The Spotted Elephant is a character from the stop-motion children’s Christmas special Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, produced by Rankin/Bass in 1964. The Spotted Elephant resides with other unwanted toys on the Island of Misfit Toys, a land ruled by King Moonracer. (Moonracer is possibly a manipulative cult leader with megalomaniac tendencies who hoards rare, emotionally damaged toys.)
The Colorado State Rams mascot, CAM the Ram, is NCAA Division I pixel art mascot #101 of 351. (View reference images.)
The North Dakota State Bison mascot, Thundar, is NCAA Division I pixel art mascot #96 of 351. In football, the Bison are the current three-time defending NCAA Division I-FCS national champions and have a 43-2 record since the start of 2011, the best record in all of Division I football during that time frame. To date, the Bison have won 25 straight games, the longest streak in both Bison and FCS history. (View reference images.)
Note: The North Dakota State football team has won its last five games against FBS teams: at Kansas (2010), at Minnesota (2011), at Colorado State (2012), at Kansas State (2013), and, most recently, at Iowa State last weekend by a score of 34-14.
The Marshall Thundering Herd mascot, Marco, is NCAA Division I pixel art mascot #81 of 352. Earlier this month, the newly redesigned Marco won the Conference USA Mascot Challenge. (View reference images.)
Note: It was 33 years ago today that Southern Airways Flight 932 crashed, killing all 75 people on board, including 37 Thundering Herd football team players and five coaches. The accident is widely considered to be the deadliest sports-related tragedy in U.S. history. The 2006 movie We Are Marshall depicts the aftermath of the plane crash. This 8-bit pixel art character is for my cousin Adam, a Marshall alum.
Benny the Bull is the mascot of the Chicago Bulls, a role he has filled since 1969. He has become just as popular as some of the franchise’s most notable figures, such as players Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman and head coach Phil Jackson. Benny is one of the longest-tenured mascots in the NBA and in all of professional sports.
The Virginia Commonwealth Rams mascot had its biggest Cinderella moment in 2011 when the 11th-seeded VCU men’s basketball team advanced to the Final Four of the NCAA tournament, ultimately losing to Butler. This is NCAA Division I pixel art mascot #58 of 348. (View reference images.)
Krampus is a demonic beast-like creature from the folklore of Alpine countries thought to punish bad children during the Yule season, in contrast with Saint Nicholas, who rewards nice ones with gifts. Described as half-goat, half-demon, Krampus is said to capture particularly naughty children in his sack and carry them away to his underworld lair. He beats people into behaving with a bundle of birch sticks. According to folklore, Krampus shows up in towns on the night before December 6, known as Krampusnacht, or Krampus Night. The history of the Krampus figure stretches back to pre-Christian Germanic folklore.
Note: Happy Christmas Eve! Hopefully Krampus the holiday devil doesn’t show up on your street dragging rusty chains and bells.
Quick Draw McGraw is an anthropomorphic cartoon horse who starred in The Quick Draw McGraw Show (1959-1962), the third cartoon television production created by Hanna-Barbera. He is usually depicted as a sheriff, with a Mexican burro deputy named Baba Looey. Quick Draw was the mascot for Sugar Smacks (now Honey Smacks) from 1961-1965. In the 1970s, he appeared in several productions with Yogi Bear and friends.
Secretariat was an American Thoroughbred racehorse, who in 1973 became the first U.S. Triple Crown champion in 25 years, setting race records in the Kentucky Derby (1:59 2⁄5) and the Belmont Stakes (2:24) that still stand today. He’s the greatest racehorse of all time, in part due to his freakishly huge 22-pound heart.
Note: The 144th Belmont Stakes was run on Saturday, June 9. But few cared because favorite I’ll Have Another—who could have become the first Triple Crown winner since 1978—was retired on Friday after an injury.
A fictional reindeer with a glowing red nose. Known as Santa’s ninth reindeer, he is depicted as the lead of Santa’s sleigh on Christmas Eve. Rudolph first appeared in a 1939 booklet written by Robert L. May and published by Montgomery Ward. He stars in the stop-motion Christmas special Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, produced by Rankin/Bass in 1964.
Hope you have a nice Christmas Eve! I will be spending mine in a dirty Amazon jungle town in Peru.
Bullwinkle J. Moose is the cartoon moose protagonist of the 1959-1964 animated television series The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show, produced by Jay Ward. Bullwinkle was known for being well-meaning but dimwitted. He and Rocky have a shared sense of optimism, persistence and traditional ethics and moral standards.
You need to watch the hilariously profane short film/mashup Raging Bullwinkle, supposedly created by the animators of The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle (2000) for the film crew’s enjoyment.
The Navy Midshipmen mascot is NCAA Division I pixel art mascot #51 of 347. Yes, the United States Naval Academy’s “midshipman” mascot is a goat. Go figure. This is FBS independent schools mascot #3 of 4. (View reference images.)
The Army Black Knights mascot is NCAA Division I pixel art mascot #50 of 347. Army has two costumed mascots: Blackjack the Mule and the Black Knight. I decided to draw the former. This is FBS independent schools mascot #2 of 4. Today is the start of the NCAA Division IA football schedule. (View reference images.)
The Boise State Broncos mascot is NCAA Division I pixel art mascot #47 of 347. I hadn’t made a college mascot in a while, so here is Buster Bronco. Today is the first day of the 2011-12 academic year, which means Boise State University is now a member of the Mountain West Conference and has withdrawn from the Western Athletic Conference. This is Mountain West mascot #1 of 8. (View reference images.)
Note: Boise State’s Bronco Stadium is known for its blue field color, or “Smurf Turf.” It was the first college stadium field to be any color other than traditional green, as well as the only college to have a non-green field for 22 years (1986-2008). Since 2009, three other colleges (Eastern Washington, Central Arkansas, New Haven) have installed non-green fields, but Boise State holds a trademark on the blue field.
The elephant-headed Hindu deity is widely revered as the Remover of Obstacles and patron of the arts and sciences. He is associated with intellect, wisdom and writing. Like Vishnu, he has an extra set of arms.
The Arkansas Razorbacks mascot is NCAA Division I pixel art mascot #36 of 347. SEC mascot #2 of 12. (View reference images.)
The Alabama Crimson Tide mascot is NCAA Division I pixel art mascot #35 of 347. SEC mascot #1 of 12. Read about the 1930 origin of the “Red Elephants.” (View reference images.)
P.S. After a nine-month hiatus, more mascots are on the way.
The Oklahoma Sooners mascot is NCAA Division I pixel art mascot #29 of 347. Big 12 mascot #8 of 12. (View reference images.)
Tiny Ivo the Pony Boy – No. 405
Tiny Ivo is a stuffed animal that resides on our bed. He is a brown woolen unicorn made in Oregon by Krystal and Mark Sharp, also known as The Roaming Peddlers. This magical unicorn, which my girlfriend Heidi bought in 2011, is embroidered with flowers and stuffed with about 1 1/2 pounds of organic herbs and flax seeds. He is a Magical Forest Friends creature. He was given the name “Derwin the Unicorn” by his makers. His tag explains that Derwin means “friend to the animals” in Teutonic. Tiny Ivo’s body is stuffed with chamomile flowers, calendula flowers, white willow bark, horsetail herb, juniper berries, dandelion root and flax seeds.
P.S. The name Heidi gave him was inspired by Golden the Pony Boy in The Science of Sleep, a favorite film in our house.