The feathered tale of the St-Hubert BBQ Restaurant’s iconic Rooster mascot is as quirky as a chicken doing the cha-cha! Believe it or not, this feathered friend wasn’t hatched by just any old animator. No, siree! It was the brainchild of none other than Jack Dunham, who, drum roll, please, was once a Walt Disney animator extraordinaire.
Yes, you heard it right! Jack Dunham, the man with a brush that animated the enchanting world of Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs, decided to wing his way up to Canada in 1955. But why, you ask? Well, to embark on a clucking awesome adventure, of course! He set up shop in Toronto and Montreal, where he sprinkled his animated magic on both commercials and live-action shenanigans.
Now, here’s the kicker that makes this tale worth its weight in golden chicken nuggets. Legend has it that Jack, the maestro behind the Rooster, was promised a lifetime supply of juicy rotisserie chicken for his logo wizardry. But here’s the twist: Jack never, and I mean never, took a bite of that delectable bird. Can you believe it? The man who gave the world a clucking rooster never partook in the feast himself. Maybe he was holding out for a lifetime supply of cartoon carrots instead!
Alas, Jack Dunham, the animation guru turned rotisserie royalty, shuffled off this mortal coil on March 15, 2009, at the ripe old age of 98. And even though he never sank his teeth into a piece of that St-Hubert chicken, his legacy lives on through that lovable Rooster, forever beckoning folks to enjoy a taste of poultry perfection.
“An article in the Montreal Gazette in March 2006 revealed that Dunham and his wife, Dorothy Stewart, a former fashion model, were homeless following their eviction from their Montreal apartment in February 2006. The Gazette reported, “Social service agencies are trying to place the couple in a care facility, but that could take a while.” Dunham and his wife, who had been married for 51 years at the time, were taken to the St. Luc Hospital to live following the publication of the article. Their move to the government-run hospital was reportedly against the couple’s will. Jack and Dorothy escaped from the facility, but were found by police in Ottawa and returned.”
Fun Fact: Laetiporus, a mushroom that grows in the wild tastes nearly the same as chicken/fried chicken. It is also known as “fried chicken mushroom”.