Fries With That?

Linda Burton posting from Boise, Idaho – A person can’t hear the word “Idaho” without the word “potato” inserting itself into consciousness, at least, subconsciously. While it’s true that Idaho soil is just right for potato growing, the real “potato story” is bigger than that, and centers itself in Boise. The average person (not living in Boise) may not be familiar with the name J R Simplot. You can read about him on any list of billionaires though. And something you probably eat every day is something you have because of something this man did. He’s something!

John Richard (J R) Simplot was born in 1909 in Dubuque, Iowa but his family moved to Idaho the next year, homesteading in the newly irrigated Magic Valley. J R quit school and left home at age 14, striking out on his own as a farmhand. At the time of his death at 99, he was the oldest billionaire on the Forbes 400. What did this man do in those intervening 85 years? Hint: his license plate read “Mr Spud.” » read more