For nearly twenty years, the annoying character lay in glorious respite, before briefly returning in 2011 (his 25th anniversary). Years later, in 1995, unable to shake the idea that the Domino’s ad campaign had intentionally targeted him, Noid committed suicide in his Florida apartment.įollowing the ordeal, Domino’s swiftly terminated the Noid campaign. A headline the following morning in the Boca Raton News sparked a talk show frenzy: “ Domino’s Hostages Couldn’t Avoid the Noid This Time.”Ī subsequent court hearing found Noid innocent by reason of insanity a paranoid schizophrenic, he was found to have “acute psychological problems,” was turned over to the Department of Human Resources, and ended up in Georgia’s Mental Health Institute, where he spent three months. A police officer on the scene later revealed that Noid had “an ongoing feud in his mind with the owner of Domino’s Pizza about the Noid commercials,” and thought the advertisements had specifically made fun of him. The assailant, a 22-year-old named Kenneth Lamar Noid, was apparently upset about the chain’s new mascot. In the ensuing chaos, the captor fired two gunshots into the establishment’s ceiling, was forcefully apprehended, and received charges of kidnapping, aggravated assault, and theft by extortion. Before the police could negotiate with his demands ($100,000, a getaway car, and a copy of The Widow’s Son - a novel about Freemasons), the two employees escaped. For five hours, he engaged in a standoff with police, all the while ordering his hostages to make him pizzas. 357 magnum revolver stormed into a Domino’s in Atlanta, Georgia and took two employees hostage. Then, right at the height of his popularity, the Noid endured perhaps the worst mascot PR in history. In 1989, a computer game, “Avoid the Noid,” was released to commemorate the red antagonist (the goal was to deliver a pizza with a half-hour whilst avoiding a lumbering swarm of Noids), plush toys were abound, and the character was a household name. The spots soon employed the slogan “Avoid the Noid,” and reminded customers that their company’s pizzas were “Noid-proof.” The campaign was a smash success. Throughout the late 80s, Domino’s ran a series of commercials in which the Noid set about attempting to make life an utter hell for pizza consumers: Will Vinton, whose studio animated the creature, described it as a “physical manifestation of all the challenges inherent in getting a pizza delivered in 30 minutes or less.” Its name, a play on “annoyed,” was an indication of its nature: many considered the Noid to be one of the most obnoxious mascots of all time. The result? The “Noid.”Ī troll-like creature, the Noid was outfitted in a skin-tight red onesie with rabbit-like ears and buck-teeth. Domino’s executives hired an external marketing firm, Group 243, to promote this new promise. Tom persisted and, by 1978, had expanded Domino’s Pizza into a 200-store enterprise worth $500 million.ĭuring this period of rapid growth, Domino’s Pizza set an industry precedent that would prove critical to their success: they guaranteed that if a customer didn’t receive his pizza within 30 minutes of placing the order, it’d be free. Early on, business was horrible and James sold his half of the company to his brother for a used Volkswagen Beetle. 2.In 1960, Tom and James Monaghan borrowed $900 and bought a small, ailing pizza shop on the fringes of the Eastern Michigan University campus. Domino's stopped runing Noid ads, and we all moved on. He was found not guilty by reason of insanity. Noid was charged with kidnapping, aggravated assault, and theft by extortion. After a five-hour siege, the two employees slipped away and Noid gave himself up. When police arrived, he demanded $100,000 in cash, a getaway car and a copy of The Widow's Son, a 1985 novel about secret societies in an 18th century Parisian prison.Īll Noid got was the pizza he ordered. 357 Magnum revolver and took two employees hostage. Kenneth Noid, 22, walked into a Domino's Pizza shop in Chamblee, Ga., with a. Believing he was engaged in an ongoing battle with Domino's head Tom Monaghan, Noid took matters into his own hands, holding up a Domino's outlet in Georgia. In January 1989, 22-year-old Kenneth Lamar Noid interpreted the Domino's ads as a personal assault on his character. If you watched American TV in the late 1980s, you'll remember the Noid, the crazed anti-pizza terrorist who served as mascot for Domino's Pizza under the banner "Avoid the Noid." (Domino's pizzas were, of course, Noid-proof.) Although Domino's eventually dropped the Noid, here are six items of Noid trivia for your enjoyment.
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