Becoming Ron Burgundy (Anchorman) W/Covert Microphone Flask

I. Love. Anchorman.

Ever since the movie came out on my birthday in 2004, I have wanted to become Ron Burgundy for Halloween. I gave up on this dream because I lacked the most noticeable piece of his persona - the burgundy blazer........until 2009 when the seas parted and there it sat in the salvation army.....THE blazer that would soon transform me into the Scotch loving newscaster.

Also, I must say that I had very little money to do this, not all the right tools/software and definitely not the foresight to take pictures of the process so bare with me . Hopefully I have enough to show you how I did it.

Hopefully there are some other Anchorman fans reading this that will enjoy and maybe use some of this stuff.

-Tom-

Step 1: Gather Materials

Clothing:

-burgundy blazer (luck - $4 at Salvation Army)
-tie/white collared shirt/khaki pants/dress shoes (you should have these)

Wig/Mustache:

-both from a Halloween store and slightly modified
-costume glue from the Halloween store

Microphone Flask:

-electrical tape
-hot glue gun
-glue stick
-microphone windscreen ($1 at guitar center)
-a sheet of foam core poster board (cheap from the grocery store)
-Channel 4 Logo (see below - found via Google and edited via Paint)
-any cylindrical bottle of water (the best shape I found was a brand name “Metro Water” because it wasn’t too thick and had smooth sides). This was VERY important because I didn’t want the microphone handle to look suspicious when going into bars on Halloween night since it was full of….umm….”water”

PressPass:

-cardboard
-logos/press pass template/real Ron Burgundy picture (see below - found via Google and edited via Paint)
-clear plastic badge holder (no idea – got it from work)

Coffee Mug:

-plainest white coffee mug you can find
-paper/logos (see below - found via Google and edited via Paint)
-clear packing tape

Optional:

I am blond and I needed brown eyebrows/sideburns. Keeping with the money saving mindset, the brown coloring at the Halloween store was expensive so I just bought brown eye shadow to temporarily color my eyebrows/sideburns brown. You may or may not need this but now you know in case you do.

Step 2: Wig/Mustache

Wig:

Good luck – you just have to find one that looks right. The one I got was called “70s guy wig” from the Halloween store.

Mustache:

I couldn’t find the right shape and color so I bought a thick costume beard to cut up.

1. Cut the mustache to be oversized (you can always cut more but you can never add it back once its gone)and pretty straight (i.e. don’t follow the curve of your face). Cut it from the top of the beard (the part that would’ve been touching your face if you were to use the beard unmodified)

 2. Use copious amounts of costume glue on your upper lip and hold the hair there for a minute or two until the glue is dry. I also had to apply glue to the top of the outside of the hair to secure them in place. Trim it to be straight across the line where your lips meet.

 3. Try not to scratch. It WILL itch and it WILL be annoying but just get used to it. I ended up putting on THREE mustaches (wore the costume three times during Halloween 2009) and every time it drove me nuts but it was a necessary annoyance.

Step 3: Microphone Flask

Handle:

1. Wrap the empty water bottle with electrical tape. Start at the bottom and go up to where it starts to curve and then stop. No need to cover the top curve or the cap.  

Logo Box/Windscreen:

1. Create a hollow 3 inch cube out of the foam core board using hot glue.

2. Trace the bottom of the water bottle on the center of one of the sides of the cube and cut that circle out - I used an exacto knife. The top of the bottle will be inserted here.

3. On the opposite side of the hole, hot glue the microphone windscreen in the center of the square.

4. There are 4 sides of the cube that are still blank. Print 4 copies of the Channel 4 logo (see below) and glue stick them to the 4 empty sides with the windscreen facing up. You will have to do some trimming of the extra white paper.

Insert the top of the bottle into the bottom of the microphone windscreen cube and voila! The bottle can then be filled with “water” and re-inserted into the microphone windscreen cube and no one (especially bouncers) is the wiser.

The bottle holds more than enough “water” to enjoy “watered-down” drinks all night rather than paying the outrageous prices for “watered-down” drinks that bars sometimes charge.

*DISCLAIMER*

The legal drinking age is 21 years old. I do not advocate underage drinking in any way. I am of age but some of you may not be. If you are not of age, please remember and obey these laws.

Step 4: Press Pass/Channel 4 Coffee Mug

PressPass:

This is really up to you. I already made one so I would just use the one I made, if I were you (see below). Assuming you are using the one I made, just print it out and cut it to fit inside whatever clear badge you found. Also, I suggest you cut a piece of cardboard to fit behind the paper just to give it some stiffness.

 

Channel 4 Coffee Mug:

              

1. Print 2 of the Channel 4 logos (see below)

 

2. Use the clear packing tape to affix the logos to two opposite sides of the mug, covering whatever was already on the mug.

Step 5: Get Into Character

1. Put everything on and fill up your flask

2. Watch Anchorman and pay attention to his mannerisms (i.e. the 70s strut and the one raised eyebrow)

3. Write down some of your favorite quotes and memorize them. I wrote them on the back of the badge in case I forgot.

 

You’re done. Get ready to interview people - you're famous!