Werewolf statue in front of a woman’s home in Piqua, Ohio. Pic credit: via WHIO/YouTube
A woman in Ohio successfully resisted pressure from city authorities to take down a 9.5-foot-tall werewolf figure she put up in her front yard last Halloween.
Mary Simmons of Piqua, a city in Miami County, Ohio, near Dayton, told WKEF-TV (Dayton 24/7) that she installed the 9.5-foot-tall plastic figure of a werewolf in front of her house as part of her 2022 Halloween decoration.
But after Halloween, she decided to keep it on her lawn as her house mascot. She added that the figure offered home security because no one would try to break in while a massive werewolf stood guard.
Phil the Werewolf
Simmons is proud of her werewolf mascot. She named it Phil after she decided to let it stay permanently in her front yard. She started adorning it with colorful decorations and costumes consistent with the season.
Photos of the werewolf posted to Facebook show it dressed in national colors and holding the national flag for the Fourth of July celebrations. Another shows it with the skeletal remains of its Halloween dinner gripped in its fangs.
Simmons told WKEF-TV she plans to dress Phil in a Hawaiian shirt and sunglasses for summer.
City authorities issued a warning but later backed down
Simmons said her neighbors supported her decision to keep Phil the Werewolf standing in her front yard. However, someone lodged an anonymous complaint with the city authorities, who issued a warning.
But when she stood her ground on the issue, her neighbors rallied around her, and the authorities appeared to back down.
According to WKEF-TV, the city authorities said they would not immediately enforce their warning to Simmons.
She explained that she intended to keep it standing for as long as it did not constitute a safety hazard. She would immediately take it down if it threatened to fall and hurt someone passing.
Phil the Werewolf is acquiring a following on Facebook
Meanwhile, Paul the Werewolf is fast acquiring a fanbase on social media.
You may view Phil’s Facebook fan page (Phil the Wolf 500) here.
As of June 21, Phil, the werewolf’s fan page had more than 1,500 likes and 2,900 followers.
“Meet Phil, he’s a nice werewolf that lives in Piqua, OH that fought and won for his rights to stay!” reads the page’s Intro.
Support for Phil
Many people supported Simmons’s fight to keep Phil the Werewolf in her front yard.
“They don’t have a right to be doing this. I stand with Phil… he has a right to stay exactly where he is,” one Facebook supporter protested.
“You have our full support!” another Facebook user wrote.
“Gurl it must be everywhere esp where I live. Keep standing for Phil!” a third supporter wrote.
Pic credit: Phil the Wolf 500
Actor George Takei showed support
Actor George Takei, best known for his role as Lieutenant Hikaru Sulu on the TV series Star Trek, is one of a few celebrities who showed support.
The Werewolf in folkloric tradition
The werewolf features in the folklore of Europe and North America.
A werewolf is typically a human who can transform into a half-man-half-wolf creature. In many traditions, the transformation occurs under special conditions, usually during a full moon.
The condition of being able to transform into a werewolf is called lycanthropy. Folklore considered lycanthropy to be an affliction. In some cases, the sufferer was born with it. Others acquired it through being scratched or bitten by a wolf or through a curse.
Folklore also suggests cures for the condition. You can cure lycanthropy by taking extracts of the herb wolfsbane (Genus Aconitum) or through exorcism.
The werewolf resembles mythical entities in North American folklore, such as the Louisiana Rougarou and the Navajo Skinwalkers.