The man who played the role of the Chicago Bulls mascot, Bull Benny, decided to end his career, the organization began looking for a replacement for the new season. The retired entertainer was hiding behind a veil of secrecy due to the new policy of the Bulls, who do not want to destroy the image of the most famous bull in the world. The name of the new artist will also be kept secret, and we can only hope that an exciting documentary will be released in the future, where we will be told all the intricacies and secrets of the symbol of the Chicago team.
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Creating and looking for the image of Toro Benny
The history of perhaps the most popular mascot in American sports (and this is the title Benny received from Forbes in 2013) dates back to 1969. After the Bulls formed in 1966, the team’s general manager tried to attract fans to the stands competing against the baseball and football teams. After being unable to run interactive events like blind dates and wrestling matches, the manager decided to create Benny the Bull. At first, the bull did not even receive a salary, and the players did not like being disturbed by a disguised person, but gradually the mascot began to take root.
Already in 1972, Benny began to receive an official salary. Jim Karager, who replaced discoverer Landy Patton, was especially excited. Harvey Johnson, who later replaced him, continued the line of behavior of his predecessor: he reacted vividly to controversial court decisions, even going so far as to make obscene gestures, for which he was expelled from the arena in 1974. Chicago did not want to scare away the family public so that they did not visit the stands, so Karager was traded for Howard Kirshner, who behaved calmly. It was a quiet image that developed in Benny in the early days of his existence.
she was jordanian
After 11 years as Chicago’s mascot, the 40-year-old Kirchner left the team. He was succeeded by Den Lemonnier, who later became the first legendary performer of Bull Benny.
Lemonnier’s arrival almost coincided with the 1984 draft, where the Bulls selected Michael Jordan. A new era has begun in which our beloved bull has become a part. Along with the enormous increase in the popularity and status of the team, there was a sharp increase in recognition of the mascot.
The video can be seen on the ChakerrOG YouTube channel.
Six championships, the status of one of the most popular teams in the United States, rock and roll. In such an environment, the team leaders ventured to add Benny’s companions such as “Lil Benny”, “Mini Benny” and even the ferocious bull Da Bull.
Da Bull was beloved by fans for his gymnastic skills, but the actor had trouble with illegal substances in 2004, after which the evil bull sank into oblivion.
The Barry Anderson era. peak popularity
Synchronized with Michael Jordan since the beginning of his career, Den Lemonnier ended his performances as Benny in 2004. He was replaced by Barry Anderson, who was able to bring the Bulls mascot to the peak of popularity. With Barry as Benny, Chicago didn’t need to find a replacement for Da Bull or bring in any other bulls, Anderson included all the right qualities: artistry, humor, incredible acrobatic ability and spectacular dunks. With the development of the Internet, the bull has become popular all over the world, accumulating millions of views on videos with the best performances.
pet mate
Photo: Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images
If in the Lemonnier era it could be said that the status of a mascot grew along with a team that lived the best moments of its history, then Barry Anderson, regardless of the performances of the Bulls, attracted the attention of all fans.
In 2015, the artist suffered a cruciate ligament injury, after which he was forced to end his career in 2016.
Modernity. popularity sunset
Barry was replaced by the hero of our article, whose departure gave us reason to talk about the history of the iconic mascot. He became the first anonymous performer of the role, not only so as not to destroy the image of the bull, but also for security reasons, which until then had not concerned the team. And this is amazing.
Our bull even has a YouTube channel where Benny’s funniest and most spectacular moments are exposed. Instead of millions of views, the materials now get tens or even hundreds of times less. The humor and tricks of the past already seem ridiculous enough, considering how quickly the mood changes and the level of irony and deconstruction of images of the past increases.
The video can be seen on Benny The Bull’s YouTube channel.
Benny’s decline in popularity coincides with the general trend: mascots are becoming less interesting to teen and adult audiences, who remember the existence of team mascots only after another fight with Robin Lopez. Benny and other animal representatives from other organizations primarily impress children, which brings us to a fork in the development of the image of the Bull. What does Benny want to be?
Continue to be entertainment for children so that parents like to come to games with the whole family? Or try to rebuild your own image in order to become interesting to the whole audience again? Or maybe the era of pets, in principle, is coming to an end?
We won’t know the answers anytime soon. But we can safely say that the new artist Benny will have the opportunity to go back in time, which I propose to see during the Chicago Bulls games next season.
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