Corky the Hornet

Corky the Hornet
Corky the Hornet at an Emporia State football game.
University	Emporia State University
Conference	MIAA
Description	Hornet
First seen	February 15, 1933

Corky the Hornet (commonly known as Corky) is the mascot of the Emporia State University sports teams. Paul Edwards (BSE 1937) created the mascot, Corky, when he was a student at Kansas State Teachers College.

History

Creation of Corky

Original drawing of Corky the Hornet.

In the 1930s, Emporia State University was named Kansas State Teachers College, and were known as the "Yaps". Many people were not fond of the name, most notably legendary coach, Vic Trusler. Trusler suggested to the Emporia Gazette's Cecil Carle that the university's athletic teams should be called the "Yellow Jackets". However, the name changed to "Hornets" because of the lack of newspaper space.^[1]

In 1933, the Kansas State Teachers College had a student contest where students and staff could design a mascot for the college. Sophomore Paul Edwards, who graduated in 1937, designed Corky for a campus-wide logo contest. Many students sent in their drawings of a mascot, but they chose Edwards' Corky, a "human-like" hornet. Corky was published in The Bulletin, the student newspaper for Emporia State University. Although Edwards won the contest, he was originally in lost to another student named Richard Weller, who later withdrew.^[2]

Paul Edwards

Paul Edwards, creator of Corky the Hornet, poses for a picture.

Paul Edwards went on and had a successful life. Edwards worked as an animation artist at Walt Disney Animation Studios. There he worked on such Disney films as Johnny Appleseed and Little Toot, as well as creating Mr. Bluebird (on my shoulder) from the “Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah” portion of Song of the South.^[3] Before Edwards worked at Disney, he was a force on the tennis court at Kansas State Teachers College. Edwards lead his team to the state finals in 1937. And even though Kansas State Teachers came up short there against Wichita State University, Edwards continued his tennis career while serving for the military during World War II. Edwards had decided to enlist in the United States Navy after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 and received orders to report to Naval Magazine Indian Island, Washington.^[4] Paul Edwards lives in Santa Barbara, California, and still designs a "Corky" for special events like the homecoming plays, etc.

Duties

Official Corky logo used by the University.

The primary duty of Corky is to be an ambassador of ESU, roaming the sidelines at football and basketball games giving hugs to youngsters. Corky is often involved in entertaining children. Corky is also present at most major university events such as athletic competitions, like Tradition Night, Homecoming, parades, etc. Corky is also present at all Hornet Connections, where students enroll and learn more about Emporia State University.

References

↑ History of Corky Fischer, William, Jr. "The Legend of Corky the Hornet: Emporia State University." Editorial. The Historical Marker Database. William Fischer, Jr., 18 Sept. 2010. Web. 22 Sept. 2013.
↑ "Traditions". emporia.edu.
↑ Paul Edwards, creator of Corky Carlson, Emily. "The Talented Mr. Edwards." Santa Barbara Independent 23 Oct. 2012. Print.
↑ "Summer 2009 Spotlight" (PDF). Emporia State University Alumni Association.

External links

About Corky the Hornet

Emporia State University

Academics

Athletics

Teams	Overview: Emporia State Hornets (Conference) Baseball Men's basketball Women's basketball Football (Seasons)

Facilities	Francis G. Welch Stadium William L. White Auditorium

Media	KFFX (KVOE)

People

Student life

Established: 1863 – Endowment: $80 million – Students: 6,094 (Fall 2015)

Emporia State Hornets football

Venue	Jones Field at Welch Stadium (1937–present)

Culture & lore	Corky the Hornet

People	Head coaches NFL Draftees

Seasons	1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Emporia State Lady Hornets basketball

Venue	William L. White Auditorium (1974–present)

Culture & lore	Corky the Hornet

People	Head coaches

Seasons	1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16

NCAA National Championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics

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