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Taco Bell must pay $42 million to chihuahua creators
January 24th, 2009, 6:53 pm · 42 Comments · posted by Nancy Luna, Staff Writer
Irvine-based Taco Bell must pay $42 million to the Michigan creators of the psycho Chihuahua ads, a California federal appellate court ruled late Friday.
Grand Rapids residents Joseph Shields and Tom Rinks say Taco Bell broke off talks and rejected their “Psycho Chihuahua” idea in the 1990s. At the time, the men pitched the chain the idea of developing a beret-sporting chihuahua.
Taco Bell rejected the men’s proposal, but later hired another ad agency that wound up using the talking animal in the now famous “Yo quiero Taco Bell” ads.
Taco Bell’s lawyers had argued that the Los Angeles-based advertising agency Chiat/Day independently created the Chihuahua idea that was used in the Taco Bell commercials. That dog became famous for telling people to”drop the Chalupa.”
But, in 2003, Taco Bell eventually lost the breach-of-contract suit. The chain appealed the decision, saying liability fell with the ad agency that created the campaign. However, the federal court ruled Friday that Taco Bell is liable.
Reached late Saturday, Taco Bell spokesman Rob Poetsch said: “We just received the opinion Friday and are reviewing our options.”
Taco Bell spent $510 million on Chihuahua ads between 1997 and 2000 and sold 30 million toy Chihuahuas in its restaurants.
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es no bueno
There goes the .99¢ menu!
Yep!
Let’s run the government like a business, so that crooks can steal everything else left in sight.
Good for them, this kind of corporate BS happens all the time, especially to screenwriters. If they are still around, Taco Bell should can the employees who were involved in the discussions.
Bring the dog back. He was so cool. Let the Mexicans complain. we don’t care Bring the dog back.
aye chihuahua!
another corporate lie exposed, I guess that goes without saying when there is no consciousness regulating decisions because the people factor or collective consciousness turns to the greed and profit factor of corporate america resulting in stealing ideas from the individual becasue the collective cannot think outside the box, and surprise they get caught and immediately blame someone else, :”Who Me do something wrong!” defense. Oh and by the way the food sucks!!!!!!!!!!!! just like the attitudes
“Taco Bell spent $510 million on Chihuahua ads between 1997 and 2000 and sold 30 million toy Chihuahuas in its restaurants.”
And did not make one dime with this campaign.
This makes my day! I just wish the ad agency that agreed to build upon this stolen idea were punished as well. I personally am stoked for Shields and Rinks and hope they enjoy their $42 million.
Yo quiero royalties.
I love Chihuahuas. so cute
GOOD FOR THEM!!!
Sadly the $42 million will probably will go their lawers!
Oops! meant to say Lawyers!
Taco bell only hires imagrints with no papers they should be shut down
Dishonesty has and ALWAYS WILL come back to bite you a hundred fold… or in this case, $41 MILLION fold!
I guess there needs to be two required courses in college called… Ethics 101, and Karma 102!).
Good for them!
Without the help of their lawyers they would not have even been able to take on a giant like Taco Bell. That is why the contingency fee system works so we because it evens the playing field between the little guy and corporate America who can afford to pay their lawyers $450 per hour.
Next time you hear Tort Reform ask yourself if the reformers are asking to reduce contingency fees or reduce the defense lawyers hourly fee.
Without trial lawyers who take a percentage of the fee, the little guy could never take on the lieing and stealing Taco Bells of the world.
Is it possible we can have the Chihuahua replace Obama?
jim says:
Is it possible we can have the Chihuahua replace Obama?
Only if we can get a retarded monkey to replace Bush.
This just in………………Bean burrito’s & chruncy taco’s now cost $11.95 each!
Yes, justice!! These corporate types are just evil. I know how marketing functions and they are just void of ethics. Have fun with that big bill Taco Bell - maybe an ethics class or two for Marketing looozers.
Yo quiero millones!!!
Hey Bobbyc,
(Karma 102!) is an abomination to “Reap What You Sow” and the One True God. And thank God for Jesus Christ & Grace or we would all get what we deserve!
So take Ethics 101 & Karma 102 and make it one class (God’s Grace 7!) for “Seven” means perfection and we are perfected in God’s Love. And “Love” overcomes a multitude of sins.
“And thinkest thou this. O man, that judgest them which doest such things, and doest the same, that thou shall escape the judgement of God? Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forebearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentence?” ROMANS 2:3-4
I miss that dog; better than “run to the Border”..
I ♥ Taco Bell. I wish the company good luck with this.
well here in the usa we can run to the border anymore, we are the border!
sorry miss spelled the last comment,
i ment to say we cant run to the border anymore we are the border!
The lawyers will only take 25-40%, not the whole 42 million.
Personally, I don’t think dogs should be used to market food for human beings because some people may confuse it with pet food. In the case of Taco Bell, I use the word “food” loosely, though, because I concluded some time ago that it was uneatable excrement prepared by unwashed idiots. Up until the mid-1970’s it was pretty good. While in college, I used to nourish myself with their real, locally-made ground beef tacos in a corn tortilla sprinkled with fresh lettuce and American Cheese. At the time, Taco Bell still used their warm and inviting brown and orange Old California Mission motif. Then they suddenly adopted frigid and gayish purple coloring in their advertising and the food and service went cold as well. Taco Bell is now so tasteless and badly prepapred that, for all I care, the $40 million judgement can drive them out of business.
yo queiro Says:
January 25th, 2009 at 12:14 pm
Taco bell only hires imagrints with no papers they should be shut down
Why shut down ? everybody complains that the mexicans take all the jobs so why doesn’t the american people apply for those positions and get off unemployement .. Those positions would allow thousands of jobs , managers, dishwashers, cooks , cleaning toilets etc…
Finally someone with the cajones (and the deep pockets) to stand up and fight these Corporate pirates.
Remember Kramer and the “Beach Perfume?” Same deal! Life imitates art, right?
jimmy Says:
January 25th, 2009 at 12:51 pm
jim says:
Is it possible we can have the Chihuahua replace Obama?
Only if we can get a retarded monkey to replace Bush.
We did his name is Obama
What ever happened to that mutt? Was he part of the double meat taco campaign. Literally.
Yo Quiero Instant Diarrhea!
i lovee taco bell!!! this is sad for taco bell
especially cuz i know the president of taco bell
Taco bell reported 1.8 Billion in revenue in 2005. They can afford to pay for their advertising. Taco Bell will hire anyone willing to work, not just “immigrants”.
If you ever get the chance to travel outside socal, stop into a Taco Bell or other fast food resteraunt and you will find that the employees merely represent the available work force. In predominatly white areas, the employees are white. Same goes for areas where there are moslty blacks–blacks, etc.
I liked the dog–wish they would bring him back.
Taco Bell says it was the 2nd ad agency that they hired that was too blame?, THEY were not there for the 1st presentation, only Taco Bell was, Talk about double talk, I’m glad they stuck it up their collective chulupa’s, 42 million, they got off cheap!
case closed,
damn that was so funny, (and true)…I’m still laughing about it….
Here’s what I don’t get: why only $42 mil? Why not a share of the profits and revenues generated by use of the dog AS WELL AS a share in the profits derived from sales of the toy chihuahuas? I always thought a competitor should have bought the rights to the campaign when Taco Bell abandoned it because of ethnic complaints. I even thought of the first commercial.. I could see the dog walking down the highway, with a stick and a red bag over his shoulder with a sign that said: “Out of a job. Will work for tacos”.
Someone here commented that they “don’t think dogs should be used to market food for human beings because some people may confuse it with pet food.” Oh come on … do you honestly think ANYONE saw a Taco Bell commercial with that dog and thought it was an ad for pet food? That comment was meant to be funny or sarcastic, right?