It may come as a surprise, then, that the Seminole Tribe of Florida owns Hard Rock (as in the caf restaurants).
Hard Rock was originally founded in 1971 by Americans Isaac Tigrett and Peter Morton in London. In 1979, the cafe began covering its walls with rock and roll memorabilia, a tradition which expanded to others in the chain and has come to be expected by many.
The Hard Rock business was sold to the Seminole Tribe in 2006 for $965 million. Included in the deal were 124 Hard Rock Cafes, four Hard Rock Hotels, two Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Hotels, two Hard Rock Live! concert venues, and stakes in three unbranded hotels.
The Tribe isn't going in a completely different directions than other Native American tribes. They introduced "Vegas-style" table gambling in addition to the Class II slots already in operation at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood in 2008.
