Chef Boyardee
Chef Boyardee is an American brand of canned pasta products sold internationally by Conagra Brands. The company was founded by Italian immigrant Hector Boiardi in Milton, Pennsylvania, U.S., in 1928. History. After leaving his position as head chef at the Plaza Hotel in New York City, Boiardi opened a restaurant called Il Giardino d'Italia in 1924 at East 9th Street and Woodland Avenue in Cleveland, Ohio. The idea for "Chef Boyardee" came about when restaurant customers began asking Boiardi for his spaghetti sauce, which he began to distribute in milk bottles. Four years later, in 1928, Boiardi opened  a factory and moved production to Milton, Pennsylvania, where he could grow his own tomatoes and mushrooms. He decided to name his product "Boy-Ar-Dee" to help Americans pronounce his name correctly. The first product to be sold was a "ready-to-heat spaghetti kit" in 1928. The kit included uncooked pasta, tomato sauce, and a container of pre-grated cheese. The U.S. military commissioned the company during World War II for the production of army rations, requiring the factory to run 24 hours a day. At its peak, the company employed approximately 5,000 workers and produced 250,000 cans  per day. After the war ended, Boiardi had to choose between selling the company or laying off everyone he had hired. He sold the company to American Home Foods in 1946 for nearly $6 million, and remained as a spokesman and consultant for the brand until 1978. American Home Foods turned its food division into International Home Foods in 1996. Four years later, International Home Foods was purchased by ConAgra Foods, which continues to produce Chef Boyardee canned pastas bearing Boiardi's likeness. Products. Chef Boyardee products are available in cans or single-use microwavable cups. Throwback recipes Spaghetti  Beefaroni Ravioli Lasagna Fun Flavors Pizza & Sauces Discontinued products. As of 2021, the following products are no longer in production Advertising. In 2018, Barbara Lippert of "Advertising Age" compared the 1966 Young & Rubicam ad for Beefaroni to "The 400 Blows" and running of the bulls. The ad features a large group of children running through Venice singing, "Hooray...for Beefaroni!" Lippert believed the ad influenced other famous commercials such as Prince Spaghetti (known for "Anthony! Anthony!") and "Hilltop" for Coca-Cola. Chef Boyardee is one of the only brands to request to be removed from an episode of "Seinfeld". In  the episode "The Rye", Kramer is allowed to operate a Hansom cab for a week, and feeds the horse excess cans of Beefaroni, which causes frequent and foul smelling flatulence. As a result of the request, the name was changed to "Beef-a-reeno". Legal issues. In 2015, a class-action lawsuit was brought against the Chef Boyardee company. The lawsuit alleged false advertisement on the part of Chef Boyardee. Their product labels stated that they contained no preservatives, yet they contained citric acid. The plaintiff who filed the class-action lawsuit was demanding more than $5 million in  damages. The lawsuit was dismissed in 2016.