For 80 years he has been spreading school spirit. And for 80 years the Eastern community has been cheering him right back.

The panther mascot has been synonymous with the name of Eastern since it was created in 1930. While currently 29 colleges and universities use panthers as their athletic mascot, at the time it was picked only seven used it.

Over the past 80 years, while the mascot has remained the same, the panther has evolved in both name and appearance.

1930s

For many years the schools colors, gray and blue, were used to describe the sports teams.

In October, the Fox Lincoln Theater and the Teacher’s College News, the student paper, hosted a contest to decide the school mascot.

Students submitted suggestions ranging from Kickapoos, Ellini, Greyhounds and Blue Boys for a prize of $5 in theater tickets. Harland Baird, Paul Birthisel and Thelma Brooks submitted the winning name of the Panthers.

A panel of judges including Coach Charles Lantz, football captain Eugene Kintz and sports writer Irvin “Smick” Single chose the mascot based on “fitness, usability and catchiness.”

1940s

Percy the Panther, as seen here in the 1953 Warbler yearbook, represented Eastern and gave students spirit and a feeling of pride during a difficult era.

1960s

A Pink Panther costume appears alongside the similarly named dance group at games and other events throughout the ’70s. This is the first physical representation of the panther mascot.

1980s

In 1985, the Pink Panther costume went missing and the athletic department started publicizing the new $600 black panther mascot.

The old Pink Panther costume was found in October. In an Oct. 29 article by The Daily Eastern News RHA adviser Mary Smith said a student borrowed the costume from the athletic department the previous year to take to a conference in Florida and never returned it.

Smith said the Pink Panther originated on a Carman Hall float and then began appearing at games.

The Housing Department eventually turned the suit and responsibility of finding students to be the mascot over to the athletic department. At this time, the Pink Panther was stained with dirt, one of the ears was falling off and the head was cracked.

1990s

The old, black suit was replaced with a new one that was dubbed “Billy” in fall 1990.

People complained about the old suit, said Ron Paap, Eastern’s associate athletic director at the time, because it did not resemble a panther, according to the 1995 Warbler yearbook.

Athletic Director Mike Ryan named the updated, black and white panther Billy

In the late ’90s, Billy was joined by a female panther, which was unofficially named Bonnie.

Bonnie represented the women athletes. Eastern was one of the only universities to have two mascots simultaneously. Bonnie was soon retired.

2000s

There was no panther mascot in 2000. Billy and Bonnie were retired at about the same time. The mascots were retired because the school lacked money to replace the old 1990 costume said David Kidwell, the assistant director of athletics at the time, according to the 2000 Warbler yearbook.

In January 2003, former Eastern athletic director Rich McDuffie retired Billy and along with a committee of staff and students selected “Prowler” as the official nickname for the new mascot.

Some Eastern students were upset by the change and refused to acknowledge the new panther.

After a five-year hiatus, Billy the Panther made a come back on Sept. 13, 2008 before an Eastern football game against Indiana State.

Athletic Director Barbara Burke said the department wanted to update the mascot and bring back an old tradition at sporting events. The newly designed costume cost about $5,000.

While the name Billy was previously just a nickname, the university officially adopted it at this time.

Emily Steele can be reached at 581-7942 or easteele2@eiu.edu.