Free tuna, dogs named “Bella,” and Burger King gets faced for wanting a “McWhopper.” Here’s what was in the news 10 years ago this week.
Burger King tried to team up with McDonald’s on a “McWhopper”
Burger King took out full-page ads in the “New York Times” and the “Chicago Tribune” and posted an open letter to McDonald’s, asking them to team up and make a “McWhopper” – a Bic Mac / Whopper mash-up. They wanted to do it for International Peace Day on Sept. 21 and even launched a website called McWhopper.com in hopes it would happen.
The response from McDonald’s, however, was… yeah, no thanks. The CEO of Micky D’s called it a publicity stunt, burned Burger King for comparing the rivalry to “the real pain and suffering of war,” and said if they ever wanted to team up again, “a simple phone call will do.”
Charlie Sheen wanted to be Trump’s running mate
Owen Wilson had compared Donald Trump’s campaign strategy to Charlie’s meltdown that got him booted from “Two and a Half Men.” (Owen even managed to slip in one of his patented wow’s: “It’s like when Charlie Sheen was doing that stuff—like, wow!”)
Charlie responded by tweeting, “If Trump will hv me I’d be his VP in a heartbeat!” Trump ended up choosing then Indiana Governor Mike Pence instead of Charlie, so… basically the same guy.
Everyone thought James Earl Jones died
2015 was a big year for fake celebrity deaths. There had already be a string of bogus rumors about Willie Nelson, Martin Lawrence, Michael Jordan, and Beyoncé. A parody website posted a fake obit for Jones, who was 84 at the time, so it seemed legit enough – at least to social media boneheads. The story quickly went viral before being quashed by those mainstream media outlets no one trusts anymore. Jones passed away nine years later in 2024 at age 93.
Wes Craven really did die
The prolific horror movie director lost his battle with brain cancer at age 76. His many credits include “A Nightmare on Elm Street,” “The Hills Have Eyes,” and the first four “Scream” movies.
Each state’s most embarrassing Google search was revealed
The site Estately.com dug through 11 years of Google data to find the topic each state had googled an embarrassing number of times. Highlights included “sandals and socks” in Washington, “Limp Bizkit” in North Dakota, “penis enlargement” in Mississippi, and “Am I a virgin” in Maryland. (Yes, Maryland. Your neighbor Virginia “is for lovers,” not you.)
TunaLawsuit.com was trending
StarKist was forced to shell out millions of dollars for under-filling their 5-ounce cans of tuna. Anyone who’d bought StarKist tuna in the past six years (or claimed to) could get $25 in cash or $50 in tuna vouchers. You didn’t even have to prove you’d bought their tuna, you just had to say you did. It was a huge loss for Big Tuna, and a big win for fans of canned fish.
A Caitlyn Jenner Halloween costume had people up in arms
The costume (based on her “Vanity Fair” cover) featured a full Dad Bod dude in a cheap wig and a “Call Me Caitlyn” sash. Critics said it mocked the transgender community and promoted transphobia by turning Jenner’s transition into a joke.
Taylor Swift brought Lisa Kudrow on stage for “Smelly Cat”
Welcoming huge celebs to the stage became the norm during Taylor’s “1989” tour. Her same show at the Staples Center in L.A. (now the Crypto.com Arena) also featured cameos by Justin Timberlake and Selena Gomez. But every headline that week was about Taylor (a proud cat lady) bringing out Phoebe Buffay from “Friends” to sing her humorous ode to malodorous felines.
Everyone was naming their dog “Bella”
A study by Nextdoor found it was the most popular dog name in America in 2015, followed by Lucy, Max, Daisy, and Bailey. “Bella” got big thanks to the “Twilight” series, and not much has changed. A decade later, many of us are still naming our dogs after a teen with an unhealthy attraction to vampires.
The “Big Bang Theory” actors were making bank
“Forbes“ ranked the highest-paid TV actors of 2015, and the four main nerds on “Big Bang” dominated the list. Jim Parsons topped it at $29 million, followed by Johnny Galecki at $27 million, and Simon Helberg and Kunal Nayyar with $20 million apiece. (“NCIS” star Mark Harmon and “Two and a Half Men” fill-in Ashton Kutcher also tied for third at $20 mil each.)