By Janel Eisenbarth Smith

After reading the article about the Hog Days building in your recent Summer Adventure Guide, I knew I needed to contribute what I know about the original Count Henry since I was among the first to portray him.

The large hog costume might be considered creepy by some of the Hog Festival committee members, but I can hopefully clear up some of his history.

In the 1980s, there was a community group called Kewanee Clean Community System. They promoted keeping our city litter-free and decided they needed a presence at local events.

After designing and purchasing the costume in early 1984, local elementary school students voted on names during Keep America Beautiful Week in April. “Count Henry of Kewanee” earned the most votes with “Clarence the Clean Up Pig” in second place.

Count Henry was soon to make his debut, helping to promote Kewanee and educate kids about city pride and cleanliness. I was in high school at the time and Don Lundberg, who was serving as executive director of KCCS, asked me if I would be interested in being the mascot.

There were a few rules and requirements: no speaking while in costume, no letting others know I had this secret identity, and I had to show up at each event in costume so I wouldn’t be seen changing into it. There were one or two others that also wore the costume if I wasn’t available, but I still don’t know who they are.

The outfit included a top hat, tuxedo jacket, ruffled shirt, tie and cumberbund and two small fans inside the head to keep the person inside from getting too hot. My limited view was from the nostrils so I always had a KCCS escort with me.

I walked around shaking hands, hugging kids, handing out trophies and getting my picture taken. You couldn’t tell, but I guarantee that I was inside that costume wearing a gigantic smile.

I attended many community functions, but Hog Days was my favorite by far. I rode in the parade, walked through the carnival, watched mud volleyball and attended the fly-in breakfast. That was a challenge in itself. Because I had to arrive in costume, Don picked me up at home, but he had a small pickup truck. I couldn’t fit into the seat, so I had to ride out to Kewanee Airport standing in the bed of the truck. He couldn’t drive too fast, otherwise the head of the costume would fly off. We may have been a little late getting there, but I had a great time waving at passing cars while trying to keep my balance.

I may have also spent a lot of time picking on unsuspecting friends and family. I couldn’t speak, but I could make them uncomfortable by standing too close for too long or approaching them with a big hug. Then I would have to walk away before my laughter gave me away.

I couldn’t keep this second identity a secret forever, so after a year or two, I started to let the hog out of the bag. I was also away at college, so I wasn’t making nearly as many appearances.

I donned the outfit again many years later, posing as a model for the Star Courier’s annual Hogsmopolitan magazine. I spent a few hours with a couple of my newspaper co-workers including Tammy Wilkinson as the photographer and Mike Berry as my chauffeur. He had a convertible and that was the only way I could get from one photo shoot location to another.

We hit several spots and I had some costume changes. The 2003 issue was “Cruising into Hog Heaven” and the cover shot we selected featured Count Henry in leather motorcycle gear sitting on my husband Doug’s Harley.

I don’t know what happened to Count Henry’s clothes, or when and why his name changed to Arlene as the article stated, but I’m glad the costume still exists, and I just wanted to share what I knew about its history.

Happy Hog Days!

Editor’s Note: Count Henry, the costume worn by Janel, is featured in The Kewanee Voice window of our office. It is on loan to us from the Hog Days committee. A special thanks to the committee for allowing us to borrow such an incredible piece of Hog Days history.