The Big Chicken is a

KFC KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) is an American fast food restaurant chain headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, that specializes in fried chicken. It is the world's second-largest restaurant chain (as measured by sales) after McDonald's, with 2 ...

restaurant in

Marietta, Georgia Marietta is a city in and the county seat of Cobb County, Georgia, United States. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 60,972. The 2019 estimate was 60,867, making it one of Atlanta's largest suburbs. Marietta is the fourth largest ...

, which features a steel-sided structure designed in the appearance of a

chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated junglefowl species, with attributes of wild species such as the grey and the Ceylon junglefowl that are originally from Southeastern Asia. Rooster or cock is a term for an adult m ...

rising up from the top of the building. It is located at the intersection of Cobb Parkway ( U.S. 41/ Georgia 3) and Roswell Road ( Georgia 120) and is a well-known

landmark A landmark is a recognizable natural or artificial feature used for navigation, a feature that stands out from its near environment and is often visible from long distances. In modern use, the term can also be applied to smaller structures or f ...

in the area. Constructed in 1963, it was rebuilt following storm damage in 1993 and underwent a $2 million renovation project in 2017.

History

The restaurant was built in 1963 at 12 Cobb Parkway, on the newly constructed stretch of Highway 41, the first

divided highway A dual carriageway ( BE) or divided highway ( AE) is a class of highway with carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation (BrE) or median (AmE). Roads with two or more carriageways which are ...

in Cobb County. Taking advantage of the prime location on the new and quicker route for travelers on U.S. 41, Johnny Reb's Chick, Chuck and Shake owner S. R. "Tubby" Davis erected the 56-foot (17-meter) tall structure over his restaurant in 1963 as a method of advertising. The

novelty architecture Novelty architecture, also called programmatic architecture or mimetic architecture, is a type of architecture in which buildings and other structures are given unusual shapes for purposes such as advertising or to copy other famous buildings w ...

was designed by Hubert Puckett, a

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

student of

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...

, and fabricated by

Atlantic Steel The Atlantic Steel Company was a steel company in Atlanta, Georgia with a large steel mill on the site of today's Atlantic Station multi-use complex. Atlantic Steel's history dated back to 1901 when it was founded as the Atlanta Hoop Compan ...

in nearby

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

(of which Marietta is a

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...

). Davis later sold it to his brother, and it became a

franchise Franchise may refer to: Business and law * Franchising, a business method that involves licensing of trademarks and methods of doing business to franchisees * Franchise, a privilege to operate a type of business such as a cable television p ...

. In January 1993, storm winds damaged the structure, and rather than tear it down KFC was forced by public outcry to re-erect the building. Among those who complained about the Big Chicken being torn down were pilots, who used the building as a reference point when approaching

Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport , also known as Atlanta Hartsfield–Jackson International Airport, Atlanta Airport, Hartsfield, Hartsfield–Jackson and, formerly, as the Atlanta Municipal Airport, is the primary internatio ...

and

Dobbins Air Reserve Base Dobbins Air Reserve Base or Dobbins ARB is a United States Air Force reserve air base located in Marietta, Georgia, a suburb about northwest of Atlanta. Originally known as Dobbins Air Force Base, it was named in honor of Captain Charles M ...

. The new Big Chicken includes the original design of beak and eyes which move, although this time the vibrations which plagued the first structure (even to the point of breaking

window A window is an opening in a wall, door, roof, or vehicle that allows the exchange of light and may also allow the passage of sound and sometimes air. Modern windows are usually glazed or covered in some other transparent or translucent materia ...

s) have been eliminated. Pieces of the original structure were sold to collectors as

souvenir A souvenir (), memento, keepsake, or token of remembrance is an object a person acquires for the memories the owner associates with it. A souvenir can be any object that can be collected or purchased and transported home by the traveler as a m ...

s. In early April 2006, the structure narrowly escaped a small eastward-moving nighttime

tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, altho ...

, which overturned a

tractor-trailer A semi-trailer truck, also known as a semitruck, (or semi, eighteen-wheeler, big rig, tractor-trailer or, by synecdoche, a semitrailer) is the combination of a tractor unit and one or more semi-trailers to carry freight. A semi-trailer a ...

at a

Kmart Kmart Corporation ( , doing business as Kmart and stylized as kmart) is an American retail company that owns a chain of big box department stores. The company is headquartered in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, United States. The company was inc ...

across the street, and damaged another building nearby. In early 2017 it was announced that The Big Chicken would undergo a twelve-week, $2 million renovation, incorporating the chain's newest design and a gift shop. The renovations began January 23, 2017. The restaurant reopened with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on May 11, 2017.

Culture

The Big Chicken has become one of the most well-recognized landmarks in Marietta, and has an established history of impacting the local culture of the area. Inside the building exists a gift shop selling souvenirs emblazoned with the monument and holding it comparable to other landmarks worldwide such as

Big Ben Big Ben is the nickname for the Great Bell of the Great Clock of Westminster, at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London, England, and the name is frequently extended to refer also to the clock and the clock tower. The officia ...

and the

Eiffel Tower The Eiffel Tower ( ; french: links=yes, tour Eiffel ) is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower. Locally nicknamed "'' ...

. A

board game Board games are tabletop games that typically use . These pieces are moved or placed on a pre-marked board (playing surface) and often include elements of table, card, role-playing, and miniatures games as well. Many board games feature a comp ...

featuring the Big Chicken and other local landmarks was produced in 1985 as part of a promotion for the city of Marietta. There is a barbershop-style singing group called the Big Chicken Chorus, formed in 1986, which gives concerts throughout the year. There is also a Marietta-based band called The Big Chicken Beatles Band which performs often at town activities. The Big Chicken was also featured on a promotional card in '' Sim City: The Card Game'', and has appeared in the comic strip ''

Zippy the Pinhead Zippy the Pinhead is a fictional character who is the protagonist of ''Zippy'', an American comic strip created by Bill Griffith. Zippy's most famous quotation, "Are we having fun yet?", appears in ''Bartlett's Familiar Quotations'' and became a ...

'' as a part of artist Bill Griffith's fascination with roadside icons. The Big Chicken is also commonly used as a landmark for driving directions. Locals will often include "make a

urn An urn is a vase, often with a cover, with a typically narrowed neck above a rounded body and a footed pedestal. Describing a vessel as an "urn", as opposed to a vase or other terms, generally reflects its use rather than any particular shape or ...

at the Big Chicken", or "it's about ''x'' miles past the Big Chicken". This is referenced in

music video game A music video game, also commonly known as a music game, is a video game where the gameplay is meaningfully and often almost entirely oriented around the player's interactions with a musical score or individual songs. Music video games may take a ...

Rock Band 3 ''Rock Band 3'' is a 2010 music video game developed by Harmonix. The game was initially published and distributed by MTV Games and Electronic Arts, respectively, in late October 2010. Mad Catz took over both roles and re-released the title on N ...

s "Road Challenge Mode", when the player is told "Don't be alarmed if you're asking for directions in the bus and the locals tell you to 'turn left at the Big Chicken'".

References

External links

{{commons category, Big Chicken (Marietta, Georgia)
History

Buildings and structures in Marietta, Georgia Novelty buildings in Georgia (U.S. state) Roadside attractions in Georgia (U.S. state) Animal monuments Fictional chickens Restaurants in Georgia (U.S. state) 1963 sculptures KFC Tourist attractions in Cobb County, Georgia Restaurants established in 1956 Buildings and structures completed in 1963 Fast-food poultry restaurants Articles containing video clips Individual signs in the United States

History

Culture

See also

References

Further reading

External links