Adrian J Cotterill, Editor-in-Chief
At Kauffman Stadium from September 29th to October 1st, the Kansas City Royals surprised fans with a George Brett hologram, a life-sized, 4K version of himself telling fans the story of the infamous Pine Tar Bat incident. The hologram was produced for the Royal’s creative agency Pine Tar Collective by Transcend Holographic Media and displayed on a Proto Inc., the original, patented creator of the hologram machine.
“Innovation is essential to what we do, we’re always exploring ways to showcase our team and our city to new fans in new and interesting ways,” said Tony Snethen, the Kansas City Royals Vice President of Brand Innovation and agency lead of Pine Tar Collective. “Working with Transcend Holographic Media and Proto provides valuable new tools for engaging and providing a stadium experience that’s second to none.”
The unveiling happened at the last Royals vs. Yankees series of the 2023 season, marking the 40th Anniversary of the incident. The hologram is the first of a baseball legend telling about how he experienced a historic event.
“I remember watching the pine tar game as a child who was one of the biggest Royals fans in the world. It was a moment – like it was for many others – that is now blazed in baseball history,” said Andrew Loos, Co-Founder of Transcend Holographic Media. “So, to be able to tell the story in such an innovative and dynamic way all these years later has been an incredible experience — an experience any Royals fan, or fan of baseball in general, will love.”
Proto has worked with teams from all the major league sports and counts over 60 active and retired pro athletes among its investors, including Robert Griffin III, Marshawn Lynch, Albert Pujols and Brittany Griner. Proto clients include Verizon, Siemens, Accenture, Amazon, Nike, H&M, Spotify and SeatGeek.
“Everyone knew it was a moment we’d be talking about forever the minute it happened – in fact the actual Pine Tar bat made it into Cooperstown,” said David Nussbaum, Inventor and CEO of Proto Inc. “We’re proud that the Royals and Transcend saw Proto as the best way to preserve George’s telling of the story.”
The Pine Tar Collective department was created in 2021 with the mission of innovating the ways in which the Royals attract, engage and inspire fans, partners and the community.
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