Reports: Fast Food Restaurant From 'Coming To America' To Be Razed
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- The Queens Wendy's fast food restaurant that stood in as "McDowell's" in the movie "Coming to America" will soon be torn down, according to published reports.
The Wendy's at 85-07 Queens Blvd. in Elmhurst, Queens, recently closed, according to a Wall Street Journal report. It will be demolished to make way for a six-story building worth $105 million, with luxury apartments and stores on the ground floor, the newspaper reported.
For the 1988 movie starring Eddie Murphy and Arsenio Hall, the restaurant was redesigned as "McDowell's," a fast food restaurant that is in trouble with the McDonald's Corporation for copying its trademark. While looking suspiciously like a McDonald's, owner Cleo McDowell – played by John Amos – insists that his "M" logo is golden "arcs" rather than "arches," and his "Big Mick" does not include a sesame seed bun.
Murphy's Prince Akeen Joffer and Hall's Semmi characters take jobs at "McDowell's" in the movie after immigrating to New York.
Comedian Louie Anderson, who played a cashier at "McDowell's" in the movie, told the newspaper he would be sorry to see the landmark cleared away. Amos also told the newspaper the Wendy's that stood in for "McDowell's" was a historical landmark for him.
You May Also Be Interested In These Stories
