Jul 11, 2026 · 16 min · 10 segments
**Why Did The Chicken Cross The Road? | The Untold Philanthropy Story Behind Popeyes, Al Copeland & Two Foundations** Everyone knows Popeyes. Fewer people know the incredible story behind founder Al…
Celly CelHost
If you grew up anywhere in New Orleans or in the surrounding area, you know that this is the Al Copeland.
Listen, Al Copeland was not the man sitting next to the man sitting next to the man.
But for us here in the southeast, he was, you know, a character like and I don't mean that in a bad way.
i'm talking power boats i'm talking christmas lights probably millions of lights that you could see from space before there was an elon musk there was l copeland lamborghinis just big personality which for this city that was perfect right but i'm gonna give you a little background quickly before we get to the philanthropic side may i take it so l copeland had an even bigger ambition like he started somewhere in 72 uh with a chicken on the run or something like that in a place called arabia louisiana here in new orleans not i'm sorry here outside of new orleans but here's the thing about success and failure sometimes they dance together before you get where you're going right so chicken on the run didn't work Right.
But remember, he failed initially, so to speak, with the chicken on the run, but he went back, redid his recipe, did his research, found that flavor, because if you from Louisiana, New Orleans specifically, you can't just be giving us no bland chicken, see? Came back, got the right recipe, got a new name.
Now, before you think Popeye's is associated with the sailor and olive oil and Brutus, was it Brutus or Bruno? Brutus.
He got the name from the movie French Connection in which Gene Hackman played a character detective, I believe, called Popeye Doyle or something like that.
If you grew up anywhere in New Orleans or in the surrounding area, you know that this is the Al Copeland.
Listen, Al Copeland was not the man sitting next to the man sitting next to the man.
But for us here in the southeast, he was, you know, a character like and I don't mean that in a bad way.
i'm talking power boats i'm talking christmas lights probably millions of lights that you could see from space before there was an elon musk there was l copeland lamborghinis just big personality which for this city that was perfect right but i'm gonna give you a little background quickly before we get to the philanthropic side may i take it so l copeland had an even bigger ambition like he started somewhere in 72 uh with a chicken on the run or something like that in a place called arabia louisiana here in new orleans not i'm sorry here outside of new orleans but here's the thing about success and failure sometimes they dance together before you get where you're going right so chicken on the run didn't work Right.
But remember, he failed initially, so to speak, with the chicken on the run, but he went back, redid his recipe, did his research, found that flavor, because if you from Louisiana, New Orleans specifically, you can't just be giving us no bland chicken, see? Came back, got the right recipe, got a new name.
Now, before you think Popeye's is associated with the sailor and olive oil and Brutus, was it Brutus or Bruno? Brutus.
He got the name from the movie French Connection in which Gene Hackman played a character detective, I believe, called Popeye Doyle or something like that.
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