Many fast food restaurants utilize mascots in the logos, but most of those aren't based on real people. Wendy's is different.

Melinda Lou, Thomas’ eight-year-old daughter, was nicknamed Wenda when she was born because her siblings couldn’t pronounce her name. Soon after, her family started calling her Wendy.

Wendy was actually born Melinda Lou Thomas, but according to the New York Times, her siblings had difficulty pronouncing her name and called her “Wenda.” Thus, the nickname Wendy was born.

David Thomas opens his first Wendy's Old Fashioned Hamburgers in the former Len Immke car showroom on Broad Street. He names the restaurant after his 8-year-old daughter, Melinda Lou Thomas ...

Dave Thomas, the smiling pitchman whose homespun ... He named the restaurant after his 8-year-old daughter Melinda Lou, nicknamed Wendy by her siblings. The chain grew to 4,800 restaurants in ...

Dave Thomas founded the first Wendy’s in 1969 in Columbus, Ohio, named after his daughter Melinda Lou, who was nicknamed Wendy. He started with a simple menu: square hamburgers, fries ...