# When wasn't this guy well-known? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** reality-or-game-show\ **Created:** [November 14, 2021, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347 "2021-11-14T23:28:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![GreysonCarlisle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a87d85/32.png) [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/61 "2021-11-15T03:52:15Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > I’d say mid-60s was when I was aware of Colonel Sanders, mainly because I was a wee lad and thought his string tie was his actual body. That’s awesome! > [@pulykamell](#): > > You’re not the only one – my daughters – 7 and 5 – refer to him as the “stick man.” So’s that! ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/62 "2021-11-15T04:17:50Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > > [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > > > Here’s an old KFC sign. > > What a coincidence. Earlier today I was in Tucson and I passed by a cannabis shop that had for a sign, a tapered cylinder spinning around with the name of the shop, green crosses, and marijuana leaves on it. “What a strange sign,” I thought as I was waiting at a traffic light then the penny dropped: It was a converted ancient KFC store. > > I hadn’t thought about that bucket-in-the-sky literally for decades and now two hits in the same day. Haw haw. This reminds me of the _South Park_ episode “Medicinal Fried Chicken”. > **[Medicinal Fried Chicken](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medicinal_Fried_Chicken)** > > "Medicinal Fried Chicken" is the third episode of the fourteenth season of the American animated television series South Park, and the 198th episode of the series overall. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on March 31, 2010. In the episode, the South Park KFC is replaced by a medical marijuana dispensary, and Cartman gets involved in black market selling the KFC chicken. Meanwhile, Randy Marsh gets a medical referral for marijuana by giving himself testicular cancer, wh... ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/63 "2021-11-15T04:24:02Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > The earliest KFC commercials on YouTube featuring the colonel are from 1969. Nobody remembers seeing a young Colonel Sanders so I suspect he was well into his dotage before he became an advertising icon. I’m old enough to remember when the defining symbol of KFC was a cardboard bucket, not the old plantation owner. I’ve been aware of him basically for as long as I’ve been aware of anything, really. My brother even had a Col. Sanders piggy bank back in the 70s, that was a realistic portrayal of Col. Sanders. Later they produced a more cartoonish version of the piggy bank. So, for a generation born in the late 60s, we’ve always know who he was. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/64 "2021-11-15T05:23:02Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > > [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > > > The chain may have been well known, but why would the founder be well known before KFC started using him in advertising? Would you be shocked if a panel didn’t know what Roy Croc looks like? > > It’s just that, I personally have no recollection of ever knowing of a time when Colonel Sanders and his picture weren’t associated with KFC. But I can’t really remember how long ago that was. > > (How many people know what Roy Croc looks like, even to this day?) Surprisingly, he looks a lot like [Michael Keaton](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4276820/). ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 8:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/65 "2021-11-15T08:24:47Z")
I spent the summers of 1962–68 with my dad in West Virginia. I remember Kentucky Fried Chicken being around almost from the start, but I don’t think we ever sampled it. When I saw _ **Goldfinger** _ with my dad and brother in the winter/spring of 1964–65, I recognized the franchise immediately. (Felix Leitner and his CIA partner were having a snack at one when they picked up Bond’s tracking signal—“He’s on the move!”—one of the most blatant product placements in cinema history.) It was around 1966 or '67 that I saw the Colonel featured in an episode of _ **Truth or Consequences** _ hosted by Bob Barker. None of the contestants had any idea of who he was either. The Colonel was in some KFC commercials in the '70s or early '80s. He usually just sat around swaying to the music as grateful employees and customers sang their praises to the chicken. I remember thinking at the time that he looked really out of it, but I know now he was still sharp enough to bring legal action against the corporate drones who were tampering with his recipes. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 8:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/66 "2021-11-15T08:38:35Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > There was another instance I recall when a sort-of-famous (by name) guy appeared, and nobody knew who he was or what he did. That was one Donald F. Duncan. Surely everybody immediately knows that name and what he did? > > Founder and owner of Duncan Toys, maker of Duncan Yo-Yo’s. And I’ll pluralize that with an apostrophe if I want to! According to the Chicago style guide my publishing house uses, that’s perfectly acceptable practice when dealing with a word like "do’s, " as in “do’s and don’ts.” Otherwise it might be confused with “does” (female deer) and “does” (the verb). ---
**Author:** ![Author\_Balk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Author\_Balk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Author_Balk)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/67 "2021-11-15T13:16:00Z")
In 1965/1966, on the drive to grandparent’s house. We went through Salt Lake, which is where the first franchise was. The only landmark I remember from the drive was the picture of Colonel Sanders. I don’t remember if was a billboard or in front of a restaurant.(I was young), I would expect that there were more restaurants in the Salt Lake area than other parts of the country at that time. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/68 "2021-11-15T13:38:39Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > I asked him, and sure enough, he had no idea that Colonel Sanders was a real person, and that’s what he looked like. I was born in 1967, in New York, where I don’t think we had Kentucky Fried Chicken yet. I can’t remember not knowing about it, however. But “Col. Sanders” is another thing entirely. I didn’t associate him with the place until I was maybe a teenager. In the 70s, the only thing I associated with Kentucky Fried Chicken (which wasn’t called KFC then), was the slogan “Finger lickin’ good,” which I always thought was a little gross. _What’s My Line_ is full of famous non-famous, and the other way around. One of my personal favorite actresses is Irene Dunne, but mostly only film buffs have heard of her-- not only did she retire in the 50s, and make the bulk of her films in the 30s, but she has the distinction of having an extraordinary number of her films remade (a sure sign of talent, BTW, because only popular films get remade), which means that nearly all of her films were unavailable from, more or less, 1950-1980; when a film was remade in the Golden Era, the studio producing the remake usually bought the rights to the original, and pulled it from distribution. At the time, everyone on the panel remembered her career, though, and was blindfolded when she appeared as the mystery guest; she also disguised her voice. Not to mention, they guessed it was her based on what seemed like scant information even to me, who had a cat named Irene Dunne. Even by about 1990, few people knew who she was, and four years ago, when a mother at the preschool was a dead-ringer for her, and I said so-- to someone more or less my age, not someone 26-- I got a blank stare. It kind of makes me sad. But she was greatly loved in her own time. She once starred in a film with Cary Grant, and was paid $100,000 over her salary and percentage (in 1930s $$) to take second billing; another time, a studio making a screwball comedy hoped to star her, but she wasn’t available, so they went with second choice Katharine Hepburn. So, you just never know. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/69 "2021-11-15T13:42:03Z")
I recall seeing commercials in Ohio for Kentucky Fried Chicken in what must have been around 1968 advertising that you’ll have a finger licking good time barrel of fun. We never ate out at all when I was a kid so we never had it and dad would state that my mom’s fried chicken was better anyway (it was!). We first got a bucket on a trip down to Texas when we ran out of mom’s prepared sandwich’s and chicken, it was a big deal at the time. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/70 "2021-11-15T13:44:03Z")
Sanders was not put onto the KFC logo until 1978, so they wouldn’t have recognized him from that. It’s possible they heard of him, but it’s doubtful they were doing ads with him. They were better known for their “finger licking good” slogan and ads. > **[KFC](https://logos.fandom.com/wiki/KFC)** > > This logo was adopted for the first set of standalone Kentucky Fried Chicken franchise restaurants in 1954. In 1965, the image of Colonel Sanders now used in the 2016 logo was added beside the brush lettering. Even after the introduction of the 1978... ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/71 "2021-11-15T13:54:22Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Otherwise it might be confused with “does” (female deer) and “does” (the verb). The unapostrophed plural of _do_ is _dos_ not _does_, at least in the dictionaries I’ve checked. But _dos_ has its own possible confusion with the Spanish word or possibly the operating system. (Words ending with “o” can often go both ways. _Taco_ is usually _tacos_. Tornado can be either. _Avocados_ is preferred to the _-es_ ending. Even _potato_ can go both ways, though the _-es_ ending is much preferred there.) ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/72 "2021-11-15T14:08:44Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > She once starred in a film with Cary Grant, and was paid $100,000 over her salary and percentage (in 1930s $$) to take second billing. _ **Penny Serenade** _? ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/73 "2021-11-15T14:13:30Z")
As I indicated, I’m obligated to use “do’s.” I must admit I prefer it to “dos,” which does\* look very Spanish. \*No pun intended. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/74 "2021-11-15T14:19:48Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > One of the enduring appeals of What’s My Line was how informal it all was, and how plain-and-simple the set was, as opposed to the formality and glitz of other game shows. And yet, I also notice very old-fashioned manners when I see reruns of the show. The panelists are “Mr. Cerf” and “Miss Kilgallen”, and when the contestants shake hands with the panelists the men stand up. > [@Senegoid](#): > > He got 1/2 cent for each chicken sold, Woe unto the poor restaurant owner who sells an odd number of chickens. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/75 "2021-11-15T14:22:26Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > Sanders was not put onto the KFC logo until 1978, so they wouldn’t have recognized him from that. He may not have been on the logo itself, but as noted above, his face was appearing on the chicken bucket by the 1960s. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/76 "2021-11-15T14:22:35Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > > [@Senegoid](#): > > > > One of the enduring appeals of What’s My Line was how informal it all was, and how plain-and-simple the set was, as opposed to the formality and glitz of other game shows. > > And yet, I also notice very old-fashioned manners when I see reruns of the show. The panelists are “Mr. Cerf” and “Miss Kilgallen”, and when the contestants shake hands with the panelists the men stand up. That’s because people back then had “style” and “class,” two things that are in deficit today. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/77 "2021-11-15T14:24:42Z")
I definitely remember seeing his image before _ **Goldfinger** _. Don’t recall if it was used in the movie, though. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/78 "2021-11-15T14:29:37Z")
History Channel did a segment on Colonel Sanders in _ **The Food That Built America** _ series, one of the few bright spots on its schedule. Ray Kroc was also featured prominently in the segment on McDonald’s. (Anyone who ever worked at McD’s in high school or college knows what Ray looked like.) ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/79 "2021-11-15T14:31:11Z")
But do they know how his name was spelled? ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2021, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347/80 "2021-11-15T14:33:13Z")
Typo corrected, thanks! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-wasnt-this-guy-well-known/954347.md?page=5)