Colonel Sanders

Harland David Sanders, born on September 9, 1890, was a pioneering American entrepreneur best known for founding the iconic fast food chicken restaurant chain, Kentucky Fried Chicken, commonly referred to as KFC. His journey began in North Corbin, Kentucky, where he started selling fried chicken from a roadside restaurant during the Great Depression. It was during this time that he perfected his secret recipe and developed a patented method for cooking chicken in a pressure fryer.

Sanders' entrepreneurial spirit led him to recognize the potential of franchising, and in 1952, he opened the first KFC franchise in South Salt Lake, Utah. This marked the beginning of a rapid expansion of the KFC brand across the United States and eventually overseas. However, the swift growth of the company became overwhelming for Sanders, leading him to sell KFC in 1964 for two million dollars, equivalent to twenty million eight hundred thousand dollars in 2025.

Despite selling the company, Sanders remained involved as a salaried brand ambassador, retaining control of operations in Canada. In his later years, he became increasingly critical of the food quality served at KFC, famously referring to the gravy as 'God-damned slop' and lamenting the cost-cutting measures that he believed compromised the brand's integrity. His name and image continue to symbolize KFC to this day, reflecting his lasting impact on the fast food industry.