In the late 1950s Harland Sanders roamed the countryside hocking his secret blend of herbs and spices. The self-styled colonel embellished his avian exploits and sold franchise rights all across the land. Seeing the high profit margins new players like Popeyes, Bojangles, El Polo Loco, Los Pollos Hermanos, and Zaxbys entered the game. But the most ruthless and bloodthirsty chicken salesman was a religious huckster named Thaddeus. Using religious doctrine as cover for his brutal tactics, he unleashed a swath anger and bloodshed across the poultry belt unseen since the burger wars of the 40s. Behind their smiles and sweet tweet lies and an empire of schmaltz — this is the story of how a religious zealot made chicken sandwiches out of chickenshit and went to the mattresses to build a criminal chicken empire.