Phillie Phanatic

The Phillie Phanatic is a large green monster-like mascot for the Philadelphia Phillies. Zoologically, he seems derived from an anteater and his backstory claims he is from the Galapagos Islands (and that he is a form of bird). One of the earlier major league mascots following the San Diego Chicken, the Phanatic made his furry, green debut on April 25, 1978. Bill Giles, chairman of the Phillies, was among the Phanatic's originators and he is owned and managed by the franchise. Early on, the Phillies did not hold the trademark to the Phanatic and as he gained in popularity, the Phillies were forced in 1984 to pay a sizable amount ($215,000) to buy the rights to use his image in perpetuity from original creators Harris/Erickson Inc. He replaced earlier mascots, Philadelphia Phil and Philadelphia Phyllis.

The Phanatic often performs skits prior to the game and between early innings. These may include audience participation or a plant on the field. There is also a female Phanatic that sometimes appears with the original. He wears a star on the back of his uniform jersey, where the uniform number normally appears.

In the late innings of the game, he will stand atop the Phillies dugout hexing opposing players, dancing with fans between innings, or dumping a giant tub of popcorn over opposing fans. His feud with Tommy Lasorda was legendary as the Phanatic used to ride over a dummy Lasorda with his ATV. He usually departs after the 8th inning. He is famous for his keen knowledge of the game and players and for hilarious imitations of some of the participants in the game. Even when there were no fans in the stands at the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, his interaction with the cardboard cutouts depicting absent fans were absolutely hilarious and would sometimes distract announcers from describing the game at hand.

The Phillie Phanatic was originally played by Dave Raymond until his retirement in 1994 and is now primarily played by Tom Burgoyne and other Phillies employees.

In 2018, Harris/Erickson contacted the Phillies claiming they had the right to terminate the 1984 agreement and regain control of the now extremely valuable character, making him a "free agent". The Phillies replied by suing the firm in the United States District Court of the Southern District of New York stating that the company's claim was legally baseless as it had signed away its rights in full knowledge and had been well compensated to do so.

Further Reading

• Matt Monagan: "Phillie Phanatic vs Orbit: The World Series of MLB's greatest mascots: A battle to end all battles", mlb.com, October 26, 2022. [1]

Related Sites

• MLB.com: Phanatic's Debut
• The Phillies' civil suit against Harris/Erickson The legal document explains the history of the Phanatic, and includes picture examples of costumes worn by the character over the years, derivative products, etc.