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The San Diego Chicken, also known as The Famous Chicken, the KGB Chicken or just The Chicken, is a sports mascot played by Ted Giannoulas.


History


Origin

The character originated in 1974 in an animated TV commercial for
KGB-FM KGB-FM (101.5 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to San Diego, California. It is owned and operated by iHeartMedia and broadcasts a classic rock music format. KGB-FM's studios are located in San Diego's Kearny Mesa neighborhood on the ...
Radio in
San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...
. Writer, cartoonist, and actor Brian Narelle was working for Odyssey Productions and offered to animate an acrobatic chicken as part of a commercial contract bid. Narelle went on to direct and animate the commercial as well as create cartoon art for the campaign. In March 1974, Giannoulas was hired to wear the first chicken suit; at the time he was a 20-year-old journalism major at
San Diego State University San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...
. He was originally from Canada but had attended Hoover High School in San Diego. The Chicken's first appearance was a KGB promotion to distribute
Easter egg Easter eggs, also called Paschal eggs, are eggs that are decorated for the Christian feast of Easter, which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus. As such, Easter eggs are common during the season of Eastertide (Easter season). The oldest tr ...
s to children at the
San Diego Zoo The San Diego Zoo is a zoo in Balboa Park, San Diego, California, housing 4000 animals of more than 650 species and subspecies on of Balboa Park leased from the City of San Diego. Its parent organization, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, is a p ...
. After his first appearance, Giannoulas, a lifetime baseball fan, approached the
San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...
front office. “I’ll bet I could get into games free in this get up,” he thought. He was allowed to wander throughout the stands at Padres games, and if someone said "lay one on me," The Chicken would "lay" an egg containing a prize via his leggings. He soon took to the field and, he recalled, “discovered a side of my personality I did not know existed, almost a Jekyll and Hyde thing.” Once on the field, he demonstrated a remarkable ability to mime, joke with players and umpires, and connect with fans. Padres’ attendance, which had been the lowest in the league, doubled that summer. The Chicken, whose antics entertained steadily larger crowds, began to add appearances at concerts and sporting events, while continuing to perform at more than 520 San Diego Padres games in a row. The Chicken also appeared at many San Diego Clippers basketball games before the team moved to Los Angeles. San Diego sports reporter Jack Murphy described him as an "embryonic Charlie Chaplin in chicken feathers".


Firing and afterwards

Conflict emerged between KGB Radio and Giannoulas, and he was fired on May 3, 1979. Another unnamed employee was hired to don a chicken outfit at a Padres game. Fans, many of whom were aware that Giannoulas was not in the outfit, booed the chicken loudly, forcing him off the field. After a lawsuit was decided in Giannoulas's favor in June 1979 by Judge Raul Rosado, Giannoulas was allowed to continue to perform in a chicken costume, although not the same one as the original. His new persona, the self-styled "Famous Chicken", emerged from an egg at a "Grand Hatching" seen by 47,000 people at a Padres game at
Jack Murphy Stadium San Diego Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium on the west coast of the United States, in San Diego, California. The stadium opened in 1967 as San Diego Stadium and was known as Jack Murphy Stadium from 1981 to 1997. From 1997 to 2017, the stadi ...
on Friday, as the sound system played the introduction to "
Also sprach Zarathustra ', Op. 30 (, ''Thus Spoke Zarathustra'' or ''Thus Spake Zarathustra'') is a tone poem by Richard Strauss, composed in 1896 and inspired by Friedrich Nietzsche's philosophical 1883–1885 novel ''Thus Spoke Zarathustra''.2001: A Space Odyssey''. Beginning in 1981, Giannoulas co-starred on the Saturday morning children's television series '' The Baseball Bunch'', alongside noted Cincinnati Reds catcher Johnny Bench and
Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...
manager
Tommy Lasorda Thomas Charles Lasorda (September 22, 1927 – January 7, 2021) was an American professional baseball pitcher and manager. He managed the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1976 through 1996. He was inducted into the Natio ...
. The local Emmy Award–winning series ran for five seasons and featured The Famous Chicken as the comic foil to Bench as he attempted to mentor a fictional baseball team of
Little League Little League Baseball and Softball (officially, Little League Baseball Inc) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizationMiami Herald'' sports writer Bob Rubin praised Giannoulas' contribution to the series, writing, "The Chicken may be the most gifted physical comic since Curly, Larry, and Moe." Five years after a halftime incident at a
Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January ...
' NBA game in January
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, a
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
jury ordered Giannoulas to pay $300,000 to a Bulls cheerleader injured when The Chicken tackled her on the basketball court. In 1998, the owners of the ''
Barney & Friends ''Barney & Friends'' is an American children's television series targeted at young children aged 2–7, created by Sheryl Leach. The series premiered on PBS on April 6, 1992. The series features the title character Barney, a purple anthropomo ...
'' children's television show on
PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
sued Giannoulas for copyright and trademark infringement, over a sketch in which The Chicken engages in a slapstick dance contest against a Barney-like character. Giannoulas prevailed in the suit and recovered his attorneys' fees, based on the court's determination that his sketch was a legitimate parody, and therefore protected speech. The success of the Famous Chicken helped lead to mascots becoming widespread throughout professional sports, particularly
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
. The Chicken was named one of the 100 most powerful people in sports for the 20th century by ''
The Sporting News The ''Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a pr ...
''. The pop culture publication '' Spy'' referred to Giannoulas as the Laurence Olivier of sports mascots, and ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' called him "perhaps the most influential mascot in sports history."Croatto, Pete (August 27, 2016
"The San Diego Chicken Heads into a Sunset"
''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
''
Giannoulas was inducted in the
Baseball Reliquary The Baseball Reliquary is a nonprofit educational organization "dedicated to fostering an appreciation of American art and culture through the context of baseball history and to exploring the national pastime’s unparalleled creative possibilities ...
Shrine of the Eternals in 2011.


Later activities

By 2015, The Chicken was reported to have made 5,100 appearances in 917 different facilities, 50 states, and eight countries, wearing out more than 100 chicken suits. As of August 2016, after 42 years of playing The Chicken, Giannoulas was still making appearances across the United States, albeit at a slower pace, performing at 11 ballparks in July and August of that year. He expressed uncertainty about how long he would continue, or whether he would appoint a successor. "It's not the end," he was quoted as saying, "but I can see it from here."


Notable appearances

*In 1975, The KGB Chicken made a promotional appearance at the first
ComicCon A comic book convention or comic-con is an event with a primary focus on comic books and comic book culture, in which comic book fans gather to meet creators, experts, and each other. Commonly, comic conventions are multi-day events hosted at co ...
convention. Convention organizers gave him the grand prize in their costume contest, then asked for it to be returned when they realized he was "a professional". *Early in the first
Holiday Bowl The Holiday Bowl is a post-season NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football bowl game that has been played in San Diego since 1978. San Diego County Credit Union has been the game's title sponsor since 2017, and the bowl has ...
on December 22, 1978, security guards attempted to eject The Chicken from the field. He refused to leave the game, sitting on the sidelines as the issue was ironed out. Meanwhile, as
Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-d ...
was working their way through the "red zone" for a touchdown, the crowd was chanting, "We want The Chicken." * The Chicken was on hand at
Jack Murphy Stadium San Diego Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium on the west coast of the United States, in San Diego, California. The stadium opened in 1967 as San Diego Stadium and was known as Jack Murphy Stadium from 1981 to 1997. From 1997 to 2017, the stadi ...
in , when the Oakland Raiders beat the San Diego Chargers on the infamous " Holy Roller Play" on September 10. After the Raiders recovered the winning touchdown in the end zone, The Chicken fell on the ground and lay motionless as though he had a heart attack. *The Chicken appeared at ''
WrestleMania XV WrestleMania XV was the 15th annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). It took place on March 28, 1999, at the First Union Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania ...
'' and ''
WrestleMania 2000 WrestleMania 2000 (sequentially known as WrestleMania 16) was the 16th annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). It took place on April 2, 2000, at the Arrowh ...
'', although the costume was worn by
Pete Rose Peter Edward Rose Sr. (born April 14, 1941), also known by his nickname "Charlie Hustle", is an American former professional baseball player and manager. Rose played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1963 to 1986, most prominently as a membe ...
at WrestleMania XV, during which he was Tombstoned by Kane. *The Chicken made a cameo appearance in the cult movie '' Attack of the Killer Tomatoes'' as one of the citizens stomping the remaining killer tomatoes in a parking lot. *In 1979, The Chicken recorded a cover of Rod Stewart's disco hit "
Da Ya Think I'm Sexy? "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?", also written "Da' Ya' Think I'm Sexy", is a song by British singer Rod Stewart from his ninth studio album, ''Blondes Have More Fun'' (1978). It was written by Stewart, Carmine Appice and Duane Hitchings, though it inc ...
" *In the 1980s, The Chicken would appear in
McDonald's McDonald's Corporation is an American multinational fast food chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechristened their business as a hambur ...
commercials with
Ronald McDonald Ronald McDonald is a clown character used as the primary mascot of the McDonald's fast-food restaurant chain. He inhabits the fictional world of McDonaldland, with his friends Mayor McCheese, the Hamburglar, Grimace, Birdie the Early Bird and ...
. McDonald's CEO
Ray Kroc Raymond Albert Kroc (October 5, 1902 – January 14, 1984) was an American businessman. He purchased the fast food company McDonald's in 1961 and was its CEO from 1967 to 1973. Kroc is credited with the global expansion of McDonald's, turnin ...
was also the owner of the Padres, at whose games The Chicken appeared frequently. *From 1982-1984
Donruss Donruss was a US-based trading cards manufacturing company founded in 1954 and acquired by the Panini Group in 2009. The company started in the 1950s, producing confectionery, evolved into Donruss and started producing trading cards. During th ...
sports cards sets included a card for The Chicken, with an offer on the back allowing purchasers to send the card to The Chicken himself to autograph it. *The Chicken is featured in the educational economics video ''Chickenomics''. *In 1986, he appear in '' Zoobilee Zoo'' Laughland where he gives a good laugh with Talkatoo Cockatoo and Lookout Bear and helps Bravo Fox find new good jokes. *In 1991, he appeared in a
Captain D's Captain D's is an American fast casual restaurant chain that specializes in seafood and is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. The chain was founded as Mr. D's Seafood and Hamburgers by Raymond L. Danner Sr. on August 15, 1969, in Donelson, T ...
commercial with his real-life mother, Helen Giannoulas *In 1994, The Chicken was featured in ''
Boys' Life ''Scout Life'' (formerly ''Boys' Life'') is the monthly magazine of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Its target readers are boys and girls between the ages of 6 and 18. The magazine‘s headquarters are in Irving, Texas. ''Scout Life'' is pu ...
'' magazine in a piece about mascots. Unlike other interviewed mascots who asked the magazine not to reveal their human names, Giannoulas was fine with his true name not being secret. The article says that Giannoulas' antics helped set a new standard compared to earlier dull mascots. *In 2008, The Chicken was featured in a
Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professiona ...
commercial along with
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Ralph Dale Earnhardt Jr. (born October 10, 1974) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver, team owner, author, and an analyst for '' NASCAR on NBC''. He currently competes part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving ...
, James Brown and Peyton Manning. In the commercial, The Chicken gets angry and tries to beat a customer when the customer says he does not like sports. The Chicken was held back by Manning. *In 2013, a caricature of The Chicken was featured in a ''
New Yorker New Yorker or ''variant'' primarily refers to: * A resident of the State of New York ** Demographics of New York (state) * A resident of New York City ** List of people from New York City * ''The New Yorker'', a magazine founded in 1925 * '' The ...
'' cartoon by Paul Noth; Giannoulas commented "This means I've finally arrived!" *In 2015, The Chicken was invited to appear as an Honored Guest at ''
Anthrocon Anthrocon (abbreviated AC) is a furry convention that takes place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania each June or July. Its caters to the furries: fans of fictional anthropomorphic animal characters in art and literature. The convention was first hel ...
'' on the weekend of July 9-12, 2015, which was their 19th Furry Convention held annually at the '' David L. Lawrence Convention Center'' in Pittsburgh PA *In 2021, The Chicken was invited by umpire Joe West to attend the game where West broke the record for most games umpired by a single person. *In 2022, The Chicken appeared in the
Peacock Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera '' Pavo'' and '' Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female peafowl are r ...
documentary ''I Love You, You Hate Me'' to comment on the Barney sketch.


See also

*
List of Major League Baseball mascots This is a list of current and former Major League Baseball mascots, sorted alphabetically. The tradition in the Major League Baseball mascot began with Mr. Met, introduced for the New York Mets when Shea Stadium opened in 1964. Although some masc ...
* Mascot Hall of Fame * '' Hatching Pete''


References


Further reading

* * *


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:San Diego Chicken, The Mascots introduced in 1974 Bird mascots Fictional chickens Major League Baseball team mascots San Diego Padres Culture of San Diego