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Library/Campaign/Gritty
Grade B36 sourcesHIS-00198

Gritty

Campaign · 2018 · Notable

Made by Flyland Designs (design), Character Translations (costume) and Philadelphia Flyers in-house · Sources

56Editable slideCertificate

The Flyers reported more than 87 million Twitter impressions for Gritty’s first month.

Gritty

@GrittyNHL · Sep 24, 2018

It me. #Gritty

14.7K2K
Original · Philadelphia Flyers / @GrittyNHL

Helen Gym

@HelenGymAtLarge · Oct 25, 2018

.@GrittyNHL unexpectedly captured our hearts and minds as a righteous leftist icon. Today we’re welcoming his monsterly spirit with a resolution in @PHLCouncil.

965
Post · @HelenGymAtLarge on X
It me. #Gritty
@GrittyNHL on X
Philadelphia Flyers' mascot Gritty at the press conference. Governor Tom Wolf today visited the Philadelphia Flyers organization at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia to discuss COVID-19 vaccine…
Governor Tom Wolf from Harrisburg, PA / CC BY 2.0 / Wikimedia Commons
Flyers introduce Gritty, their new mascot | NHL.com
NHL.com
Flyers' Gritty rode wave of haters, love from kids to viral stardom | NHL.com
NHL.com
Gritty appears on 'Tonight Show,' sneaks up on Gervais, Fallon | NHL.com
NHL.com
.@GrittyNHL unexpectedly captured our hearts and minds as a righteous leftist icon. Today we’re welcoming his monsterly spirit with a resolution in @PHLCouncil.
@HelenGymAtLarge on X
Gritty-Greatest-Moments-2018
TIME
Gritty in an official Philadelphia Flyers photograph.
Philadelphia Flyers
How the Flyers' Social Media Geniuses Made the World Love Gritty
Philadelphia Magazine
Some Genius Photoshopped Gritty The Philadelphia Flyers Mascot Into Stock Images And It Is Haunting
BroBible
Breaking Down The Marketing Brilliance Behind Gritty
Advertising Specialty Institute
The best Gritty memes on the internet
The Daily Dot
Flyers' Gritty Mascot Now Available In Bobblehead Form
Advertising Specialty Institute
How the Philadelphia Flyers created a headline-making mascot and overnight sensation
The Hockey News
Enjoy these gritty Philly memes as Biden pulls ahead of Trump in Pennsylvania
Fast Company

Spread Score

How it works
Reach35Contagion65Breadth90Velocity22Longevity7556

Numbers

Reported cumulative tweet impressions, undated Shorty entry
101M
X · Self-reported · The Shorty Awards (Philadelphia Flyers entrant submission)
Seed to peak
1 day
Sep 24 ’18 to Sep 25 ’18
Platforms
6
Started on X
Origin
Seeded
Sports

Mechanics

  • Mascot personaPrimary
  • Controversy
  • Identity badge
  • Political adoption
  • Platform jump
  • Press loop

How it spread

Trace the origin

The Flyers launched Gritty and reported 87 million Twitter impressions in his first month. TV coverage and independent memes followed. City Council honored him, licensed bobbleheads sold out, and election memes revived him in 2020.

Wikipedia views · Google searchesMay ’18SepNovJan ’19AprDecOct ’20Dec ’21Feb ’23Apr ’24OctFeb ’25PeakXPressTVOpen webRetailFacebook
XPressTVOpen webRetailFacebook

15 more events on this chart

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Timeline (18)

  1. September 2018

    @GrittyNHL seed · Sep 24 ’18

    The Flyers introduced Gritty and posted “It me. #Gritty” at 15:17 UTC.[1][2][3]

    It me. #Gritty
    Open the first post ↗

  2. Twitter users backlash · Sep 24 ’18

    Twitter users mocked Gritty’s appearance and criticized the Flyers’ marketing team.[3][4][5]

    How the Flyers' Social Media Geniuses Made the World Love Gritty

  3. @GrittyNHL owner response · Sep 24 ’18

    Gritty told the Penguins “Sleep with one eye open tonight, bird”, then fell on ice and made snow angels.[3][1][6]

Changelogupdated Oct 12 ’26
  1. 2026-10-12Added: 16 events, 26 sources · Score 62
Origin
Seeded
Sector
Sports
Region
US
Reported cumulative tweet impressions, undated Shorty entry
101M
X · Self-reported · The Shorty Awards (Philadelphia Flyers entrant submission)
Evidence
Grade B

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Colossal's Dire Wolf Announcement

X · 2025

69
SOUND ON. You’re hearing the first howl of a dire wolf in over 10,000 years. Meet Romulus and Remus—the world’s first de-extinct animals, born on October 1, 2024. The dire wolf has been extinct for…

120B impressions

Love Destiny

TV · 2018

56
Love Destiny’s lead characters rode a white horse in Channel 3’s series artwork.

Peaked at #1

Call Me Caitlyn

X · 2015

51
Caitlyn Jenner poses for Annie Leibovitz on the cover of Vanity Fair #CallMeCaitlyn http://t.co/NRyh6R09RR http://t.co/GO1ZgJJKBR

3.9B impressions

I’ve Had It

YouTube · 2022

35
Toddlers are Assholes

Peaked at #2

New cases, every week

How the next thing spread, the week it does.

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· Sources
Wikipedia views · Google searchesMay ’18SepNovJan ’19AprDecOct ’20Dec ’21Feb ’23Apr ’24OctFeb ’25PeakXPressTVOpen webRetailFacebook
XPressTVOpen webRetailFacebook

15 more events on this chart

Join free to see them

  1. September 2018

    @GrittyNHL seed · Sep 24 ’18

    The Flyers introduced Gritty and posted “It me. #Gritty” at 15:17 UTC.[1][2][3]

    It me. #Gritty
    Open the first post ↗

  2. Twitter users backlash · Sep 24 ’18

    Twitter users mocked Gritty’s appearance and criticized the Flyers’ marketing team.[3][4][5]

    How the Flyers' Social Media Geniuses Made the World Love Gritty

  3. @GrittyNHL owner response · Sep 24 ’18

    Gritty told the Penguins “Sleep with one eye open tonight, bird”, then fell on ice and made snow angels.[3][1][6]

  1. press · Sep 24 ’18

  2. platform jump · Sep 25 ’18

Join free to see the other 15 events and the full chart. Free, on every case.

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Why it worked

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