I'm interested too. This almost seems to have turned into the question that no one in Cleveland wants to ask, which is odd because most Browns fans are known for the pride they take in their history.
One blog report was that Mangini actually DID have it moved (I don't think anyone questions this) but that he did so to move it to a "more visible location".
Unfortunately that "more visible location" appears to be invisible since no one can seem to say where the darned thing is.
The report went on to indicate that in the process of moving it the mural was all but destroyed, with Mangnini now hoping that no one is going to remember the story nor ask any awkward questions. But I've got no idea if that's the actual truth... all I know is that no one can seem to say where it is and show a recent photo of it.
I think about this because of the The Great Mural Caper in Cleveland. The other day, I wrote this paragraph about Cleveland Browns coach Eric Mangini:
“Basically the first thing Mangini did — first thing — was have them tear down a mural of great Cleveland Browns players on the wall in the Browns offices. Now, there are differing opinions about what really happened, whose fault it really was, does it all matter, etc. You know what? The Cleveland Browns have never been to a Super Bowl. Never. Not one. But Browns fans still have a whole lot of pride. Browns fans grow up on a glorious history. If you allow something stupid like that to happen on your watch … just a horrendous hire.”
Not long after that, I got this comment from Brilliant Reader Ron. As you can see, Ron sounded pretty sure of himself:
Joe this is bad information. Oh sure it was reported by unnamed sources but it was disproved. What Mangini really did was move the wall to where fans could see it. He moved it to a more fan friendly spot. I get reporters hate him. I get there is a grudge there. But passing along WRONG info weeks after it was disproved is bush. Apologize or fix your mistake.
Hmm. Well, you know: I hate mistakes and will do anything I can to correct them. So I decided to see if what had been written about Mangini and the mural was, in fact, bad information. I went to a couple of people in Cleveland to find out what really happened in the Mural Caper. It’s a bit baffling — and a few months later, mostly inconsequential — but here’s what those people told me.
The Browns used to have this great mural on the first floor of their facility in Berea. Well, anyway, I think it was a great mural. It was of the Browns Hall of Famers, and it was right at the player’s entrance. The point seemed to be to let the players know, every day when they came to work, that they were a part of something special, that they were wearing the uniform that Jim Brown and Paul Warfield and Otto Graham and Marion Motley and Leroy Kelly wore. Seems to me a worthy cause.
When Mangini arrived in Cleveland, one of the first things he wanted to do was have the player entrance painted white. Why? He’s Eric Mangini* — I can’t tell you why. I don’t know if he liked the mural or did not like the mural, but the point is the point, he wanted white walls, dammit.
*Since my “Eric Mangini is the worst hire in 25 years” bit, I’ve heard from numerous other people about potential worse hires. A couple of note:
– Dave Shula. Well, I covered the Shula Era in Cincinnati … it’s hard for me to argue the point. At least Dave was (and is) a very nice guy.
– Ray Handley. The Giants hired him over specifically over defensive coordinator Bill Belichick … again, hard for me to argue the point.
Here, it seems, there was indeed a bit of misinformation. It originally was reported that Mangini had the mural PAINTED OVER. That indeed was wrong. Apparently that is what sources originally said, but the mural was not painted over. It was taken down, and then plaster board was put up and painted white. This is what Ron is talking about when he talks about something being “disproved.” Pat McManamon, a most excellent sportswriter at the Akron Beacon Journal and a friend of mine for a long time, very openly apologized for writing that the mural was painted over.
But, you will note, I did not write that the mural was painted over — I wrote that it was torn down. And it was torn down — nobody even argues the point. It was there. Now it’s gone.
So what of the rest? Well, now we get some open interpretation, which is why in the original post I tried to leave the rest of the paragraph vague. But basically after the mural story exploded and people in Cleveland angrily responded, the Browns and Mangini announced this plan to move the mural to a different wall, in the lobby, where it could better appreciated by fans. They announced this was the plan all the time. Ha ha. We just wanted to put it in the lobby so all those fans who come to the Berea Training Facility could, you know, see it.
Was it the plan all the time? Was this all just a misunderstanding? Was Eric Mangini in his own way trying to PROMOTE Browns history rather than cover it up?
Or was this just an attempt to cover up a tone-deaf decision in the first place?
Well, different people will have different opinions.
But it’s worth pointing out:
1. For all the talk, the mural is NOT up now. Not in the lobby. Not in the complex. Not anywhere. Nobody seems to know where the mural is … but it ain’t up on any visible walls.
2. Several people within the Browns very quietly concede that the mural will NEVER go up because it is ruined. It was made of a very thin material (as murals are) and it predictably and obviously tore when it was brought down in the first place*.
*I have some experience with this … I once wrote about a beautiful mural they had at the NCAA. Nobody was quite sure what to do with it when the NCAA moved to Indianapolis, and I remember talking with the artist and he told me that to move a mural was an involved and careful process … and (my own opinion) I think it is fair to guess that since the Browns moved the mural and painted the area just days after Mangini was hired, maybe they did not spend too much time following any careful mural-safeguarding processes.
Of course, maybe they’ll put up the mural tomorrow, and they’ll have a big unveiling, and I promise if that happens I will write a blog post saying exactly that. Somehow, though, I doubt I’ll have to write that anytime soon.
