When was al copeland born

Copeland began franchising his restaurant in , opening the first franchise restaurant in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Approximately outlets were added over the next 10 years, followed by more during a period of slower expansion. In March , Popeyes, then the third-largest chicken chain, purchased Church's Chicken , the second largest. Combined, the company had over 2, locations.

Efforts were made to close underperforming stores and sell franchises; however, operational improvements could not overcome financial burdens resulting from the merger.

The Church's purchase was heavily financed with the security being the assets of Popeyes and the acquired company. Creditors had petitioned for involuntary bankruptcy and efforts to have the petition dismissed had failed. In October , the bankruptcy court approved a plan submitted by a group of Copeland's creditors that created America's Favorite Chicken Company, Inc.

AFC served as the new parent company for Popeyes and Church's. Although Copeland lost Popeyes due to the bankruptcy, he retained the rights to some Popeyes recipes and products. Annual Christmas display Copeland became a local celebrity in New Orleans through his annual Christmas light display.

Many national media organizations have ranked the display, most notably the " Today " show, which ranked it in the top three. While Copeland's display was the main attraction, surrounding homes also contributed to the atmosphere, and foot-traffic between displays and neighborhood parties was significant.

Not all neighbors were pleased with the annual festivities, and in he was sued by his neighbors to remove the display. New Orleans newspaper columnist Chris Rose, on informing his children of Copeland's passing stated, "I realized it was like telling a kid that Santa Claus was dead. A melee ensued, involving Copeland, Guidry, and Guidry's sons. Witnesses said that Copeland's then wife who was six months pregnant was knocked to the ground.

Alvin Charles "Al" Copeland born February , also known by his stage name Al Copeland, is an American Entrepreneur. The 76 year-old is currently divorced and has 9 kids Al Copeland Jr. Al Copeland's height is 0 ft 0 in 0 m and he puts on an estimated weight of 0 lbs 0 kg.

Alvin Charles "Al" Copeland has no known formal education. John Doe's net worth is pretty close to 8 million. John Doe is 47 years old. Last reported, John Doe's weight was 92 lb 90kg and his height 82 ft 88 cm. Copeland learned he had cancer of the salivary glands, a rare form of the disease that strikes no more than three people per , annually in the United States, according to the American Cancer Society.

Despite his illness and subsequent hospitalization, the Christmas display outside his house in an upscale Metairie neighborhood went on as scheduled, featuring thousands of lights, animated figures and house-size representations of a teddy bear and Raggedy Ann. Copeland was "a classic entrepreneur," Ricchiuti said. You can't teach that in a business school.

It's something inside you. Maybe it comes from a tremendous desire to succeed against all odds. Copeland, whose family lived for a while in the St. Thomas housing complex, never finished high school. He told friends that the competitive spark hit him when he was working the beverage counter at a Schwegmann's Super Market in Gentilly. A co-worker never stopped drumming up business.

When Mr. Copeland asked why, the young man replied, "I'm out to prove I'm better than everybody," said Wohl, also a local author and artist. When he was 18, Mr.

Copeland sold his car to get capital to buy a doughnut shop from his brother Gilbert, and he turned the shop into a moneymaker. Then he watched what happened when a Kentucky Fried Chicken outlet opened nearby. Inspired by the amount of business the store did, Mr. Copeland decided to start frying chicken.

After two years of testing recipes on friends and family, he opened Chicken on the Run in Arabi in Its slogan was "So fast you get your chicken before you get your change," and Mr.

Copeland stood on the neutral ground handing out fliers. But the fledgling business struggled -- perhaps, Wohl said, because Mr. Copeland was flavoring it with a mild recipe after friends had told him that the spicy version he had prepared just wouldn't sell.

Realizing that bland fried chicken was going nowhere, Mr. Copeland started using the spicy recipe. To show that he was operating a new enterprise, he decided to change its name. At that point, Mr. There is no apostrophe in the name, Mr. Copeland often joked, because he was too poor to afford one. In an industry known for its high mortality rate, the restaurant started turning a profit in three weeks. Because business was so brisk, he added "Famous" to the title, Wohl said. The biscuits came later to the outlets, and the corporate name after Mr.

John sang. In , franchising began, and within a decade Popeyes was the third-largest fast-food chicken chain in the country, behind KFC and Church's. Along the way, Mr. Copeland was married twice -- the first time to Mary Alice LeCompte, his childhood sweetheart, and the second time to Patty White.

Both marriages ended in divorce, and the first Mrs. Copeland died in As he built his business, Mr. Copeland developed his public persona, and he was elevated to the status of a local icon. He was a man who could be counted on to show up in a flashy car wearing flashy, usually black, clothes and looking perpetually tanned and youthful, generally sporting an earring or two. Besides winning a shelf full of trophies, Mr.

Copeland set up the Offshore Professional Tour, a charitable fundraiser that became a star-studded event. Copeland became what he called a "secret Santa," underwriting gifts for 1, needy children that Santa Claus delivered after dark on Christmas Eve. And the man who never finished high school established the Alvin C.