Wendy's CEO Gordon F. Teter Dies Unexpectedly / Founder Dave Thomas to Serve as Senior Chairman / Special Management Council Formed / Jack Schuessler and Paul H

DUBLIN, Ohio (PROTEXT) - Wendy's International, Inc. (NYSE: WEN) announced earlier today that Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President Gordon F. Teter, 56, died on Saturday, December 18, 1999, of sudden and unexpected natural causes. The Company made the announcement in a previously issued news release. "Gordon was a great friend to all of us, a tremendous leader and justifiably proud of the management team he assembled," said R. David Thomas, Wendy's founder. "We will miss him dearly. "The entire team at Wendy's and Tim Hortons is 100 percent committed to carrying out the strategies developed by Gordon and his executive management team. That includes building on the strategy of 'Two Quality Brands, One Great Company'. It also includes managing the business with a long-term approach and continuing our commitment to the basics -- quality food, consistent restaurant operations, familiar and predictable experiences for our customers and outstanding relationships with our employees and franchisees," Thomas added. Thomas, who founded Wendy's in 1969, will serve as Senior Chairman and actively supervise the management of the Company. Reporting to Thomas will be: -- Chief Financial Officer Frederick R. Reed. -- Wendy's President and Chief Operating Officer Jack Schuessler. -- Tim Hortons President and COO Paul House. "Jack and Paul will lead all day-to-day business functions for Wendy's and Tim Hortons, respectively, including restaurant operations, new store development, marketing, human resources, research, product development and quality assurance," said Thomas. "There will be no change in our business and we expect that all of our employees, franchisees and suppliers will work together to ensure continuity over the coming months. "Fritz will continue to manage the finance, legal, treasury and investor relations functions, and he will also supervise Wendy's international division," added Thomas. "He has been an outstanding addition to our team over the past three years." Thomas will be a member of a newly appointed special Chairman's Management Council that will include Ronald V. Joyce (Tim Hortons Co-Founder and Senior Chairman) as chair. Also on the council will be Reed, Schuessler and House. "The role of the management council will be to work with our board of directors in evaluating and helping them fill the positions of Chairman and CEO," said Joyce. "Fritz, Jack and Paul worked closely with Gordon Teter over the past several years and share his vision for the future of our Company. "Dave and I will provide senior-level support to the entire organization, review and work with the management team on strategic planning and ensure that the special culture of our Wendy's and Tim Hortons organizations is maintained," added Joyce. Special Chairman's Management Council: -- R. David Thomas, 67, founded Wendy's in 1969 and has 55 years in the restaurant business, including six years as a Kentucky Fried Chicken franchisee. He was elected to Wendy's board in 1969 and is a member of the executive, board membership and finance committees. For the past several years Thomas has served as Senior Chairman of the Board and as the Company's advertising spokesperson. He will serve as Chairman and actively supervise management. -- Ronald V. Joyce, 68, was the franchisee of the original Tim Hortons store in Hamilton, Ontario, which opened in 1965. He became a full partner with Tim Horton in 1967, sole owner of the chain in 1975 and is currently Senior Chairman and Co-Founder of Tim Hortons. Joyce has 37 years in the restaurant business. He will serve as Chairman of the Company's executive management strategic planning committee. -- Frederick R. Reed, 51, is Chief Financial Officer and Secretary of the Company. He joined Wendy's in 1996 as Executive Vice President. Reed is a former partner at Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP. He has 23 years of finance and legal experience. He earned a B.A. from Harvard University and a J.D. from The Ohio State University College of Law. Reed is a member of the executive, finance and board membership committees of the board. -- John (Jack) T. Schuessler, 48, is President and Chief Operating Officer of Wendy's, with responsibility for the United States and Canada. He joined Wendy's in 1976 and advanced through a series of restaurant operations positions including District Manager, Manager of Area Operations, Regional Director, Division Vice President, Senior Vice President of the Northeast Division and most recently Executive Vice President of Domestic Operations. Schuessler is a graduate of Spring Hill College, Alabama. -- Paul D. House, 56, is President and COO of Tim Hortons, with responsibility for the chain in Canada and the U.S. House joined Tim Hortons in 1985 and held titles of Vice President of Marketing, Senior Vice President of Operations and Executive Vice President. He is a former Senior Vice President of Dairy Queen Canada, Inc. House graduated from McMaster University. Wendy's International, Inc. is one of the world's largest restaurant operating and franchising companies with about $7 billion in systemwide sales and two great brands -- Wendy's and Tim Hortons. There are more than 5,500 Wendy's restaurants in the U.S., Canada and international markets. Tim Hortons has more than 1,800 restaurants in North America. ots Original Text Service: Wendy's International, Inc. Internet: http://www.newsaktuell.de Contact: Denny Lynch, 614-764-3553, John Barker, 614-764-3044, john_barker@wendys.com, or Marsha Gordon, 614-764-3019, all of Wendy's International Web site: http://www.wendys.com Subscribers please note that material bearing the slug "PROTEXT" is not part of CTK's news service and is not to be published under the "CTK" slug. Protext is a commercial service providing distribution of press releases from clients, who are identified in the text of Protext reports and who bear full responsibility for their contents. PROTEXT