Krispy Kreme

Wednesday happens to be Talk Like a Pirate Day, and to celebrate Krispy Kreme is giving away a free original glazed doughnut to anyone who visits a store and talks like a pirate. Sounds like a good deal, but a true pirate is always on the lookout for bigger treasure. If you want to up your bounty, you'll have to don an entire pirate outfit. Put on your best pirate hat, eye patch, red velvet coat, frilly shirt and black boots to receive a free dozen original glazed doughnuts. We're in favor of doughnuts of any kind, especially free ones, so here's some pirate lingo to help you find your treasure: Shiver me timbers Blow me down Heave ho Scurvy dog Yo-ho-ho Arrrr!

No more missing inches: Subway says that never again will a Footlong sandwich meet a ruler it can't match. In the company's own words: “We regret any instance where we did not fully deliver on our promise to our customers. We freshly bake our bread throughout the day in our more than 38,000 restaurants in 100 countries worldwide, and we have redoubled our efforts to ensure consistency and correct length in every sandwich we serve. Our commitment remains steadfast to ensure that every Subway Footlong sandwich is 12 inches at each location worldwide.” This after an outcry when an Australian customer posted a photo of a Footlong sub on Subway's Facebook page.

The day after Dunkin' Donuts sent Angelenos salivating with news of its imminent return to Southern California, rival chain Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc. said it's growing as well. Krispy's physical presence “is substantially smaller than that of many other brands in the U.S.,” said Chief Executive James H. Morgan at the ICR XChange Conference in Miami on Thursday. But the 75-year-old Winston-Salem, N.C., business is looking for a growth spurt, he said. With more than 740 stores in 21 countries, Krispy Kreme plans to have 1,300 locations by 2017.

“I won't be going back to Subway until you either drop the words 'foot long' in your advertising or add the inch to the sandwich,” wrote Facebook user David Moran on the company's profile. “False advertising.” The New York Post bought seven Footlongs in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens and found four that came in under the advertised mark . Facebook user Saiya Mahariel, who said she used to work at a Subway location, came to the chain's defense. “It's not easy making the bread perfect,” she wrote on the company's profile.

Shares of Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc. fell Monday after the company said an independent auditor refused to sign off on its second-quarter financial statement until an outside law firm hired by the company's board performed additional work. Winston-Salem, N.C.-based Krispy Kreme said in a filing Friday with the Securities and Exchange Commission that the auditor, which it did not name, would not complete its review without the additional information.

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc., the No. 2 U.S. doughnut maker, missed its Dec. 10 deadline for filing a quarterly report with the Securities and Exchange Commission as it analyzes its accounting. The company's so-called 10-Q financial statements must be filed within 40 days after a quarter ends, SEC spokesman John Nester said Monday. Krispy Kreme's fiscal third quarter ended Oct. 31. The company, which is based in Winston- Salem, N.C.

Krispy Kreme doughnuts, an icon of the Southern good life, is coming to Los Angeles some time in the next six months. As part of a company expansion, the pastries (Elvis reportedly always had a dozen jellies on hand at Graceland) will be found at stores from the Southland to Sacramento. Each store typically costs $900,000 and is owned by a franchisee who must first undergo an 18-month evaluation and then a monthlong training period at company headquarters in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc. said a subsidiary agreed to end its relationship with a Houston-area franchisee, and the six locations there will no longer operate as Krispy Kreme stores as of March 8. The agreement allows both sides to settle outstanding disputes and claims, including the dismissal of a lawsuit filed by Lone Star Doughnuts Ltd. The Winston-Salem, N.C.

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc. disclosed Thursday that the Securities and Exchange Commission was investigating its earnings forecasts and how the company accounted for the repurchase of franchises. Shares of the Winston-Salem, N.C.-based company fell 16% on the news of the informal probe. Chief Executive Scott Livengood has been buying stores back from franchisees in some markets, including Northern California and Michigan.

Fat and sugar lovers take heart. By next summer, Oxnard could become home to the county's first Krispy Kreme Doughnuts outlet. The hot-confections maker, which has a nationwide following, is scheduled to become part of a new shopping center on the southeast corner of Rose Avenue and Lockwood Street. In addition to Krispy Kreme, the new center is scheduled to include Del Taco and Carl's Jr.

The day after Dunkin' Donuts sent Angelenos salivating with news of its imminent return to Southern California, rival chain Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc. said it's growing as well. Krispy's physical presence “is substantially smaller than that of many other brands in the U.S.,” said Chief Executive James H. Morgan at the ICR XChange Conference in Miami on Thursday. But the 75-year-old Winston-Salem, N.C., business is looking for a growth spurt, he said. With more than 740 stores in 21 countries, Krispy Kreme plans to have 1,300 locations by 2017.

Wednesday happens to be Talk Like a Pirate Day, and to celebrate Krispy Kreme is giving away a free original glazed doughnut to anyone who visits a store and talks like a pirate. Sounds like a good deal, but a true pirate is always on the lookout for bigger treasure. If you want to up your bounty, you'll have to don an entire pirate outfit. Put on your best pirate hat, eye patch, red velvet coat, frilly shirt and black boots to receive a free dozen original glazed doughnuts. We're in favor of doughnuts of any kind, especially free ones, so here's some pirate lingo to help you find your treasure: Shiver me timbers Blow me down Heave ho Scurvy dog Yo-ho-ho Arrrr!

Can Americans have their doughnuts and their Big Gulps too? It seems a timely question, what with Friday being National Donut Day -- and coming on the heels of New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's proposal to limit the sale of super-size sugary drinks. The Times' editorial board weighed in Friday in its usual sober way. In a nutshell (OK, a fairly big nutshell, but put down your smartphone for a second and actually read something), here's its take on the problem : The move exemplifies the tension between individual liberty and societal responsibility that's particularly acute in the field of public health.

Lawndale teachers protesting a dispute with the Centinela Valley Union High School District distributed doughnuts to students during their nutrition period Friday morning so the children would not eat free snacks provided by the district. Acknowledging that the sugar-filled treats are not nutritious, Centinela Valley Secondary Teachers Assn. President Erik Carlstone noted that Friday was the last day of school before winter break. "Students deserve a treat," he said. District officials denounced the teachers' tactics.

MOVIES Christmas horrors double-feature As an antidote to the treacle and forced bonhomie of the Christmas season, watch psycho Santa go on a yuletide killing spree in "Christmas Evil" (1980) and coeds get slashed in "Black Christmas" (1974). New Beverly Cinema, 7165 Beverly Blvd., L.A. 7:30 p.m. $7. (323) 938-4038, www.newbevcinema.com. EVENTS Marc Cooper, Norman M. Klein and Martin Plot The journalist, author and contributing editor to the Nation will discuss current issues and cultural crises with CalArts professors and critics Norman M. Klein and Martin Plot.

You want to know how financially insane big-time college sports has become? Chew on this number: 910,470. Based on the buyout he just got, that's how many dozen glazed doughnuts Phil Fulmer could buy if he pulled into his local Krispy Kreme. And he'd still have some change coming after he gave the cashier $6 million. Even Fulmer can't eat 10,925,640 doughnuts, at least not in one sitting. But the laws of digestion and common sense don't apply here. Tennessee is going to pay Fulmer $6 million for failing at his job. To paraphrase Waylon and Willie's old song, Mamas let your babies grow up to be coaches.

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc. filed its overdue financial statements Friday for the second and third quarters of its fiscal year, which ends this month. For the second quarter that ended July 30, the Winston-Salem, N.C., company reported a loss of $4.6 million, or 7 cents a share, compared with a loss of $14.9 million, or 24 cents, a year earlier. Revenue was $112.5 million, down from $139.8 million. For the third quarter that ended Oct. 29, Krispy Kreme lost $7.

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc., which lost 72% on the stock market last year, said Monday that Chief Executive Daryl Brewster resigned and would be replaced by Chairman James Morgan. The shares rose 11%, amounting to the most in almost a month, after the chain said Morgan would be CEO for the "foreseeable future." Brewster, 51, and the retailer "mutually determined" to end his employment, the company said in a regulatory filing. His resignation comes after 13 straight quarters of losses.

Great Circle Family Foods, once the largest franchisee of Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc. stores, has filed for bankruptcy protection, listing assets and liabilities of as much as $100 million and as many as 199 creditors. Los Angeles-based Great Circle, founded in 1998 to develop Krispy Kreme stores in Southern California, listed General Electric Capital Business Asset Funding Corp. as its largest secured creditor, owed $7.5 million.