The man who helped bring us Doritos Locos Tacos and asked for nothing in return has died at the age of 41.
Todd Mills of Arkansas died on Thanksgiving morning after a long battle with brain cancer, according to USA Today.
Mills, who worked as a VP with the Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce by day, pitched the idea of a hard taco shell made with cheese-dusted Doritos to Frito-Lay in 2009. At first, the company rejected his idea, so Mills enlisted the masses of Facebook for support. Eventually, Taco Bell came knocking—maybe it was the brilliance of the idea, maybe it was his following or maybe it was his photoshopping skills:
Occupy Taco Bell (Facebook)
Taco Bell said they liked the idea, and they flew Mills out to a test kitchen in California. It was everything he hoped and dreamed. Taco Bell started testing it out in 2011, and this year it became available to the masses. This October the company said it had sold $1 billion worth of the tacos.But Mills never asked for any sort of compensation. His wife Ginger Mills said he was just excited to see his cool idea come to fruition. His friend Jimmy Looney encouraged him to lawyer up and try to get his, but Looney told USA Today, "Todd being Todd, he never asked for anything. He said, 'I just want my tacos.'" Looney called his friend "a guy with a good idea and a good heart."
Taco Bell released a statement about Mills' death: "We are honored to have had his support through the Doritos for Taco Shells Movement on Facebook, and we admire his strength and optimism during his recent battle. Our thoughts and sympathies are with Todd's family during this time."
After Mills' funeral yesterday, family and friends went out to Taco Bell and ate some Doritos Locos in his honor. (Excuse me for a moment, I think I have some Cool Ranch flavor dust in my eye.)
