• The New York Times, Friday, February 9, 2007 12 PM

Daniel M. Snyder--a self-made millionaire at 19 who then created and sold an advertising company that made him even wealthier--will announce today that his RedZone Capital private equity firm is acquiring the Johnny Rockets restaurant chain.

Johnny Rockets provides an opportunity for Snyder to leverage his marketing prowess and expand the chain across the nation, if not beyond. He has ambitious plans, anticipating opening 1,000 new restaurants in the next five years. One of the first steps will be establishing a series of smaller restaurants, called Johnny Rockets Express, in airports, malls and urban areas.

The chain--which was founded in 1986 as a 1950s-inspired corner restaurant serving burgers and malts in Los Angeles--has been growing at least 20% a year. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but analysts say the chain's value could be more than $500 million.

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