November 16, 2008
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Sourdough Sam in the old days, chillin'
with some friends.The Daily News
1 I looked at the Niner game yesterday and noticed something was amiss.
2 I looked in the background and noticed their mascot.
3 But I noticed that the mascot wasn't the same one as that little guy who's been out there over the more recent years.
4 I didn't think much of it until the teevee announcer mentioned the mascot by name: Sourdough Sam.
5 Who knew? We all know Lou Seal, the Giants' mascot. He's WAY noticeable, changed form once but has lasted for a while now in his new form. Most fans are familiar with Stomper, the Republican mascot of the Oakland A's.
6 And perhaps the most popular, the extremely electric Sharkie from the San Jose Sharks is also pretty well-promoted.
7 I had NO idea that the Niners' mascot even HAD a name. I just remember him bashing his head against the goal post a few years ago after Dallas scored a field goal. I remember thinking of how pathetic the poor guy was. Pretty low-budget compared to his Bay Area friends.
8 The Niners are notoriously reticent about promoting a mascot. Years ago they had some prospector walking a burro around the stadium. The prospector never had a name, but the burro did. His name was Clementine. They just walked around the sidelines doing virtually nothing else. At some point this guy showed up, but nobody relaly paid him much attention, let alone giving him a name. In a sidenote: Clementine lived to the grand old age of 25 and passed away on March 30, 1968 in Moraga, California. I credit the 49ers website with that jewel.
9 Not until yesterday did I even have a CLUE that their subsequent mascots had a name. It's as though they're those aunts, uncles, grammas or cousins that we just don't talk about.
10 And I had actually gotten used to the little old guy with the beard and the bite taken outta his hat. He never really took the local stage and as far as I know was never addressed publicly by name, but then I haven't really been to a 49ers' game as a fan in years. But this guy was around for a while.
11 Anyway I took a look and found that the old Sourdough mysteriously disappeared two years ago and was replaced by this guy:
12 The Niners management insistst that THIS guy is Sourdough Sam. But history tells us that the OTHER guy is Sourdough Sam.
13 This new guy is younger, taller, and looks like Mel Gibson starring as a California State Monument in Coloma.
14 I looked into the mystery and discovered that the old prospector suit was too hot (duh!) and that after around four games a few years ago the guy walked off the job.
15 I'm guessing it's non-union.
16 So the Niners' management put their imbecilic heads together and started promoting this guy. Evidently he's making a bigger splash these days.
17 That oughta put a few more butts in the seats.
18 So we'll probably be seeing a lot more of this guy as the team marches towards the Super Bowl.
19 <sigh>
20 Well the Niners finally won a game yesterday. I guess there's a lot of optimism out there. But right now the Sharks seem to be THE Bay Area team to enjoy. Tremendous leadership, management, promotion, coaches and preparedness for games. It's easy to see, especially if you're watching from a distance as most Niners' and Raiders' fans will attest.
21 Ah sports. The Niners spend the entire past two years hiding an atomic quarterback and are now ready to strike. Brilliant thinking. It's pretty obvious their ownership knows exactly what they're doing.
22 They have a coach who sends kids to their rooms, and makes them take their hats with them, and then who drops trou at halftime to make some sort of point.
23 It's a darned good thing Ralph Barbieri has been burning matches on the Niners' toes lately. It seems most of their recent decisions are the direct result of criticism from Ralph, as well as Mark Purdy,Tim Kawakami, and Ann Killion of the Merc News. Looks like the news media should take over the place and redecorate.
24 Well sports fans, I'll return the DN to regular news tomorrow.
25 Monday. I hope you all live through it. Just remember: the people next to you, in front of you, above you and below you probably don't wanna be where they are either, unless you're on a cruise somewhere.
26 Just smile, breathe, and enjoy the day. It'll go fast. Come home, re-group, and you'll get into a rhythm before you know it.
27 Meanwhile, enjoy yourself today.
28 Have a good one.
29 Peace.
~H~
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