031160 “Questionable” Burger Ads Lead to College Board ChangeNovember 22, 2003Santa Paula, CA - The commercials seem cute enough, with that quintessential playboy Hugh Hefner dressed in his silk pajamas and surrounded by beautiful women as he philosophizes about how men require variety - just before he bites into a bacon-cheeseburger. He loves that burger, Hef declares, but he won't have it for dinner every night. That's why, the announcer for the Carl's Jr. hamburger chain intones, you can get a different-style burger at Carl's almost every night. So why aren't the leaders of Thomas Aquinas College laughing? "It's common knowledge that Hugh Hefner and Playboy stand for hedonism and unbridled pleasure- seeking, and that is impossible to reconcile with what we stand for," said Ann Forsyth, spokeswoman for the small Catholic liberal arts college located in a verdant valley on the edge of this still largely rural town. The college's president, Thomas Dillon met earlier this week with Andrew Puzder, president and chief executive of CKE Restaurants Inc., which operates Carl's Jr., and it was agreed upon that Puzder would resign immediately from the college's board of governors. "Thomas Aquinas College stands for principles that are in direct conflict with those of Hefner and Playboy," Dillon said. Puzder, who declined to comment, explained earlier this month why CKE had hired the founder of Playboy magazine as a spokesman. "We're appealing to an audience of young, hungry guys who expect a quality product but want to have something different from time to time," he said Nov. 3. "As a pop icon, Hefner appeals to our target audience and credibly appeals to our message of variety."
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