National Mascot Hall of Fame Honors Dole’s Bobby Banana

There is no more popular banana-based mascot than Dole’s Bobby the Banana.

The National Mascot Hall of Fame, the country’s only online and physical museum and interactive educational experience dedicated to honoring the contributions of sports mascots, has unveiled a special display featuring Bobby Banana, the celebrated 7-foot ambassador of Dole Food Company created in 1992 to promote healthy living around the world.

The National Mascot Hall of Fame is located in Whiting, Indiana, 21 miles south of Chicago, and also maintains a virtual museum honoring the 33 mascots it has inducted to date.

The exhibit, “Bobby Banana: Dole’s Healthy-Living Icon for a Hungry World”, celebrates Bobby Banana’s 32 years of promoting healthy living.

The three-month Bobby Banana display was timed by the museum is timed with with Dole’s 125th Banana-Versary, commemorating 125 years in the banana business. a year-long celebration of the global produce leader’s 125 years in the banana business encompassing online, social, promotional, in-store, and other activities through 2024.

Bil Goldfield, Dole’s director of corporate communications, helped develop the exhibit, which includes a series of illuminated display panels offering information about Bobby Banana, Dole Food Company and the Banana-Versary.

Bobby Banana is the first globally known corporate mascot to be displayed at the National Mascot Hall of Fame.

The exhibit will be on display until September 30, 2024, coinciding with Dole’s year-long celebration.

The National Mascot Hall of Fame is open Tuesday through Thursday from 10am to 3pm, Friday and Saturday from 10am to 5pm, and is closed Sunday and Monday. Admission is $8-10. For visitor information, go to https://mascothalloffame.com/visit/.

SOURCE: Dole Inc.

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.

said Karen Anaszewicz, the museum’s executive director.

We’ve had many dialogues with the National Mascot Hall of Fame over the years, so to finally see the display christened and welcoming guests is a major thrill – for me, Bobby and everyone at Dole, This day instantly becomes a highlight of our Banana-Versary.

Bil Goldfield, Dole’s director of corporate communications