Coney Island Mermaid Parade

The Coney Island Mermaid Parade is an art parade held annually in Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York City. The event, the largest art parade in the United States, is held each year in June and celebrates the arrival of the summer season. Created and produced by the non-profit arts organization Coney Island USA, the 40th annual parade was held on June 18, 2022.

Description

The Mermaid Parade traditionally takes place on the Saturday closest to the summer solstice, June 21, regardless of weather. Its intent is to celebrate self-expression, boost pride in Coney Island, and give New York artists a place to display their artwork. There are no ethnic, religious, or commercial aims.

The parade pays homage to the Coney Island Mardi Gras parades of the early 20th century. During this era, Coney Island was the primary amusement park destination for those in the New York metropolitan area. Like the annual Village Halloween Parade, the Mermaid Parade evokes the artistic spirit of Mardi Gras.

The event typically attracts about 3,000 participants and hundreds of thousands of spectators from all five boroughs of New York City. After the last participant passes the reviewing stand, parade founder Dick Zigun leads the procession to the beach for a ceremony representing the opening of the ocean for the summer swimming season.

History

The tradition began in 1983, when the first event of this kind was conceptualized and organized by Dick Zigun, the founder of the non-profit arts organization Coney Island USA, who is sometimes dubbed the "Mayor of Coney Island."

The parade of June 22, 2013, was almost canceled due to a lack of money and resources following the recovery from Hurricane Sandy. It was rescued through a successful Kickstarter campaign along with a benefit concert that together raised $117,000, more than the $100,000 goal.

The 2020 parade was replaced by a virtual event (The Tail-a-Thon) due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The parade was delayed in 2021 to September 12 (marking the last weekend that lifeguards would be on duty at Coney Island) in order to improve the chances that it could be held, but on August 18 it was announced that the parade would be cancelled out of an abundance of caution due to a resurgence of COVID-19 in the region.

In 2026, the parade again faced financial difficulties. Coney Island USA raised $42,000+ through a GoFundMe campaign, allowing the parade to be held as scheduled. Additionally, Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso pledged $20,000 and committed to providing that same amount annually throughout his remaining time in office "to secure the future of the historic Mermaid Parade".

Themes

The Mermaid Parade is known for marine costumes and occasional nudity (it is legal in New York State for women to be topless in public). There are sections in the parade for vehicles of all kinds, for floats, for groups, and for individuals. There are also family friendly and artsy categories. The organizers of the parade claim to encourage bribery, to give participants a more equal chance to win the various costume contests which are also part of the day's entertainment.

Each year the Mermaid Parade features a King Neptune and Queen Mermaid.

Annual Year King Neptune Queen Mermaid 1st 1983 Al Mottola Alison Gordy 2nd 1984 Joe Franklin Jeanne Becker 3rd 1985 Dan Lurie Sandra Frankel 4th 1986 John Bradshaw Noni 5th 1987 Henry Stern Barbara Walz 6th 1988 Michael Wilson Phoebe Legere 7th 1989 David Smalls Ilana Iguana 8th 1990 Mr. Fashion Wendy Wild 9th 1991 El Vez Lynda Barry 10th 1992 Richard Eagan Daisy Eagan 11th 1993 - Karen Duffy 12th 1994 Jose Gutierrez Rosemary Di Pietra 13th 1995 Spyro Poulos Shut-Up Shelly 14th 1996 Fred Kahl Kiva Kahl 15th 1997 Ron Kuby Jennifer Miller 16th 1998 David Byrne The World Famous *BOB* 17th 1999 Curtis Sliwa Queen Latifah 18th 2000 Rabbi Abraham Abraham Katya Kahl 19th 2001 Hector Camacho Jr. Kembra Pfahler 20th 2002 Marty Markowitz Toni Senecal 21st 2003 Bill Evans Kate Duyn 22nd 2004 Moby Theo Kogan 23rd 2005 David Johansen Karmen Guy 24th 2006 Abel Ferrara Bambi the Mermaid 25th 2007 Adam Savage Patti D'Arbanville 26th 2008 Reverend Billy Talen Savitri Durkee 27th 2009 Harvey Keitel Daphne Kastner 28th 2010 Lou Reed Laurie Anderson 29th 2011 Adam Richman Cat Greenleaf 30th 2012 Jackie "The Joke Man" Martling Annabella Sciorra 31st 2013 Judah Friedlander Carole Radziwill 32nd 2014 Dante de Blasio Chiara de Blasio 33rd 2015 Mat Fraser Julie Atlas Muz 34th 2016 Carlo A. Scissura Hailey Clauson 35th 2017 Chris Stein Deborah Harry 36th 2018 Neil Gaiman Amanda Palmer 37th 2019 Arlo Guthrie Nora Guthrie 38th2020Cancelled due to COVID-19 39th2021Cancelled again due to COVID-19 40th 2022 Dave Chokshi Justin Vivian Bond 41st 2023 - Laurie Cumbo 42nd 2024 Joe Coleman Whitney Ward 43nd 2025 Eugene Hütz Queenie Sateen44th2026Jesse MalinRickie Lee Jones

Gallery

Coney Island Mermaid Parade

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