Ponderosa Steakhouse and Bonanza Steakhouse under the Metromedia Restaurant Group. The names of the restaurants were derived from the classic TV series "Bonanza", which was set at a place called Ponderosa Ranch. In 1963, Dan Blocker, who played Eric "Hoss" Cartwright on "Bonanza", started the Bonanza Steakhouse chain. The first Bonanza opened in Westport, Connecticut. Sam Wyly and his brother Charles Wyly bought the small Bonanza restaurant chain three years later. The company grew to approximately 600 restaurants by 1989, when the Wylys sold it to Metromedia. In 1965, Dan Lasater, Norm Wiese and Charles Kleptz founded Ponderosa in Kokomo, Indiana, moving the headquarters to
U Lazy S Ranch U Lazy S Ranch The U Lazy S Ranch, formerly known as the Square and Compass Ranch, is a historic ranch in Garza County, Texas, USA. The ranch was established as the Square and Compass Ranch in 1884. By 1901, when it was acquired by John Bunyan Slaughter, the ranch spanned 99,188 acres. Slaughter also purchased 5,000 cattle and brought 6,000 head of cattle he already owned. Additionally, he changed the name to his cattle brand, 'U Lazy S', which he had registered during the American Civil War. He built a ranchhouse in 1902 and acquired more acres, owning up