HARRY MORTON

'Harry Morton' (born 1981) of Los Angeles, California is President and CEO of Pink Taco restaurants. His father is Peter Morton, co-founder of Hard Rock Cafe, and his grandfather is Arnold "Arnie" Morton, founder of Morton's Steakhouse Chain.

Contents

Personal Life and Background

Wikipedia Format

Education

Career

Relationships

Media Spotlight

References

External links

Personal Life and Background

Harry Morton is the son of Peter Morton, owner of the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas and co-founder of the Hard Rock Cafe. Peter Morton sold his chain of Hard Rock Cafe's in 1995 for a reported $410 Million. In the fall of 2006 he sold the remaining jewel of his empire, the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino for $770 million in a cash deal. His late grandfather, Arnold "Arnie" J. Morton, was founder of Morton's Steakhouse, a chain of high end eateries. Both work in the restaurant and entertainment business. His uncle, Michael Morton (Peter's brother), heads the N9NE Group which operates contemporary American Steakhouse and others in Las Vegas, Chicago and Dallas.[1] His late stepsister is Domino Harvey, a model-turned-bounty hunter, who died in June 2005 of a drug overdose. The feature film Domino is based on her life.
Though Morton is heir to the billion dollar Hard Rock Hotel and Casino fortune, he claims that his upbringing was not a spoiled one. He started working at 16 years old at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas, where he parked cars, carried bags, worked in security, and was blackjack dealer.[2] Since the hotel opened when Morton was 15 years old, he spent every summer working there, starting in the bell desk, eventually having gone around and done jobs in every department in the hotel. [3] With this experience, Morton eventually served as Vice President for Development of his father's hotel.
Morton has a passion for muscle cars. He owns an extensive collection including a 1968 Shelby GT500 Mustang, and in April 2006, he signed up to race in the Gumball Rally. He also owns the much coveted winning chopper from Biker Buildoff- built by Super Company Customs "The Crazy Horse."

Wikipedia Format

Nothing against Mr. Morton because I do not know him nor does this comment intend to insult him in any way. It's just that this page reads like a corporate press release. The reader does not automatically have a negative opinion of Mr. Morton after reading this page but it does seem very one sided.
Harry Morton created and filled the majority of this content seen on this wikipedia page. Look up the following IP adress seen in the history tab: 67.120.35.73 at http://www.arin.net/whois/
Very Sad.

Education

Morton went to Harvard Westlake School in North Hollywood, California.[4] Then he attended New York University (NYU) to study Business and Hospitality Management.

Career

After NYU, Morton sought to season his career. Morton embarked on marketing and nightlife ventures at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, where he was instrumental in guiding the success of Body English, its nightclub, and in luring Jeff Beacher's comedy variety show from Manhattan to Las Vegas. [5]He also created Rehab, a Sunday party at the Hard Rock Hotel& Casino pool that has drawn a nationwide following. [6]
To achieve his own dream, his first stepping stone is Pink Taco, an eatery serving authentic Mexican fare and over 60 kinds of tequila in a colorful lounge, where he tried to "create a place where he and his friends could hang out." [7] The first location is at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas opened in 2000. The second location and the first outside the Strip is at the Scottsdale Waterfront in Scottsdale, Arizona, opened in June, 2006. Morton is overseeing the national expansion of his Mexican Restaurant chain with another one opening in L.A. in June 2007. Pink Taco will also open late 2007 in San Diego and Huntington Beach, California. Rumors call for another 8 locations in 2008 and 10-15 locations in 2009, 2010, and 2011. Restaurant industry experts point out that sales should top $100-200 million in the next 4 years. Despite the controversy of the restaurant's name which has gained a national reputation and the opposition from various sectors in Scottsdale, Morton is set on opening 100 Pink Taco's nationwide in 5 years.[8]
Another venture Morton is into is the liquor business, starting with his liquor brand Tyku. It is a vodka-infused sake and can be sold in places that only offer wine and beer. [9]. His liquor company just got picked up for national distribution with Southern Wine and Spirits. [10]
He has expressed that gaming could be a future career option.

Relationships

Accordingly, Harry prefers work to relationships, but he does not have trouble introducing himself to women, especially in Las Vegas.
In 2001, he was also linked to actress Rachel Hunter.[11]
In 2002, Harry, then 21, was briefly linked to actress Lara Flynn Boyle, the star of "The Practice". [12]
In the Summer of 2006, Morton was in a much publicized romance with the high profile actress Lindsay Lohan.

Media Spotlight

Morton's relationship with actress Lindsay Lohan, albeit short, was a focus of media frenzy. The couple were inseparable since the two met through her lawyer pal Mike Heller during Lohan's birthday on July 2, 2006. [13] They topped headlines for weeks as they were seen together in a lot of party places like The Hyde Lounge, Chateau Marmont, Beacher's Madhouse at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, [14] in Harry's beach house in Malibu among many others.[15] For a while, there were speculations of Lohan and Morton being engaged because he was believed to have bought her a ring at Cartier's in Beverly Hills, [16] or secretly married.[17] In September 2006, the whirlwind summer romance made a turn, in what Morton dubs a "breather and slowing things down" citing "pressure and the media spotlight can screw things up". [18] Morton added that "he had a hard time being in such a high profile relationship". [19]If anything, the relationship wasn't slow as the couple also traveled to: Hawaii [20][21], Venice[22][, and London,[23] attending such events together as the premiere of the Film "Bobby" in Venice. [24] Despite the much publicized split, "the couple are still talking", [25] posing questions as to the real score of the relationship. [26][27]
The other cause of media spotlight on Morton is his very own Pink Taco chain, particularly in Scottsdale, Arizona. [28] No less than the City Mayor herself, along with other women, find the name offensive and derogatory, in reference to the name being slang for the vagina.[29] Mayor Mary Manross publicly asked Morton to change the name but Morton refused and stood his ground on keeping the name Pink Taco. [30] This controversy has caused a national stir [31], prompting cable television networks to call for interviews and AOL to conduct an on-line poll (where 80% of the 185,000 responses don't see anything wrong with the name). Morton publicy humiliated Mayor Manross and the public backlash against her was harsh. Community support for the Pink Taco was far larger than what Mayor Manross had expected. [32] On May 20, 2006, Pink Taco was included in the ''Saturday Night Live'' "Weekend Update" Skit. It was also featured on ''The Daily Show'' on June 27, 2006 when Ed Helms interviewed Harry Morton regarding the controversy over the restaurant's name.
Despite Pink Taco's rough start in Scottsdale, Arizona, it took hot honors in October 2006 when Phoenix New Times announced its Annual Best of Phoenix 2006 Awards with Pink Taco Scottsdale taking 3 awards - Best New Restaurant, Best Signature Dish, and Best Place to see Snakeskin Boots. This honor was seen by Harry Morton as "humbling and poignant given the controversy some created over the tasty meal that inspired the restaurant's name". [33] In 2007 Pink Taco was voted best mexican restaurant in AOL's City Search Awards.
Another media focus is Harry Morton and family's bold move to bid for the naming rights of the new Arizona Cardinal's Stadium[34] Like the restaurant's name, The Pink Taco Stadium, or Morton Stadium, was controversial. An offer of $30 million for 10 years was made as evidence of the Mortons' commitment and promise to pursue an agreement with the Cardinals. [35] Despite the $5 million check presented to the Cardinals, the bid was seen as a mere joke and publicity stunt. [36] This claim was dismissed by Morton stating that the family is serious and that $30 million would be an expensive publicity stunt.[37] While the bid rocked the local and national sports and media worlds, there was an outcry of public support and encouragement for the naming rights. Never one to shy away from controversy Morton then publicly went toe to toe with the Bidwell family, current owners of the Cardinals. He claimed they were "intimidated by his fathers desire to purchase an NFL team" and that they felt this was the way the "mortons were going to get their foot in the cardinals door." [38][39] Morton sees the deal a win-win situation because "Pink Taco can deliver celebrity and cachet to the stadium, and the Pink Taco name on broadcaster's lips can deliver the 21 - 35 year old demographics to the restaurant". [40] On September 26, 2006, the University of Phoenix acquired naming rights to the stadium, with the name changed to University of Phoenix Stadium.[41]
On September 28, 2006, Harry Morton launched a similar bid to rename the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans to the Pink Taco Dome. Owners of the Superdome said that negotiations have not yet begun, and Louisiana law states that any name change must be approved by the Louisiana State Legislature. [42]

References

★ Pink Taco's Morton turns to big easy

★ Some sports franchises courting pink taco

★ http://www.azcentral.com/ent/dining/articles/0422biz-pinktaco.html

★ http://www.azcentral.com/ent/dining/articles/0422biz-pinktaco.html

★ http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/0926biz-namingrights0926.html

★ http://www.wdsu.com/news/9956336/detail.html

★ http://www.prnewstoday.com/release.htm?cat=entertainment&dat=20060821&rl=LAM04921082006-1

★ http://www.evliving.com/cities_news.php?action=fullnews&id=5697

★ http://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/stories/2006/08/21/daily10.html

External links

★ The Pink Taco official website

★ Vegas Magazine Features Stars and Moguls "The Son also Rises"