Punxsutawney Phil

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Groundhog Day 2005 in Punxsutawney featuring Phil.

Punxsutawney Phil is a groundhog resident of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, USA. On February 2, (Groundhog Day) of each year, the town of Punxsutawney celebrates the beloved groundhog with a festive atmosphere of music and food. During the ceremony, which begins well before the winter sunrise, Phil emerges from his temporary home on Gobbler's Knob, located in a rural area about 2 mi (3.2 km) east of town. According to the tradition, if Phil sees his shadow and returns to his hole, the United States will have six more weeks of winter. If Phil does not see his shadow, spring will arrive early.^[1] The date of Phil's prognostication is known as Groundhog Day in the United States and Canada. During the rest of the year, Phil lives in the town library with his "wife" Phyllis. A select group, called the Inner Circle, takes care of Phil year-round and also plan the annual ceremony. Members of the Inner Circle are recognizable by their top hats and tuxedos. Phil currently has two co-handlers, Ben Hughes and John Griffiths.^[2]

Punxsutawney Phil lore

Punxsutawney Phil fans say that there is only one Phil (all the other groundhog weathermen are imposters), and that he has made weather prognostications for over 120 years as of 2009. They say that every summer, Phil is fed a sip of the mysterious Groundhog Punch, which magically lengthens his life for seven years. This is done by Inner Circle members. According to the Groundhog Club, Phil, after making the prediction, speaks to the Club President in "Groundhogese", which only the Inner Circle appear to understand, and then his prediction is translated for the entire world.^{[citation needed]}

In reality, groundhogs (widely known as woodchucks) have a maximum lifespan in captivity of 10 years, much shorter in the wild. [1] Thus it is certain that Phil has been replaced many times. The actual method whereby the Inner Circle makes the "prediction" is unknown.

In media

• Phil and the town of Punxsutawney were portrayed in the movie Groundhog Day, although the scenes were actually filmed in Woodstock, Illinois.^[3]
• Phil was also the main attraction on an episode of the MTV series Viva La Bam. The episode was titled "Groundhog Day" and it aired on April 10, 2005. In the episode, street skater Bam Margera held a special race in honor of Punxsutawney Phil.
• In 2007 Rick McFerron, a resident of nearby Indiana, Pennsylvania with a Groundhog Day birthday walked 30 mi (48 km) both ways from Indiana to Punxsutawney for his 60th birthday. He raised money for Susan G. Komen for the Cure.^[4]
• Ty Inc. has a tradition of sending out a Punxsutawney Phil Beanie Baby annually around Groundhog's Day. The toy is shown consistently wearing a top hat and bow tie in order to appear as a member of the Inner Circle. Three varieties are known to exist. The first being a consumer model with a black bow-tie (some have black or purple capes as well), which is released nation-wide. A second, with a red bow-tie, is sold in a few stores in Punxsutawney, PA, including their Chamber of Commerce. Both the red and black tie versions benefit the Groundhog Club Inner Circle of Punxsutawney. A third version, with a silver bow-tie, is sold as a fund-raiser for the Clearfield-Jefferson Red Cross, and was sold directly through the Ty Store online shop. The 2009 Punxsutawney Phil Beanie Baby (with a red bow) will be the last in the series, and is only available at the Punxsutawney Souvenir Shop.

Past predictions

Of these 112 predictions on record so far, Punxsutawney Phil has predicted an early spring 14 times (13%). As to his accuracy, according to the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club Inner Circle, he is 100% accurate.^[1] However, according to StormFax Weather Almanac, his accuracy is just 39%.

See also

• General Beauregard Lee
• Staten Island Chuck
• Wiarton Willie

References

External links

• Groundhog.org, the official site of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club
• PunxsutawneyPhil.com