I do hope everybody had a fun and safe summer and you’re looking forward to fall. If anybody knows me, they know I love Sir Pizza. If you’re from Murfreesboro, I’m gonna say there’s a pretty good chance you’ve had Sir Pizza.

With that being said, I got the opportunity to sit down with Rod Fortner, the son of the founder of Sir Pizza here in Tennessee. For me, it was an honor to get to ask him questions that I’ve always wondered about.

Mr. Murfreesboro: When and where did Sir Pizza begin?
Rod Fortner: Bob Fortner, my dad, who was a painter and drywall contractor from Muncie, Indiana, brought the first Sir Pizza here in 1966.

Who helped him get started, and why Murfreesboro?
Phil Butler was my dad’s best friend and he was the milkman for Pizza King, which was owned and was started by Bob Schwartz from Muncie, Indiana. Schwartz told Phil that he should open up a Pizza King franchise in North Carolina because that’s where Phil was from. Bob Fortner goes to Florida and thought that would be a good place to start. However, he and his family stopped in Murfreesboro and loved the people so much and chose Murfreesboro.

Where was the first Sir Pizza here?
Jackson Heights Plaza by the movie theater. Bob spoke to Mr. Jackson and found a perfect spot in Jackson Heights Plaza. That was the first location in Tennessee.

Where were the other locations?
Charlotte Avenue in Nashville, Bellevue, Smyrna and two in Murfreesboro.

What makes Sir Pizza the best pizza compared to other pizzas?
There’s no egg in the mix of the crust, which makes the crust crunchy. That’s the difference.

Where do you get all your ingredients?
We have a commissary that’s located under Jackson Heights. Everything from the pizza crust, to all the condiments we use, and to cook the sausage.

Who came up with the idea of the knight and name Sir Pizza?
We thought about calling it Pizza King like Bob’s. However, we found out there were a bunch of mom-and-pop pizza places with the name Pizza King. We came up with the knight as a marketing tool because of the name, Sir, which reminded me of a knight.

I’ve had people that want me to ask you how come y’all don’t have the buffet anymore?
It’s not profitable, but we do have the salad bar.

Have you ever gotten tired of pizza?
No.

What’s your favorite pizza?
Sausage.

Where do you see Sir Pizza in the future?
Since I’m retired, that will be up to my son Ryan and his first cousin, Leanne Poole, to decide, because they are the new owners.

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Did You Know?

Sir Pizza had a connection to Starwood Amphitheater in its final year in 2006? Sir Pizza was sold there that year. I had no idea.

A funny story that Rod told me: he was making pizzas in the kitchen there at Starwood at a concert. A Metro police officer came walking in and asked him “Do you have a red Corvette?” Rod answered “Yes.” The police officer told him there was a patron passed out in his car. I have no idea if he went to jail and neither does Rod.

As you can see, Sir Pizza is one of the long traditions of Murfreesboro. Most of us have stories—some people’s first date was at Sir Pizza, somebody’s first taste of pizza was at Sir Pizza.

When I go to heaven there will hopefully be a Sir Pizza.

As one of my friends told me—and some of y’all know where the Country Gourmet is, and about how they put out different Murfreesboro Christmas ornaments at Christmastime—well, we think there should be a Sir Pizza one just because of the role it has played here in Murfreesboro for the last 58 years.

I’d like to thank Rod Fortner for meeting me at the East Main Street location of Sir Pizza and for my half of the Farmer’s Almanac (a Sir Pizza specialty topped with ham, pepperoni, mushrooms, green peppers, onions, sausage and beef, black olives and green olives).

Now, everybody go out and make it a great day, and do something nice for somebody.