He dropped out of school and worked as a laborer before being hired at the age of 18 as a janitor for Frito-Lay, at its Rancho Cucamonga factory, in 1976. [6] [1] According to records at Frito-Lay, Montañez was promoted to a machinist operator position by October 1977, [2] and was a senior machinist operator in autumn 1993. [7] Flamin' Hot Cheetos [ edit ] Grein, Paul (November 2, 2023). "Songs From 'Barbie' Pace 2023 Hollywood Music in Media Awards Nominations (Full List)". Billboard . Retrieved November 14, 2023. Cheetos Australia". PepsiCo Australia & New Zealand. Archived from the original on 17 September 2009 . Retrieved 12 September 2011. The story behind the Flamin' Hot Cheetos creator is great. Eva Longoria is making it into a movie". NBC News. August 28, 2019. Archived from the original on July 12, 2023 . Retrieved June 22, 2023. But the people who had worked on the original Flamin’ Hot line weren’t watching viral videos or reading food blogs targeted at young audiences. Most of them had already left the company by the early 2000s. Most had already retired.

After the investigation and his retirement, Montañez has also repeatedly posted to his social media accounts photographs of what he claims are original design materials for Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. Many have recently been deleted. While Baker gets the promotion he always desired, Richard is still a janitor, though Baker gives him some support. Lonny asks Richard to clean upstairs, only to find Enrico who tells him that he understands his struggles growing up, before revealing that he has been promoted to Director of Multicultural Marketing. Richard is applauded by all his coworkers for his success and he happily calls Judy to tell her the good news. Statistical Abstract of the United States: 1999 (PDF) (Report) (119thed.). United States Census Bureau. December 9, 1999. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 22, 2023 . Retrieved June 22, 2023. Of course stories grow, and the longer we get away from the date the stories evolve,” Carey said. “I’ll bet Richard’s added a little flavor to it.”

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Beneath Montañez’s story about Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, visible through its inconsistencies and supported by the documented timeline of events, there is a real story of a man rising up the corporate ladder, from factory floor to marketing executive, pitching some products along the way.

Blaskovich, Sarah (9 July 2020). "First-ever Flamin' Hot Cheetos popcorn hits store shelves in Texas". The Dallas Morning News. Archived from the original on 9 January 2020 . Retrieved 10 January 2020.

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Gene Maddaus (May 21, 2021). PepsiCo Defends Richard Montañez, Claims Earlier Statements Were 'Misconstrued'. Variety But sometimes all you really want is that Flamin Hot flavor without all that Flamin Hot hassle. Or maybe you want Flamin Hot Popcorn? Cashews? Apples? Debruge, Peter (November 28, 2022). "Variety Announces 10 Directors to Watch for 2023". Variety. Archived from the original on February 9, 2023 . Retrieved April 12, 2023. Montañez's last position was vice president of multicultural sales and community promotions for PepsiCo North America. [18] He retired from PepsiCo in March 2019 during an internal investigation into his Flamin' Hot Cheetos claim. [2]

Kanno-Youngs, Zolan (June 15, 2023). " 'Flamin' Hot': Biden Hosts Screening of the (Kind of) True Story of the Spicy Chip". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on June 22, 2023 . Retrieved June 22, 2023. Flamin' Hot Schedule". SXSW. Archived from the original on February 9, 2023 . Retrieved February 9, 2023.

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Kroll, Justin (22 February 2018). "Flamin' Hot Cheetos-Inspired Movie in Works From Fox Searchlight, DeVon Franklin (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on 22 February 2018 . Retrieved 29 March 2021. In early May, Longoria announced that she had chosen the actors to play Montañez and his wife, and that the film would begin shooting this summer in New Mexico. Griffith, Eric (June 16, 2023). "Must Watch: The Most Streamed TV Shows and Movies This Week". PCMag UK. Archived from the original on November 14, 2022 . Retrieved June 23, 2023. Foundation, Imagen. "Nominees Announced for the 38th Annual Imagen Awards Celebrating Latino Excellence". Imagen Foundation . Retrieved November 14, 2023.

According to Frito-Lay records, Flamin' Hot Cheetos, a spicy version of the product, was developed at the company's headquarters in Texas starting in 1989, as part of a project led by Lynne Greenfeld, and introduced in test markets in the summer of 1990, alongside Flamin' Hot versions of Fritos and Lays. [31] They became available nationwide in early 1992, and The Washington Post would go on to call them "something of a cultural phenomenon", [32] with Newsweek noting that it "rejuvenated the brand" and would become a "central element in Cheetos marketing". [33] By the time he got promoted to corporate headquarters in Plano, working for the UDS business — shorthand for “up and down the street,” meaning any liquor store, sundry shop or mini-mart smaller than a grocery store — his idea had been taken up by the marketing department. Like an alien’s version of comedy.’ ‘The sense of humor of a horny dentist.’ Nikki Glaser, Hari Kondabolu and other comedians on Elon Musk’s desperate quest to be funny. Frito-Lay Puts Cheetos Brand in Bloggers' Hands". adage.com. 11 February 2009. Archived from the original on 18 February 2009 . Retrieved 2 December 2010.Montañez did live out a less Hollywood version of his story, ascending from a plant worker to a director focused on marketing. He also pitched new product initiatives, which may have changed the path of his career. US Business Cycle Expansions and Contractions". National Bureau of Economic Research | NBER. Archived from the original on December 1, 2019 . Retrieved June 22, 2023. Though Flamin' Hot is advertised as a true story, [7] [8] [9] the authenticity of Montañez's account became doubtful after the Los Angeles Times published an in-depth article scrutinizing his claim, [2] with later corroboration by NPR. [10] Creation of Flamin' Hot Cheetos [ edit ] I don’t care what room you’re in, there’s always somebody in the room that’s going to try to steal your destiny. They may even say you never existed,” Montañez says to the camera. “I want you to do this: Write down your history, because if you don’t, somebody else will. Remember that. And also remember this, the best way to destroy a positive message is to destroy the messenger. Never allow that to happen to you. I’m certainly not going to allow it to happen to me.”