An interview with the official mascot for the Mascot Hall of Fame
What is the mission of the Mascot Hall of Fame?
We are the most unique hall of fame institution in the country. Our mission is to honor mascot performers, performances and programs that have positively affected their communities in North America. We do that by embedding our mascot-themed interactive exhibits with educational subjects focused on the K-8 student population. Not to mention, we are also teaching adults that it’s OK to be a kid for a couple hours!
Is there pressure that comes with being the mascot of all mascots?
There’s no real pressure on me, I just live here. The hall of famers are the ones who have all the pressure. They are judged on delivering iconic performances, the number of community events they participate in and the value they bring to their communities and brands—not to mention how many schools and hospitals they visit. Although, I suppose there is pressure on me to keep the Mascot Hall of Fame looking spick-and-span for visitors.
What’s your favorite part about working at the Mascot Hall of Fame?
You call it work. I call it ridiculous—ridiculous fun, that is! My favorite time of year is every June, when I invite all the hall of famers back to the home of all mascots to celebrate the induction of a new class. It’s a ton of work and planning—and something called “logistics”—but it’s so much fun to host the best mascots in the business of mascotting.
What goes into the selection process for choosing your mascot hall of famers?
The best mascots in the business provide tremendous value to the teams and brands they represent. They bring together teams, players, communities and fans. Mascots must be at least 10 years old and provide their mascotting résumé, including any school programs they’ve developed, the number of times they’ve visited hospitals to cheer up patients going through a rough time and so much more. While we don’t include it, I’d like to personally know how many high-fives they’ve given and how many T-shirts they’ve tossed into the crowd at their games.
So far, your hall of famers all work in sports—will you feature those in other fields soon?
It’s more likely I’ll invite international sports mascots to show their stuff. Mascotting is such an important cultural phenomenon across the globe; it’s a near certainty that we’ll go international before we go corporate. That doesn’t mean I’m not inviting the Michelin Man, Cap’n Crunch, the Geico Gecko and so many others to stop by my crib to say hello!
Julian Zeng is omni-channel content manager at the American Marketing Association. He may be reached at jzeng@ama.org.