Punxsutawney Phil disappoints

Editor’s note: this article is the first in a series exploring interesting people, places, and… Editor’s note: this article is the first in a series exploring interesting people, places, and things in the state of Pennsylvania.

PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. — On Groundhog Day, Phil did what weathermen often do: He disappointed his devotees.

At 7:31 a.m. yesterday, a pair of cold hands coaxed the famous weather-prophet groundhog out of his burrow at Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney and selected a scroll saying he had seen his shadow. The crowd booed at the prospect of six more weeks of winter.

“He’s only the messenger,” shouted William Cooper, president of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club, to quiet the crowd.

The groundhog’s prognostication followed more than four hours of celebration at the Knob, a clearing in the forest of northwest Pennsylvania. The revelry included karaoke contests and a display of fireworks in the early morning sky.

The bitter cold in the air did not faze the thousands of fans who arrived to support Phil and his unorthodox form of weather forecasting. People raised posters over their heads reading “Phil’s Shadow Prevents Global Warming” and “Who Needs Radar? We Have Phil!”

To keep warm as the temperature hovered around 10 degrees, hundreds stood in front of a large bonfire, holding bare hands over the flame until feeling returned and they rejoined the festivities.

As light crept over the trees behind the clearing, small groups of people began chanting “polka, polka,” calling for the popular song “Pennsylvania Polka” to be played over the loudspeakers. Their request was honored as the event’s dignitaries proceeded through the crowd toward the stage, where Phil was ensconced in his stump.

Everyone was waiting for the groundhog to appear as the highlight in “America’s Second Favorite Holiday,” as the day is known to enthusiasts.

Groundhog Day developed from Candlemas Day, an early Christian tradition, during which a hibernating animal would be observed. If the sun appeared, the animal would cast a shadow, meaning a “Second Winter” of six weeks. When the holiday was celebrated in Germany, hedgehogs were observed for this phenomenon.

But here in Pennsylvania, a land replete with groundhogs, German settlers altered the tradition to include their new furry friends. Punxsutawney residents have consulted Phil the groundhog on winter weather since 1886.

After the 1993 film “Groundhog Day” was released, the event was engrained in the consciousness of the country and the world. Some predictions — as Groundhog Day observances are called — have been attended by more than 30,000 people, and media from around the world cover the event annually.

“Between 8,000 and 10,000 were at this year’s prediction,” said Carrie Fischer with the Pennsylvania Tourism Office. “The Inner Circle said that’s a weekday record.”

The Inner Circle, a group of 15 keepers, is sworn to uphold the traditions of Groundhog Day. Their mysterious practices and incredible assertions draw the curiosity of all observers.

“He’s at least 119 years old,” said William Deeley, Phil’s handler of 15 years. “We don’t know what he did before [prognostication].”

Considering the average lifespan of a groundhog is a decade, many find Phil’s apparent immortality difficult to believe.

“Maybe they’re all in the same family,” said Jeanne Burnett of Somerset, Pa., as she watched the celebration. “But I’m sure it’s not the same animal.”

However, others who ventured farther to see Groundhog Day are what Cooper calls “true believers.”

“It’s a miracle,” said Bika Sebenegaru of Bangkok, Thailand. “Phil does not look that old.”

Whether they believed in the marmot’s longevity or not, most people were hoping for a prediction of early spring, a verdict Phil has delivered only 14 recorded times.

The lyrical scroll of Phil’s choosing mentioned that after recent disasters, including the tsunami that killed more than 280,000 people in late December, everybody could use an early spring. However, it went on to say he had seen his shadow.

This was not the first statement of the times embodied by Phil’s prediction. During the Prohibition era of the 1930s, he threatened six weeks of winter if he was not allowed a drink. In 1942, the groundhog saw a partial shadow, with the Punxsutawney Spirit reporting “war clouds have blacked out parts of the shadow.”

Some spectators took the prognostication more literally.

“I don’t know from politics,” Neal Masel of Warren, Ohio said. “I’m just buying more warm clothes.”