People have probably been handing out freebies to win over customers, draw fresh business, or show gratitude for loyalty since the dawn of civilization. Whether you toss a tiny, playful trinket to a crowd or hand out a hefty prize to a select few, the impact can be surprisingly comparable. When it comes to 10 promotions giveaways that aim to dazzle, understanding the audience is crucial. The secret lies in truly grasping what your audience craves. You can’t just fling anything into the void, and in many cases, you really shouldn’t.

Why 10 Promotions Giveaways Can Backfire

10 McDonald’s Gave Away Razors With Breakfast

McDonald’s has long been a master of clever promotions, from the iconic Monopoly sweepstakes to the endless parade of Happy‑Meal toys. Over the decades the fast‑food giant has refined its giveaway playbook, learning from both triumphs and missteps. One of the more eyebrow‑raising experiments involved slipping a disposable Gillette razor into a breakfast order.

Back in the 1970s and ’80s, the chain imagined that customers would be thrilled to receive a combo of pancakes, sausage, and a brand‑new razor alongside their morning coffee. The logic seemed simple: you eat breakfast, you shave later that same morning. In practice, the idea didn’t quite hit the mark. Women, who make up a large portion of the breakfast crowd, weren’t exactly clamoring for a razor, and the notion of a sharp blade tucked inside a McMuffin felt oddly unsettling.

There’s no record of anyone deliberately misusing the razor, but the promotion did result in a few bizarre incidents. On rare occasions, diners reported finding a razor blade lodged in their eggs, prompting headlines and a bit of public consternation. While the stunt demonstrated McDonald’s willingness to experiment, it also highlighted the fine line between novelty and nuisance.

9 Oprah Gave Away Cars That Came With a Huge Tax Bill

One of the most infamous giveaway blunders in television history illustrates how an idea that shines on paper can crumble in reality. Oprah Winfrey, ever the philanthropist, decided to hand each member of her studio audience a brand‑new automobile—a gesture that sounded like pure generosity at first glance.

The twist lay in America’s tax code. Unlike many countries where a prize is simply taken home, U.S. law treats the fair market value of a gifted car as taxable income. Recipients suddenly faced a tax bill ranging up to $7,000, depending on the vehicle’s assessed worth. In other words, a free car turned into a costly surprise.

Out of the 276 lucky audience members, the total value of the cars hovered around $30,000. While that sounds like a bargain—roughly $7,000 per vehicle—the audience had been specifically chosen because they needed a car and likely didn’t have the cash to cover the tax hit. Many were told to sell the vehicle to pay the tax, while others declined the gift altogether to avoid the unexpected expense.

8 A Car Dealership in Missouri Gave AK‑47 Vouchers With Truck Purchases

When it comes to spicing up a vehicle sale, most dealers stick to discounts or cash‑back offers. Max Motors in Kansas City, Missouri, decided to take a dramatically different route in the summer of 2009. Anyone who bought a pickup truck received a voucher that could be exchanged for an AK‑47 rifle.

The promotion was unapologetically bold. The dealership’s owner openly acknowledged that the giveaway was designed to ruffle feathers, especially among liberal critics, and to generate buzz. Because the vouchers were merely promises rather than actual firearms, the lot avoided immediate legal trouble; customers still had to go through the standard background‑check process at a licensed gun shop before taking possession of the weapon.

Max Motors claimed the campaign was a roaring success, citing increased foot traffic and media attention. While the stunt certainly achieved its goal of stirring controversy, it also underscored how far some marketers will go to stand out in an overcrowded market.

7 Cap’n Crunch Once Gave Away A Whistle That Could Hack Phone Lines

The 1960s saw Cap’n Crunch—already famous for its nautical mascot—toss a simple bosun’s whistle into cereal boxes as a novelty prize. At first glance, it was just a fun trinket for kids to imitate a ship’s signal.

Enter John “Captain Crunch” Draper, a former Air Force electronics technician. He discovered that the whistle emitted a pure 2600‑hz tone, which, when played into a payphone, could manipulate the telephone network and unlock free long‑distance calls. This accidental discovery birthed the infamous “blue box” hacking devices, which became a cornerstone of early phone phreaking culture.

Draper’s ingenuity didn’t stop there. The blue box technology he helped popularize eventually caught the eye of future tech legends Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs, influencing the early days of Apple. A humble cereal prize, therefore, inadvertently helped shape the foundation of modern personal computing.

6 Throwing Live Turkeys at a Crowd Was Once a Thanksgiving Promotion

If you’ve never watched the classic sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati, you might miss one of its most memorable plotlines: a chaotic Thanksgiving turkey drop. While the episode dramatized the madness, it was actually inspired by a real‑life stunt from the 1950s.

Back then, a radio station manager decided to hand out live turkeys from the back of a pickup truck parked in a crowded lot. Spectators rushed forward, resulting in a wild scramble as people fought over the birds. The ensuing pandemonium was so intense that the promotion was never repeated.

Show creator Hugh Wilson later confirmed that the original event even involved a helicopter delivering the turkeys, adding a surreal twist to an already bizarre spectacle. The incident remains a cautionary tale about how well‑intentioned giveaways can spiral out of control when logistics go awry.

5 Coca‑Cola’s MagiCan Promo Gave Away Cash But Also Rotten Smelling Water

In a bold attempt to hide a surprise inside a beverage, Coca‑Cola launched the “MagiCan” promotion, promising cash prizes concealed within ordinary soda cans. To keep the illusion credible, the company needed the cans to feel authentic, which meant they had to be filled with something that looked like soda.

Rather than using actual cola, engineers filled the cans with a foul‑smelling, chlorinated liquid that resembled water but was deliberately unpalatable. The idea was that no one would drink the contents unless they were actively hunting for the prize. Unfortunately, the plan backfired spectacularly.

Some cans malfunctioned, delivering the cash prize drenched in the rancid‑smelling liquid, while others failed to release any prize at all. Unsuspecting consumers who weren’t aware of the promotion opened a can, took a sip, and were greeted by a taste reminiscent of rotten eggs. The fiasco quickly turned the campaign into a public relations nightmare.

4 Healthy Choice Pudding Had to Give a Man Over 1 Million Air Miles

Brands love to reward loyal shoppers with points, codes, and other incentives. Healthy Choice, known primarily for frozen entrees, once ran a promotion that offered 500 Air Miles for every ten UPC barcodes submitted, with a tempting double‑up during the first month.

Enter David Phillips, a savvy consumer who realized the system could be gamed. He scoured discount stores for the inexpensive pudding cups, which sold for just 25 cents each. By purchasing roughly $3,000 worth of pudding, he amassed over a million barcodes, translating into a staggering 1,280,000 Air Miles—roughly $150,000 in travel credit.

Phillips didn’t stop there. He recruited volunteers from the Salvation Army to help peel the barcodes, turned the endeavor into a charitable effort, and even secured an $815 tax deduction for the donated labor. Healthy Choice eventually honored the massive haul, but the episode highlighted how generous promotions can be exploited by determined participants.

3 Acclaim Offered to Pay Speeding Tickets for Burnout 2 Customers

When Acclaim released the high‑octane racing game Burnout 2 in the United Kingdom, they decided to match the adrenaline on screen with a real‑world incentive: the company would foot the bill for any speeding ticket incurred on the day of the game’s launch.

The promotion quickly drew fire from the Department for Transport, which labeled the stunt “irresponsible and dangerous.” Acclaim defended its move, arguing that encouraging gamers to get home faster—and thus spend less time on the road—was a safer alternative to reckless driving.

Despite the company’s spin, the campaign sparked a heated debate about corporate responsibility and the ethics of rewarding potentially hazardous behavior, ultimately serving as a cautionary tale for marketers looking to blur the lines between virtual thrills and real‑world consequences.

2 Cleveland Gave Away 10 Cent Beer and Caused a Riot

Baseball promotions often involve free caps, hot dogs, or souvenir balls, but the Cleveland Indians took a daring—if misguided—approach in 1974. Fans were offered beer for just ten cents each, a steep discount from the regular 65‑cent price.

The cheap booze quickly turned the stadium into a boozy battlefield. Spectators, encouraged by the unlimited supply, became heavily intoxicated, leading to metal chairs being hurled, fireworks set off in the dugout, and hot dogs being tossed at opposing players. As tensions escalated, a scramble for a hat resulted in a full‑blown melee, with bat‑wielding players and fans clashing in the aisles.

Security, limited to a half‑dozen guards, was overwhelmed, and police had to intervene with tear gas to restore order. The game ultimately ended in a forfeit, and the ill‑fated promotion entered the annals of sports history as a stark reminder that “cheap beer” can be a costly mistake.

1 Hoover Destroyed Their Own Company with Free Flights

In the 1990s, Hoover—already a venerable name in vacuum cleaners—sought a dramatic sales boost in the United Kingdom. A travel agency proposed a tantalizing offer: spend £100 on Hoover products and receive two round‑trip airline tickets to any European destination.

To protect the bottom line, Hoover draped the deal in layers of paperwork: receipts had to be mailed within two weeks, followed by a registration form, another two‑week window, then a travel‑preference questionnaire, after which the company could reject the request and propose alternate dates or locations. The red tape was intended to limit redemption, but the promotion still sparked a surge in sales.

Emboldened by the initial uptick, Hoover later added trans‑Atlantic flights to the mix, despite each U.S. ticket costing the company roughly £600—far exceeding the £100 purchase threshold. Risk managers warned against the unsustainable model, but the company pressed on.

As customers began claiming their free flights, Hoover’s financial projections unraveled. The firm faced potential losses exceeding £100 million, prompting a frantic scramble to deny applications, shift departure airports hundreds of miles away, and impose stricter deadlines. The backlash grew louder when it emerged that no one had actually received a promised flight.

One disgruntled customer even staged a protest by barricading himself inside a Hoover truck for 13 days, demanding the company honor its commitment. In response, Hoover fired its UK president, blamed a host of executives, and set up a meager “free flight fund” that fell far short of the promised payouts.

Ultimately, the parent company was forced to disburse $72 million in compensation, and the beleaguered European division was sold off to a competitor, marking a dramatic end to a promotion that had started as a bold sales gambit but finished as a cautionary corporate nightmare.

Selling you stuff—it’s what mega‑corporations excel at. Each year they dream up fresh ways to reel in shoppers: eye‑popping campaigns, big‑budget events, and, most of all, sales promotions. A sales promotion works like an ad but adds a promised reward—think coupons, contests, vouchers. Some, like McDonald’s Monopoly, boost profits and become cultural staples. On the flip side, a botched promotion can nearly ruin a brand, as the following top 10 half‑baked examples demonstrate.

Why These Top 10 Half Promotions Flopped

10 Sunny Co Clothing: “Pamela” Bathing Suits

In the summer of 2017, California‑based startup Sunny Co Clothing rolled out an Instagram stunt: anyone who reposted their image, tagged the brand, and covered shipping could snag a free “Pamela” one‑piece swimsuit—the iconic Baywatch look—valued at $64.99.

The company dramatically misread demand. Over 330,000 users liked the post, and despite technical glitches they ultimately shipped thousands of swimsuits. While the buzz thrust Sunny Co into the spotlight and likely expanded its customer base, the sheer cost of giving away thousands of freebies raises questions about long‑term profitability.

9 Chevy: Do‑It‑Yourself Ads

Rule number one of posting online: expect trolls, critics, and “memelords” to pounce—especially if you’re a heavyweight like Chevy. In 2006, the brand teamed with the hit TV show “The Apprentice” to let fans craft their own ads for the Chevy Tahoe via a website where users could splice clips, add custom text, and choose a soundtrack.

Predictably, environmentalists and other critics used the platform to produce disparaging ads highlighting perceived flaws of the Tahoe and Chevrolet overall. GM (Chevy’s parent) announced it would only remove “offensive” content, not “negative” ads, allowing a flood of critical pieces to linger. The episode showcases how a corporation can overestimate the internet’s innocence.

8 American Airlines: The AAirpass

American Airlines’ history is a roller‑coaster, but its lowest point may have arrived in the early 1980s when the carrier, desperate for cash, unveiled the exclusive AAirpass. For a $250,000 upfront fee, purchasers received unlimited first‑class flights for life.

By 2007, AA discovered that some passholders were abusing the perk, costing the airline millions. Attempts to cancel offending passes sparked years of litigation. Today, the AAirpass stands as a high‑profile example of a colossal business misstep.

7 Red Lobster: Endless Crab

Many firms misjudge demand for freebies, but Red Lobster’s 2003 “Endless Crab” promotion took the error to a new extreme. The campaign, which let diners keep ordering crab indefinitely, drained millions from the company’s coffers and forced president Edna Morris to resign.

The miscalculation was simple: crab, though pricey, isn’t filling. Customers kept returning for more, and the promotion’s cost spiraled out of control.

6 Build‑A‑Bear: Pay Your Age

While Red Lobster’s blunder is rare, many companies balance heavy discounting against potential gains. In 2018, Build‑A‑Bear launched “Pay Your Age Day,” allowing parents to buy a signature stuffed animal for the exact age of their child.

The idea seemed clever until stores were overwhelmed by crowds. Long lines with kids in tow left shoppers disgruntled, and the chaos generated a wave of negative PR for the brand.

5 Coca‑Cola: MagiCans

Coca‑Cola’s “MagiCans” concept sounded solid: among millions of regular cans, a handful would hide a secret prize compartment that would spring open when the can was cracked. To keep the secret safe, the hidden compartment contained a replacement liquid—a non‑toxic mix of chlorinated water and an unpalatable flavor—to deter drinking.

Within weeks, reports surfaced of the liquid ruining prizes, the prize failing to pop, or even a child drinking the replacement fluid. After attempts to reassure the public, the backlash forced Coca‑Cola to pull the promotion entirely.

4 McDonald’s: When The U.S. Wins, You Win

During the 1984 Summer Games, McDonald’s launched “When The U.S. Wins, You Win.” Customers received a game piece naming an Olympic event; if the United States medaled, the holder earned free food—Big Macs for gold, fries for silver, Coke for bronze.

The plan backfired when the Soviet boycott led to a dominant U.S. performance, flooding the chain with prize claims. Some locations even ran out of Big Macs, their signature burger, as the giveaway exploded.

3 Malaysia Airlines: My Ultimate Bucket List

After two tragic incidents in 2014 that claimed over 500 lives, Malaysia Airlines sought a redemption campaign. The airline launched a “bucket list” contest, asking participants to describe, in 500 words or fewer, what they’d like to tick off their bucket list.

Unfortunately, the grim connotation was quickly spotted, prompting the airline to rebrand the contest as a “to‑do” list. Nevertheless, international media had already highlighted the misstep.

2 Hoover: Two Free Flights

One of the most infamous marketing flops came from Hoover’s British arm in 1992. Partnering with little‑known JSI Travel, Hoover promised two free round‑trip flights to anyone who purchased a product worth £100 (about $123 USD).

Redemption proved nightmarish: the company deliberately made claiming the flights difficult, yet demand surged beyond capacity. The scandal damaged Hoover’s reputation, leading to its 1995 sale to Candy and a 2004 BBC documentary that revived the controversy. The fallout even cost Hoover its Royal Warrant.

1 Pepsi: Number Fever

Arguably the most harrowing promotional blunder, Pepsi Philippines’ 1992 “Number Fever” contest turned deadly. Bottle caps bore three‑digit numbers; certain “winning numbers” unlocked prizes up to one million pesos (~$40,000 USD).

When the next winning number—349—was announced, Pepsi unintentionally printed that number on over 800,000 caps, whereas only two were meant to be winners. Thousands of angry claimants flooded the company, prompting Pepsi to offer a modest 500‑peso consolation. The backlash escalated: lawsuits, vandalized trucks, death threats, and even grenade attacks that claimed five lives.

The “349 Incident” remains a stark reminder of how a tiny error can spiral into a brand‑destroying crisis.

Quick service restaurant (QSR) is an industry term for chain restaurants that prioritize speed and low cost as their selling points. We in the real world know them as something else: fast food. Not only that, but we also associate them with other, less flattering characteristics like low quality, unhealthy options, and a last resort. Comedian Bill Burr once said that these restaurants are for two people: kids and drunk people.

Much like the term QSR, these restaurants are constantly looking for ways to rebrand themselves and distance themselves from the stigma that comes with the term “fast food.” This list will detail some of the ways these fast food restaurants have attempted to break the mold (or fully embrace it) in order to reach a wider consumer base.

10 McDonald’s Art Posters

This promotion has a bit of lore to it. Back in 1998, McDonald’s released a Szechuan dipping sauce for their chicken nuggets as a promotion for the Disney film Mulan. The promotion came and went, and then nearly two decades later, in April 2017, an episode of the animated show Rick and Morty aired that prominently featured the long-forgotten dipping sauce. The popularity of the show with people on the internet caused the old promotion to go viral, with people physically going to their local McDonald’s to demand the sauce. Eventually, McDonald’s bought in and released the sauce for a limited time.

Seeing how people were “obsauced” (their words, not mine) with the Szechuan dipping sauce, McDonald’s created a promotion for their new Buttermilk Crispy Tenders that utilized the dipping sauces as the highlight. The popular chain partnered with Delicious Design League to create a series of posters that “captured the essence” of nine available sauces: Honey, Honey Mustard, Creamy Ranch, Signature, Buffalo, Hot Mustard, Sriracha Mac Sauce, Sweet and Sour, and Tangy Barbeque. The designs were actually a lot more interesting than I thought they would be and included one for the Szechuan sauce. While they are no longer available for purchase, you can still find them on eBay for some ridiculously high prices.^[1]

9 Einstein Bros. Bagels Wake-Up Tones

If you’re like me, waking up in the morning can be a struggle. But if you’re also like me, food is a big motivator. Einstein Bros. Bagels recognized that a lot of people fit into the center of that Venn diagram and devised a promotion around it. To help all of us get up on the right side of the bed, Einstein Bros. created wake-up tones that are downloadable as an mp3 to get you up and ready for the most important meal of the day. The wake-up tones included bacon sizzling, coffee brewing, eggs frying, and a rooster crowing. Furthermore, upon downloading these delicious tones, you would receive a voucher for a free egg sandwich!

I’m going to be honest here: This sounds like a way for a megacorporation to subliminally control the masses or create sleeper cells. Download these tones and get a free egg sandwich. What could be the harm in that? Now, use those tones as an alarm clock to motivate you to get up and eat our delicious food every day. Sure, nothing suspicious there. Unfortunately, the site to download the tones is no longer up, so it cannot be confirmed whether or not the tones contained mind-controlling material. Convenient.^[2]

8 Taco Bell Fashion Show with Forever 21

Call me crazy, but Taco Bell and fashion aren’t two things I often associate with each other. Instead, my mind goes to late nights, guilty pleasures, and regret the following day. So it is a bit of a surprise to find out that in 2017, Taco Bell teamed up with Forever 21 to create a unique fashion line. It was then debuted at a late-night fashion show featuring a DJ, fan-submitted modeling, and two models who went viral for taking their senior photos at Taco Bell.

Apparently, this clothing line was a huge success, with a lot of the products selling out quite quickly. While the concepts and designs are pretty cool, these outfits are definitely for fit, young people (i.e., not me) and not for the guy pulling up at midnight in stained sweatpants ready to dig into some crunchwraps (i.e., me).^[3]

7 Burger King Whopper Severance

Fair warning: you’re going to see Burger King pop up in this list a few times. They are one of those examples of a QSR fully embracing their fast food identity and just weirding it up with some really bizarre campaigns (does anyone remember the video game they made?).

The first promotion we’re looking at is the Whopper Severance Package. Burger King was offering a free Whopper to anyone who admitted to being fired from their job. “Getting fired might not be fun, but at Burger King restaurants, getting fired like the flame-grilled Whopper sandwich is always a good thing,” their PR statement proclaims. Okay, that pun was a bit of a stretch, but it is an interesting way to bring in new workers. Sure, you got fired, but now you get a free Whopper, and you might as well fill out this job application while you’re here.

Now, I know what you’re thinking. Why not just lie and get the free Whopper? Well, the way this works is that you have to announce that you’ve been fired over Linkedin with the proper hashtags, and then Burger King will send you a link to a voucher that you can then bring to your local Burger King. The best part is that even their press release states that Linkedin isn’t a part of the promotion. I’m sure they were pleased.^[4]

6 Paving for Pizza

This might be the most wholesome campaign on this list. After receiving numerous complaints from customers that their pizzas had been delivered severely damaged, Domino’s conducted some research. After placing cameras in their pizza boxes while drivers were out on the road, they got to see exactly what happened to the pizzas and found that damaged roads led to damaged pizzas. This led to Domino’s creating its Paving for Pizzas campaign with the slogan “bad roads shouldn’t happen to good pizza.”

With Paving for Pizzas, Domino’s planned to provide grants to municipalities to fix their roads so that their customers would receive the pristine pies they deserved. Customers simply had to submit their zip code, and whichever zip codes received the most submissions would be chosen for the campaign. Domino’s would then approach the representatives of the municipalities with a $5,000 grant along with Domino’s brand road signs and stencils. The campaign quickly reached its goal of 50 towns in 50 states, and the Paving for Pizza site has plenty of photos and stories detailing the success.

This campaign is actually really smart, and it helped a lot of communities. Also, what a great way to get some marketing research on where your largest customer bases are located from the submitted zip codes. Now, if only I liked their pizzas…^[5]

5 Burger King’s Nightmare King

While the previous campaign might have been wholesome, this one is diabolical. This burger was released just in time for Halloween of 2018 and was comprised of a 1/4 beef patty, crispy chicken fillet, melted American cheese, thick-cut bacon, mayonnaise, and onions topped with a green glazed bun. While the sandwich certainly looks like a nightmare, there is actually a more nefarious purpose to this concoction. Burger King claims that this burger will give you nightmares.

Burger King actually partnered with sleep specialists to gather scientific evidence to prove their claim. The study was conducted on 100 individuals over a span of 10 nights. The somnologists concluded that a person was 3.5 times more likely to experience nightmares after eating the Nightmare King, with participants describing nightmares like morphing into a snake or being attacked by aliens while on a boat. The scientists hypothesize that the unique mixture of proteins and cheese led to an interruption in the REM cycle, resulting in the nightmares.

It seems that Burger King was so caught up in figuring out if they could do something that they never thought about if they should actually do it. As far as I’m concerned, Burger King is up there with Einstein Bros. regarding questionable intentions. I mean, Domino’s is over here fixing potholes while Burger King is trying to give people nightmares. Unfortunately, I could not find anyone including their dreams in their review of the sandwich, which seems like a real missed opportunity on Burger King’s part. Could you imagine them creating a curated blog on their site with customer-submitted nightmares?^[6]

4 The Arby’s Marrot

Arby’s is often seen as the bottom of the barrel, even by fast food standards. What you see is what you get with Arby’s, which is even reflected in their slogan, “we have the meats.” Arby’s clearly takes that slogan very seriously with this gimmick. A growing trend in the QSR industry is developing plant-based options for vegans and vegetarians. When asked about this, an Arby’s rep stated that it is impossible that Arby’s will follow that trend.

In fact, to further prove they have the meats, Arby’s has decided to combat the plant-based trend by creating the megetable. Pronounced like “vegetable” but with an “m,” the megetable is a pseudo-vegetable created from meat. Their first and only entry is the marrot, which, if you haven’t caught on to the pattern, is a meat carrot. Made from turkey breast, the marrot looks and surprisingly tastes a lot like an actual carrot. It even contains 30 grams of protein and 70% of your recommended daily dose of vitamin A, making it as healthy as a vegetable. Ironically, the one way the marrot fails is in the texture compared to a carrot—which is actually a common criticism of most plant-based imitation meat.

While the marrot is not available at Arby’s yet, they have created a recipe video so you can make your very own marrots at home! Furthermore, they indicate that they look forward to creating more megetables and may even include them on menus in the future. PETA might think Arby’s is stuck in the Stone Age, but Arby’s knows its reputation and has decided to play to that perception. Soon you may be able to find your healthy meat-based alternatives at your local Arby’s!^[7]

3 Carl’s Jr. Rocky Mountain High Burger

Jumping on the trends at the right time is key to the success of QSR franchises, and Carl’s Jr. definitely chose the right time and place with this burger. Released in Denver and named after a song by John Denver, Carl’s junior revealed that on 4/20/2019, they would release their CBD-infused burger.

The burger featured two patties: Santa Fe sauce infused with locally sourced CBD, pickled jalapenos, pepper jack cheese, and Crisscut fries. The CBD burgers sold very well, and Carl’s Jr. is considering making it a more regular menu item. “It’s one day, one location; I’m here, might as well,” stated a customer, and honestly, that is the type of reaction I’d expect from someone interested in this burger. Much like Arby’s, Carl’s Jr. is playing up to the stereotype that fast food and Colorado bring.^[8]

2 KFC’s Recipe for Seduction

It’s not a stretch to say that Kentucky Fried Chicken’s reputation rivals that of Arby’s. I mean, they created a menu item that is just a bowl with all their offerings mixed together for people who have just given up. Yet, despite all that, they hold a special place on many people’s palates under the guise of “comfort food.” In the digital age, comfort food has expanded beyond just describing what we eat; it also includes the media we consume.

In this way, KFC teaming up with Lifetime to make a holiday romance film makes so much sense. Recipe for Seduction is a Lifetime original short film starring the hunky Mario Lopez as Colonel Harland Sanders of KFC fame. In the short film, the Colonel becomes a live-in chef for a financially struggling influential family and strikes up a romance with the daughter. Naturally, the mother does not approve and schemes to tear them apart while also stealing the Colonel’s secret fried chicken recipe that he dreams will change the world.

The film premiered on Lifetime on December 13, 2020. To increase the experience of viewing the short film, KFC also provided six free crispy tenders on Uber Eats orders of $20 or more. While tongue-in-cheek, reviews of the film were mostly favorable, except for one reviewer who accurately stated: “Simply another example of how corporate advertising continues to overtly commandeer everyday spaces like film and social media.”

That being said, the film ended on a cliffhanger, and I’m waiting for the sequel.^[9]

1 GarfieldEATS

“In 40 years, no one has ever come to me with such a crazy idea like GarfieldEATS, the world’s 1st entergaging Garfield’s quick mobile restaurant app,” says Jim Davis, the creator of Garfield. I couldn’t agree more. GarfieldEATS is a QMR (quick mobile restaurant), meaning that the restaurant is actually a delivery service app that you download on your mobile device. When you download the app, you can order items like a Garfield-shaped pizza, lasagna (duh), garfuccinos (Garfield cappuccino), and smoothies to have delivered to you.

Jim Davis’s quote included the word “entergaging,” and you might be wondering what that means. Well, it’s a portmanteau of entertaining and engaging. He uses this term because while waiting for your order, you can use the GarfieldEATS app to watch clips of the Garfield and Friends TV show, play games, and talk to other Garfield fans. In doing so, you can earn “paws,” which can then be turned into goupons (not Groupons!).

GarfieldEATS has opened in a few cities around the world, including Dubai and Toronto. While Garfield is known for his orange fur, GarfieldEATS prides itself on being green, with food delivered on electric scooters and in reusable packaging. The meme-ification of the famous cat has added a lot to the allure of this business venture. Still, you have to admit that this is a very ambitious project, and the founder, Nathan Mazri, has the full confidence of the Garfield licensers.

Unfortunately, steep prices, inconsistent quality, bugs in the app, and the pandemic all played a role in the downfall of the company, and it is with a heavy heart that I must say that as of 2021, the GarfieldEATS website has been taken down. Nathan Mazri often used the famous Garfield quote, “Love me, feed me, never leave me,” and I can’t help but feel like we have failed him.^[10]