The chairman of the Hooters restaurant chain, Robert Brooks was found dead at his home Sunday morning, according to information from the Horry County coroner’s office and a funeral home director. He was 69.
It was unclear Sunday how Brooks died, but the coroner’s office told The (Myrtle Beach) Sun News that an autopsy would be performed Monday.
Several calls to the coroner’s office by The Associated Press were unanswered.
Chris Hardwick, owner of Hardwick Funeral Home of Loris, said he was handling Brooks’ funeral arrangements.
Brooks made his fortune selling chicken wings served by scantily clad waitresses.
His tried to parlay the restaurant chain’s success into a Myrtle Beach-based airline in 2003. At its peak, Hooters Air flew to 15 destinations from Newark, N.J., to the Bahamas. But the company racked up debt and stopped commercial flights earlier this year. The company now operates as a charter firm.
Information from: The Sun News, http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/
A service of the Associated Press(AP)
