Frank Purdue, founder of Purdue Chicken and, until his son, Jim, took over as CEO in 1994, frequent face of the company’s televisions commercials died Thursday night at the age of 84 after a short period of illness. Known for his “it takes a tough man to make a tender chicken” tagline, Purdue appeared in 200 commercials from 1971 to 1994. His son continues as spokesman in the long running campaign.
