KFC founder's personal belongings fetch thousands at Kentucky auction

More than 70 personal belongings once owned by KFC founder Colonel Harland Sanders sold at auction Tuesday in Shelbyville, Kentucky, drawing collectors from across the country and online bidders eager to own a piece of fast-food history.The collection included items from Sanders' personal and professional life, from handwritten notes and recipe cards to his signature clip-on bow tie and the 1964 planner that sparked one of the night's biggest bidding wars."They had all of this in basements and closets and everything, and decided it was time to let the world, who loves the man, have an opportunity to buy the memorabilia," Bill Menish, owner and lead auctioneer with The Menish Group, told Fox News.WHY KFC STOPPED CALLING ITSELF KENTUCKY FRIED CHICKEN — AND THE MYTHS THAT STILL WON'T DIEAmong the night's top-selling items was Sanders' 1964 planner, which sold for $30,000. A 1955 Kentucky Colonel certificate fetched about $23,000, while his iconic black clip-on bow tie sold for $8,000.One collector and former employee of the Colonel said the planner stood out as the most fascinating item in the auction."Probably that planner, I would imagine," the buyer said.Menish said the planner generated additional buzz because of a handwritten note on the back."But then on the back, for some unknown reason, there's 11 herbs and spices," he said.WHY KFC'S FRIED CHICKEN TASTES DIFFERENT FROM THAT OF EVERY OTHER FAST-FOOD CHAINWhile collectors came for the memorabilia, many of the items also documented how Sanders built Kentucky Fried Chicken into one of the world's best-known restaurant brands."When he introduced the pressure cooker, which was never intended for fried chicken, he turned it from 30 minutes to 10 minutes," Menish said.