Virtual halls of fame: A roundup

The following is a roundup of virtual halls of fame, some of which I’ve covered on Tech-media-tainment. The list includes halls for business and industry, occupations, media and entertainment, sports, food and other endeavors.
These halls of fame don’t have a physical location and exist only online. Some of these halls have plans for physical locations, but they have yet to be realized.
This list excludes most U.S. regional halls of fame.

Business and industry

3D Printing Hall of Fame
Accounting Hall of Fame
Advertising Hall of Fame
Airlift/Tanker Association Hall of Fame
American National Business Hall of Fame
Association of Equipment Manufacturers Hall of Fame
Business Travel Hall of Fame
Carrier Dealer Hall of Fame
Computer Hall of Fame
Consumer Electronics Hall of Fame
Consumer Technology Hall of Fame
Convenience Store Hall of Fame
Cyber Security Hall of Fame
Entrepreneur Of The Year Hall of Fame
Fluid Power Hall of Fame
Franchise Hall of Fame
Gaming Hall of Fame
Geospatial Intelligence Hall of Fame
Global Business Hall of Fame
High-Performance Computer Architecture Hall of Fame
Hydro Hall of Fame
Interior Design Hall of Fame
International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions Hall of Fame
Internet Hall of Fame
IP Hall of Fame
IT Hall of Fame
Jacuzzi Hall of Fame
Jewelry Retailer Hall of Fame
Kiosk Hall of Fame
Lighting Hall of Fame
Logistics Hall of Fame
Lottery Industry Hall of Fame
Marketing Hall of Fame
Meat Industry Hall of Fame
Military Intelligence Hall of Fame
National Marine Manufacturers Association Hall of Fame
National Optometry Hall of Fame
National Pork Producers Council Hall of Fame
Paper Industry International Hall of Fame
Plastics Hall of Fame
Process Automation Hall of Fame
Promotional Products Hall of Fame
PRWeek Hall of Fame
Refrigerated Food Hall of Fame
Rental Hall of Fame
Self Storage Hall of Fame
Space Technology Hall of Fame
Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Hall of Fame
Specialty Food Industry Hall of Fame
Sporting Goods Industry Hall of Fame
Sports Betting Hall of Fame
Sports Technology Hall of Fame
Tire Industry Hall of Fame
Toy Industry Hall of Fame
Visual Effects Society Hall of Fame
Water Industry Hall of Fame
Wireless Hall of Fame
World Floor Covering Association Hall of Fame
World Waterpark Association Hall of Fame
XR Hall of Fame

Occupations

American Association of Political Consultants Hall of Fame
Caddie Hall of Fame
Cattle Feeders Hall of Fame
Cattle Production Veterinarian Hall of Fame
Christmas Tree Growers Hall of Fame
Dermatology Hall of Fame
Evidence-Based Policing Hall of Fame
International Foodservice Distributors Association (IFDA) Truck Driver Hall of Fame
International Surfboard Builders Hall of Fame
Major League Baseball Groundskeepers Hall of Fame
National Private Truck Council (NPTC) Driver Hall of Fame.
Personal Managers Hall of Fame
Piano Teachers Hall of Fame
Society of Illustrators Hall of Fame
Truck Driver Hall of Fame
Women in Aviation International Pioneer Hall of Fame

Food and drink

Barbecue Hall of Fame
Candy Hall of Fame
Hot Sauce Hall of Fame
International Hamburger Hall of Fame
Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame
Krystal Lovers Hall of Fame
Pizza Hall of Fame
Salami Hall of Fame
Vienna Beef Hot Dog Hall of Fame
Whisky Magazine Hall of Fame
White Castle Cravers Hall of Fame

Media and entertainment

Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame
American TV Game Show Hall of Fame
AVN (Adult Video News) Hall of Fame
Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame
Character Actor Hall of Fame
Comic-Con Museum Character Hall of Fame
Esports Insider Hall of Fame
Fictitious Athlete Hall of Fame
Final Draft Hall of Fame
National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Hall of Fame
National Sports Media Association Hall of Fame
XRCO (X-Rated Critics Organization) Hall of Fame

Music

Billboard Latin Music Hall of Fame
Dance Music Hall of Fame
Decibel Hall of Fame
DownBeat Jazz Hall of Fame
Fictitious Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Funk Music Hall of Fame
Gospel Music Hall of Fame
Grammy Hall of Fame
Heavy Metal Hall of Fame
Hip Hop Hall of Fame
International Gospel Music Hall of Fame
International Latin Music Hall of Fame
International Polka Music Hall of Fame
Latin Songwriters Hall of Fame
Metal Hall of Fame
Music Business Hall of Fame
National Fiddler Hall of Fame
National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame
Opera Hall of Fame
Reggae Hall of Fame
Rockabilly Hall of Fame
SoundExchange Hall of Fame
Steel Guitar Hall of Fame
Ukulele Hall of Fame
Vocal Group Hall of Fame
Women Songwriters Hall of Fame

Sports

African American Golfers Hall of Fame
Canadian Curling Hall of Fame
Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame
Canadian Sailing Hall of Fame
Canadian Ski Hall of Fame
International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) Hall of Fame
International Sports Hall of Fame
Latin American International Sports Hall of Fame
North American Flyball Association (NAFA) Hall of Fame
Rose Bowl Hall of Fame
Ultimate Hall of Fame
Wakeboarding Hall of Fame
Wheelchair Basketball Hall of Fame
Women Superstars Uncensored Hall of Fame

Miscellaneous

Adoption Hall of Fame
Affordable Housing Hall of Fame
America’s Clogging Hall of Fame
American Border Collie Association Hall of Fame
American Brace Beagling Hall of Fame
Appalachian Trail Hall of Fame
Asian Hall of Fame
Boating Safety Hall of Fame
Brand Hall of Fame
Clean Cities Hall of Fame
Clydesdale Hall of Fame
Combat Robot Hall of Fame
Fangoria Hall of Fame
Foosball Hall of Fame
Government Hall of Fame
Hooters Girl Hall of Fame
Hot Dog Eating Contest Hall of Fame
Immigrant Entrepreneur Hall of Fame
International Gladiolus Hall of Fame
Irish American Hall of Fame
Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour Hall of Fame
Mascot Hall of Fame
Model Car Hall of Fame
Mustache Hall of Fame
National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) Hall of Fame
National Railroad Hall of Fame
National Speech & Debate Association Hall of Fame
Rail-Trail Hall of Fame
Sports Travel and Tours (STAT) Baseball Stadium Hall of Fame
Trivia Hall of Fame
U.S. Army Acquisition Hall of Fame
U.S. Army Materiel Command Hall of Fame
Waterfowlers Hall of Fame
Women in Poker Hall of Fame

Photo: Miranda Lambert receives the SoundExchange Hall of Fame Award in September 2024. (SoundExchange)

Related articles:

List of halls and walks of fame (Wikipedia)

Updated: Dec. 7, 2024.

Halls of fame for hot dog eating, salami and character actors

Here are a few more unusual halls of fame that exist only online.

Hot Dog Eating Contest Hall of Fame

Nathan’s Famous has an online hall of fame for winners of its annual hot dog eating contest held on July 4 in Coney Island, a neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City.
Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest Hall of Fame has only seven inductees because of repeat champions. Joey Chestnut has won the male competition 16 times. Miki Sudo has won the female competition 11 times.

Salami Hall of Fame

Oceanside, Calif.-based Olli Salumeria, a maker of authentic Italian-style salami, announced the Salami Hall of Fame in September 2023.
The salami maker described the hall of fame as “a digital celebration of iconic restaurants, delicatessens and specialty grocers around the country that are elevating the status of salami through creative menu items and retail offerings.”

Character Actor Hall of Fame

The Carney Awards honor those actors who disappear into their characters. Carney Award recipients are entered into the Character Actor Hall of Fame.
The most recent inductees included Jessica Walter, Joe Pantoliano, James Cromwell, Joe Morton and Bruce Greenwood.

Fictitious Athlete Hall of Fame

The Fictitious Athlete Hall of Fame is a website that celebrates our favorite athletes from the world of movies and television, but only those who do not exist in the “real world.”
Inductees include Rocky Balboa, Crash Davis and Happy Gilmore. (See also Wikipedia article.)
Podcaster Kirk Buchner created the Fictitious Athlete Hall of Fame in 2013.

Fictitious Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

The Fictitious Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is a sister site to the Fictitious Athlete Hall of Fame, also created by Kirk Buchner.
Inductees include Spinal Tap, the Blues Brothers and the Monkees.

Photo: Nathan’s Famous hot dog display (Nathan’s Famous)

Virtual halls of fame for sports betting, franchises and brands

As I’ve written many times, there are halls of fame for just about any industry, occupation, passion or pursuit. Many of these halls don’t have physical locations you can visit. What follows are some of the latest virtual halls of fame I’ve stumbled upon online.

Sports Betting Hall of Fame

SBC launched the Sports Betting Hall of Fame in 2016 to recognize individuals who have contributed a great deal to the industry over the course of their careers with a lasting legacy.
SBC is an events company that organizes global conferences and exhibitions, as well as operates the largest business-to-business news publisher for the sports betting and igaming industry.
However, there is also a Sports Gambling Hall of Fame. It honors individuals who have notably transformed the sports gambling industry. The Sports Gambling Hall of Fame exhibit is located in the Circa Las Vegas sportsbook of the Circa Resort & Casino.

International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) Hall of Fame

Launched in 2023, the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) Hall of Fame celebrates North American sports car racing excellence.
The IMSA Hall of Fame recognizes not only the personalities and competitors who achieved greatness in the sport, but also includes iconic race cars.

NAB Broadcasting Hall of Fame

The National Association of Broadcasters recognizes radio and television personalities and programs that have earned a place in broadcasting history with induction into the NAB Broadcasting Hall of Fame.
Recent honorees include Donnie Simpson, “America’s Most Wanted,” Lester Holt and “The Price Is Right.”

Franchise Hall of Fame

Franchise Business Review’s Franchise Hall of Fame celebrates franchises that have demonstrated a long-term commitment to creating a positive and rewarding experience for their franchisees.
Frequent honorees include Nothing Bundt Cakes, Wild Birds Unlimited and Tropical Smoothie Cafe.

Brand Hall of Fame

Marketing conference The Gathering this year launched the Brand Hall of Fame.
The inaugural inductees were Coca-Cola, Levi’s, McDonalds, MTV and NFL. (See article by Adweek.)

Entrepreneur Of The Year Hall of Fame

Professional services firm EY, parent company of accounting giant Ernst & Young, celebrates men and women for their exceptional entrepreneurial achievements with the Entrepreneur Of The Year Hall of Fame.
The program has recognized more than 10,000 entrepreneurs over the last 35 years plus.

Kentucky Entrepreneur Hall of Fame

The Kentucky Entrepreneur Hall of Fame has recognized successful Kentucky businesspeople since 2010. Well-known inductees include Papa John’s Pizza founder John Schnatter and Kentucky Fried Chicken founder Colonel Harland David Sanders.

PRWeek Hall of Fame

The PRWeek Hall of Fame honors individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the public relations and communications industry.

National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) Hall of Fame

The National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) operates the NCHA Hall of Fame. The hall honors riders, horses and others in the field.
The National Cutting Horse Association is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas.

Grammy Hall of Fame

The Grammy Hall Of Fame was established by the Recording Academy’s National Trustees in 1973 to honor recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance that are at least 25 years old. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of the recording arts.
This year’s inductees included the albums “Appetite for Destruction” (1987) by Guns N' Roses and “I Feel Love” (1977) by Donna Summer and single “What a Fool Believes” (1978) by the Doobie Brothers.

SoundExchange Hall of Fame

Music tech organization SoundExchange awards music artists with its SoundExchange Hall of Fame Award for being among leaders in receiving royalty rights payments.
This year’s award winners included OneRepublic, the Jonas Brothers, the Black Keys, Mariah Carey, the Killers, Matchbox Twenty, Billy Joel and Miranda Lambert.

XR Hall of Fame

Conference organizers behind the Augmented World Expo announced the creation of the XR Hall of Fame in April 2024. XR is an acronym for “extended reality” technology, which includes virtual and augmented reality.
AWE honored 101 XR pioneers into the XR Hall of Fame with its initial induction class.

Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Hall of Fame

The Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) inducts industry professionals into its SEMA Hall of Fame. SEMA represents over 7,000 companies that create, buy, sell, and use specialty-automotive parts that make vehicles “more unique, attractive, convenient, safer, fun, and even like new again.”

IFDA Truck Driver Hall of Fame

The International Foodservice Distributors Association honors lifetime achievement by its transportation workers with the IFDA Truck Driver Hall of Fame.
Drivers must have at least 25 years of continuous employment with an IFDA member company. They also must have no chargeable accidents for the 25 years prior to the nomination and a clean driving record with no moving violations in the past five years.

U.S. Army Materiel Command Hall of Fame

The U.S. Army Materiel Command Hall of Fame, established in 2012, honors those soldiers and civilians who have made significant and enduring contributions to AMC and the Army. The Hall of Fame preserves the command’s history and recognizes the exceptional leadership, service and dedication of former AMC members for their remarkable efforts.

Army Acquisition Hall of Fame

The Army Acquisition Hall of Fame award recognizes and honors former members of the Army Acquisition Workforce who have made significant and enduring contributions in support of the Army Acquisition Community.

Global Cyber Security Hall of Fame

The Global Cyber Security Hall of Fame was established in 2012 to recognize the contributions of key individuals in the field of cybersecurity.

Insurance Business Hall of Fame

Insurance Business America magazine recognizes top-notch insurance professionals annually with induction into the Insurance Business Hall of Fame.
A panel of judges considers an individual’s distinguished service to the insurance profession, the leadership and inspiration they provided to others in the sector, their role in guiding future generations of entrepreneurs and business leaders, their contributions to the leadership and direction of industry associations, and any visionary strategies and innovations that have made an outstanding contribution to the industry as a whole.

Photo: Mariah Carey receives the SoundExchange Hall of Fame Award in March 2024. (SoundExchange)

Related articles:

Virtual halls of fame for metal rock music, Texas songwriters, sports technology and more (May 28, 2023)

Halls of fame for sports media pros, political consultants, jewelry retailers (June 20, 2022)

Halls of fame for boating, lighting, space technology and female songwriters (Oct. 10, 2021)

Progressive Cinematic Universe should have cross-over event

With Hollywood studios focused on creating cinematic universes (think Marvel and DC), I came up with an idea for a cinematic universe while watching commercials during sports this fall.
It started when I noticed that Progressive Insurance has more characters than Flo, Jaimie and the squad. There’s life coach Dr. Rick, who helps people from turning into their parents. Plus, there’s “the backups” like 49ers quarterback Josh Dobbs. There’s also a sticky-note monster.
They make up the Progressive Cinematic Universe. I’d like to see a crossover event of some or all of those characters. Yeah, I know, I’m weird.
But as I continued to watch college and pro football games and the MLB World Series, I noticed that every major insurance company had comedic commercials featuring their own characters.
State Farm has “Jake from State Farm.” Allstate has actor Dean Winters as Mayhem. Liberty Mutual has LiMu Emu and Doug. And of course, Geico has Martin the Geico gecko.
OK, so a multicompany crossover event isn’t going to happen. My mind wanders sometimes.

These music acts should be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2025

I don’t do predictions for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. I’ll leave that to the experts. Rather, I write about who I think should be included in the hall.
With the 2024 class installed last month, it’s time to focus on next year’s class.
Many of these names I’ve suggested before, but I’ll keep saying them until they’re in.
Newly eligible acts in 2025 include Pink and Linkin Park, according to Future Rock Legends. Neither are proper candidates for first-year induction, though I think both deserve to get in eventually.
Every year needs at least one rock goddess or diva superstar. But with the untenable backlog at the hall of fame, there are several that need to get in pronto. They are Mariah Carey, Gloria Estefan, Cyndi Lauper and Sade. (All but Estefan have been previously nominated.)
Carey even joked that her attorney got into the hall before she did.
And Lauper is now on a “farewell tour.” So the timing is right.
I’ve suggested all of those women before. Now I’ll add two more: Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera. Both have been eligible since 2023.
Spears recently made headlines with her best-selling memoir “The Woman in Me.”
I would love to see an all-divas induction ceremony. That would be incredible. I suggested recently that the rock hall hold two ceremonies – one for “modern era” acts and another for the “classic era.”
For the “classic era” induction ceremony, I’d like to see these acts get the nod: Billy Idol, INXS, Joy Division/New Order and Phil Collins.

Related articles:

Rock Hall adds more fossils to its collection (Nov. 3, 2024)

Rock Hall adds more fossils to its collection, needs more 'modern era' acts

The paleontologists at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame recently added several more fossils to their museum.
On Oct. 19, the Rock Hall added a bunch of ancient acts to its inductee list. Key members of some acts are deceased and others were too old to perform at the induction ceremony.
The Rock Hall has a tendency to choose older acts over newly eligible acts. The thinking is that you can’t induct so-and-so before some older act is enshrined.
I think the hall should have two inductions per year: one for the “modern era” and another for a “classic era.” This would be similar to how the Country Music Hall of Fame chooses inductees with its “modern era” and “veterans era” selections. The Baseball Hall of Fame has “contemporary” and “classic” eras for inductees.
This year, the Rock Hall inductees were Mary J Blige, Jimmy Buffett, Cher, Dave Matthews Band, Foreigner, Peter Frampton, Kool & the Gang, Alexis Korner, John Mayall, MC5, Ozzy Osbourne, Suzanne de Passe, Big Momma Thornton, A Tribe Called Quest, Dionne Warwick and Norman Whitfield.
Of those, only Mary J Blige and Dave Matthews Band could be considered “modern era” acts.
The rest would be considered “classic era” acts or early influences.
Of the 11 individual inductees, five are deceased. Of the groups, many had lost key members over the years or were simply too frail to perform at the ceremony.

Consider this: The R&R HOF snubbed @ForeignerMusic for so long that Mick couldn’t be there, the founding member. @jimmybuffett snubbed so long that he’s passed. @peterframpton so long that he had to sit and play. @OzzyOsbourne solo so long that he had to sit & couldn’t sing. And…

— Eddie Trunk (@EddieTrunk) October 21, 2024

So the induction ceremony consisted largely of tribute performances by “modern era” performers such as Kenny Chesney, Kelly Clarkson, Jennifer Hudson, Dua Lipa, Jelly Roll and Keith Urban.
The ceremony itself was a five-and-a-half hour-marathon. Vulture writer Devon Ivie called it “a really long ceremony with really long speeches.”
The solution for such a long show: break it up. One show for “classic era” and early influencer acts and a second show for “modern era” acts.
Once the Rock Hall deals with its ridiculously long backlog of eligible artists. It can go back to one show.

Photo: Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Museum plaza. (Rock & Roll Hall of Fame).