By Heather Taylor, Editor-in-Chief, PopIcon
For the first time in its five-year history, The National Mascot Hall of Fame has created a special display honoring an a-peeling corporate brand mascot.
Dole’s own Bobby Banana has received his own display in The National Mascot Hall of Fame. “Bobby Banana: Dole’s Healthy-Living Icon for a Hungry World” will run in the space now through September 2024 and coincide with the upcoming Dole 125th Banana-Versary.
Why Bobby Banana?
PopIcon fans may remember Bobby Banana previously hosted Advertising Week’s 2020 Madison Avenue Walk of Fame awards.
In 2020, #AW2020 went fully virtual for the first time ever amid COVID-19. Bobby Banana joined us on Zoom to announce the year’s two winning mascots, StarKist’s Charlie the Tuna and Philthy from Yards Brewing Company.
Naturally, we love this news a whole bunch. Others less active in the character space may be puzzled. Why is a corporate mascot getting its own exhibit in a space that’s known for celebrating sports mascots?
Karen Anaszewicz, Executive Director of The National Mascot Hall of Fame, said in a press release, “While the focus of the National Mascot Hall of Fame has traditionally been on college and professional sports mascots, we can’t help but admire the work of corporate icons like Dole’s Bobby Banana who have helped electrify and inspire progress toward a better, healthier and more equitable world. Once we heard about this year’s Dole Banana-Versary, we knew the time was ripe to tell the Bobby Banana story.”
Celebrating 125 Years of Dole Bananas
Since 1899 when the Standard Fruit Company’s foundation would later become Dole Bananas, bananas have become a truly iconic, delicious and nutritious fruit. Dole’s 125th Banana-Versary (#DoleBananaversary) celebrates 125 years in the journey of growing, innovating, and farming the iconic banana.
As the brand’s healthy-eating icon, Bobby Banana was introduced in the 1980s as the official mascot for Dole Food Company.
Bobby, who proudly stands unpeeled at seven feet tall, was and still is on a mission to get every American to enjoy a diet and healthy lifestyle full of fresh fruits and vegetables. Over the years, Bobby has been joined by various Dole friends like Pinellopy Pineapple, Courtney Cauliflower, Mia Mango and Gavin Grape online and at schools and in supermarkets to share more about the benefits of enjoying your daily fruits and veggies. Incidentally, Bobby does walk the walk about this messaging. According to Dole, the mascot eats nine servings of fruits and vegetables a day.
The “Bobby Banana: Dole’s Healthy-Living Icon for a Hungry World” exhibit features illuminated display panels featuring information about Bobby, Dole and Dole’s 125h Banana-Versary. Bil Goldfield, Director of Corporate Communications at Dole, helped develop it.
Visitors eager to celebrate the Banana-Versary may visit The National Mascot Hall of Fame at its physical location in Whiting, Indiana. Details about tickets, obtaining a membership and museum hours may all be found on The National Mascot Hall of Fame website.
Will Any Other Corporate Mascots Be Recognized?
Not to take the spotlight off Bobby, but this character’s induction has everyone at PopIcon wondering whether more corporate mascots will be joining the museum soon. The answer is yes, says Anaszewicz.
““After years of requests, we have decided to start officially inducting corporate mascots into the museum in 2025 as part of our expanded commitment to telling the full mascot story. More details on this exciting evolution for the National Mascot Hall of Fame will be announced soon – so stay tuned!”
Image credit: Dole
About the Author
Heather Taylor is the senior writer and editor-in-chief of PopIcon, Advertising Week’s blog about brand mascots. Got a pitch on brand mascots or want to wax nostalgic about characters? Drop her a line at howveryheather@gmail.com.
