Fans heading to the NBA Finals downtown will be treated to a huge life like poster of “Z.” (Photo courtesy of Cleveland Cavaliers)

Monster size replica of “Z” to cover North Garage
By Matt Pawlikowski
Sports
Published June 13, 2007

Most kids have heard of Fatheads, the life size wall replicas of favorite sports stars. This week with the NBA finals in Cleveland, the company has gone even bigger, or as they are saying in these parts, rose up above all, as they unveiled the largest Fathead ever made. 

The company has put up a nearly 70 feet high by 54 feet wide building wrap featuring Cleveland Cavaliers center Zydrunas Ilgauskas adhered to the Gateway North Garage located on the Gateway Complex across from Quicken Loans Arena.  Workers began installing the wrap on Sunday. It was completed by Monday.

“Zydrunas is a great choice by Fathead to represent the Cavaliers organization during this special time in Cleveland,” said Cavaliers General Manager Danny Ferry.  “I am very happy that he is getting the well-deserved recognition for all of his hard work during his past nine seasons with the Cavaliers organization.”

So why did the company pick ‘Z,’ an Avon Lake resident? It’s simple, according to Fathead Chief Executive Officer Brock Weatherup.

“As the longest-active member of the Cavaliers, Zydrunas embodies the qualities that Fathead embraces,” said Weatherup. “He serves as an inspiration to fans for fighting through injuries early in his career to achieve greatness as a two-time NBA All-Star and as an integral member of the Cleveland Cavaliers Eastern Conference Championship team. We love the message he’ll convey to the city of Cleveland and the world during the NBA Finals.”

The company will also be releasing an Ilgauskas Fathead using the same image that is appearing on the building wrap. Ilgauskas, who stands 7 foot 3 inches, will be the largest Fathead the company has released to date. The Ilgauskas Fathead will be 9 feet tall and 4 feet wide—a foot and a half taller than the next tallest Fathead.  It is available for pre-order at www.fathead.com.  Those looking for ones of the King? Well, Fathead already offers two versions of LeBron James and also the Cleveland Cavaliers team logo.

Those who are not sports fans or kids may wonder what exactly is a Fathead? Well, it’s simple. A “Fathead” is a bold, colorful, life-size wall graphic of sports and entertainment stars. The 3-D-like vinyl graphics have a special adhesive backing that enables them to be moved from wall to wall.

Most Fathead players are approximately 6 feet tall by 3 feet wide (Ilgauskas being an exception), helmets are approximately 4 feet tall by 4 feet wide, race cars are about 3 feet high by 7.5 feet wide, while logos vary, ranging from 3 to 4 feet tall by 3 to 4 feet wide.

In addition to the NBA, Fathead also offers NASCAR racecars, NFL and collegiate football helmets, and collegiate and professional team logos.  Other Fathead offerings include the MLB, NHL, Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders, and Sports Illustrated Swimsuit models, “Star Wars,” “Spider-Man,” “Family Guy” and “The Simpsons.” 

Fatheads are available on the company’s Web site, www.fathead.com, or by calling 1-877-FATHEAD.