(No Pants Subway Ride 2010 in HD on YouTube)
edited by Matt Adams / song by Tyler Walker

On Sunday, January 10th, 2010 over 5,000 people took off their pants on subways in 44 cities around the world. In New York, our 9th Annual No Pants! Subway Ride had over 3,000 participants, spread out over six meeting points and ten subway lines. Enjoy the video first and then go behind the scenes with our mission report and photos.

Train Generals: Agents Ace$Thugg, Fiedler, Good, Lathan, Lindquist, Reeves, Scordelis, Shafeek, Shafer
Digital Video: Agents Adams, Gross, Hambly, Haskel, Joseff, Marinconz, Mendoza, Nimkin, Nussbaum, Singh, Smolkin
Digital Photography: Agents Chigirev, Fountain, Hambly, Rosmarin, Scott, Sermoneta, Sokoler, Zapata

If you’re unfamiliar with No Pants, you might want to first read our history of The No Pants Subway Ride.

The crowd at Foley Square

After having 1,200 show up in a snow storm last year, we knew this year’s attendance would be huge. When Justin Timberlake is tweeting about it, you know it’s going to be big.

As each year passes, No Pants becomes more and more like a parade– a celebration of silliness. It’s more of an international holiday than a top secret prank, but we still do our best to divide up the masses so that the prank at least starts slow and subtle. To accomplish this we expanded No Pants this year from one meeting point to six.

I ran the downtown Manhattan meeting point along with three other megaphone wielding No Pants “Generals.” We divided our crowd up into four train lines (the 6, N, E, and 1.) Before we started I polled the audience to see who had been participating the longest, making people crouch as the years counted up. Agent McFluffster was the last standing (besides me), having participated for five years. He was randomly on the train as an “audience member” for No Pants 2005 and has been participating ever since!

Agent Good ran the Central Park location up near Harlem and divided his crowd between the A and 1 trains.

Central Park participants

Agent Ace$Thugg ran the Prospect Park Brooklyn location (F train.)

A family participating together at the Prospect Park spot

Agent Scordelis ran the Bushwick location (L train.)

Agent (Rob) Lathan ran the Astoria Queens location (N train.)

Agents Pavlovich and Purnell organize participants into car numbers

Agent Shafer ran the Flushing Queens location (7 train.) They met out at the old World’s Fairgrounds, in front of the Unisphere.

The first stop on the 6 train

The mission started the same way on each of the 100 cars we took over. One person stood up, removed their pants, and exited the train to wait on the platform for the next one. This left lots of nice moments with people by themselves in their underwear.

This was the first year that we used train lines that had outdoor sections. Participants in parts of Brooklyn and Queens had to wait out in the 28 degree cold for the next train to arrive.

As No Pants grows, the thing I am most proud of is the increased diversity. When No Pants started in 2002, it was seven white males in their early to mid twenties. As each year has passed, we’ve seen increased diversity in gender, age, and ethnicity. This was the first year that the participants looked like a true representation of New York City. Sure, it still skews young, with lots of student participation, but I saw several sets of mother/daughter teams, families, babies, and grandparents. We had dozens of high school kids from the Bronx participating as well as people who traveled from places like Mexico and The Netherlands just to experience No Pants in New York (and both of those countries had their own local rides!) Folks will probably still continue to dismiss No Pants as a “hipster” event, but they’re dead wrong.

Making a transfer

The individual choices and differences amongst participants are always fun.

Superman FTW

An agent in formal attire

Agent Corey, pregnant

A laptop user

Reading “Wrestling for Beginners”
(though he can’t be that much of a novice if he’s already won a belt!)

This guy was awesome

As usual we got a wide variety of reactions from the New Yorkers we encountered. Certainly more than a few had heard about it or even seen it before, but in a city of eight million (plus tourists), there will always be people having their first run-in with pantless train riders.

Masses of people transferring at Times Square

All of the train lines converged on Union Square at the end of the mission, which means that within a short stretch of time 3,000 pantless people passed through the station’s exit turnstiles. Although the mission really ends when you exit the train, for some participants the party has just begun. As in years past, many (if not most) participants chose to remain pantless in Union Square for hours. All sorts of random fun was created on the spot: dance battles, conga lines, duck duck goose, etc! Some folks kept their pants off for the rest of the night, taking the train home in their underwear after a night of pantless drinking and dining.

The masses above ground at Union Square

Posing for photos in the station post mission

You may remember that we had trouble with the police in 2006, but since then the NYPD has been wonderful towards us. This year they were in especially good spirits, laughing and posing for photos with participants at Union Square.

With thousands of people standing in Union Square in their underwear, some participants got the bright idea to get everyone to Look Up.

For the third year in a row, there was a counter-contingent. The “Pro Pants” group was back once again to try to convert us to their pants-based religion. They went all out this year with pamphlets, sandwich boards, and free pairs of pants. You can read Agent Eppink’s documentation of Pro Pants on his site.

Agent Eppink prosthelytizing

Do you need pants?

All of the No Pants Generals got together to take a group photo at the end. I can’t believe we had nine megaphones.

The prank lives on into the night, returning to the subtle nature of the beginning with people walking around all alone in their underwear.

While we were having our fun in New York, No Pants Subway (or Light Rail or Bus) Rides were also happening in 43 other cities in 16 different countries. I uploaded a highlight photo of each regional ride to flickr. Justine Bateman appears in the Los Angeles photo. I think that makes her our first celebrity No Pants participant, though several past participants have gone on to television fame. Their faces in photos of past years are like Easter eggs now. Anyway, it’s fun to see photos from people doing the same silly thing all over the world:

No Pants Regional Rides Photo Set

Finally, I’m not sure if Pete Wentz, the bassist for Fall Out Boy, ran into us in New York or Los Angeles, but either way, this cracked me up:

Mission Accomplished.

For links to more photos, videos, and news articles for all of the No Pants Subway Rides check out the posts below. The comments sections are filled with first-hand agent reports and links to more media.

NYC Agent Reports

Regional Agent Reports

Also check out our complete history of The No Pants Subway Ride.

If this is your first time here:
-our other 100+ missions can be seen here: Missions
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-New Yorkers join our NY Agents list
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Photo by Katie Sokoler

The 9th Annual No Pants Subway Ride went off without a hitch today in New York. It’s tough to count, but we’re guessing we had around 3,000 participants. Riders met at meeting points spread out all over the city and converged on Union Square. The high was 28 degrees. There were also No Pants rides in 43 other cities around the world in 16 countries!

Photos:

-Agent Sokoler’s Set (Downtown)
-Agent Rosmarin’s set (Downtown)
-Agent Zapata’s Set (Downtown)
-Agent Hambly’s Set (Central Park)
-Agent Chigirev’s Set (Central Park)
-Agent Fountain’s Set (Prospect Park)
-Agent Scott’s Set (Astoria)
-Agent Sermoneta’s Set (Flushing)
-Metromix’s Set (Bushwick)

The official video should be ready in a week. For now, enjoy videos from year’s past!

No Pants 2009

No Pants 2008

No Pants 2002 (the first year!)

Complete history of The No Pants! Subway Ride with videos of past years

Thanks to everyone who came out to participate! If this was your first event, make sure you are on the NY Agents mailing list so you’ll find out about upcoming missions. Subscribe to our RSS feed to stay up to date on everything Improv Everywhere. You can also join our Facebook Page and subscribe to our YouTube channel.

No Pants 2010 Subway Ride Generals
(L-R) Back: Agents Good, Todd, Shafer, Lindquist, Fiedler
Front: Agents Scordelis, Lathan, Ace$Thugg, Reeves
photo by Brian Fountain

No Pants 2010 Buenos Aires

If you participated in one of the 44 regional No Pants Subway Rides today in 16 countries across the world, leave us an agent report in the comments below letting us know how it went. Post links to any photos and videos from your town’s event as well. Let us know how many people participated and what the temperature was.

If you’re discussing No Pants on twitter, remember to include @improvevery

Also, if you haven’t already, be sure to sign up for our mailing list and subscribe to our RSS feed so you’ll stay updated on future global events like this. You can also join our Facebook Page and subscribe to our YouTube channel.

Thanks for participating!

Check out the complete history of The No Pants! Subway Ride with videos of past years

Video from the first No Pants in 2002

The Ninth Annual No Pants Subway Ride is tomorrow in New York City and 42 cities worldwide! There are 15 countries involved this year, including Japan, Argentina, and Sweden. We are expecting a breezy 29 degree day here in New York.

New York City details for No Pants 2010

Details for other cities

Check back here Sunday night and all day Monday for initial reports and photos. We hope to have a video up in a week or so.

Complete history of The No Pants! Subway Ride

Last year’s No Pants Subway Ride

UPDATE: Just added Flushing Meadows Park as a 6th location!

All are invited to participate in the 9th Annual No Pants Subway Ride. The event will take place at 3:00 PM on Sunday, January 10. Everything you need to know is in this post. Please read it carefully!

REQUIREMENTS FOR PARTICIPATION:

1) Willing to take pants off on subway
2) Able to keep a straight face about it

**THIS IS A PARTICIPATORY EVENT. DO NOT SHOW UP UNLESS YOU PLAN TO TAKE YOUR PANTS OFF.**

DETAILS

When: Sunday, January 10 at 3:00 PM, Sharp! (Over by around 5:30)
Where: Six meeting points spread out all over New York City. Details below.
Bring: A backpack and a metro card.
Wear: Normal winter clothes (hat, gloves, etc)
Facebook: You can RSVP to the Facebook Event

Complete logistics below:

HOW IT WORKS

There are six meeting points this year. Take your pick.

Astoria: Meet at Hoyt Playground – Google Map
Downtown Brooklyn: Meet at Prospect Park – Google Map
Downtown Manhattan: Meet at Foley Square – Google Map
Queens: Meet at the Unisphere in Flushing Meadows Park – Google Map
Uptown Manhattan: Meet at the Great Hill in Central Park – Google Map
Williamsburg / Bushwick: Meet at Bushwick Park (AKA Maria Hernandez Park) – Google Map

Everyone should meet at their chosen meeting point at 3 PM. Please be on time. Feel free to be early.

At the meeting points, participants will be organized into groups and assigned a specific train car. Once everyone is divided up we will all head to nearby subway station[s]. Do not talk to others once you enter the subway system. No one knows each other.

Sit in the car as you normally would. Read a magazine or whatever you would normally do. Your team leader will have already divided you into smaller groups, assigning your group a specific stop where you will depants.

As soon as the doors shut at the stop before yours, stand up and take your pants off and put them in your backpack. If you’d like to use a briefcase, purse, grocery bag, or whatever instead of a backpack that’s fine too. If anyone asks you why you’ve removed your pants, tell them that they were “getting uncomfortable” (or something along those lines.)

Exit the train at your assigned stop and stand on the platform, pantless. You will wait on the platform for the next train to arrive. Stay in the exact same place on the platform so you enter the next train in the same car as you exited the last train.

When you enter, act as you normally would. You do not know any of the other pantless riders. If questioned, tell folks that you “forgot to wear pants” and yes you are “a little cold.” Insist that it is a coincidence that others also forgot their pants. Be nice and friendly and normal.

All train routes will converge on Union Square. Your exact route will be explained at the meeting point, and may involve a transfer.

You can wear fun underwear if you like, but nothing that screams out, “I wore this because I’m doing a silly stunt.” Wear two pairs of underwear if it makes you feel more comfortable. Don’t wear a thong or anything else that might offend people. Our aim is to make people laugh, not piss them off.

If you haven’t already, please take a moment to read about previous No Pants! Subway Rides.

Please leave your cameras at home and resist the temptation to snap photos with your iPhone, etc. while the event is happening. Take as many as you like before and after the event, but during the ride we really want people to enjoy the experience of participating rather than documenting. It detracts from the mission if everyone is taking photos of each other rather than keeping a straight face. Don’t worry, we have photographers assigned to every meeting point who will take great photos.

This is always a blast, and we look forward to seeing you there. You may bring along friends if you like, but make sure they get a chance to read all of these instructions.

See you on the 10th!

(Information for participating in other cities is here.)

Be aware that by participating, you recognize that Improv Everywhere is not liable in the event you are injured, arrested, or worse. By choosing to participate you are still responsible for your actions.

No Pants 2008 in New York

As in years past, there are No Pants Subway Rides happening in cities around the world on January 10, the same day as our annual event in New York. If your town has a subway system or some form of mass transportation (bus? trolley?), then get involved and organize your own ride.

If you want to be the leader for your town’s ride, create a Facebook event and post a link to it in the comments below so we can promote it on this page. Here are all of the cities that currently have rides being organized for this year:

Adelaide
Amsterdam
Atlanta
Barcelona
Berlin
Boston
Brisbane
Buenos Aires
Buffalo
Calgary
Charlotte
Chicago
Cleveland
Dallas | Dallas 2
Denver
Edmonton
Gothenburg
Honolulu
Lisbon
London
Los Angeles
Madrid
Melbourne
Mexico City
Minneapolis
New York
Philadelphia
Phoenix
Pittsburgh
Portland, OR | Portland, OR 2
Salt Lake City
San Diego
San Francisco
Seattle
Stockholm
Sydney
Tokyo
Toronto
Toulouse
Vancouver
Vienna
Warsaw
Washington, DC
Zürich

If you participate in a regional ride and use twitter, tag your posts with #nopants and @improvevery so everyone can follow along with other cities throughout the day.

We will be updating this page with links to any new cities. Leave any corrections or additions in the comments.

(View it in 1080p HD on YouTube)
edited by Matt Adams / idea by Jason Eppink

For our latest mission, a 13-member handbell choir provided some unexpected accompaniment for a Salvation Army bell ringer on Lexington Avenue in Manhattan. Enjoy the video first and then go behind the scenes with our report below.

Still Photos: Katie Sokoler and Chad Nicholson.
Video: Chad Nicholson, Erik Martin, Keith Haskel, Steve Marinconz, Drue Pennella & Erik Paulsen
Sound: Paul Reed
Idea by: Jason Eppink

Agent Eppink came up with the idea for Guerrilla Handbell Strikeforce several years ago but couldn’t find a handbell choir to pull it off. When he approached me about doing it with Improv Everywhere I immediately loved the idea. It sort of felt like a Christmas version of our old Best Buy mission.

Agent Eppink got in touch with Cory Davis, the bell choir conductor for Christ Church United Methodist in Manhattan, and he quickly agreed to have his choir help out. The church was located right in the heart of Midtown, which made their rehearsal room a perfect staging point for the mission.

The bells

Agent Davis arranged a version of “Joy to the World” that could start with one bell and gradually grow to include the entire choir. We wanted the mission to have a slow build.

The choir rehearsing before the mission

Since this mission was all about sound, we brought Agent Reed on board to make sure we got the best possible audio. He put wireless mics on three of the bell ringers.

Agent Reed puts a mic on Agent Davis

After the choir finished rehearsing we spent some time staging the choreography of the handbell ringers’ entrances and coordinating our video strategy. Most of the cameras used to document this mission were DSLRs. Because they look like still cameras, our agents were able to blend in with the other tourists on the street snapping photos of New York.

On the move

Agents Eppink, Adams, and I spent a couple of nights scouting the neighborhood to figure out where the Salvation Army bell ringers normally set up shop. During the day you’re likely to find them all over the place, but at night there was only one spot where they stayed late– Bloomingdale’s.

Bloomingdale’s

The choir hiding around the corner

As we hoped, there was a bell ringer stationed in front of the entrance to the store. The Salvation Army often uses volunteers for this job, but in New York almost all of the bell ringers are paid, seasonal employees. Our goal with this mission wasn’t to make any sort of statement about the Salvation Army (an organization that I’m sure does lots of great charitable work, but also is not without controversy), but to create an awesome moment for one bell ringer and the random New Yorkers and tourists who happened to be in the right place at the right time.

The bell ringer, moments before

The bell ringer was set up right by the curb, facing the store entrance. In order to stand behind him, some members of the choir would have to stand on the edge of the street. I was worried about the busy traffic on Lexington Avenue, so as a safety precaution I stood in the street to make sure cars stayed clear. The lane was mostly used by cabs picking up customers, so we wouldn’t gum up traffic too much for the two minutes we were there. All I needed was an orange vest and a traffic cone to look official.

Agent Davis walked out and stood next to the bell ringer with his enormous bass bell and red apron. “How you doing?” he asked, and then started playing. The juxtaposition of his huge bell and the bell ringer’s tiny one was really a prank all by itself. The bell ringer immediately started laughing.

The second agent arrives

More arrive

8 more choir members create a back row

The Salvation Army ringer becomes part of an ensemble

Once everyone was in place, the choir began their rendition of “Joy to the World.” Christmas shoppers on the street starting stopping to watch and take photos.

An employee ducks his head out to see what’s going on

My guess is that most of the people who witnessed the mission figured it was either an official Salvation Army performance or perhaps a promotion that was produced by Bloomingdale’s.

After the song ended, the handbell choir starting leaving in the reverse order in which they came, working back down to just Agent Davis and the Salvation Army worker.

Just a few minutes after it had begun, the bell ringer was again by himself on the street and the choir was nowhere to be found.

Shortly after the mission, Agent Eppink and I had conversations with the bell ringer, posing as random curious people. He didn’t speak much English, but fortunately a friend of one of the choir members who happened to be standing nearby was fluent in Spanish. We recorded a little interview with him in Spanish and then translated it:

Well, first I thought they had come from the store here, that they were part of the business. “That’s fine,” I said to myself. I saw that they all had red aprons like me… When the first guy came, I wanted to say, “Hey! Give me that bell, and I’ll give you this one!” Then I saw that they were all coming up surrounding me and I said to myself, “OK, what’s going on?” It’s Christmastime, so we’ve got to be merry… If we’re not merry here amongst ourselves, then what do we have to be merry about? But yeah, the whole thing was really nice.

Mission Accomplished

- Agent Sokoler’s Flickr Set

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video from No Pants 2009

UPDATE:
Details for New York
Details for other Cities

The 9th Annual No Pants! Subway Ride will take place on Sunday, January 10 in New York City. More info with the meeting point and start time will be posted to this site in early January. For now, save the date. You can RSVP on Facebook.

Once again we are encouraging folks in other cities around the world to stage their own No Pants rides on the same day. Here is the list of cities who participated last year. Anyone organizing a regional No Pants event should let us know by leaving a comment on this post along with all of the necessary details. In a few weeks we will publish a list of all participating cities along with links to any Facebook events. Groups have staged the event on trolleys, light rails, and buses in the past, so don’t let a lack of subway system stop you!

If you are unfamiliar with this tradition, you can read the history here: The No Pants Subway Ride.

(View it larger on YouTube)
edited by Matt Adams / song by Tyler Walker

For our latest mission, Agent Lathan pretended to get lost during a Knicks game. Throughout the second half he kept appearing further and further away from his assigned seat with a confused look on his face. Of course Knicks fans went crazy trying to help him find his way back. Enjoy the video first and then go behind the scenes with our report below.

Still Photos: Katie Sokoler and Chad Nicholson.
Video: Agent Adams, Agent Nicholson, Hello World
Rob: Agent Lathan

Agent Lathan first pulled this stunt for Improv Everywhere back in the summer of 2006. Getting lost at a ball game was a prank he had done spontaneously a couple of times in the past, and we decided to try to organize one for IE at a Yankee game. The mission turned out to be a total blast, but we weren’t able to capture much of it on film. Yankee Stadium did not allow video cameras, so we were limited to using “movie mode” on a couple of point-and-shoot still cameras.

Madison Square Garden

We decided to try the mission again at a Knicks game for two reasons: 1) We wanted to try to get better video footage of the prank and 2) Agent Lathan found a deal on $10 tickets. MSG has a similar camera policy, but technology has advanced quite a bit in the past three years. Flip video cameras are the same size as point-and-shoot still cameras, and some DSLR cameras shoot gorgeous HD video. MSG doesn’t allow professional cameras with detachable lenses, so we had to get a little creative to smuggle in our nicer gear. Agent Sokoler had the best method– she hid her equipment in her bag underneath underwear and tampons. The security guy flinched when he opened her bag and waved her right on through.

Agent Sokoler’s bag

There was a reason the tickets were on special for $10– the seats had an obstructed view and were WAY up at the top of the 400 level. This didn’t matter as we didn’t plan on sitting in them for long. The Knicks have a pretty bad record, so there were plenty of empty seats down below. Right before halftime Agent Lathan and his five friends headed down to a row of $89 seats in the 300 level.

The five IE agents minus Agent Lathan in our upgraded seats

The camera agents sat in the sections next to, below, and above ours, so they’d be able to document from a distance without tipping anyone off.

Agent Lathan:

At halftime I got up out of my seat and headed for the concession stand. I bought a beer, a large popcorn, and a giant bag of cotton candy – the perfect accessory to add to my visibility and helplessness. Even better, the cotton candy came with an orange Knicks stocking cap – something that could add a little pizazz to my “lost sports fan” ensemble later on.

Agent Lathan:

At the next break in action, I stumbled through the gate looking for my seat. I wandered up some steps one aisle over from my original seat when Agent Todd began casually waving his arms and saying my name: “Rob, hey Rob, we’re over here.” A few more agents got into it and yelled out my name as I glanced around in a confused state. Eventually I walked back down the aisle and disappeared back under the gate. By this time several rows of unsuspecting fans were now tipped off that some idiot named Rob couldn’t find his seat.

Rob, upper left. His friends, bottom right.

Agents Todd and Scordelis stand and shout at Rob

A Knicks fan tries to point Rob in the right direction

Laughing at Rob

Agent Scordelis:

He proceeded to walk directly in front of us while we frantically waved our arms and shouted his name to no avail. After Rob disappeared back under the stands, a concerned lady seated in front of me asked, “Is your buddy OK?” It seemed pretty insane that he couldn’t see or hear us from a distance of about 15 feet.

Rob gives up and leaves

Agent Lathan:

By my second appearance, a few rows over, several crowd members now joined in and yelled my name, “Rob! Hey Rob! Your friends are over there!” Some misunderstood my actual name and screamed, “Bob! Bob! Over here, Bob!” – thus creating a perfect blend of chaos and mass hysteria.

Rob’s 2nd appearance, now on the other side of his friends

More people get up and yell “Rob!”

Rob disappeared again through the gate and continued wandering around the arena to more and more absurd places – from the opposite side of the court to the upper deck.

Rob on the opposite side of the arena

I kept an eye out for him throughout the game, leaping to my feet to point and scream whenever I saw him appear. Often other fans in the section found him before I did. Of course spotting Rob across the way was all the more hilarious since his red and white shirt made him look at bit like Waldo. With each appearance there were tons of people screaming, “Rob!” and waving their hands, trying to get his attention from across the arena.

Agent Lathan:

After receiving a text from Agent Todd, I made a move towards my next appearance – a few sections directly under my original seat – an ideal spot to get maximum exposure. It was time to put on the orange Knicks stocking cap.

Rob in front of section 112

Rob’s next entrance was perfect. He was directly below all of the sections who were looking for him and he entered right when a time-out started. The crowd went absolutely nuts screaming for him.

Agent Janowitz:

What was at once the most remarkable and puzzling aspect of the stunt was the sustained patience of the crowd. We spent the last 3/8ths of the game distracting everyone within ear- and eye-shot by trying to get the attention of our aimlessly wandering friend. From both a cost and a value standpoint, the price of Knicks tickets is unconscionable. But no one got mad. No one took matters into their own hands (except one good-spirited fellow in a Cowboys jacket, who walked down two sections to point out to Rob where his friends were sitting, and then remained jolly when Rob still walked the wrong way). Rather, our section—and the section next to us, and the section in front of us—embraced Rob, and our efforts to get him back. If only the Knicks displayed that kind of teamwork.

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At the height of this hysteria, Knicks cheerleaders started shooting t-shirts into the crowd. Amazingly, one landed right at Rob’s feet. Everyone laughed their asses off as he immediately put it on.

Agent Scordelis:

Seeing Rob catch a cannon-propelled t-shirt during a fourth quarter timeout was easily the funniest moment of the mission. I’ve been to dozens of sporting events where t-shirt cannons launch shirts into the crowd, but I’ve never come close to catching one. The fact that Rob caught a t-shirt while holding a massive concessions tray only adds to his legend.

Laughing at Rob’s new shirt

At this point Rob had been standing in the same spot for over a minute, and people sitting near us started shouting at me, “Just go get him! He’s right there! Go get him!” I hadn’t anticipated this happening, but I knew I had to do something. Why wouldn’t I just go get him? I got up and slowly started walking down the steps to get from the 300 level to the 100 level, making sure Rob saw me coming. I knew there was no way he would let me reach him.

Rob disappeared again just before I could get to him, and I returned to my seat, defeated. “I tried chasing him in the hallway, but he must have walked the opposite direction!”

Agent Lathan:

I figured the only way to heighten my next appearance was by getting as close to the floor as possible – on the exact opposite side of the court. I figured I’d get stopped by the ushers, but amazingly they let me through. I made it all the way down to the floor – right behind the Hawks bench – and close enough to make a brief appearance on TV.

Rob on the television broadcast

Yelling at Rob as he walks behind the Hawk’s bench

A fan pointing out Rob to her friend

At this point the crowd around us was way more interested in Rob than the Knicks. Although they were ahead at halftime, by the fourth quarter the Hawks had a large lead. A group of kids seated behind us kept yelling about Rob, and eventually got a pretty big “Where is Rob?” chant going. The kids would also try to trick me, by screaming that they saw him across the court. I’d jump up and say, “Where?” and they’d laugh at me. “Your friend is an idiot,” they kept yelling at me. I just kept agreeing. “Yeah, he’s an idiot.”

The downside of the Knicks getting blown out was that fans started leaving the game early. The plan was for Rob to return right as the game ended, but this wouldn’t work if everyone in our area was already gone.

Agent Lathan:

My seats were on the opposite side of the arena and I had to travel up two escalators. I broke into a jog. At one point I made a wrong turn and went up a staircase the led to a locked door. So while I was trying to get “fake” lost, I actually got really lost.

Finally I made my triumphant return. The entire section greeted me with a loud cheer.

High fiving Rob as he finally returned to his seat

Agent Lathan:

Finally I made it back just before the end of the game. The entire section erupted in applause. Some youngsters seated directly behind the agents were especially excited to see my return, “Rob! Where were you?” I just shook my head and responded, “Aw man, I’ve been looking all over for you guys.” The entire section chanted, “We found Rob!” CLAP-CLAP CLAP-CLAP-CLAP. “We found Rob!”

Cheering for Rob in the back

Agent Scordelis:

Rob received a thunderous standing ovation when he finally found his seat, and the scene that ensued was total bedlam. More than one hundred Knicks fans mobbed Rob after the game clock wound down. They hugged him, high-fived him, and asked for his autograph. It was like something out of A Hard Day’s Night. Rob posed for dozens of pictures while fans chanted his name. I guess rooting for Rob to find his seat is a lot like rooting for the Knicks to win – it’s a hopeless cause, but you can’t help cheering for the underdog anyway.

There was a group of European exchange students in the section right next to ours. Of everyone in the area, they loved Rob the most. It was their first sporting event in America, and they were simply amazed somebody could get that lost. One kid from Spain with a hoarse voice kept yelling, “Listen to my voice Rob! My voice is not for the Knicks. My voice is for you!” (I think he meant he was hoarse from yelling at Rob the whole game.) The group’s teacher asked Rob if he would pose for a photo with all of them.

The mission was tons of fun for everyone involved. It really did seem like everyone cheering for Rob legitimately thought he was lost. Of course the point wasn’t to fool people, the point was to make people laugh and smile at something ridiculous. It’s so awesome to see a crowd unite and experience something crazy together. Whether these Knicks fans ever see this page or not, hopefully they’ll always remember the night they helped some idiot find his seat.

Mission Accomplished

Here’s the MSG seating chart matched up with Rob’s six main appearances:

- Many more photos in higher resolution:
- Agent Sokoler’s Flickr Set
- Agent Nicholson’s Flickr Set
- Rob at Yankee Stadium
- Rob Wants To Give You a High Five

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-We have a book and a DVD for sale!

We’re selling signed copies of our new book Causing a Scene. Author Charlie Todd will sign each book and add any personal message you want. We have a limited number of copies on hand to sign, so order now before they’re gone.

A signed book costs $30 and shipping is free anywhere in the US. (Sorry, we are no longer shipping signed books internationally.) Of course, you can always buy an unsigned copy on Amazon for $13.59 (plus shipping.)

HOW TO ORDER

Use the PayPal “buy now” button below to place your order. There will be a box on the order form where you can write exactly what you want written for the personal message in the book. If you leave this blank, you’ll just get it signed without any personalization.

Signed Copy of Causing a Scene – $30

Orders ship via US Mail. Allow a couple of weeks for delivery. Send us an email if you’d rather pay by check.