Why did Col. Harland Sanders denounce Kentucky Fried Chicken™ before he died?

It seems a correction of sorts is in order.

No, I didn’t make a factual error in last week’s column… I made something of a mathematical error.

The claim that the first Rolls-Royce was a real bargain is accurate, but my math from the 1904 conversion of British pounds to U.S. dollars was a bit off. By a magnitude of thousands of bucks.

I am reliably informed that £395 was indeed $784 – at today’s exchange rate. But in 1904, the rate of exchange was somewhat different.

Using that rate, £395 would have been about $58,100. Still a bargain for a Rolls-Royce, but quite a difference in actual exchange value.

So I don’t speak math. So sue me. Thanks to my friend John for putting me straight.

Anyway, on to this week’s trivia, in which no math problems were injured. None at all.

Did you know…

…a rat can live longer without water than a camel can? (Funny thing to contemplate … is a rat away from water a “dirty rat”?)

…the average Super Bowl party has 17 guests? (And fifteen of those guests are there to watch the game. The other two are only there for the food and beer.)

…actor James Doohan lost the middle finger of his right hand during World War II? Doohan (1920-2005), best known for the role of chief engineer Montgomery Scott in Star Trek, was a participant in the D-Day landings in Europe in 1944, and the missing finger was amputated after his hand was shot by a German soldier. (And when you figure that Scotty was the only “redshirt” who survived the entire series…)

…no first-generation video footage exists of the first human landing on the Moon? When the Apollo 11 spacecraft landed on the Moon on July 20, 1969, cameras were deployed from the Lunar Module Eagle to record the activities of Neil Armstrong (1930-2012) and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin (born 1930), the first humans to set foot on land not on the planet Earth. The high-quality video footage was relayed to NASA and stored on tape. A few years later, when NASA sought out the tapes for one reason or another, they made a horrifying discovery: the tapes had been erased and re-used, in an attempt to save money. Thus, the only video footage of Armstrong and Aldrin on the Moon exists in second-generation video, gathered from television stations around the world and digitally restored. (Isn’t that just like government, though? Trying to save money in the wrong places?)

…the man who invented Kentucky Fried Chicken™ denounced it before he died? Colonel Harland Sanders (1890-1980) came up with his “special” eleven herbs and spices and patented method of frying chicken at his combination gas station, motel and restaurant in Shelbyville, Kentucky, in the 1930s. When he sold the company in 1964 for $2 million, he remained with them as their “brand ambassador.” With typical corporate mentality, the new owners gradually changed the ingredients and recipes used in the production of the chicken dinners, aiming for lower costs. This came at a price, which Sanders himself pointed out, saying not long before his death that the chicken was “the worst fried chicken I’ve ever seen” and calling the gravy “wallpaper paste.” Additional trivia note: Sanders appeared as a contestant on the game show What’s My Line? on December 1, 1963. The restaurants were not as widely known then, and the panel members did not recognize him and were unable to guess his “line.” The colonel won $50 for stumping the celebrity panel.

…the phrase, “Hands down,” comes from horse racing? It was first used in the 1800s to describe the type of victory in a race where one horse was so far ahead of the others, the jockey was able to drop his reins. With his “hands down,” he would cross the finish line. (I’ll bet on that!)

…snakes are true carnivores? They only eat other animals. Snakes do not consume any kind of plant material. (For which plants are unendingly grateful.)

…only one insect is able to turn its head? While almost all insects find they have to turn their whole bodies to be able to look around them, the praying mantis has the ability to swivel its head on its neck. (Which does it no real good, but then no real harm, either.)

…strawberries are not always red? They can be white or yellow. And there are some varieties that actually taste like pineapples. (And I am allergic to all of them.)

…choosing an exciting place for your first date increases the chances of that special someone actually falling for you? (Another of my questions about my love life has now been answered. No wonder I don’t get second dates.)

…the world’s smallest jail is located in Canada? In the town of Rodney, Ontario, the world’s smallest jail is only 15 feet by 19 feet, and consists of two cells. (Small ones.)

…all of India is in one time zone? (A very efficient set-up, come to think of it.)

…a scorpion can withstand 200 times more radiation than a human can? (And the scorpions are welcome to it, too.)

…hedgehogs are lactose intolerant? (They know this how?)

…the fastest animal on six legs is the cockroach? A roach can cover a meter of distance in just one second. (Which is how they get away from you when you turn on the lights.)

…being an attorney is not a requirement for sitting on the U.S. Supreme Court? In fact, no specific qualifications are set forth in the Constitution for a person to become a Justice of the Supreme Court. It’s probably a good idea to have a legal background, though, since all Justices have to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate, and they have to base their votes on something. (No comment.)

Now… you know!

HHJ News