Meet ‘the Nouns’ At the 134th Tournament of Roses Parade

The NFT Characters will be joined by Long Beach Youth from the Action Sports Kids Foundation

(PASADENA, CA – December 23, 2022)

Stoopid Buddy Stoodios, the Emmy Award Winning studio behind Robot Chicken and FOX’s Masked Singer Costumes, is building a giant float for the 134th Rose Parade presented by Honda in partnership with the Nouns. Who are the Nouns? What is “nounish?” And what do they have to do with skateboarding? Tune into the Rose Parade on January 2 to meet the Nouns, meme-like NFT characters created by Web 3 technology. Join Pickle, Cone and Shark as they jam out with a DJ, dancers and skaters from Long Beach’s Action Sports Kids (ASK) Foundation.

Created in August 2021 by a community of like-minded creatives, Nouns is a Web 3 art project that auctions off an original art piece every day, forever – with Nounholders (owners) voting on how to spend proceeds in ways that will spread Nouns art and culture. According to Chris Waters – Head of Development at Stoopid Buddy Studios, the studio behind the float entry – Nouns was connected with the ASK Foundation through their partnership with Tony Hawk’s non-profit organization, The Skatepark Project. Throughout the year, Nouns and The Skatepark Project partnered to bring 300 skateboards to underserved communities across the country, inclusive of a giveaway at an ASK Foundation event in Long Beach this past October.

Nouns is all about pooling resources for public good and spreading Nouns culture and art, which celebrates fun and experimentation. When seeking a local skateboarding organization to donate Nouns-branded skateboards to — “Skateboarding is countercultural, and so is crypto,” explained Waters — ASK Foundation seemed the perfect fit. Run by former Long Beach City Councilmember Mike Donelon, ASK’s mission is to empower youth through sports, education, and community. ASK created the Long Beach Skate Park Program to help build self-esteem and keep kids in school – and its skate team now has more than 175 members.

After being connected with the organization by Hawk’s nonprofit, Waters went to one of ASK’s “skate jams” – a big skate get-together with pizza, raffles and more – and immediately knew the two organizations should work together. “I was just deeply touched by this guy who had spent a life in service to the City of Long Beach, who had then in retirement doubled down on that,” Waters said of Donelon. “To see the joy these kids had in just having a space of their own, and to see someone like Mike believe in them and support them and let them have some fun, that was really cool.

“We have this word, “Nounish,” which loosely defined is playful, fun, energized – it’s someone interested in other people, places and things. And that’s Mike. Who better to represent Nouns, The Skatepark Foundation, Long Beach, and what Nouns is all about than someone like Mike and these kids who he is impacting?”

“We’re so grateful to Nouns for donating these skateboards to Long Beach youth, and for giving them a chance to participate in a great Southern California tradition at the Rose Parade,” said Donelon. “They’ll take this memory with them their whole lives.”

Waters explained that the idea behind the float, “Meet The Nouns,” was to introduce the public to Nouns and familiarize people with its brand, messaging, and signature character look – with the experience recorded in the documentary. “Our float design reflects the nouns marching into this brave new world and inviting everyone to come along for the ride,” he said.

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About Nouns: Nouns is a Web 3 art project that auctions one new art piece every day, forever. 100% of the proceeds from the auctions go into a pool which the Nouns art owners vote on how to spend. There is no “boss” or CEO of Nouns, it’s entirely community run and controlled, something that has been made possible because of new Web 3 technology. In this sense, as a community run organization, Nouns is a lot like Tournament of Roses. A passionate collection of fans all coming together to spread Nouns art and Nouns culture. The culture is about art, fun, public goods and experimentation.

About Stoopid Buddy Stoodios: Stoopid Buddy Stoodios is an artist-friendly collective that houses some of the finest talent in animation and entertainment. They’ve got a knack for creating unique visuals and telling character driven stories with an uncanny and irreverent sensibility. The Stoodio is home to the longest running stop-motion show on TV, the multi-Emmy® Award-winning Robot Chicken, as well as Crossing Swords on Hulu, Marvel’s M.O.D.O.K., Ultra City Smiths on AMC, and several others. Stoopid Buddy’s “Builds” division is behind the Emmy Award-winning costumes on FOX’S Masked Singer, and their “Spots” team has delivered commercials for clients ranging from LEGO to Pepperidge Farms. Upcoming projects include Disney's first Mickey Mouse stop-motion special, Mickey Saves Christmas, which will air in November. Other upcoming projects include Justin Roiland’s Gloop World, Dominion X with Steve Aoki, a Web 3 documentary featuring NOUNS, and series in development with Nickelodeon, HBO Max, Adult Swim, Disney, and Hulu. For more information about Stoopid Buddy Stoodios, visit www.leagueofbuddies.com.

About the Action Sports Kids (ASK) Foundation: The ASK Foundation is a non-profit in Long Beach, California dedicated to providing youth an alternative to the streets and gangs through sports, education and community involvement. The Long Beach Skate Park Program, considered one of the most successful in the country, has proven to lower crime, build self-esteem, keep kids in school and saved the lives of many of our most at-risk youth. The skate team now has more than 175 members.

About The Skatepark Project: Founded by Tony Hawk, The Skatepark Project (TSP) is a nonprofit organization working to increase access to outdoor recreation and free play through the creation of safe and inclusive community skateparks. TSP provides the resources, advocacy skills, grants and fellowship programs that guide skaters in creating their own community skateparks, from conception through construction. This is a collaborative process between skaters and city authorities to invest in capital improvements that will enrich a community for decades. The Skatepark Project’s grant programs have awarded over $10 million to help fund nearly 700 public skateparks in all 50 states, enjoyed by an estimated 6 million people annually. The organization’s International Program has provided technical and financial support to assist youth through the Skateistan educational programs in Afghanistan, Cambodia, and South Africa. To get involved, visit https://skatepark.org/.

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Samantha Mehlinger

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