The series lovingly captures the faces, legends, and oddballs of Cleveland’s most sacred gameday gathering place: the Muni Lot.
CLEVELAND — If you’re of a certain age, you probably remember “Garbage Pail Kids” — those grotesque-yet-glorious trading cards from the 1980s that were banned from your school binder but lived rent-free in your junk drawer. With characters like Jay Decay, Oozy Suzie, and Potty Scotty, they were as beloved by children as they were loathed by parents.
Now, Cleveland has its own version.
Local Browns fan legend Chris McNeil — yes, the same guy who orchestrated a literal parade to honor an 0-16 Browns season — is back with a new collector’s card series: Muni Lot Kids, and it’s exactly what it sounds like.
“I thought, ‘I want to recreate this idea,” McNeil said. “I’m not much of an artist, but I know AI’s out there. I also know — Cleveland fans, we’re a little crazy, right?”
The series lovingly captures the faces, legends, and oddballs of Cleveland’s most sacred gameday gathering place: the Muni Lot. Think Pumpkin Head and BottleGate Bobby. Tons of Fun, and all characters based on real, beloved, and occasionally beer-soaked Browns fans who’ve become fixtures of our communal tailgating trauma.
“You’ve got the Muni Lot Kids, which focuses on all these different characters,” McNeil explained. “The charisma that’s around the Muni Lot is what I tried to capture in some of these cards.”
And yes, the very first card? An homage to one of the more infamous moments in Browns lore.
“BottleGate Bobby … was the first one that I produced,” McNeil said. “He was kind of our atom bomb of the set.”
Media personalities have also made their way into the deck — including, unfortunately for me, myself.
“I made the Factory of Sadness. … Had to make sure I got the number on the jersey accurate,” McNeil said, referring to my now-regrettably-iconic YouTube rant in a Ryan Pontbriand jersey. Thanks for that, Chris.
Other notable cameos include Ken Carman, who was apparently thrilled. Tony Rizzo, however, was not included due to what McNeil delicately described as a past threat “to kill me,” so that’s fun.
But one of the most touching additions to the series comes courtesy of the late Jim Donovan. McNeil shared that Donovan’s daughter Meghan reached out and asked for a card to honor her father’s legacy.
“It was the toughest thing I’ve ever made,” McNeil admitted. “She reached out afterwards, and I was very relieved, more than anything else, because to do something like that for a legend, that’s a lot of pressure.”
Like the infamous 0-16 parade (full disclosure: I was there, and yes, it was kind of a good time), McNeil is using the buzz to give back. A portion of the proceeds from the Muni Lot Kids series will go to the Greater Cleveland Food Bank, which is facing rising needs and reduced resources.
“It’s kind of a tough time for food banks overall,” McNeil noted. “Kind of a small way, but my way, of giving back to the food bank.”
And while the Browns might’ve only won three games last season (yes, we counted), the fans remain undefeated in spirit — and sarcasm.
“Even if the Browns can’t give us something to celebrate, we can always come up with a reason to drink,” McNeil added.
So whether you’re a lifelong Dawg Pounder or just someone who understands the beautiful tragedy of Cleveland football, “Muni Lot Kids” is a reminder that while the Browns may break our hearts, at least we’re in this together — with snacks and now collectible trading cards.
Pick up a pack, raise a beverage to the sky, and maybe — just maybe — you’ll see yourself in cartoon form one day.