Ray, the new mascot of ‘Good Morning America.'.Photo:Good Morning America/Instagram
Good Morning America/Instagram
Good Morning Americais bringing a new “ray” of sunshine to its viewers in the form of an adorable, life-sized, furry yellow creature.
On Thursday, the ABC morning showdebuted its own mascot, Ray, who wore a blue T-shirt and baseball cap with the GMA logo emblazoned across it. He emerged onto theGMAset dancing and enthusiastically hugging the show’s cohostGio Benitez, who introduced him.
“Guys, what do you think of Ray?” Benitez asked hisGMAcolleagues about their new energetic mascot, to which fellow co-hostGeorge Stephanopoulosjokingly responded, “Ray had his coffee this morning.”
“He’s like the cutest puppy,” fellow co-hostLara Spenceradded.
Ray’sGMAdebut follows the show’s tradition of featuring popular sports mascots over the years.
“Ray, our yellow and blue friend, will spread the joy, heart and passion that ‘GMA’ brings to its viewers every morning,” according to a post onGMA’s website. “The energy of parents waking their kids up for school each morning, the smell of fresh coffee brewing in the kitchen and the smiles of friends and family members that jumpstart each day are instilled in Ray’s DNA.”
GMA hosts Michael Strahan, Lara Spencer, Gio Benitez and Rebecca Jarvis share a moment with their new mascot Ray.Good Morning America/Instagram
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In a 2021 interview withThe New York Times,Raymond said: “All of that emotion that is built up in your team gets funneled right down to that symbol. They’re inviting you to come in and hug and interact physically with a piece of the team.”
During Ray’sGMAdebut Thursday, Benitez asked the mascot how he was feeling on his first day on the job. Ray then pulled out what seemed like a device that was supposed to go off but didn’t. Instead, he threw it down on the floor and started dancing and behaving goofily as if nothing happened, which sparked laughter from theGMAstaff.
source: people.com
