Mascot mania

Once the purview of sports teams and colleges, mascots have become ubiquitous in Rhode Island. We all know the Big Blue Bug, the crouching giant termite off I-95 that welcomes drivers to and from Providence and does double-duty as the mascot for New England Pest Control. The Providence College Friars had Dalmatians serve as mascots before introducing a live-action, bald-headed, big-bellied Friar that routinely patrolled Schneider Arena and the old Providence Civic Center (while students at both venues blew up inflatable Friars to complement the live mascot, presumably to raise the intimidation factor.) A newer, slimmer, more serious Friar replaced the jolly, portly one a few years ago and has made appearances on ESPN’s “This Is SportsCenter” commercials and on SportCenter’s Top-10 Plays.

The University of Rhode Island’s mascot – Rhody the Ram – pays tribute to the school’s agricultural origins and the state’s textile heritage. It also got itself thrown out of a game between URI and Wake Forest, played in Providence, back when Tim Duncan played for the Demon Deacons. I know because I was at the game, yelling at the referee that threw out the Ram.

Strangely enough, that incident didn't make the Ram's Wikipedia page, but controversy continued to dog Rhody in subsequent years:

February 3, 1998 - Rhody the Ram tried to prevent the St. Joe's Hawk from his eternal flapping by putting an inner tube over its head, temporarily immobilizing his arms. While trying to remove the tube, the Hawk's head (costume) fell off. The incident was televised and repeated on ESPN.

December 2, 2006 - Rhody the Ram was assaulted by a fan at the Dunkin' Donuts center during halftime of the annual URI-Providence College game, a fierce in-state rivalry. The assailant was never found, but Comedy Central talk show host Stephen Colbert has claimed responsibility for the attack. The Ram was taken to the hospital for minor injuries, making this another incident in the long and sometimes ugly rivalry between the two teams.

The beloved mascot bears of Rhody’s professional minor league teams (“Paws” for the PawSox and “Samboni” for the P-Bruins) are more popular than the players taking the Landon Wilson shuttle back and forth to Boston.

But beyond sports, mascots are now selling everything. For a couple of years at least, the R.I. Resource Recovery Corporation, partnering with Recycling for RI Education, has promoted a multi-colored, oddly costumed alien superhero named MaxMan to champion the cause of recycling in the Ocean State. According to Encyclopedia Superheroica: “MaxMan saves the world by recycling.” And “MaxMan roams the Ocean State spreading the word regarding the wonders of recycling.” He even has a catchphrase: “Recycle it right!”

Not to be outdone, the mascot for the R.I. Coastal Resources Management Council is a larger-than-life-size Chinese Mitten Crab named Mitzilla. Created by Providence puppet masters and international performers Big Nazo (who last year crafted the always-hungry, bloodthirsty plant Audrey II in Theatre By The Sea’s production of “Little Shop of Horrors), Mitzilla was commissioned under the R.I. Aquatic Invasive Species Management Plan. According to the CRMC Web site:

The mitten crab was inspired by the R.I. Resource Recovery’s MaxMan puppet, which serves as a mascot to educate the public on recycling. The crab’s purpose will similarly be to educate the public on the problems of aquatic invasive species and will appear at public events and school programs.

The latest mascot to enter the mix is the R.I. Blood Center’s Captain Hemo Globin, who appeared on the scene just in time to raise awareness of the need for summer blood donations. (You can find a picture of him by scrolling down on this Facebook link.)

Where the next Rhody mascot will come from is anybody’s guess. In the meantime: What is your favorite Rhode Island mascot?