June 22, 2021 ▸ Corporation, History, People

Episode 586: KFC: Gunfights, Animal Abuse, and The Colonel

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On this episode of the Sofa King Podcast, we grab ourselves a bucket and talk about Kentucky Fried Chicken. There is, of course, no KFC without Colonel Sanders, so that seems like a good start. The story of this massive restaurant chain is also the story of Harlan Sanders, given the honorary title of a Kentucky Colonel by two governors in his life time. He’s delivered babys, served in the US Army in Cuba, and once shot a man in a fight over a marketing billboard.

Colonel Sanders started the restaurant game late in life and somehow transformed a gas station where he served fried chicken to the second largest fast food empire in the world. He was one of the pioneers of franchising, letting people use his recipe of 11 herbs and spices in exchange for a nickel per chicken sold. How did the chain get so big? How much did he sell his shares of the company for? Why did he and Kentucky Fried Chicken sue each other? Did a reporter uncover the secret original recipe? Listen, laugh, learn.

Visit Our Sources:

https://www.biography.com/business-figure/colonel-harland-sanders

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kentucky_Colonel#Notable_Kentucky_colonels

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonel_(U.S._honorary_title)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KFC

KFC recipe revealed? Tribune shown family scrapbook with 11 herbs and spices – Chicago Tribune

KFC recipe challenge: Tribune kitchen puts the 11 herbs and spices to the test – Chicago Tribune

https://www.history.com/news/8-facts-real-colonel-sanders-kfc

https://www.thebalancesmb.com/colonel-sanders-bio-kentucky-fried-chicken-story-1350966

https://www.mashed.com/99890/untold-truth-kfc/

https://www.kentuckyfriedcruelty.com/index.php

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jul/30/kfc-admits-a-third-of-its-chickens-suffer-painful-inflammation