The Hogettes are a group of twelve male Washington Redskins

Washington Redskins

The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...

 fans who wear women's dress

Dress

A dress is a garment consisting of a skirt with an attached bodice or with a matching bodice giving the effect of a one-piece garment.Dress may also refer to:*Clothing in general*Costume, fancy dress...

es, garden party

Garden party

A garden party is a social gathering with food provided, in the open in a park or a garden. An event described as a garden party is usually more formal than other similar gatherings, which may be called just parties, picnics, barbecues, etc,...

 hats, and pig

Pig

A pig is any of the animals in the genus Sus, within the Suidae family of even-toed ungulates. Pigs include the domestic pig, its ancestor the wild boar, and several other wild relatives...

 snout

Snout

The snout, or muzzle, is the protruding portion of an animal's face, consisting of its nose, mouth, and jaw.-Terminology:The term "muzzle", used as a noun, can be ambiguous...

s for two purposes: to cheer on their favorite NFL team and to raise money for charity. The group was founded in 1983 by Michael Torbert and has become a regular fixture at Washington Redskins games. The group has twelve active and fifteen former members, including three who have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame

Pro Football Hall of Fame

The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...

 as part of the VISA Hall of Fans.

The group retains a high profile largely because of their outrageous costumes, but also because of their frequent work for charitable organizations. The Hogettes have appeared in a national advertising campaign for VISA, and they provide support for many charities, including Children's Miracle Network

Children's Miracle Network

The Children's Miracle Network Hospitals is an international non-profit organization that raises funds for children's hospitals, medical research and community awareness of children's health issues. The organization, founded in 1982 by the Osmond family and John Schneider, is headquartered in...

, Ronald McDonald House, and March of Dimes

March of Dimes

The March of Dimes Foundation is a United States nonprofit organization that works to improve the health of mothers and babies.-Organization:...

. They have raised over US$100 million for these and other charitable causes. Despite their philanthropic work, the Hogettes are disliked by some and have even been attacked by fans of opposing teams.

History

The origin of the Hogettes can be traced to October 1983 when Michael Torbert (Mikey T.), founder of the group, went to a Halloween

Halloween

Hallowe'en , also known as Halloween or All Hallows' Eve, is a yearly holiday observed around the world on October 31, the night before All Saints' Day...

 party at his grandmother's retirement home

Retirement home

A retirement home is a multi-residence housing facility intended for senior citizens. Typically each person or couple in the home has an apartment-style room or suite of rooms. Additional facilities are provided within the building, including facilities for meals, gathering, recreation, and some...

 wearing one of her old dresses as a costume. The costume was such a hit that he gathered a group of men who he "thought were tough enough to go out in public in a dress." The group would go to children's hospital

Children's hospital

A children's hospital is a hospital which offers its services exclusively to children . The number of children's hospitals proliferated in the 20th century, as pediatric medical and surgical specialties separated from internal medicine and adult surgical specialties...

s to cheer up sick children. On November 27, 1983, the group attended their first Washington Redskins

Washington Redskins

The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...

 football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

 game in full drag

Drag (clothing)

Drag is used for any clothing carrying symbolic significance but usually referring to the clothing associated with one gender role when worn by a person of another gender. The origin of the term "drag" is unknown, but it may have originated in Polari, a gay street argot in England in the early...

, but with the addition of pig snout masks, in reference to The Hogs

The Hogs (American football)

The Hogs was the nickname for the offensive line of the Washington Redskins of the National Football League during the 1980s and early 1990s. Renowned for their ability to control the line of scrimmage, the Hogs helped the Redskins win three Super Bowl championships under head coach Joe Gibbs...

, the nickname of the Redskins offensive line players.
Led by Mikey T., now known as "Boss Hogette", the group became regular fixtures at Redskins home games, both at their old home of RFK Stadium and their new home of FedExField

FedExField

FedExField is a football stadium located in an unincorporated area near the Capital Beltway in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, near the site of the old Capital Centre . FedExField is the home of the Washington Redskins football team...

. The group makes more than 100 appearances each year for charitable events, and Mikey T. and two other Hogettes have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame

Pro Football Hall of Fame

The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...

 as "ultimate" Redskins fans. There have been a total of twenty-seven members of the group since 1983, but there are only twelve active members today. Though they have considerable notoriety, they receive no special treatment or official recognition from the Redskins.

Origin of the name

In the 1980s, the Washington Redskins' Offensive Line coach, Joe Bugel

Joe Bugel

Joseph John 'Buges' Bugel was the Offensive line coach for the Washington Redskins from 1981 to 1989 and from 2004 to 2009...

, began to refer to his lineman as "Hogs". The Hogs were credited for much of the Redskins success in the decade, including two Super Bowl

Super Bowl

The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...

 wins. The group began wearing pig noses and named themselves "The Hogettes" in reference to the Hogs.

Philanthropy

The Hogettes have been organizing and attending charitable events in the Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

, area for over twenty years. In that time, they have helped raise more than US$100 million for various charities, including Children's Miracle Network

Children's Miracle Network

The Children's Miracle Network Hospitals is an international non-profit organization that raises funds for children's hospitals, medical research and community awareness of children's health issues. The organization, founded in 1982 by the Osmond family and John Schneider, is headquartered in...

, Ronald McDonald House, and March of Dimes

March of Dimes

The March of Dimes Foundation is a United States nonprofit organization that works to improve the health of mothers and babies.-Organization:...

. Upon reaching this landmark value, Howard "Howiette" Churchill remarked, "That's a lot of money for a bunch of fat old grandpas in pig noses and dresses." Among these events are golf tournaments, including the Hogette's annual charity golf tournament, walk-a-thons, truck rallies, galas, and other charity benefits.

While some of their charitable efforts go toward helping their local community, most of the money they raise goes toward helping children. An annual fund raiser is their "Hogette for a Game". In 1995, Nick "Nickette" Nerangis' wife bought him this package. He subsequently became a substitute Hogette for several years before becoming an official member in 2002. One female fan has, for several years, served as "Hogette for a Game" through winning annual auctions. In 2000, she raised more than $11,000 for children's charities in order to attend one game with the Hogettes that season.

In an online interview with fans, Torbert stated "You... have to have a sense of humor for many things from day to day. It is tough to be humorous when the [Redskins] lose, but it's even tougher to face a sick child in a hospital room, and cheer them up with our humorous looks. That's tough."

National exposure

In addition to gaining national exposure through their outrageous costumes and continuous work with charitable organizations, the Hogettes have been guests on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and were featured in a VISA

Visa

Visa or VISA may refer to:* Visa , a document issued by a country's government allowing the holder to enter or to leave that country...

 television commercial. Despite their generous philanthropy and positive attitude in the stands, not everyone appreciates the Hogettes. Longtime Washington Redskins owner Jack Kent Cooke

Jack Kent Cooke

Jack Kent Cooke was a Canadian entrepreneur and former owner of the Washington Redskins , the Los Angeles Lakers , and the Los Angeles Kings , and built The Forum in Inglewood, California and FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland.-Early career:Born in Hamilton, Ontario, Cooke moved with his family to...

 and Daniel Snyder

Daniel Snyder

Daniel M. Snyder is the current owner of the Washington Redskins American football team, owner of the Dick Clark Productions television production company, and primary investor in Red Zebra Broadcasting, which is home to the Redskins Radio Network. Snyder has a net worth of $1.05 billion...

—the current owner—both failed to embrace the Hogettes. The group has been called "incredibly obnoxious" and "annoying", and were attacked in the infamous 700 Level at Veterans Stadium

Veterans Stadium

Philadelphia Veterans Stadium was a professional-sports, multi-purpose stadium, located at the northeast corner of Broad Street and Pattison Avenue, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as part of the South Philadelphia Sports Complex...

 in Philadelphia by angry Philadelphia Eagles

Philadelphia Eagles

The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...

fans.

Members

In addition to the twelve current members, there have been fifteen other "official" Hogettes—now retired from the group—as well as numerous temporary and substitute members. The group also holds an annual charity auction where fans can bid to be a "Hogette for a Game". One current member, Nick "Nickette" Nerangis, was introduced to the group as a "Hogette for a Game".

Hogette	Real name	Membership	Other info
Boss Hogette	Michael Torbert	Founder	Named the 1998 "Ultimate" Redskins Fan in the VISA Hall of Fans at the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Grandpa Hogette	Ralph Campbell	Original member from 1983	The first Hogette to join, wore a yellow dress, and was once referred to in an Associated Press story as "the pretty one." He passed away in 2010.
BIG MACette	Michael McCartney	Original member from 1983	Dresses as Santa Hog for the Redskin's Christmas game at FedExField.
Joevette	Joe Varnadore	Original member from 1983	Oldest of all the Hogettes, and has worn the same lavender dress for over 20 years.
Big Georgette	George Maxfield	Original member from 1983	Has worn the same pink dress from the beginning.
Edette	Edward J. Heid, III	Joined in 1983	Although not one of the "original", he joined within the first month.
Porkchop	Bruce Lindsay	Joined in the mid 1980s	Lifetime member of the Jaycees. B-movie actor, star of Gypsy Vampire
Stoneyette	William J. Stoner, Sr.	Joined in 1990	Founded the Greater Laurel Literacy Center (an adult literacy program)
Howiette	Howard Churchill	Joined in 1992	Named the 2004 "Ultimate" Redskins Fan in the VISA Hall of Fans at the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Spiggy	David Spigler	Joined in the mid-1990s	Runs the annual Hogette benefit golf tournament.
Hog Ed	Eddie Souder	Joined in 2001	Hogette "Rookie of the Year 2001".
Nickette	Nick Nerangis	Hogette-for-a-Game in 1995, recruited as a member in 2002	Hogette "Rookie of the Year 2002".
Hollywood HillBilly	Mike Gardner	One of the newer Hogettes	Named the 2003 "Ultimate" Redskins Fan in the VISA Hall of Fans at the Pro Football Hall of Fame.