Monthly Archives: July 2013

Poultry with Pizzaz

I love this sign, which you can find in Jacksonville, Florida. I drove past it two times a day, four days a week, for six months or so, and I grinned almost every time I saw it. The chicken from Bucky’s Family Restaurant (see Friday’s post for a reminder) is certainly well-dressed, but really, you rarely see poultry with such panache.

ChickenKoopJacksonvilleFL

Let’s take a minute to really examine his ensemble. Snazzy hat? Check, with bonus points for the feather that adorns it. Suit? Check, with bonus points for the suit being red. Black and white formal shoes? Check, and I bet they’re made from alligator skin. (After all, this is Florida.) Long overcoat? Check, with bonus points for the coat being purple. Finally, he appears to be wearing gloves and he’s holding a cigarette. What’s not to love?

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Formal Friday

There’s nothing quite like a rooster wearing a top hat and tie to make a girl feel underdressed. When you’re a dapper dresser like the fine fowl featured on today’s Swine Sign, however, the words “casual Friday” mean nothing to you.

Top hat o' the morning to you!

Top hat o’ the morning to you!

All he’s really lacking is a monocle. This sign was sent in by Fowl Friend Valerie. If you’re ever in Columbia, Tennessee, you can check out the sign yourself–and maybe try some of that “Southern Country Cooking” as well. Leave the top hat at home, though: you don’t want to outshine the rooster.

Pass the Pigskin

Although it’s not even August yet, true football addicts fans are already discussing their teams’ odds of winning, the strategies they should adopt, the coaching decisions that should be made. Or at least this is the impression I’m getting from my football nut fan friends on Facebook, who for some reason feel the need to share every article written on any angle of the sport as it relates to their teams. So if you bleed orange/red/blue/whatever color your team’s blood is, you’ll enjoy today’s Swine Sign, which comes to us from Pigporter Katie.

Pigporter Katie really hopes those puffs behind him are dust and not something else.

Pigporter Katie really hopes those puffs behind him are dust and not something else.

In Montgomery, Alabama, where this sign is located, a person’s football allegiance comes second to only his or her church, and that’s only when you’re dealing with religious folks. Consequently, this pig means business: he’s wearing his helmet, he has his blacking on, and he’s got the ball securely tucked under his arm. And he’s doing it all while flashing a grin that should make his dentist proud. Thanks for sharing this sign, Katie!

To submit your own Swine Sign, click on the “About” tab above!

Two Purple Pigs

“Two Purple Pigs” is not the name of NBC’s newest attempt at comedy, nor is it the title of a top-secret food innovation project by Oscar Mayer and Monsanto. Instead, it’s the name of the restaurant with our first Swine Sign.

Two hoofs up for this sign in Manchester, TN

Aren’t they an adorable couple? Really, can you imagine them with anyone else?

I came upon these jewels of jowls in Manchester, Tennessee, a few weeks ago. The building is right off Interstate 24, and since the building is purple, it’s hard to miss unless you have your eye on the gas station across the street because you need a bathroom NOW. Unfortunately, Two Purple Pigs has apparently fallen victim to the sputtering economy: a woman at the restaurant’s  phone number said in her sweet, distinctive  Tennessee accent that “thay’re closed now.” (Also, she gets lots of calls for them. So please don’t call her. She may not be so sweet after getting many more.)

To submit your own Swine Sign, click on the “About” tab above!

Welcome!

If you’ve ever wondered  why barbecue restaurants love putting pigs with human characteristics onto their signs; if you’ve ever rolled your eyes at the sight of a person in a cow costume passing out fried chicken samples; or if you’re here by accident because you were actually looking for information on swine flu symptoms–WELCOME! 

You’ve likely seen a Swine Sign, though you may not have realized it. That barbecue joint in your grandma’s hometown, the one whose sign has a pig licking his lips while holding a knife and fork? Yep, that one’s a Swine Sign: a sign that features a pig in some weird, funny, quirky, or even morbid way. Whether the sign has intentional irony or accidental comedy, it has a place here. 

Pigs aren’t the only animals used in advertising, of course, so Swine Signs is happy to point the spotlight on other creatures as well. Cows, chickens, fish, and sheep are just some of the possibilities. Keep your eyes open, because you never know when you’ll spy one. For information on submitting a picture of a Swine Sign, visit our “About” page. And again, welcome!