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| This year's ichthyanthropomorphic extravaganza, the Coney Island Mermaid Parade, ran true to form on June 25, 2005. The annual event, run by Dick Zigun's Coney Island USA, is technically a remembrance of the old Coney Island Mardi Gras parade (which ran between 1903 and 1954) but it's really one of Brooklyn's last spontaneous events, a street party attracting between 50 and as many as 100,000 screaming spectators. It is just about the only thing with that kind of a crowd that can attract your webmaster... | ||
PRE-GAME SHOW
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| Paraders are on their way to the boardwalk staging area | |||||
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| The Fly | And that's after the liposuction | ||||
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| The littlest mermaid | |||||
CLASSIC and not so classic CARS
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| The classic cars always include a hearse. Just in case. | ||||
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| The Coney Island Mermaid Parade does not only seek to entertain. It is also a highly educational event. Every parade features a tribute to Topsy, the elephant who was executed in Coney's Luna Park in 1905. Thomas Edison was trying to prove that his competitor George Westinghouse's alternating electric current was much more dangerous than Edison's direct current. What better way than to fry an elephant. This float was a joint effort by Steve's Key Lime Pies and neighborhood joint Red Hook Bait and Tackle.
Of course your webmaster was also cherchezing la femmes, especially the ones carrying whips. |
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| Freedom float | Golden Palace is one of those annoying online casino sites, so I'm not linkin' | |||
MARCHERS
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| The Mayor of Coney Island is Dick Zigun, the head of Coney Island USA, who, after the last classic car has revved past, leads the marchers down Surf Avenue. He has a new drum every year, but he has worn the same 1920s-era bathing suit every year for 21 years. The face on the drum is the old personification of Steeplechase, the Funny Place, a Coney Island institution for over sixty years. It was torn down in 1964 and the space is presently occupied by KeySpan Park. | ||||||
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| Billionaires for Bush and some cosmonauts, who have just landed-- having been in orbit since 1985. Boy, are they in for a surprise. | ||||||
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| Why, it's Captain Lou Albano. Haven't seen ya in ages, big guy, how've you been? Converted to Judaism, I see. Actually this is Rabbi Abraham Abraham of the Coney Island Ice Breakers, kind of a rival to the Polar Bear Club.
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| The orange one started messing with the grey one a little further up Surf Avenue. | ||||||||
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| The Mystical Children hail from Coney Island | ||||||||
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| There's no need to fear, Underdog is here. And don't call her Underdog Lady if you know what's good for you. | ||||||||
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| Jitterbuggers cut the rug every year. | You'll get attention if you have a camera at the Mermaid Parade, especially from Mandy the Warrior Mermaid. | |||||||
WILDLIFE
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| Manta rays, octopuses (-pi), sea fans and lobstermen. Actually these are the best lobster-people I've seen since Vic Lundin played one on Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea in the 60s. | ||||
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| This is what happens when Lee's Press On Nails go wrong. Horribly wrong. | ||||
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| Partyin' like it's 1929. | |||||||
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| She'll need a lot of helium. | |||||||
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| Just a little gold paint, and not much else. | |||||||
| An ounce of prevention... | |||||||
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| The hem of his garment. It can only be Hellvis. | |||||||
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| There really is not a more congenial spot. But does John Cleese know the Killer Rabbit is here... | |||||
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| The Swamp Thing showed up. | |||||
MERMAIDS
This is really why I go, year after year.
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| Poker, eh. I'd like to po...
[break for cold shower] OK, I'm back. |
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| But keep your eye on the little one in a few years. | ||||
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Space-babe costuming has improved markedly since Cat-Women on the Moon... | ||||
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| ...as have Valkyrie costumes.
(RIGHT) probably my favorite performer in the parade this year was Liz Starin, who gamely gallumphed down Surf Avenue with her group Rude Mechanical Orchestra, fluting the whole time. |
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| When Bob Hope was still around, every year he would tour overseas to whatever godforsaken place the USA was waging war, whether it was Germany, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, wherever, and when he'd bring out Joey Heatherton, Stella Stevens or whoever, he'd say...
..."here's what you're fighting for, boys!" Past Mermaid Parades... |
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Your webmaster's lovely assistant this year was once and future mermaid Gerry Guadagno, who was "just watching" this year.
Photographed and written June 25, 2005 HOME| LAMPS | SUBWAYS & TRAINS | ADS | TROLLEYS | SIGNS | COBBLESTONES | STREET SCENES | YOU'D NEVER BELIEVE YOU'RE IN NYC | LINKS | ALLEYS | NECROLOGY | CEMETERIES | NEIGHBORHOODS | FORGOTTENBLOG | FORGOTTENTOURS | SEARCH | FORGOTTENSTUFF erpietri"@"earthlink.net ©2005 Midnight Fish |
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