That's one big, funky chicken

[NightWatcher]

http://roadsidegeorgia.com/site/bigchicken.html

Johnny Reb's was a Marietta, Georgia greasy spoon with a challenge. Owner Tubby Davis was facing increasing competition and he needed a means of attracting customers to his establishment. "Reb" burgers at 15 cents a shot were no longer unique, but his fried chicken might just do the trick.

He turned to Georgia Tech ('57) graduate Hubert Puckett to design and build the sheet metal structure that rose 56 feet above the ground. Puckett was employed by a division of Atlanta Steel, a structural design and building firm. The eyes were designed to rotate and the beak would open and close. A ruffle on the top of the Big Chicken's head would move from side-to-side in the wind.

Over the years the structure created at the corner of Highway 120 and U. S. 41 gained a certain renown with local folks who used the chicken as a landmark for directions. "In the shadow of the Big Chicken" or "first light south of the Big Chicken" are still common phrases used on television and radio to describe a location in Marietta. In fact, Marietta Square is just six blocks west of the Big Chicken.