The Pennsylvania Lottery gave the pink slip to Gus, its animatronic TV commercial spokes-character and "The Second Most Famous Groundhog in PA". At least Gus made it through Groundhog Day. Firing him before Feb 2 would be like Scrooge terminating Bob Cratchitt before Christmas.
The field is now open for a new Lottery Spokes-Character. Gus's replacement must typify Pennsylvania and have a tie-in to the state lottery. The Keystone State's most famous son is Ben Franklin. An animatronic Ben could fly his kite with a lottery ticket on its string and be showered in riches when it is struck by lightning. For those more in tune with current events, an animatronic Governor Tom Corbett could attach a lottery ticket to a fracking rig and find himself hip-deep in campaign contributions. Actually, Governor Tom doesn't need the lottery ticket as long as he doesn't tax the frackers. Still, neither Ben nor Governor Tom has a historical connection to the Lottery.
I know he is a Jersey boy, but the character most in tune with the Lottery's origins is Tony Soprano. The Daily Number and Pick 4 are direct descendants of organized crime's Numbers Racket back in the '50s. I used to wonder why the US Treasury Balance was prominently displayed above the fold every day on the front page of the Scranton Times. My more-worldly classmates explained, "The last three digits are today's number. Guess it and you get $500. You don't have to buy the paper to see it either."
The new PA Lottery commercials may feature an animatronic Tony generously showering riches on our senior citizens. "Remember the old days? Those old Numbers Slips are now Lottery Tickets and we all benefit!" And they said that history has no relevance today.
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