THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, April 13, 1996 TAG: 9604120064
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E1 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Column
SOURCE: Larry Maddry
LENGTH: Medium: 79 lines
THEY LOVE her.
Lady Luck's admirers stood in a line that stretched to the parking lot, all alerted to her appearance by radio station FM99, which had parked its truck outside, not far from the Luckmobile.
It was late afternoon in the Hardee's at 701 Independence Blvd. in Virginia Beach. And Lady Luck - the symbol of the Virginia Lottery - had a wrist sorer than a Buchanan Republican just from administering taps with her lucky wand.
In case you aren't up to speed on Lady Luck, the wand, which has a four-leaf clover embedded in its business end, is very important. And it's seldom more than a few inches from her hand.
That's because - according to the commercials that have made her famous - she once left the wand in a repair shop. The repairman - who was supposed to be replacing the filter full of fairy dust and sharpening the star points - played around with it and turned himself into a half-man, half-chicken.
Lady Luck, who is now in her seventh year as the lottery icon, vaguely resembled a bird herself as she sat behind a desk. Her cape, loosely draped across her shoulders, was bristling with pink - flamingo? - feathers. Her belt was decorated with a rabbit's foot and another four-leaf clover.
``I got the job after Dame Fortune, my mother, retired to a mobile home in Florida,'' she explained.
She has no problems with black cats, she said. She walks beneath ladders, unconcerned. ``And I step on cracks like crazy,'' she said.
Each of her fans received a Polaroid photo taken with Lady Luck plus a coupon for a free lottery Kicker ticket. And nearly all asked for a tap of her lucky wand - on the shoulders, head or on a lottery ticket. She signed the photos and FM-99 T-shirts, which listed the cities on her tour.
What was really scary about the line was the number of people in it who actually believed the woman was Lady Luck, and not an actress. Believed it even though she was sitting at a desk in Hardee's with an advertising card twirling on a string over her head with a color reproduction of a sundae on it and ``$1.29 Best Value'' printed underneath.
Scott and Theresa Ferguson of Virginia Beach have been playing the lottery twice a week for years. They spent 15 minutes shuffling forward in line before reaching Lady Luck.
Asked if they actually believed a tap of her wand would help win the lottery, they shrugged.
``Can't hurt,'' they replied in unison. They were less believing than most. Many others in line approached the desk where Lady Luck waited with some anxiety, in the manner of those waiting for a papal blessing.
Many parents carried babies so that Lady Luck could tap their tender noggins and ensure prosperous lives.
Donna Oscar said the entire office staff of Scholastics Bookfares left work early to see Lady Luck.
``We closed up shop and said, `To hell with it, we're going to see her . .
Lady Luck's appeal is universal, said Ellen Carver, the manager of marketing communications for the Virginia Lottery. The crowds at Hardee's were expected because of the promotional link with the radio station, but she draws crowds everywhere.
``We just came from Lawrence Pharmacy in Chesapeake,'' Carver explained. ``There was no publicity, just a poster in the window saying Lady Luck would be there. And about a hundred people showed up.''
Lady Luck is on a 16-day tour of 37 lottery locations. She has swept across the state in her gold shoes several times before. This time she si promoting the new Kicker game.
She said children sometimes mistake her for the Tooth Fairy or Mother Nature. Her many fans bring her gifts, rings, four-leaf clovers and, while in Hampton Roads, a floral-like bouquet of playing cards in a basket.
As I was leaving, a woman stopped Lady Luck as she was about to be tapped with the wand. ``Don't turn me into a chicken,'' she begged. ILLUSTRATION: Color staff photo by D. Kevin Elliot
Dave Hall of Virginia Beach has his lottery ticket blessed by Lady
Luck during her promotional stop at a local Hardee's
by CNB