Photo: Colin McMillen, Flickr.
"There are a lot of people here who knew him from way back," sighs Suzie Razmus, newly appointed chair of the Corbin (Ky.) Tourism Commission. "How can I say this? He wasn't exactly ..."
Universally beloved?
"Yes, exactly," Razmus says, with the obvious relief of a publicity pro saved from uttering something more damning. "You hear stories about women and his colorful language that didn't sit well with a small conservative town. There are still people here that say he owes their great-aunt money, or he fired their grandfather."
Still, Razmus senses the time is right to capitalize on Corbin's rich KFC history and officially recognize its most famous resident. She's put a Colonel Sanders statue at the top of her priority list.
"The newer generation is ready to embrace our heritage," Razmus explains. "Corbin is poised to be so much more than what it is."
The Harland Sanders Café and Museum, which stands on the spot where Sanders first mixed his secret blend of 11 herbs and spices, is just beyond Corbin city limits. Razmus believes pointing visitors to it could significantly boost Corbin's revitalization efforts.
"Colonel Sanders is the most recognized face in the world other than Jesus Christ," she says.
Razmus says the town hasn't yet settled on a design for the statue, or determined its size. I-75 squeaks right past Corbin, so a massive monument could conceivably be seen by hundreds of thousands of travelers every day.
"It needs to be as big as we can afford," Razmus says. "We're really proud of Colonel Sanders."
Would you be tempted to stop at the Colonel's museum? Tell us in the comments.
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