FOOD NEWS
Whatever Happened To Wendy's 'Where's The Beef' Lady?
By Chase Shustack
Certain slogans are so iconic that you can still hear them years later and immediately think of the product. Hamburger magnate Wendy’s gave us one of the most famous in 1984 with their commercial where an elderly woman, played by Clara Peller, shouted, “Where’s the Beef?”
The question was meant to call out other burger chains and show that Wendy’s offered more beef per buck than McDonald’s or Burger King. Clara Peller was the face of Wendy’s for a while, but that ended when she appeared in a Prego meat sauce ad and claimed to have “finally found” the beef she was looking for.
Wendy’s terminated Peller’s contract supposedly because of the statement, but her attorney argued that the separation was due to a dispute involving using her likeness for merchandising. Peller continued to enjoy her fame until her death in 1987, and despite her association with Wendy’s, she liked meeting friends for coffee at McDonald’s.