Roy Rogers

Roy Rogers began as a legal problem. In 1968 Marriott bought a roast beef chain called RoBee’s, and Arby’s sued because the name sounded too similar. Big Boy founder Bob Wian, who sat on Marriott’s board, knew the agent of cowboy film star Roy Rogers and suggested borrowing his name. Rogers agreed, collected a licence fee and made personal appearances at the restaurants.

The chain grew past 600 locations, then shrank sharply after a 1990 sale, when many restaurants were turned into Hardee’s. Since 2002 it has been rebuilding on its home turf in the Mid-Atlantic. Its quirk is the Fixin’s bar: burgers come on a buttery Kaiser roll with the meat and cheese, and you add your own lettuce, tomato, pickles and condiments.

About 40 restaurants in five states, mostly in Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania and around Washington, D.C.