Penn Stater who held longest stint as Nittany Lion mascot dies at 95
Penn State tradition honors the Nittany Lion, not the person wearing the zip-up suit, but the Happy Valley community is honoring the life of Robert Ritzmann, who was the university’s longest reigning mascot.
At 95-years old, Ritzmann died on April 7 in Lewes, Delaware, but had been a longtime resident at Foxdale Village in State College. He had been the oldest living former mascot.
The son of the late Otto Frederick and Bertha May Knight Ritzmann, he was born on July 5, 1924 in State College, according to his obituary.
Ritzmann told the CDT in 2014 that he was inspired to become the mascot after he witnessed Heinz Warneke finish the famous Nittany Lion Shrine in 1942. Hired by Gene Wettstone — the late Penn State gymnastics coach — Ritzmann was the only person to apply for the job.
He served as mascot from 1942-1945 — the first after the shrine was dedicated.
In 2014, Ritzmann compared putting on the suit to attending a “masquerade ball.”
“No one knows who you are, so you can get away with anything you want inside that lion,” he told the CDT. “When I got into that thing, I could do anything, and no one knew who it was.”
But Ritzmann’s cover was blown throughout his mascot career — once when he and his late wife Barbara Jane Kilbury won a $25 Series E War Bond at a “Big Man on Campus” dance. The couple registered it in both their names, and after a newspaper wrote about their win, Ritzmann’s identity was revealed.
A Penn State alumnus, Ritzmann earned a Bachelor of Science degree in commercial chemistry in 1944 and a chemical engineering degree in 1946. The first registered chemical engineer in Pennsylvania, he worked as a chemo-nuclear engineer, serving with the Atomic Energy Commission, the Energy Research and Development Administration and the Department of Energy, according to his obituary.
Ritzmann served in the U.S. Navy during World War II until he was honorably discharged.
After his 1945 discharge, Ritzmann told the CDT in 2014 that he returned to Penn State for more classes — and a final stint as lion.
From mock fights to throwing buckets of water on friends, his act grew, but Ritzmann blew his cover once more while continuing the tradition of kissing unsuspecting women at football games.
But by his final season as the lion, he was married and wasn’t sure how his wife would react, so instead, Ritzmann spotted Barbara in the stands, ran up and kissed her — revealing his identity.
After 67 years of marriage, Ritzmann’s wife died in 2012.
He is survived by his sons, John and Laurence, daughter-in-law Irene Ritzman; one daughter Jean Helms; three half-sisters, Virginia Stover, Eleanor Plaus and Louise Roche; a half-brother John Williams; six grandchildren and five great grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held at Faith United Church of Christ — 300 E. College Ave. in State College — at a later date, according to his obituary. Burial will be in Pine Hall Cemetery — West College Avenue in State College. A virtual guest book can be signed online at heintzelmanfuneralhome.com.
This story was originally published April 13, 2020 at 4:48 PM.
