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scoreboard on the Wall debuted in 1934, although the trademark green paint did not appear until 1947. Originally, the Wall was plastered with advertisements for products like Lifebuoy Soap, Gem Razors, Arrow Collars, and other products. Then for decades it was pure and green. Today it is adorned with an ad for the Jimmy Fund and the insignias of several local companies. Because the Henry ownership group has taken care to blend these ads in with the design of the scoreboard, though, locals have not taken much offense at the affront to, or perhaps we should say,
return
to Fenway tradition.
    In 1936, a twenty-three-foot-high screen was added atop the Wall to protect pedestrians and motorists on Lansdowne Street. The screen collected homers until 2003 when the Red Sox added the Monster Seats in its place. For old time’s sake, the Red Sox left in place the ladder that members of the grounds crew had used for decades to scale theWall and retrieve balls out of the screen after batting practice. Today, any batter who hits a ball off the ladder that then bounces out of the park is awarded a ground rule double.
    Josh:
I’ve been watching the Sox all my life and I’ve never seen that.
    Kevin:
Still, it’s nice to know the Sox are prepared.
    Upon arriving at Fenway for the first time, we recommend you head out to Section 33 and lean out to rap your knuckles on the Wall. Go ahead. Don’t be shy. Touch it. Take a picture too. Then check out the dents and dings that eighty years of batted balls have left. Look closely and you’ll see the red marks left by baseball seams.
THE SCOREBOARD
    Fenway’s scoreboard features a hidden Morse code message that Sox owner Thomas A. Yawkey installed on its face as a love message to his wife, Jeanne R. Yawkey. Look carefully and you should be able to find the dashes and dots. Then brush up on your decoding skills and see if you can figure out what they mean.
    More recently, the scoreboard and its narrow doorway entered into Red Sox lore for being the portal through which mascot Wally the Green Monster entered the world of humans and for being the portal through which former Sox left fielder Manny Ramirez would sneak when he needed to umm … relieve himself … during pitching changes. We should mention that there is
not
a bathroom inside the Wall. Manny was also known to occasionally play left field with a plastic water bottle protruding from his back pants pocket. We will let you figure that one out on your own, or, if you prefer, you may merely chalk it up to “Manny Being Manny,” as the saying went until New Englanders finally tired of Manny’s circus show.
    Josh:
Prostate problems are something a lot of men our age wrestle with. We should cut Manny some slack.
    Kevin:
Speak for yourself. In my book, peeing in the scoreboard is never acceptable.
    Josh:
I don’t have prostate problems.
    Kevin:
I didn’t say you did.
    Josh:
Oh. Well, I don’t. But if I did, I’d appreciate a little understanding.
THE CITGO SIGN
    Although it’s not technically located inside Fenway, the glowing Citgo sign mounted upon a rooftop in Kenmore Square might as well be. Flashing its familiar red, white, and blue neon, it is the most prominent feature on the left-field skyline and seems to hover just above the Wall. It was originally installed in 1965 to capitalize on the crowds Fenway was attracting. In 1979, Massachusetts Governor Edward King pressured Citgo to turn off the sign as a symbol of energy conservation and it remained dark for four years before the gas company decided to remove it. But a contingent of Fenway residents claimed the sign was a fixture of the local landscape that shouldn’t be removed. While the Boston Landmarks Commission debated whether the sign should be declared a historic landmark, Citgo reversed course and decided to refurbish and re-illuminate the sign. It has been lit since 1983, excepting times in 2005 and 2010 when it was briefly dimmed to allow for the installation of more