Handsome Dan
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Handsome Dan is the mascot of Yale University's athletic teams, a bulldog. In addition to a person wearing a costume, the position is filled by an actual bulldog, the honor (and the title "Handsome Dan") being transferred to another upon death or retirement. At first glance the job would seem to be largely ceremonial in nature, mainly consisting of being kept on a leash on the sidelines at Yale football games and dodging out of bounds players; however, as can be seen below, not every dog can successfully rise to the awesome level of responsibility. Showing animosity towards people wearing crimson, the color of Harvard uniforms, is a definite plus.
Handsome Dan is believed to be the first such live college mascot in America. Since the inception of the tradition in 1889, 16 dogs and 1 person have held the position:
[edit] Handsome Dan I
1889-1898 (died).
Purchased from a local blacksmith by Andrew Graves for $5.00, the first Handsome Dan founded a tradition and a dynasty by being led across the field before football and baseball games; his stuffed body keeps watch in the lobby of Yale's Payne Whitney Gymnasium, where passers-by can see the truth of the contemporary Hartford Courant's assessment of the irony inherent in his name: "In personal appearance he seemed like a cross between an alligator and a horned frog...". According to "The Philadelphia Press," Dan "would bark ferociously and work himself into physical contortions of rage never before dreamed of by a dog" when given the command to "Speak to Harvard"
[edit] Handsome Dan II
1933-1937 (died of a broken leg).
After a 35 year interval, Handsome Dan II was purchased with pennies donated by the freshman class, and given to coach Ducky Pond. Kidnapped by Harvard students in 1934 the day before the Harvard-Yale football game, he became an apparent victim of Stockholm syndrome; photographs show him happily seated at the foot of the statue of John Harvard in Harvard Yard, having a snack.
[edit] Handsome Dan III
1937-1938 (retired due to emotional instability).
A miserable failure, who exhibited morbid fear of crowds and had to be shamefacedly retired.
[edit] Handsome Dan IV
1938-1940 (retired due to injury).
Had his spine fractured by a car early in his term of office; served in absentia until he eventually died in 1940.
[edit] Handsome Dan V
1940-1947 (died of old age).
"Bull", brought in his youth to watch football practices by his owner, high school student Bob Day who lived near the Yale Bowl, ascended to office when Handsome Dan IV died. A great success, he loved public appearances and the adulation of crowds, was a familiar figure around the locker rooms, and joined the team on a trip to Princeton University.
[edit] Handsome Dan VI
1947-1949 (died mysteriously at age 2).
Variously reported to have died of fear from fireworks at the Yale-Harvard game, or of shame from seeing the Yale team lose to both Princeton and Harvard in the same year.
[edit] Handsome Dan VII
1949-1952 (retired due to emotional instability).
Donated to football coach Herman Hickman at age 3 but proved to have a bad temper, which suited him better in his next position as a watchdog on a Florida estate.
[edit] Handsome Dan VIII
1952-1952 (retired due to emotional instability).
Up to this point, Handsome Dans had lived at the Yale Boathouse and were cared for in a somewhat haphazard fashion. Handsome Dan VIII, however, was owned by assistant football manager Tom Shutt, ushering in a new era of family membership for the office-holder. Nevertheless, he had to retire after only two games due to intense discomfort with public appearances.
[edit] Handsome Dan IX
1953-1959 (died of acute kidney disease).
Notable for falling off the dock at the Yale Boathouse and nearly drowning (confirming the hypothesis that bulldogs cannot swim, due to the peculiarities of their physiques); some contemporary news reports say that he had to be resuscitated after having had his head embedded in the mud. He also appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated magazine in November, 1956. "Danny" was born September 11, 1953 and owned by John E. Sanders, Assistant Professor of Geology, after an earlier custody by physical education instructor, Alfred E. Scholz and Varsity Crew Coach Jim Rothschmidt. He made his mascot debut at the age of six weeks.
[edit] Handsome Dan X
1959-1969 (retired due to old age).
"Woodie" aka "Boodnick", also owned by John E. Sanders, marked a return to the high standards seen in Handsome Dan V. An impressive 74 pounds, a beloved family pet as well as winner of the best bulldog title at the Cape Cod Kennel Club conformation dog show, he was instrumental in leading Yale's football team to its 9 and 0 season in 1960. He spent several years commuting to New Haven, CT, from Dobbs Ferry, NY, prior to his retirement. His registered AKC kennel name was "Bayside Woodnought." He was sired by Ch. Bonny Boy of Fearnought out of Woodside's Christie Lou, and was a grandson of the famed Kippax Fearnought, the celebrated English import, who went Best in Show in 1954 at Westminster. He died in 1971 of natural causes.
[edit] Handsome Dan XI
1969-1974 (retired due to arthritis).
"Oliver", owned by Yale dean Horace Taft, loved football but had a tendency to doze in the sun during games. He was frequently sighted on Martha's Vineyard during the tourist season.
[edit] Handsome Dan XII
1975-1984.
"Bingo", owned by professor Rollin Osterweis, was described by her owner as "pugnacious and stubborn, but lovable". Bingo also had the distinction of being the only female Handsome Dan. Bingo was stolen by four Princeton Undergrads dressed as Yale Cheerleaders. They took "Bingo" to a friend's apartment in New York City on the run from authorities. The mastermind behind the canine-caper was Mark Hallam (1979). The group of students took Bingo back to her owner and held a press conference for her return.
[edit] Handsome Dan XIII
1984-1995; 1996-1996 (retired due to old age, twice).
"Maurice", owned by Chris Getman, was perhaps the most noteworthy of the Handsome Dans. He served in office longer than any other Handsome Dan; he was the only holder of the office to come out of retirement to serve again, due to the untimely death of his successor; and he appeared in Sports Illustrated, in 1989. His patience with the tedium of posing for professional photographers also served him well as he posed for game programs, brochures, and the 1991 Yale Christmas card, wearing a wreath and Santa Claus hat. He also appeared at swim meets, wearing a bathing suit. His love of Yale was evident in many ways: he would sing along with the Yale fight song (at least the "bow wow wow" part); he would "play dead" when asked whether he would rather die or join Harvard; and he lost his normally docile nature around mascots of opposing teams, launching assaults on the Princeton tiger mascot and the Brown University bear mascot. (There was also an unfortunate incident involving a policeman on horseback which resulted in his being ejected from the Harvard-Yale game, and Halloweens were somewhat touchy.) He died in 1997, just before turning 14.
[edit] Handsome Dan XIV
1995-1996 (died of heart attack).
"Whizzer" aka "Hetherbull", also owned by Chris Getman, was donated by Yale alumnus and bulldog breeder Bob Hetherington and boasted a pedigree fully worthy of Yale, being a descendant of 52 time best-in-show winner Hetherbull Arrogant Frigott; unfortunately, he also showed the undesirable effects of inbreeding so often seen with such a rarified family tree, possessing a temperament so hyperexcitable that he died in office from a heart attack, and was succeeded by his predecessor and housemate.
[edit] Handsome Dan XV
1996-2005 (died).
"Louis", also donated by Bob Hetherington and owned by Chris Getman, was named after three people named Louis, including football coach Carm Louis Cozza. He died in office in January, 2005.
[edit] Handsome Dan XVI
Handsome Dan XVI was chosen on 26 April 2005. Magnificent Mugsy Rangoon, an English Bulldog from Hamden, Connecticut, was picked by a five person panel for his gregarious personality, large size (69 pounds), good health, and his ability to deal with the raucous Yale Precision Marching Band. Mugsy is owned by Bob Sansone, a North Haven middle school teacher.[1]
At his first Harvard-Yale Game in 2005, Handsome Dan XVI was briefly stolen by a pair of Harvard undergraduates. The two lured him into the Harvard student section of the Yale Bowl as he chewed a toy depicting a Harvard football player. Yale University Police recovered him, unharmed but without his Yale sweater, a few minutes later.
[edit] Anti-bulldog hate crimes
Apocryphal tales [2] [3] assert that before the 1908 Yale-Harvard Game, Harvard coach Percy Haughton strangled a bulldog to death in the locker room to motivate his players. (Whether this is true or not, Harvard did win 4-0.)
