By the time he had reached the end of his career, he was reviled in
the Bronx. The front office would barely acknowledge his existence, the
players would not associate with him, and the fans mocked him
relentlessly.
What? No, this article isn’t about Alex Rodriguez. It’s about Dandy, the long forgotten mascot of the Yankees.
Stop laughing. This was a thing. Really.
Let’s go back in time to the late 70’s. Mascots were a huge thing for baseball.
The Phillie Phanatic was bringing his team in excess of 2 million a
year since his debut in 1978. The Bronx wanted a piece of this action.
Bonnie Erickson, formerly of Jim Henson’s Muppets and creator of Miss
Piggy, had designed the popular Phanatic and Montreal’s Youppi with
partner Wayde Harrison. Both of these characters hold spots in the
Baseball Hall of Fame. The couple were contracted to create a New York
mascot. The result was the Yankee Dandy. He was doomed from the start.
It was a rare miss for the accomplished couple. What they created
basically resembled a cross between Captain Caveman and a fuzzy sex toy
with a walrus porn ‘stache. In their defense, the mustache was supposed
to be evocative of Thurman Munson. Also his baseball cap could spin
around. And he carried a red bandanna. For some reason.
Dandy was universally mocked and immediately reviled. He looked awful
and had a silly name. At best, he looked like a bowling pin. At worst,
Big Bird’s penis. Cute is one thing. But looking like a dirty joke about
Sesame Street is quite another. Dandy was to debut in July of 1979. But
his puzzling appearance was Strike One.
Strike Two happened the previous June. Freelance mascot The Famous
Chicken was working for Seattle and got into some silly business with Ron Guidry. This set off Lou Piniella, who stated mascots had no place
in the game. The Boss backed up his manager, and said that mascots
shouldn’t be in baseball. It was two weeks before his own mascot’s
debut. Strike Two.
Dandy was not allowed on the field or even anywhere near it. He was
consigned to the Upper Deck. Fans in the Upper Deck in 70’s New York
City, regarding mascots, were only interested in whether or not they
could fly. Tales and rumors abound of the beatings Dandy took. They are
either funny or tragic, depending upon the storyteller.
Then, only days after the mascot debuted, on August 2, Thurman Munson
died in a plane crash. The one thing they got kinda right on Dandy
would now remind people that their Captain was dead. Strike Three. Dandy
was over before he began.
The poor schmuck was kept hanging around for a little bit, but Dandy was
shelved for good in 1981. He was never given any real shot,
announcements, or fanfare. Little publicity. Hated in general. New York
was quick to forget him. Even his designers tossed him aside.
You would think this would be the end of Dandy’s story. But you would
be wrong. We have no intention of leaving our readers hanging when it
comes to his fate. After all, Dandy was an unlucky shmoe who never asked
to be what he was. None of this was his fault.
Happily, one of the Yankees greatest mistakes has re-invented himself
in Brazil. He found a worthy cause to represent, shaved off the silly
fur, and fights testicular cancer as Mr. Testicles.
No it’s not nuts. It’s Dandy.
Chad R. MacDonald
BYB Features Writer
Facebook: New York Yankees the Home of Champions
My Blog: ChadRants
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