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This article was written and sent to us by the world’s preeminent Olympic Mascot collector, Mr. Bob Christianson. This article is a bit outdated but non-the-less a great read. I hope you enjoy it. If you have any stories or info please feel free to forward them to us and we will give it some serious consideration. Who knows, we might load it up on to the site.
My personal favorite Olympic Collectibles of all are the Mascots. They have only been around since 1968 in Grenoble where an orange ball on skis named schuss was used to promote the Olympic Lottery. This was considered by the IOC as an unofficial mascot. Presumably, this is because he was an animated figure familiar to the French and appeared in comic books and other media before the Grenoble Games. He appears on a pin and I have seen him as small toys between two inches to eight inches in height. The1968 Summer Olympic Games also had a mascot-like personage, all over Mexico City during the Games. It was a dove sometimes referred to as "Paloma ". The image appeared on posters, clothing, but never as a plush toy as most mascots are known to take. Since the Summer Games of Munich every Games has had at least one official mascot. Waldi, a dachshund, was produced in dozens of forms but not as a pin until many years later. Innsbruck in '76 saw the first \ official mascot Schneer^Anner appears originally as a pin. He appeared in other forms and I am still looking for him as a plush toy. Amik, Montreal's beaver mascot was one that I sought for years and eventually found in a Salvation Army thrift shop for a dollar. I know collectors that will pay hundreds for one of them today. RONI raccoon from the Lake Placid Olympics is the first transvestite mascot. His predecessors usually took one general form even if constructed of different materials. RONI appears in different sports poses in various products, and one of them is as pair’s ice skaters in which one partner has to be a woman. Moscow's favorite son was mishap the bear. He was probably the most liked mascot to date. The Moscow Games also saw a second mascot who most folks do not remember. It was a seal named Vigri who served the Yachting events in Tallinn. Voochko, the Sarajevo wolf, was a sly little devil and a bit of a womanizer if what I read about him in a Sarajevo humor magazine can be taken seriously. Sam the eagle was all decked out in red, white, and blue for the Los Angeles Games. Designed by artists from Walt Disney Studios, he looked suspiciously like a parrot named Jose Carrioco but no one ever looked into Sam's past. Calgary saw the first male and female mascots ” Hidy and Howdy — who were polar bears. Seoul also had a male and female combo, but Hodori the tiger hogged the spotlight and his female counterpart, Hosuni, was seldom seen. Albertville saw its first mascot "chamois", a mountain goat common to the Savoie region of France, unceremoniously dropped about two years before the Games in favor of a Snow Imp named Magique. Cobi, the surreal dog from the Games of Barcelona, started out in disfavor. A creation of local cartoonist Javier Mariscal, he was universally despised by the Spaniards. He later grew on them and by the time the Games were over, he was loved all over the world. The Barcelona Games had a whole group of mascots, including Paralympic mascot Petra, to support "Gobi". They were part of a popular TV show in Spain. Lillehammer had the first people mascots, two children from Norwegian folklore named Hakon and Kristin. Atlanta will have the first amorphous mascot. No one knows exactly what IZZY (aka "Whatizit") really is. He has changed appearance three times since first showing up at the closing in Barcelona. Most recently, he grew a nose. The Nagano mascot was originally a weasel named Snowipe. I guess there were those who felt a weasel was not a good Olympic role model, so he was replaced by four snow owls yet unnamed as far as I know. For reasons I cannot explain these characters strangely appeal to me and I must have them in my collection in every form imaginable. Just try to picture me flying home from Albertville on Air France with a four foot tall Magique occupying the seat next to me. I will comment on the remaining Olympic mascots and potential wannabees in the future
Thank you
Bob
My address:
Robert J Christianson
943 Hamilton Court
Palm Harbor, FL
34683-6334
USA
Phone # 1-727-789-6311
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