Curtis Dvorak

Curtis John Dvorak (born July 16, 1974) was primarily known as Jaxson de Ville, official mascot of the Jacksonville Jaguars NFL football team. He was the first person to portray the Jaguars mascot in the team's history and had the title, Vice President of Mascot Relations. Curtis retired from serving as Jaxson de Ville on June 23, 2015.

Biography

College years

Dvorak attended Virginia Tech and was selected to be the college's mascot in his Sophomore year. Their mascot, HokieBird, is very popular and plays an active role in all Virginia Tech sports. He competed in and won the National Cheerleaders Association championship in 1996, then graduated with a major in communications.

Career While watching sports mascots on television, Dvorak considered his future. "I remember thinking I was funnier than those guys and it had to be a full-time gig."

Entertainment One of the mascot's jobs is to entertain the fans before the game and during breaks in the action. There is a fine line between entertainment and harassment, and Dvorak enjoys coming close to crossing the line.

Disruptive Other visiting teams have taken exception to Jaxson's antics, too. There were so many complaints that "Mascot conduct" became an agenda item at the NFL Owners meeting in 2000. Dvorak explained, "Along with their discussions of revenue sharing and TV deals, one of the topics was how to stop the mascots (from being too disruptive). They showed a 10-minute video and nine and a half minutes were my highlights. It made my parents so proud." On the field, he was frequently seen on a small scooter, motorized skateboard or golf cart. Dvorak commented. "I want to make all the fans laugh, have a good time and be entertained. Everyone who paid a lot of money to go to the games, I want to add to that experience and help make them go home happy. I want them to say ‘I got my money’s worth’."

Dvorak's other responsibility as mascot was to be a goodwill ambassador for the Jaguars. As such, he spent a lot of time visiting schools, charity events, businesses and grand openings to promote the team. He logged between 300 and 400

Marriage

Dvorak became acquainted with Jacksonville Roar member Melanie McAlister during a 2001 NFL tour to entertain U.S. troops in the middle East. They began seeing each other, but team rules prohibit fraternization between cheerleaders and players, so Melanie left the squad and enrolled at St. Vincent's School of Medical Sciences in radiology. They were married at EverBank Field on March 12, 2005. They were divorced in May 2014.

Without the costume He donated time without the costume to many charitable causes as an organizer, or a participant playing golf or tennis. Dvorak emceed the Jacksonville Dancing with the Stars competition in 2009, a benefit for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. In 2010, he was an emcee for Chalk talk, an event that allowed participants to experience how NFL football works behind the scenes.

During the 2011 Players Championship, Dvorak chaired the Plaid Party, a charity event which raises money for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

Future As of January 2015, Dvorak had been the mascot for 19 years. He turned 40 in 2014, but had shown no sign of slowing down. During an interview in 2009, he was asked about retiring and responded, "I’ve always told myself (I’ll do it) until we win a Super Bowl." Dvorak stated, "I'm going to do something I've done for 19 years...entertain Jacksonville...I just won't be covered in fur."