Back in the day when Dallas Cowboys stars Harvey Martin and Ed “Too Tall” Jones used to show up at our Party Machine events, they often had a friend in tow, who was not an NFL player, but still a celebrity (and a playa) in his own right.
“Crazy Ray” (whose real name was Wilford Jones, no relation to Too Tall) was the unofficial, but sort-of official mascot of the Dallas Cowboys, and certainly their biggest fan ever. From the inception of the Cowboys franchise, until his death in 2007, it was said that Crazy Ray missed only 3 Cowboys home games.
Although not officially on the payroll, the Cowboys did provide Ray with an all-access pass and parking permit for home games. He was part of Cowboy fan culture.
Perhaps Ray’s best performance as an unofficial mascot was when he would clown around and wrestle with the Washington Redskins unofficial mascot, Zema Williams.
He was known for his western-style outfits, often wearing chaps and a vest with a ten-gallon hat, and for entertaining the fans with magic tricks. He had a whistle that became a trademark, letting the fans know that “Crazy Ray is here!” and was often seen galloping on a little toy stick-horse, always a comical sight.
Ray stopped galloping after losing a leg to complications from diabetes, and ultimately lost his battle with heart disease at age 76.
Our hats are off to you, Crazy Ray! Party on!