Mattoon residents Gene and Betty Hoots bought the successful Frigid Queen ice cream shop from Gene's uncle, Bill Paullin, in 1952. In 1954, Gene expanded the business, adding hamburgers, French fries and other items to the menu. In 1957, they fixed up a two-car parking garage behind the Frigid Queen, adding a grill and a counter for customers. When it came time to give the new business behind the Frigid Queen a name, Gene wanted to go with The Hot Dames but Betty said that a queen needs a king, and chose the name Burger King instead. In 1959, after prompting by his uncle, Gene registered the name "Burger King" as a statetrademark in Illinois, and the Hootses were official owners and operators of the only "Burger King" restaurant in Illinois at the time. The Hoots retired in February 2015 and sold the company to a local businessman, Cory Sanders. Sanders announced he would continue to operate the restaurant but would be making several changes including a planned remodel of the interior, menu expansion and price reductions. He also said he intends to host car shows, fundraisers for local charities, and increase web and social media presence of the restaurant. Sanders subsequently sold the company in March 2017 to its long-time manager, Ernie Drummond.
Name dispute
Things went smoothly for the business for several years until the Hoots family learned of the Burger King in Florida and that company's plans for Illinois. The Hoots and their lawyer thought their state trademark, which was in use before the Florida chain moved into the state, gave them exclusive rights to the "Burger King" name all over the state. However, the Florida chain opened its first Illinois restaurant in Skokie in 1961; by 1967, the chain had 50 restaurants in Illinois, and the Hootses felt they needed to take action. The Hootses filed suit in state court, and the Florida company responded with a federal suit: Burger King of Florida, Inc. v. Hoots. The Hootses had attorney Harlan Heller of Mattoon, whereas the president of the Burger King of Florida appeared with at least six lawyers, according to Betty Hoots. The case went to the federal 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, whose decision still stands as an important interpretation of the Lanham Act. The court ruled that, because of the federal trademark registration, and because the federal law indicated priority over state law, Florida's Burger King had rights to the name almost everywhere in the United States, including in Illinois, except in the Mattoon area, where the Hoots family had prior actual use. As a result of the case, the Hootses cannot use the name "Burger King" outside of the Mattoon area, and the Florida chain cannot use the name in the Mattoon area. The district court had previously decided that the Mattoon market area was a circle with a radius of and centered on the Hootses' restaurant. Thus, the closest Burger King for the Florida chain is located approximately north of Mattoon in Tuscola, Illinois. As of 2012, the Florida chain has 319 locations in Illinois outside the 20-mile Mattoon area. Betty Hoots said that Burger King Corp. offered the Hootses $10,000 for the right to operate a Burger King restaurant within the 20-mile Mattoon area, but the Hootses declined.
