A day out in NYC and a stop off at F.A.O. Schwarz back in 2011 was when I picked up this little purple guy.
His name is Trunko - just one of the characters from the Uglydoll brand. Now, I’m no impulse buyer, but Tunko met all the criteria for all my plush doll purchases:
He was small;
He was purple;
He was on sale!!!
Plus, because Uglydoll was doing a special U.S. Open promotion thingy, Trunko’s left arm “resembles” a tennis racket.
Afterwards, when I returned back to work in Australia, I decided I needed a useless, stupid gimmick… even if it was as simple as Trunko poking out from my carry bag.
Every morning and midday, 5 days a week, for 6 months, Trunko and I would have a large mocaccino (with soy, hold the sugar) at a nearby café.
Eventually, they honored the li’l purple racket-appendaged critter with his own “branded” deverage.
He even appeared in some of his own character-driven paintings - see below.