The athletic program of Saint Louis University of St. Louis, Missouri, was named after the Billiken, a charm doll designed by a US illustrator Florence Pretz. The logo features the same doll, which is also the university’s athletic mascot.
St. Louis Billikens is the name of 18 men’s and women’s teams, representing the athletic program of Saint Louis University, which is considered one of the best and oldest universities in the country, regularly ranked in the national top 100. It is the oldest institution of higher learning west of the Mississippi, known for its innovative academic programs while being faithful to the Catholic tradition.
About 13,000 students study here. LSU offers about 100 bachelor’s degree programs and more than 70 master’s degree and vocational training programs.
In addition to classes, students are involved in SLU life. There are more than 200 organizations, clubs, and sections of interest, creative workshops, and sports teams for students. Students are actively involved in sports. They can play soccer, basketball, baseball, softball, volleyball, and tennis or go swimming. The St. Louis Billikens team competes in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association of the United States and Canada. SLU’s sports mascot is a pointy-eared, well-fed little man named Billiken. Legend has it that he brings his owners good luck and shows the true essence of things. Fatty accompanies SLU students to all competitions. And judging by the university’s accomplishments, the man is doing his job faithfully.
On the Saint Louis Billikens logo introduced in 1958, the mascot of the athletic program, Billiken, is drawn in thin blue lines sitting with his legs stretched forward. The creature has its eyes closed and a contented smile, evoking a sense of pleasure and happiness. The emblem is accompanied by a two-leveled lettering with the outlined uppercase “St. Louis U.” Above the white “Billikens” written in a geometric font on a horizontally stretched blue rectangle.
In 1971 the Billikens logo was significantly changed. Now it was only the head of the creature with pointed ears. On the 1971 emblem, there was only the doll’s head wearing a crown. A chubby elf with a crown on his head winks one eye and looks cunning and up to something. The “SLU” abbreviation was written on a ribbon, placed around a small Billiken’s crown. The name of the university and its athletic program were removed from the composition.
With the redesign of 1985, the Billiken got drawn in full height. Keeping the recognizable style and white with blue color palette, the designers decided to add more “style” to the mascot and dressed it into an oversized sweater with the bold “SLU” abbreviation on the chest, and flared trousers. Billiken on the new emblem is also depicted winking, supporting the spirit of the previous badge, and creating a funny and memorable emblem.
The redesign of 1991 returned the portrait of Billiken to the logo, but it was the face from the badge, introduced in 1985, the one without a crown. Now the mascot was surrounded by the circular frame, composed of the “Saint Louis University Billikens” inscription in blue, executed in the uppercase of a traditional and strict serif typeface, which “softened” the fun part of the concept and emphasized the seriousness and traditional approach.
In 2002 the lettering was redrawn, keeping the mascot emblem almost untouched, the face only got a bit smaller. As for the inscription, it was now set in two lines — with the “Saint Louis” slightly arched above the Billiken’s head, and the club’s name written under it. The modern and fancy serif typeface was used for the lettering of the refreshed logo.
All the letters were removed from the Billikens’ visual identity with the redesign of 2015. There was only a portrait of the club’s mascot on the emblem now. Its contours were emboldened and strengthened, balancing the shape of the face and making it cleaner and more geometric. The left part of Billiken’s face featured white, while the right one — light gray colors.
What is Saint Louis Billikens?
Saint Louis Billikens is the name of the collegiate sports program from the St Louis University located in Missouri state. The program is composed of 18 men’s and women’s clubs in various sports disciplines and has its men’s basketball club as the most successful one.
SLU BLUE
PANTONE: PMS 293 C
HEX COLOR: #003DA5;
RGB: (0, 61, 165)
CMYK: (100, 69, 0, 4)
COLLEGE CHURCH GRAY
PANTONE: PMS COOL GRAY 3 C
HEX COLOR: #C8C9C7;
RGB: (200, 201, 199)
CMYK: (8, 5, 7, 16)
IRIS WHITE
PANTONE: P 1-1 C
HEX COLOR: #FFFFFF;
RGB: (255, 255, 255)
CMYK: (0, 0, 0, 0)”