But does it tap the right code?

posted at 7:40 pm on May 22, 2008 by Ed Morrissey
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Few pop-culture items are as inexplicable and yet ubiquitous as the bobblehead. Notables of all stripes know that they have truly entered into the firmament of celebrity when they have their image created on a doll with a spring for a neck. Entertainers, athletes, politicians, and even historical figures all eventually become bobbleheads — I even have a Sam Adams bobblehead, courtesy of my friends at the Sam Adams Alliance.

But what do we do with the more notorious? In one case, we create the bobblefoot:

The St. Paul Saints, long known for offbeat, sometimes edgy, promotions, have come up with a real doozy for this Sunday’s game.

While lots of sports franchises hand out bobblehead dolls, usually depicting their players, the Saints are handing out 2,500 “bobblefoot” knicknacks.

The keepsakes consist of a miniature bathroom stall with a couple of lower legs and feet. One of the feet is springloaded and “taps,” which, the Saints’ press release says, is in honor of National Tap Dance Day. …

The team also takes pains to note: “It doesn’t matter if your tapping style is done with a ‘wide stance’ or is used as some sort of code.”

The Saints won’t admit it, but everyone understands this as a reference to Senator Larry Craig, arrested here last year for attempting to importune an undercover officer for sex in the bathroom. Craig at first pled guilty to keep the arrest quiet, but later tried to reverse his plea when the story went national. The police officer who arrested Craig reported that he gave several signals including tapping his toes under the restroom stall divider, while Craig insisted he just had a “wide stance”.

It’s a strange sort of promotional give-away for a minor-league baseball team. It doesn’t quite fit with the Saints’ usual advertising aimed at families, and one suspects that Mom and Dad might have a little trouble explaining the humor behind the toy. Minor-league baseball has a long history of oddball promotions to get fans to the field, and this may not even qualify as the most tasteless — but it’s certain to be mentioned in that class of tacky but memorable events.

As for me, I think it’s pretty clever. Reviews at the Star Tribune are decidedly mixed, and rather heated. Would Hot Air readers go out of their way to pick one up, or would they boycott the Saints for this impish behavior? (via Scott Johnson of Power Line)

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