MOBILE, Ala. — It really just wouldn’t be St. Patrick’s Day if we didn’t watch the Crichton Leprechaun video. But have you ever heard the full story of how the elusive tree-dweller came to be?
According to WPMI’s Scott Walker, the male anchor seen at the beginning of the video, the local NBC affiliate was called out to the neighborhood after hearing reports of crowds gathering in March 2006.
“We didn’t know WHY they were gathering,” Walker said. “The way I remember it, we weren’t going out there to cover a Leprechaun sighting (that would have been a questionable decision). We were going out there to see why such large crowds were causing problems in the neighborhood. When our crew arrived, things sort of snowballed. People were looking up at a tree and saying there was a Leprechaun in it. We started shooting video and that’s when the people of Crichton took over and turned this story into an internet sensation.”
Close to 25 million YouTube views, an “amateur sketch,” merchandising, and a few pop culture references later, the Leprechaun made history as Alabama’s most famous viral video.
Of course, any history of the Crichton Leprechaun wouldn’t be complete without a remix.
Happy St. Patrick’s Day, y’all.
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— Elizabeth BeShears (@LizEBeesh) January 21, 2015
