Rosenella Winifred Cruciani "Rose" Totino (January 16, 1915 – June 21, 1994) was an American entrepreneur and pizzeria owner whose frozen pizza business co-founded with her husband became the foundation for the Totino's brand. When selling the company to Pillsbury, Totino was hired as the first female vice president of a Fortune 500 company.
Rose Totino | |
|---|---|
| Born | Rosenella Winifred Cruciani January 16 1915 |
| Died | June 21 1994 (aged 79)[1] St. Louis Park, Minnesota, United States |
| Occupation(s) | Pizzeria entrepreneur, corperate executive |
| Awards | Minnesota Inventors Hall of Fame |
Biography
editRose dropped out of school at age 16 to support her family by cleaning houses.[2] In 1934 she married James R. Totino (1911 – 1981) and remained married until his death of heart attack while vacationing in Las Vegas, Nevada.[3]
They opened their own pizzeria in Minneapolis in 1951 and later expanded from take-out only to Totino's Kitchen with table service. Totino obtained a patent for her frozen pizza crust.[4] In 1962, they started Totino's Finer Foods in St. Louis Park, Minnesota and began mass production of frozen pizzas.Swanson, Walter (1989). Minneapolis: City of Enterprise, Center of Excellence : A contemporary portrait. Windsor Publications, Inc. p. 79. ISBN 0-89781-292-1. They built a new plant in Fridley, Minnesota in 1971. Demand continued to grow, and they sold their company to Pillsbury in 1975 for about $22 million in Pillsbury stock, and Rose was made vice president.[5][6]
Totino's grandson Steve Elwell bought the restaurant in 1987 and moved Totino's Kitchen from its original location in August 2007 to a new location in Mounds View, Minnesota. The new location closed in 2011, ending a 60-year run.[7]
The Totinos were involved in Minnesota charities. Totino-Grace High School in Fridley was renamed in their honor in 1980. They helped finance the Totino Fine Arts Center at University of Northwestern - St. Paul in Roseville, Minnesota and the NET Ministries headquarters in St. Paul, Minnesota.[8] Totino died of cancer at Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park, Minnesota.[9] She was inducted into the Minnesota Inventors Hall of Fame in 2008.
References
edit- ^ "Rose Totino Obit Part 2". Newspapers.com. Star Tribune. June 22, 1994.
- ^ George, Stephen (2003). Enterprising Minnesotans: 150 Years of Business Pioneers. University of Minnesota Press.
- ^ "James R. Totino". Ancestry.com.
- ^ Vare, Ethlie Ann; Ptacek, Greg (2002). Patently Female: From AZT To TV Dinners, Stories Of Women Inventors And Their Breakthrough Ideas. New York: Wiley. pp. 51–52. ISBN 0-471-02334-5. OCLC 47183698.
- ^ "Pizza magnate was poor". The Spokesman Review. Associated Press. September 13, 1976.
- ^ "Pillsbury to Acquire Totino's Pizza Firm For $20.3 Million". Wall Street Journal. October 15, 1975. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016.
- ^ Horner, Sarah (June 8, 2011). "Totino's Italian Kitchen in Mounds View to close after 60 years". St. Paul Pioneer Press. Twin Cities, MN. Archived from the original on November 11, 2014.
- ^ Our Mission (n.d.).[1] NET Ministries
- ^ "Rose Totino, 79, Frozen-Pizza Maker". New York Times. Associated Press. June 23, 1994. Archived from the original on May 2, 2020.
External links
edit- "Rose Totino - 2008 Inductee". Minnesota Inventors Hall of Fame. August 27, 2008.
- Bonnie Totino Brenny: My Mother's Legacy via Minnesota Historical Society
- Totino's Italian Kitchen history
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