Surreal scene: fried chicken sandwich in the foreground with a crucifix on steps and glowing McDonald's arches in a golden sunset sky.

In 1960, McDonald’s franchise owner Lou Groen had a problem. His Cincinnati, Ohio, restaurant sat in a neighborhood that was 87 percent Catholic, and on Fridays, when many Catholics abstained from eating meat, his hamburger sales collapsed. With his struggling restaurant and his family’s livelihood on the line, Groen came up with an idea: sell fish.

Simon Whistler of Today I Found Outand the Brain Food Show shares how Groen’s creation helped turn a struggling Ohio franchisee into the owner of 43 McDonald’s restaurants.