Fortune the Panda

Fortune is a panda with a short run and a long list of counterfeit tells. Fortune is found only with a fifth generation swing tag and a sixth generation tush tag, so a tag from any other generation is the first thing to check.

Two baseball clubs used Fortune as a giveaway. The Kansas City Royals handed out 13,000 at their game against the Cincinnati Reds on 6 June 1999. The Colorado Rockies gave away 15,000 against the Milwaukee Brewers on 11 September 1999, a few weeks after the retirement date.

The panda itself gives several checks. Authentic white fabric is softer and less bright than the rough, bright white on a fake. On a genuine Fortune, the eyes sit at the top edge of the black cheek patch, and a counterfeit sets them lower. Genuine legs are fuller than the thin legs on a fake. A genuine snout is longer and more defined. A counterfeit head is rounder, with smaller ears.

The swing tag helps too. Printing inside the yellow star on a counterfeit tag is smudgy, and the print throughout is darker and bolder than on an authentic one. Where the tag hangs matters as well. An authentic Fortune's swing tag hangs in front of the face, and a counterfeit's hangs behind the head.