RICHMOND, Va. (WTVR)--It you watched or were at Wednesday night’s VCU ramming of the UR Spiders, you saw plenty of Ram shirts on the wildly cheering fans in the stands.
But very few Ram hats. Even though Virginia Commonwealth University has really pushed out – and is seriously cashing in on – Ram fan shirts and sweats and Ts since its B-ball team has become a national contender, but there aren’t any wacky Ram hats to represent the havoc on the court.
A key member of Richmond’s world-famous shock rock band GWAR – a band largely born out of VCU’s Art Department – believes the Shaka faithful could use some new lids as feisty as the team.
“It’s just a fan item for Ram fans, because everyone loves the Rams these days,” said Bob Gorman, donning the foam rubber Rams hat, complete with horns and a menacing snout.
Gorman is shop foreman and secretary of Slave Pit Inc., the parent company GWAR. He’s also one of the key stage characters in the band’s humorous shock-rock performances.
“Oh, I play all kinds of stuff,” he quipped. “I’m the most murdered man in show biz.”
The Grammy-nominated outfit, which also produces videos, comic books and other art, has become proficient in making foam rubber costumes and props, including mock-ups of any number of key political, religious, military and pop-culture figures who are routinely “massacred” during GWAR shows.
Like the core members of the large musical troupe, Gorman attended VCU, and has relished the Rams growing fame.
But he also noticed the lack of Ram-worthy hats, so he fellow Slave Pit artist Matt McGuire went to work making the molds for the intricately designed headgear.
The Ram hats, which can also serve as head protection for rowdy fans, will be selling in a week or so, for somewhere in the neighborhood of $35, perhaps more. Gorman said they be available on vcuramnation.com.
Dave Brockie, the well-known lead singer of GWAR, joked that “this is our latest diabolical plot to make millions of dollars. We’re always coming up with insane ideas to make money. Some of them actually work.”
