A billboard campaign for a popular line of hot dogs has some people speaking -- frankly.
Iconic Philadelphia meat company Dietz & Watson recently began running digital billboards touting their hot dogs with the help of some famous Franks.
Showing names like Benjamin Franklin, musician Frank Zappa and architect Frank Lloyd Wright, the simple billboards replaced the name Frank with a photo of the company's hot dog.
Many people felt the campaign was cute and clever, but an Allentown, Pa. artist wasn't laughing.
Vicki DaSilva became angry when she saw Wright and Zappa's names treated like a piece of meat. So she decided to contact the respective men's estates to see if they had agreed to the campaign. Neither did.
"The first thing I thought of was that copyright and trademark property rights and artists' rights are no joke," DaSilva said. "I knew instantly that there was no way that they had approval to use those names."
Officials from Frank Lloyd Wright's estate then contacted Dietz & Watson and asked to have the campaign pulled.
The food supplier and it's ad agency Adams Outdoor obliged -- leaving only Benjamin Franklin on display.
Both Dietz & Watson and Adams said the campaign was never intended to defame either figure.
Residents who we showed the billboard to disagreed with DaSilva's objection.
"It's all in fun," said Jody Danfield. "I don’t see what the big deal is."
Bob Stair says thought they should have thrown a little cash to the estates but felt the campaign was fine since "really, everyone's dead."
And Steve Rindos was disappointed the campaign was changed.
"That's a same," he said. "I don't see what the deal is. I thought it was really clever and if anything it made me giggle."
DaSilva, who does fine art photography, says her objection to the campaign has made her a lighting rod online, but she's not riled.
"I've got a lot of haters online that think I have no sense of humor and need to get a life, but I have a very full life and a great sense of humor," she said.
Dietz & Watson and Adams say they intend to keep the Ben Franklin billboards up and may add other, more generic names like Frankenstein in the future.
