The Wheedle is the title character of a popular children's book by author Stephen Cosgrove

Stephen Cosgrove (writer)

Stephen Cosgrove, born July 26, 1945, is a children's author and toy designer. He is known for the Serendipity series of children's books, which formed the basis for 26-episode anime series Serendipity the Pink Dragon.- Background :...

. The character eventually evolved into a popular mascot

Mascot

The term mascot – defined as a term for any person, animal, or object thought to bring luck – colloquially includes anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name...

 generally associated with the city of Seattle.

Original story

Wheedle on the Needle (Serendipity Books, 1974), written by Stephen Cosgrove and illustrated by Robin James, was about a large, round, furry creature called the Wheedle who lived in the Northwest. Bothered by the whistling of workers first settling the city of Seattle, the creature was unable to sleep and became irritable, eventually moving to Mount Rainier

Mount Rainier

Mount Rainier is a massive stratovolcano located southeast of Seattle in the state of Washington, United States. It is the most topographically prominent mountain in the contiguous United States and the Cascade Volcanic Arc, with a summit elevation of . Mt. Rainier is considered one of the most...

 to escape the noise. The Wheedle slept there peacefully for many years, his red nose blinking, until the region's growth brought people- and their whistling- to his doorstep once again. In an effort to silence the noise, the Wheedle gathered clouds in a large sack atop Mt. Rainier, returned to Seattle, climbed atop the Space Needle

Space Needle

The Space Needle is a tower in Seattle, Washington and is a major landmark of the Pacific Northwest region of the United States and a symbol of Seattle. Located at the Seattle Center, it was built for the 1962 World's Fair, during which time nearly 20,000 people a day used the elevators, with over...

, and threw them into the sky to make it rain. With their lips wet from precipitation, the city's residents were unable to whistle, and the creature once again had some peace and quiet. Upset, the people sent the mayor to try and convince the Wheedle to stop the rain; when the creature explained his problem, the mayor had a giant pair of earmuffs constructed to drown out the disagreeable warbling. When they were presented to him, "The Wheedle placed them over his ears, and smiled for the first time in years." In appreciation, the Wheedle gathered up all the clouds, put them back in his bag, and fell fast asleep - and once again, his big red nose began to blink. The book ends with a short poem: There's a Wheedle/On the Needle/I know just what/You're thinking/But if you look up/Late at night/You'll see/His red nose blinking.

Later editions

In 2002, a second edition of the book was published. The story was significantly rewritten, generally matching the existing illustrations, but entirely eliminating environmental themes present in the original story and altering it so that the Wheedle was not native to the Seattle area.

In 2009, after battling with Penguin US for over 15 years, the rights to the book Wheedle on the Needle reverted back to Cosgrove. Under a new agreement with Sasquatch Books of Seattle, Cosgrove has created a third edition which returns to the tone and themes of the original book, while making some revisions for quality. The new edition is scheduled for release Spring of 2010. The Wheedle is now back home, in Seattle.

Other books

There were also two other children's book featuring the Wheedle, entitled "How to plant a Bunch of Stuff" and "How to Cook a Bunch of Stuff." The cookbook for kids features a pictorial; essay of the Wheedle demonstrating how to cook a "bunch of stuff" and to appreciate what their mothers do in the kitchen. The cookbook was by Stephen Cosgrove with recipes by Nancy Roberts. The garden book was by Stephen Cosgrove with planting tips by Ed Hume.

Seattle Mascot

From 1978 through 1985 the Wheedle was the official mascot of the NBA's Seattle SuperSonics

Seattle SuperSonics

The Seattle SuperSonics were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle, Washington that played in the Pacific and Northwest Divisions of the National Basketball Association from 1967 until 2008. Following the 2007–08 season, the team relocated to Oklahoma City, and now plays as...

, and was part of the organization when they won their only NBA Championship to date (in 1979

1979 NBA Finals

The 1979 NBA World Championship Series at the conclusion of the 1978-79 season were won by the Seattle SuperSonics defeating the Washington Bullets 4 games to 1. The series was a rematch of the 1978 NBA Finals which the Washington Bullets had won 4-3...

). It would not be until 1993 that the Sonics would debut a new mascot, Squatch

Squatch

Squatch was the team mascot for the Seattle SuperSonics of the National Basketball Association. Between his 1993 debut and the team's relocation in 2008 to Oklahoma City, Squatch appeared at more than 175 events annually, and was with the organization during their run to the 1996 NBA Finals.In...

, who was the team's mascot until 2008. While representing the Sonics, the character wore a jersey bearing number 0. Robert Crosby performed The Wheedle as Seattle Hosted the NCAA's Final Four for the first time. Toying with Brent Musberger on the sidelines, as well as in celebration with Georgetown's Patrick Ewing, it was a memorable highlight in The Wheedle's career. That same year Seattle acknowledged The Wheedle as an icon, honoring Wheedle as the Torchlight Parade's Grand Marshall. During the early years of the Wheedles Sonics tenure, Laurel Brown a member of the Sonics staff was the Wheedle as the first female mascot of an NBA team. Her dance moves distinguished her from other mascots of that time.

The Wheedle was also the official mascot of the Space Needle from the late 1970s until 1984. In May of 1982, the Space Needle opened a new addition at its 100 feet (30.5 m) level amidst controversy about altering the then 20-year old structure, a mixed-use restaurant and banquet facility called "The Wheedle in the Needle". The facility existed as restaurant for only about a year, before it was converted to a full-time banquet facility (now referred to as the "Skyline Level"). The Space Needle adopted a new mascot, "Sneedle," in 1997; however it appears that the character is no longer in use.

In 1993, the Wheedle became the mascot for KOMO-TV (Seattle's ABC affiliate), and appeared at many events wearing a KOMO hat and t-shirt. The character represented KOMO for several years before being unofficially retired in the late 1990s.

For several years, the Wheedle could be seen encased in a block of plastic "ice," in a small SuperSonics museum, near the Sonics & Storm Team Shop at Seattle's KeyArena. Following the relocation

Seattle SuperSonics relocation to Oklahoma City

The Seattle SuperSonics relocation to Oklahoma City was a successful effort by the ownership group of the Seattle SuperSonics to move the team to Oklahoma City...

 of the team to Oklahoma City

Oklahoma City Thunder

The Oklahoma City Thunder are a professional basketball franchise based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ; their home court is at Chesapeake Energy Arena....

, its whereabouts are unknown.

Music Industry

In 1974, the Seattle band Annakonda (originally from Spokane

Spokane

Spokane is a city in the U.S. state of Washington.Spokane may also refer to:*Spokane *Spokane River*Spokane, Missouri*Spokane Valley, Washington*Spokane County, Washington*Spokane-Coeur d'Alene-Paloos War*Spokane * USS Spokane...

) recorded a funky instrumental track called "Wheedle's Groove." The song got significant airplay in the Seattle area and was released as a single a few years later, after a local radio station adopted it as the theme song for the SuperSonics during their run to the 1978 NBA Finals

1978 NBA Finals

-Series summary:Bullets win series 4-3-Game 1:The Bullets, behind Kevin Grevey's 27 and Elvin Hayes's 21 points, held a 19-point lead in the fourth quarter at the Seattle Center Coliseum. But, the Sonics staged a comeback in front of the home crowd, led by "instant offense" guard Fred Brown...

. In 2004, the song was part of a compilation CD entitled "Wheedle's Groove: Seattle's Finest in Funk and Soul - 1965-75," on Seattle-based Light in the Attic Records. Similar Seattle funk and soul history was covered by Jennifer Maas's 2009 documentary of the same name. As of 2010 a group of musicians, largely veterans of these bands, have reunited to perform under the name Wheedle's Groove. They have a CD, Kearney Barton (2009) on Light in the Attic.

In the early 2000s there was short-lived band in Seattle called "The Wheedle," a group that was active circa 2000-2001. The events calendar on the Experience Music Project

Experience Music Project

The EMP Museum is a museum dedicated to the history and exploration of both popular music and science fiction located in Seattle, Washington...

(EMP) website described them as "a trio from Seattle, WA composed of Robert Walker (drums/vocals), Ed Hodge (bass/vocals) and Joel Lederer (vocals/guitar). Their music blurs the lines of genre in favor of songwriting and lyrical exploration, mining the traditions of rock, folk, pop, alternative, blues, jazz and more to create a sound that is as familiar as it is unique.