Taco Bell Founder Dies

Glen Bell Jr., whose began selling crispy-shell tacos from a window of his hamburger stand in 1951, died at his home in Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.

Bell began selling tacos from his Bell’s Hamburgers and Hot Dogs in San Bernardino, Calif., one of three stands he owned at the time. That effort eventually led to the founding of the Taco Bell restaurant chain, one of the first to offer Mexican fare as fast food.

In 1987, Bell sold the chain, which had grown to 868 restaurants, to PepsiCo, which sold it to Tricon Global Restaurants in 1997. In 2002, Tricon changed its name to Yum Brands (Louisville), which is also parent company to Kentucky Fried Chicken, Pizza Hut and Long John Silver’s. Today, the company says, more than three billion tacos and burritos are sold annually at more than 5600 Taco Bell restaurants in the U.S. and around the world.

Bell was born in Lynwood, Calif., and is survived by his wife of 54 years, Martha; three sisters, Delores, Dorothy and Maureen; a daughter, Kathleen; two sons, Gary and Rex; and four grandchildren.