Lloyd Olsen, residing in Fruita, Colorado, once attempted to prepare a chicken for dinner as per his wife’s request. In the process, he severed the head from a five-and-a-half-month-old chicken. Unusually, instead of dying immediately, the chicken, later named Mike, continued to move about, preening and even attempting to crow. A unique twist of fate occurred when the beheading left intact part of its brainstem and jugular vein, allowing vital functions to continue. Notably, a blood clot helped prevent Mike from bleeding out.
Recognising an opportunity, Olsen capitalised on the incident by transforming Mike into a sideshow attraction. He showcased the headless bird on tour, charging the curious public a quarter to witness this extraordinary phenomenon, thereby earning significant profits. As Olsen tended to Mike, feeding it with milk and water via an eyedropper, the chicken became a media sensation, featured in prominent publications such as Time and Life magazines.
Remarkably, Mike lived for 18 months post-beheading, until his untimely death at a motel in Arizona, attributed to choking on mucus due to a lack of a cleaning device Olsen had forgotten. An autopsy confirmed that choking was the cause of death.
Olsen utilised the profits from his unconventional chicken to enhance his farming operations, purchasing tractors and hay balers, and he continued his life as a farmer thereafter. The legacy of Mike the Headless Chicken remains significant in Fruita, where an annual festival is dedicated to the bird, known as Mike the Headless Chicken Day. Additionally, the town features a statue honouring this bizarre tale, ensuring that Mike’s unusual story endures in local folklore.