Garbage-TimeMascot Hall of Fame
August 16 2007 11:06 PM Filed in: Rant
In my daily scouring of all things sports something
very interesting came to my attention The Mascot Hall
of Fame. First thing I never knew such a thing
existed, why didn't I know such a thing existed? This
is by far one of the most unbelievably things I have
ever heard of. So I go to the website which is
www.mascothalloffame.com and
there are 9 inductees a third of the being NBA
mascots. Out of the nine inductees I recognized
a third of them, one being the The Phillie
Phanatic of The Philadelphia Phillies, another
being Bucky the Badger of University of
Wisconsin, and the third being The Phoenix
Gorilla of The Phoenix Suns. Out of the three
NBA mascots I recognized only one, probably the
most famous mascot in the league.
So it came to a shock that the other two were both bears. Why do teams have bears as their mascots unless they are the Grizzlies? I have no idea, the two mascots are Clutch the Bear of the Houston Rockets and The Jazz Bear of the Utah Jazz. I have no idea what bears have to do with rockets or jazz music, but each of these teams have one for a mascot. Here are their bios from the Hall.
The Jazz Bear
Utah Jazz's Mascot
Introduced in 1993 * Created NBA's Mascot Conference * Recognized by peers and fans as one of the top NBA mascots * Received the RC Willey community service award * Day named after the Jazz Bear by the Governor of Utah * Received over 50 other community service awards for charity work *
Born deep in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah, "Bear" was destined to be a star. After graduating Bear Point Academy and performing as a member of the Bearnum and Bailey Circus (where Bear learned most of his tricks), Bear was finally discovered by a Jazz scout and was able to bring his high-flying, crowd-pumping skills to Jazz fans young and old. Jazz Bear separates himself from the rest with his combination of pyrotechnics and acrobatics. Jazz fans have the pleasure of watching Bear repel from the arena ceiling, as well as sledding, surfing and biking down the arena stairs. Some Bears hibernate when it gets cold; Jazz Bear prefers dunking through hoops of fire for warmth. A winner of numerous community awards, Bear is a huge part of the Jazz's success.
Clutch the Bear
Houston Rocket's Mascot
Introduced in 1995 * Voted first NBA 2005 Mascot of the Year * 5th Most recognizable mascot of all time by USA Today * 2003 Game Ops Mascot of the year * Mascot Video skit of year 2004 and 2006 at Idea Conference * 2005 "Crazy for the Finals" Mascot Stunt competition winner * Star of his own book "Clutch's Day at the Doctor" * Over 250 appearances in Houston, USA and internationally outside of the Rockets games.
Since bursting onto the scene in 1995, Houston's Own CLUTCH "The Rockets Bear" has become one of sport's most celebrated mascots. Named the 5th most recognizable mascot in sports by USA Today in February 2005, Clutch is the Houston Rockets' number one fan, and can be seen cheering on his team at all Houston Rockets home games. Whether he is creating impromptu comedy, cheerleading, signing autographs, dancing with the Power Dancers (to the beat of his own drum), doling out hugs, or performing on-court skits, Clutch is always a fan favorite. While attending a Rockets game there is a good chance you will see Clutch get shot out of a cannon or dunking the ball while soaring through the air. You might also catch Clutch's alter-egos (Angel and Devil Clutch). Though a celebrity in his own right, he has worked with many Hollywood celebrities, sports stars and politicians, including Jack Nicholson, Kevin Costner, George Bush Sr., Tiger Woods, Adam Sandler, Bill Murray, Nelly, Chris Tucker, Andy Roddick, Roger Clemens, and Nolan Ryan, to name a few. Clutch tours over 100 schools each year performing school programs and makes numerous other community appearances throughout the Houston area. Not to be just a home town Bear, Clutch has developed a strong following in China along with his buddy Yao Ming.
I am just mystified that these two are some of the most recognizable mascots, how can that be? Up until today I never heard of them. They make absolutely no sense for being a mascot, these two are even crazier idea for a mascot compared to the Gorilla, which is one of the coolest mascots ever because he was one of the first mascot to do the trampoline dunk. Which is more entertaining than watching Nate Robinson attempt the same dunk 12 times. I leave you with the bio of the greatest mascot in the history of the NBA.
The Phoenix Gorilla
The Phoenix Suns
The Suns Gorilla or "Go" as he is affectionately called raised the bar before the NBA even knew there was a bar to raise.
Before GO or BG fans would go to a game and see the same old stuff. After Go or AG there was an opportunity to see a character performer launching themselves off of mini-tramps executing high flying acrobatics while performing spectacular dunks. BG there was the same old thing. AG there were fun and creative in game skits and routines performed by NBA mascots on the court in quarter breaks and timeouts that would leave you rolling in your seats. BG it was the same old thing. AG it was just plain better! The Godfather of the mini-tramp dunk the Gorilla flies high to his rightful perch in the Mascot Hall of Fame.
So it came to a shock that the other two were both bears. Why do teams have bears as their mascots unless they are the Grizzlies? I have no idea, the two mascots are Clutch the Bear of the Houston Rockets and The Jazz Bear of the Utah Jazz. I have no idea what bears have to do with rockets or jazz music, but each of these teams have one for a mascot. Here are their bios from the Hall.
The Jazz Bear
Utah Jazz's Mascot
Introduced in 1993 * Created NBA's Mascot Conference * Recognized by peers and fans as one of the top NBA mascots * Received the RC Willey community service award * Day named after the Jazz Bear by the Governor of Utah * Received over 50 other community service awards for charity work *
Born deep in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah, "Bear" was destined to be a star. After graduating Bear Point Academy and performing as a member of the Bearnum and Bailey Circus (where Bear learned most of his tricks), Bear was finally discovered by a Jazz scout and was able to bring his high-flying, crowd-pumping skills to Jazz fans young and old. Jazz Bear separates himself from the rest with his combination of pyrotechnics and acrobatics. Jazz fans have the pleasure of watching Bear repel from the arena ceiling, as well as sledding, surfing and biking down the arena stairs. Some Bears hibernate when it gets cold; Jazz Bear prefers dunking through hoops of fire for warmth. A winner of numerous community awards, Bear is a huge part of the Jazz's success.
Clutch the Bear
Houston Rocket's Mascot
Introduced in 1995 * Voted first NBA 2005 Mascot of the Year * 5th Most recognizable mascot of all time by USA Today * 2003 Game Ops Mascot of the year * Mascot Video skit of year 2004 and 2006 at Idea Conference * 2005 "Crazy for the Finals" Mascot Stunt competition winner * Star of his own book "Clutch's Day at the Doctor" * Over 250 appearances in Houston, USA and internationally outside of the Rockets games.
Since bursting onto the scene in 1995, Houston's Own CLUTCH "The Rockets Bear" has become one of sport's most celebrated mascots. Named the 5th most recognizable mascot in sports by USA Today in February 2005, Clutch is the Houston Rockets' number one fan, and can be seen cheering on his team at all Houston Rockets home games. Whether he is creating impromptu comedy, cheerleading, signing autographs, dancing with the Power Dancers (to the beat of his own drum), doling out hugs, or performing on-court skits, Clutch is always a fan favorite. While attending a Rockets game there is a good chance you will see Clutch get shot out of a cannon or dunking the ball while soaring through the air. You might also catch Clutch's alter-egos (Angel and Devil Clutch). Though a celebrity in his own right, he has worked with many Hollywood celebrities, sports stars and politicians, including Jack Nicholson, Kevin Costner, George Bush Sr., Tiger Woods, Adam Sandler, Bill Murray, Nelly, Chris Tucker, Andy Roddick, Roger Clemens, and Nolan Ryan, to name a few. Clutch tours over 100 schools each year performing school programs and makes numerous other community appearances throughout the Houston area. Not to be just a home town Bear, Clutch has developed a strong following in China along with his buddy Yao Ming.
I am just mystified that these two are some of the most recognizable mascots, how can that be? Up until today I never heard of them. They make absolutely no sense for being a mascot, these two are even crazier idea for a mascot compared to the Gorilla, which is one of the coolest mascots ever because he was one of the first mascot to do the trampoline dunk. Which is more entertaining than watching Nate Robinson attempt the same dunk 12 times. I leave you with the bio of the greatest mascot in the history of the NBA.
The Phoenix Gorilla
The Phoenix Suns
The Suns Gorilla or "Go" as he is affectionately called raised the bar before the NBA even knew there was a bar to raise.
Before GO or BG fans would go to a game and see the same old stuff. After Go or AG there was an opportunity to see a character performer launching themselves off of mini-tramps executing high flying acrobatics while performing spectacular dunks. BG there was the same old thing. AG there were fun and creative in game skits and routines performed by NBA mascots on the court in quarter breaks and timeouts that would leave you rolling in your seats. BG it was the same old thing. AG it was just plain better! The Godfather of the mini-tramp dunk the Gorilla flies high to his rightful perch in the Mascot Hall of Fame.
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