Today in 1776, it’s said that the city of Philadelphia called its citizens to hear the Declaration of Independence read for the very first time in public, with help from a 2,000 pound bell in the tower of what is now called Independence Hall.
Whether or not that actually happened, the bell is now known as the Liberty Bell; it’s become a symbol of the founding of the United States, and lots of people visit Philadelphia each year to see it in person.
And one time there was an ad campaign that claimed that the Liberty Ball had been acquired… by Taco Bell.
This was back in 1996, a time when naming rights were still uncommon enough that a big name company putting its brand on something familiar was something you’d take note of.
There were full page ads in several big newspapers that read, “In an effort to help the national debt, Taco Bell is pleased to announce that we have agreed to purchase the Liberty Bell, one of our country’s most historic treasures.”
The ad claimed that the bell would now be known as the “Taco Liberty Bill” and while the new name might be controversial, it would still be viewable by the public and the proceeds of the sale would go toward paying down the national debt.
The papers, Taco Bell HQ and even the National Park Service got angry calls and letters demanding who on earth had let the Liberty Bell be sold!?!
To which the papers, Taco Bell and the National Park Service replied, did you check the date on that newspaper you just read?
The ads came out on April 1, 1996.
A PR company working for Taco Bell wanted to play up the growing fast food giant’s irreverent image, and they figured an April Fool’s Day joke might be the way to do it.
Their joke got plenty of attention – you can argue whether it was positive or negative – but something positive definitely came out of the whole incident.
The mayor of Philadelphia says he called up Taco Bell not to complain about the stunt, but to say, hey, why not put some money into preserving the Liberty Bell?
And Taco Bell did: $50,000 in all, or, judging by the 1996 menu, 75,376 soft tacos, before taxes.
Today in 1978, Def Leppard played its first-ever concert, in Sheffield, England.
It didn’t exactly start off with a bang: guitarist Steve Clark tried to launch into the first song in a big way, doing a windmill arm to hit the opening chord.
But he’d accidentally left his amp in standby mode, so nobody heard that big chord.
They got better!
Hold the taco sauce, Liberty Bell is safe (Philadelphia Inquirer via Newspapers.com)
The Hilariously Bad First Concerts of Rock’s Biggest Bands (Ultimate Classic Rock)
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