Hooters Chairman Brooks Found Dead

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (AP) -- Robert Brooks, the chairman of Hooters of America Inc. who made a fortune selling chicken wings served by scantily clad waitresses, was found dead at his home Sunday, officials said. He was 69.

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It was unclear how Brooks died. The Horry County 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 went unanswered.

Since opening its first store in Clearwater, Fla., in 1983, the chain has expanded across the U.S. and into more than a dozen countries ranging from Taiwan to Venezuela. Hooters has about 61 million annual visitors to its some 425 restaurants.

Brooks, born on a tobacco farm outside Loris near Myrtle Beach, founded Eastern Foods Inc., which makes dressings and sauces, in 1966.