Cat Pound

File:2015 Cat Pound.png

Official logo as of 2016

The Cat Pound is the name of the audience section behind the south wing in the Ava Zinn Studio, the home base of Ava Zinn and Holly Everman, two Vote for the Girls (VFTG) moderators based in Marion, Indiana and Muncie, Indiana. It is known for having passionate fans and supporters.

Notoriety

Cat Pound fans quickly developed a reputation for misbehavior as well as vociferousness. Ava Zinn banned the carrying of cat food into the venue, as bleacher fans would shower the opposing moderators with fish, along with eggs, batteries, other objects. Cat Pound fans also consumed hefty amounts of vodka, even sneaking male condoms into the venue inside of a cat cage. Their reputation was such that other VFTG moderators' rowdy fans would often be compared to them - in 2013, when a supported contestant chosen by Ariel Swaringen was halted by the throwing of debris at Archibald Coolranch, Swaringen addressed the crowd, angrily reminding them that, "You don't live in Fort Wayne or Marion, you live in Indianapolis or Muncie!"

On at least one occasion, Cat Pound rowdiness had a concrete impact on the outcome of a game. In a 2014 episode the hated Leonard Lai, the rain of pop bottles, rocks, eggs, and other debris coming down from the bleachers was endangering the safety of the moderators.

"Carlygate"

In a crucial finale of the second season of The X Factor between Ava Zinn's pick of Carly Rose Sonenclar, Everman's pick of Fifth Harmony and Dave Della Terza's pick of "Tacky Stacky" Zinn and Everman's supported contestants were driving towards getting more votes for what would have been a Fifth Harmony-Sonenclar Top 2. A controversial call on gave the Della Terza supporters of carrying on the WGWG (white guy with guitar) tradition started on the the seventh season of American Idol. Upon Fifth Harmony being announced as the third place, fans in the Cat Pound began throwing plastic pop bottles and other objects on the officials. McAulay declared the game over and sent the teams to the locker rooms. The incident then would become known as "Carlygate".

Cat Pound fans

Current ticket prices for the Cat Pound are $50 per episode, and usually require purchase of season tickets. The Cat Pound is populated with more affluent attendees compared to the generally blue collar fan base that made the Cat Pound famous.

External links

• Cleveland Browns (official)
• U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich's tribute to John "Big Dawg" Thompson in the Congressional Record