BEAR NEWS: We had a call last Thursday afternoon from Morton J.
Smith of Edgewood Road who told us a bear had just gone through his
yard and into his neighbor’s yard. How big was the bear, we asked.
A teen-ager, he replied. We speculated that this is adolescent was
probably scouting the neighborhood for a “chick” – the bear kind,
of course. Actually, he was probably pursuing that other teen
magnet – food.

WHOLE SCOOP: Boy, do we ever have the whole scoop on Carrols
restaurant in Bradford!

Dave Rathfon of Bradford dropped us an e-line, “Just a follow up
on Carrols Restaurant (note only one ‘L’). I was an assistant
manager at Carrols in 1970-1971 in Bradford. It was located at the
site of Burger King. I transferred to Elmont, Long Island, N.Y., to
become the head manager in 1972, then to Westport, Conn., to become
the Northeast Carrols training manager. Carrols also filmed their
television commercials in my Westport, Conn., restaurant. They
would close the restaurant for a day and bus in extras from New
York City.”

“Carrols fell on hard times and Carrols Development Corp., based
in Syracuse, N.Y., sold out to Burger King Corp. in the mid
1970s.

“Burger King closed the Carrols in the towns where they already
had a Burger King and converted the Carrols restaurants in towns
where they did not have a Burger King. Carrols was known for the
Home of the Club Burger!

“Some extra info was that The Colonel Sanders from Kentucky
Fried chicken stopped in my Elmont, Long Island, N.Y., Carrols one
day to have a cup of coffee on his way to check some of his KFC
restaurants on Long Island and said he was glad that Carrols did
not sell chicken and it was hard to get it just right for people,
but enjoyed his coffee.

“In my Westport, Conn., Carrols one day, Linda Blair (Exorcist
movie) came in with her mother to buy some burgers to the delight
of my workers, which, she signed some napkins for them. Then, one
day the whole Carrols restaurant emptied out, customers and
employees, ran into the parking lot to stare at Paul Newman and
Robert Redford, who were at the car wash next door. Paul Newman
lived in Westport and Robert Redford was visiting and needed his
car washed.”