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San Jose Signs Index
Kentucky Fried Chicken
250 N. Bascom Ave.
Type:
Pole/Pylon, Sculptural
Materials:
Neon, Incandescent, Motorized
Themes:
Arrows
People come from all over the country to photograph San Jose’s Kentucky Fried Chicken bucket sign, but why? As it turns out, it’s the last KFC bucket left in the United States that is still on display near its restaurant. The bucket features an illustration of the Colonel and the early “Kentucky Fried Chicken“ typeface— both introduced in 1952. But it also includes the slogans “finger lickin’ good” (introduced in 1956) and “North America’s Hospitality Dish” (1956 to 1966). How did San Jose’s beloved bucket get spared the wrecking ball? In the mid-1990s, when a new restaurant was under construction, the San Jose Planning Department required the architects to retain the sign.
--Heather David
References and Links
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