A Japanese version of the 'Curse of the Bambino'?

I'm sure many readers have heard of the alleged 'Curse of the Bambino'. According to legend, when the Boston Red Sox traded Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees in the 1919/20 off-season, they incurred a 'curse' that prevented them winning the World Series from that time onward. The purported 'curse' appears to have been broken in 2004, when the Red Sox finally won the pennant again.

Now, from Japan, we hear the story of a statue and what's being called the 'Curse Of Colonel Sanders'. No, you don't get it from eating Kentucky Fried Chicken food (although I could tell you some stories . . . ). According to the Mainichi Daily News:

A statue of Kentucky Fried Chicken's Colonel Sanders tossed into Osaka's Dotonbori River some 24 years ago by rowdy Hanshin Tigers fans has been discovered.

The Colonel's upper body, minus the hands, was discovered on Tuesday evening by divers checking for unexploded bombs as part of riverside pedestrian walkway improvement works. The figure's legs and right hand were discovered Wednesday morning.

The Colonel ended up at the bottom of the river in 1985, when delirious Hanshin Tigers fans celebrating the team's first Central League title in 21 years decided the figure bore a striking resemblance to Tigers slugger Randy Bass and, lifting it off its base in front of the Dotonbori Kentucky Fried Chicken franchise, gave the Colonel a victory toss. The fans put a little too much energy into the toss, and the Colonel Sanders figure went over the railing of the Ebisu Bridge and into the river. Since the statue's victory dive into the Dotonbori, searches for the statue were undertaken, but none with any success.

The Hanshin Tigers have not won the Japan Series since 1985, a fact attributed by some to the "Curse of Colonel Sanders."

The upper body of the statue was discovered at around 4 p.m. about 200 meters away from where it plunged into the water in 1985. When the figure was being pulled up by the crane on a salvage barge, construction workers could be heard to say, "It looks like a corpse." However, when Tigers fans such as the riverside project foreman saw the statue, they exclaimed, "It's the Colonel!" Passersby also stopped in their tracks to take in the scene.

With the media and locals looking on, divers began their search for the lower body at around 8:50 Wednesday morning, and discovered the right hand some minutes later. About 10 minutes after that, the diver's voice burst from a speaker on the salvage barge, saying, "It's the lower body. There's no mistake about it," bringing on a cheer from reporters and workers alike.

The statue sections are covered in river mud and badly stained, and the figure's feet, left hand and glasses have yet to be uncovered. The Osaka Municipal Government, which is responsible for the riverside, is holding the statue and will consult with Kentucky Fried Chicken Japan on how to handle it.

And what do Hanshin Tigers fans believe the Colonel's discovery portends?

"We'll be number one in Japan this year for sure," they say.

Reuters has a video of the recovery of the statue.

You know, if I were KFC Japan, I'd be launching an immediate advertising campaign, calling for all Hanshin Tiger fans to buy and eat KFC food every day as a propitiation offering to the offended Colonel, and thereby ensure a win! Of course, if the Tigers don't win, KFC could always point out that the fans didn't eat enough of it . . .



Peter