Bird

Saxophonist and composer Charlie Parker acquired the nickname "Yardbird" early in his career,[3] There are conflicting stories on the nickname, but the most common tale is that "Yardbird" was given to him while traveling to a gig with The Jay McShann Orchestra. The car that he was riding in accidentally ran over a chicken, and Parker insisted on taking the dead "yardbird" to fix up for dinner at their destination, rather than have it go to waste.

The shortened form "Bird" remained Parker's sobriquet for the rest of his life, inspiring the titles of a number of Parker compositions, such as "Yardbird Suite", "Ornithology" and "Bird of Paradise." The nickname was used by film director Clint Eastwood for his biopic "Bird."