How LEE's Became Famous!

Rich History. Timeless Taste.

1930 FAMOUS BEGINNINGS

Lee Cummings' childhood centers on time spent in the kitchen of his family's Indiana home.

1952 THE RECIPE HITS THE ROAD

Lee and his uncle, Colonel Harlan Sanders, take to the road selling their own special spices and pressure cookers. These would later become part of KFC's "Secret Recipe."

1959 THEY'RE IN BUSINESS

Colonel Sanders franchises the original KFC with Lee Cummings as president.

1962 LEE GETS COOKING

In only three years, The Colonel and Lee open 800 KFC stores. The Colonel
decides to sell the flourishing chain as Lee begins developing his own recipe,
which will later become known as the "Famous Recipe."

1966 AMERICA'S FIRST TASTE OF FAME

Lee Cummings and Harold Omar open "Harold's Take Home" restaurant in Lima, Ohio, where Lee introduces his Famous Recipe chicken.

1967 UP AND RUNNING

Lee's opens new stores in Dayton and Cincinnati, Ohio and Kalamazoo, Michigan.

1972 THE GREAT TASTE GROWS

Company pilot and director of operations Jerry Sullivan helps open 65
new stores for the company and becomes the franchisee for store
number 100 in Sanford, Florida.

1981 FIFTEEN YEARS AND GOING STRONG

Lee's Famous Recipe marks its 15th anniversary the same year
Shoney's, Inc., in Nashville, Tennessee, purchases the rights to the company.

1982 FAMOUS RECIPE'S FIRST FARMHOUSE

Lee's introduces its new farmhouse store design in Jacksonville, Florida.

1991 A QUARTER-CENTURY OF CHICKEN

Lee's celebrates its 25th anniversary with Lee Cummings as its national spokesman.

1995 A CHANGE OF HANDS

A new era begins as Lee's is purchased by RTM.

2003 A NEW VISION FOR THE FUTURE

The franchise hits its stride as it is purchased by Lee's
Famous Recipes, which begins moving toward aggressive growth
opportunities in the coming years.

2006 FORTY YEARS OF FAMOUS FLAVOR

Lee's celebrates 40 famous years in the restaurant business with its best years still to come!