she did a better job playing herself than she usually does on the campaign trail.
One local man has taken up the challenge. Not to take either candidate down, but giving in to reality and finding a way to make a buck.
John Fletcher, a Hurst-based public relations consultant and frequent Fort Worth Business contributor has an angle. Full disclosure: I know Fletcher pretty well. He always has an angle.
“About 15 years ago, I represented two large Pizza Hut franchisees. At the time, one of their most popular pizzas was The Big New Yorker, which Pizza Hut launched in January 1999,” Fletcher says.
The pizza was discontinued in 2003. It was larger than typical pizzas, so it was difficult to cook and required a larger-than-typical box, Fletcher recalled.
Interestingly enough, Pizza Hut’s commercials anticipated the future. Cue The Twilight Zone music: One commercial featured Trump himself and another showcased a Clinton impersonator.
I wonder, Fletcher thought, what if Pizza Hut allowed that trademarked name to expire? After consulting an intellectual property attorney, he found the pizza chain allowed the trademark to lapse.
The next step wasn’t that difficult.
So I did what any entrepreneur would do – I filed for the Intent-to-Use trademark. With this election likely to feature the two prominent New Yorkers, having a restaurant chain create a Big New Yorker pizza, burger or sandwich is simply too good a marketing opportunity to allow someone else to execute.”
Attorney David G. Henry, chair of the intellectual property section at Gray Reed & McGraw PC in Houston says Fletcher has taken the necessary steps to secure available rights to The Big New Yorker.
Fletcher projects someone will seal the deal with him soon, break their campaign on the final night of the Democratic National Convention on July 28 and run it through Election Day.
“I’m already having conversations about licensing The Big New Yorker to a large regional or national pizza, burger or sandwich company. I also have filed the Intent-to-Use trademark application for the rights to The Big New Yorker in the soft drink category,” he says. “I’m confident some brilliant marketers on the national stage will recognize the uniqueness and timeliness of this opportunity and we can forge a licensing agreement.”
So there may be one winner in all this no matter who becomes the next president. And who knows, Fletcher just might get a call from a well-coiffed, media-savvy businessman. In between debates anyway.