Disqualified Art Contest Winner “Frankie Loves the Polka”

Minkskaputka, Croatia:

Officers of the International Polka Festival issued a statement this week retracting the award for the previously selected 2014 International Polka Festival logo art.

“It is with great sadness that we must reject the winning entry from an obscure Wisconsin, U.S.A. artist.” Said Igor Slevintofsky, Committee Chairman.  “This would have been the first time the committee has selected an artist outside of Europe since 1937.”

While the original art titled Frankie Loves the Polka was overwhelmingly applauded, selected, and approved for it’s originality and meaningful depiction of the polka arts by the entire international voting body of member nations, the artist lied about his ethnicity. “The rule violation calls for immediate disqualification.” Said Slevintofsky.

The fraud was discovered when the artist, who presented himself as Thomasasama Hickskonovokovich, arrived to claim his cash award. “He arrived wearing a business suit without one thread of plaid. No stripes. No fur. Not even a wool cap. What kind of Croatian dresses like that?” remarked one of the judges. “Later we found out that he wasn’t Polish or even Ukrainian. He used an alias and purposefully broke the rules in order to win our cash prize!”

The artist’s true identity is, Tom Hicks, from Waukesha, Wisconsin, U.S.A. He was located by this reporter in customs detention at the Minkskaputka bus station and issued this statement: “They said that they loved the painting, flew me out here for the award ceremony, and now refuse to give me the award, or even enough money to travel back home. Hey, I’ll trade you this painting for a plane ticket to the states. What do you say?”