Dumb Starbucks, part of a promotional stunt for Nathan Fileder's show on Comedy Central, shut down Monday by health officials
"Dumb Starbucks" a parody store may have had a lifespan of just one day but it did create a huge impression. After news of the mock store went viral on the Internet, Comedy Central's Nathan Fielder admitted to Los Angeles Times that the whole setup was part of a stunt for his reality show "Nathan For You."
The mock store was shut down by the Los Angeles County Health Department, Monday.
Fielder said that he was planning a similar prank in Brooklyn, NY, but lawyers of the real Starbucks put an end to that saying he couldn't use the café's name because it was copyright protected.
"We are aware of the store, it is not affiliated with Starbucks. We are evaluating next steps and while we appreciate the humor, they cannot use our name, which is a protected trademark," a Starbucks spokesperson said in a statement, according to TIME.
Even if Fielder hadn't come clear about the prank, "Dumb Starbucks" wasn't going to see the light of day on Tuesday anyway. According to an Examiner report, Los Angeles County Health Department shut down the operation for not having a health permit, Monday evening.
"Dumb Starbucks" opened in Los Angeles Sunday afternoon. According to a Los Angeles Times report, the mock store was virtually identical to Starbucks, the only difference being that everything had the word "dumb" in front of it.
For more information on the store, check out their twitter account.
