While plenty of people have gotten teased as children for having the last name MacDonald, chances are there was nobody named Burger King in your first-grade class. Enter Joel Burger and Ashley King, a couple that recently decided to tie the knot — literally making them Burger King in the process. The Illinois residents have known each other since kindergarten and began receiving Burger King jokes in the fifth grade, when a speaker at a school assembly pointed out their combined name. King's recollection according to the State Journal-Register is rather amusing:
I just remember they had a bunch of yo-yos. The guy at the assembly was a motivational speaker, and he used yo-yos. ... After the man was finished with his motivational speech, he asked the two fifth-grade [student council] representatives to stand up as he wanted the students to applaud our efforts in helping set up his event. As soon as he said, 'Joel Burger and Ashley King,' he started to laugh out loud and pronounced we were 'Burger King.'
After that, it was as if they couldn't escape their collective name. They were friends throughout high school, started dating in college, and plan to get married on July 17. When they announced their engagement in a local newspaper, the couple used a photo taken in front of a Burger King joint and put Burger's name first (usually, the woman's comes first) to keep the joke going.
And as if the Burger King joke hadn't already become a reality, Burger King decided to sponsor the wedding after being contacted by The State Journal-Register reporter who first covered the story. "On so many levels it felt like fate; they found each other and their story found us," said Burger King Brand spokesman Eric Hirschhorn.
We can only hope the soon-to-be Burger-Kings will take advantage of the wedding theme their name is just begging for. I'm envisioning happy meal toys as party favors, toasting with spiked shakes instead of champagne, and a huge apple pie in place of a wedding cake.
Now, we just need someone named Apple to marry someone named Bee, and my life will be complete.
