Papa John's has had a tough time lately, but a few decades ago, when things were looking up, founder John Schnatter wanted employees to think of his thriving pizza empire when they literally looked up.
Forbes reported Thursday that Schnatter commissioned a ceiling fresco of his own face when he was building the company's new headquarters in Louisville, Kentucky, in the late 1990s.
Immortalizing his mug onto a company ceiling wasn't Schnatter's only eccentric behavior at the time, employees told Forbes. He would also conduct company meetings while atop his exercise bike, and insisted on knowing what was going on at the headquarters even after he moved to an office 20 minutes away. Many of the other recollections of Schnatter's leadership isn't so pleasant — former employees allege that Schnatter was vindictive, controlling, and often made inappropriate comments toward women.
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Schnatter has denied any wrongdoing, and reportedly regrets stepping down as chairman after using the n-word in a company conference call, saying his reputation is being "unfairly tainted."
Even though the pizza mogul reportedly "bristled" at the idea of appearing in fewer advertisements now that he's embroiled in a couple of very-public scandals, the company is slowly moving on without him, taking him out of ads and possibly looking for a new John to crown as Papa. It's probably safe to guess that his fresco has been painted over by now, too. Read more at Forbes.
