A first at Fenway - The man who invented Wally The Green Monster is currently senior vice president for Fenway Concerts and Entertainment. Larry Cancro, a 31-year veteran with the organization has probably forgotten more than most people remember about their time at Fenway Park. The few moments left with him are filled with outstanding stories and recollections of team play, but also behind-the-scenes marketing and innovation and the beginning of traditions that last today.
“In 1986, my second year with the team, we had both national and local merchandise licensees and our local licensee was ’47, or Twins,” he says. “And one day I’m talking with Bobby (D’Angelo) and he said, ‘If only there was some way the fans could see the championship merchandise on the players, we could sell a lot more of it.’ And a light bulb went on. And I thought, ‘I’m going to hand it to them to see if they’ll put it on.’
We were pretty far ahead in the division, so I had special hats and shirts made up. When we won the division championship, I handed them to the players. Some of them looked at me like, ‘What do you want me to do with this?’ I said, ‘Put it on.’ Some did, some of them thought I was a jerk, but that was the first time in the history of sports that players put on special championship hats and shirts after a win. And sales, of course, skyrocketed. Now every sport does it. In fact, I’ve heard players on the field after games saying, ‘Where’s my hat?’ It’s done all the time now. But the first time it ever happened was in Fenway Park.”
