Larry King Joins The Original Brooklyn Water Bagel Co.
Larry King, who recently announced he is departing CNN’s Larry King Live show, is moving on to assist in franchise development and international growth for The Original Brooklyn Water Bagel Co.
The quick service restaurant chain creates Brooklynized water which is bottled and sold at the restaurants and used in all its products – from its authentic Brooklyn water bagels to sandwiches to freshly ground roast gourmet coffee and iced coffee made with real iced coffee cubes.
“What an honor to have someone with the international stature of Larry King become involved with our company as it grows nationally and worldwide,” said Steve Fassberg, president and CEO. “His Brooklyn roots, his business savvy and his passion for promoting a healthy lifestyle made it a natural fit with our core mission.”
As part of the team, King will play a key role in promoting the company in print, radio and internet promotions. He will also develop the franchise territory in the Southern California region with plans to open its first location in Beverly Hills.
The company has aggressive expansion plans with locations in the development phase across the country. He also agreed to assist with the company’s domestic and international franchise seminars and training, Fassberg said.
King was born in Brooklyn, New York to a father who was a restaurant owner and defense plant worker. He started his broadcast career at a small Miami Beach radio station that sat about a block away from a current Original Brooklyn Water Bagel location set to open in the Fall.
“I was intrigued to hear about the technology behind Brooklynized water as many people thought it couldn’t be done,” King said. “But after experiencing the product first hand, Brooklyn Water Bagel brought back childhood memories – one bite and I was back in Brooklyn.”
Restaurants and the food industry played a role early in King’s career. He started his talk show by interviewing anyone who walked in to Pumpernik’s Restaurant in Miami Beach.
His first interview was with a waiter. Days later, the singer Bobby Darin, in town for a concert, walked into the restaurant and became King’s first celebrity interview.
King started his CNN show – the first world-wide, phone-in TV talk show – in 1985. It went on to become the cable channel’s highest rated show with a mix of celebrity interviews, political debate and topical discussions. He has conducted more than 40,000 interviews, which have included many national and international luminaries of the time.
With more than 50 years as a broadcaster, the Emmy-award winning King has been inducted into five of the nation’s leading broadcasting hall of fames. He is a recipient of the prestigious Allen H. Neuharth Award for Excellence in Journalism, the George Foster Peabody Award for Excellence in Broadcasting, a News and Documentary Emmy Award for Outstanding Interview/Interviewer, 10 CableACE awards for best interviewer and talk show series, among others.
