For over 40 years, New York's most creative characters have been gathering in Coney Island to participate in the Mermaid Parade. There's no ethnic, religious, or political connection between participants, but locals call it the official opening of summer in the city. In this episode of GATHERINGS, VICE host Jackson Garrett hitches a ride to Coney Island to find out what NYC's oddest tradition means to those who celebrate it.
[VIDEO] Richard & Katherine Ryan's Hilarious Whirlwind Tour of New York!
Richard and comedian Katherine Ryan take a fast and funny trip to New York. Their overflowing schedule includes skyscrapers, roller blades, museums, ferries, show-tunes and cronuts. The official destination (see what we did there) for all things Travel Man, where Richard Ayoade & Joe Lycett takes a ruthless approach to getting the maximum from a city break...Every week we'll be posting the best clips and compilations from the series.
[WATCH] Castle Clinton - Lucy G. Moses Preservation Award
Castle Clinton has been an active example of adaptive reuse since it was completed in 1811. The Castle served as a military headquarters, restaurant, immigrant processing center, and aquarium, before Robert Moses tried to demolish it. FDR’s intervention saved the structure which was turned over to the federal government in 1950. Now, its robust facade has finally been restored.
This restoration focused on treating the historic red Newark sandstone walls, which had been damaged by the harsh marine environment and construction of the nearby Brooklyn Battery Tunnel. New archival research and non-destructive techniques helped the project team diagnose complex masonry problems, such as major vertical cracks, dislocation of stonework, and exfoliation and spalling of the sandstone. They cleaned the stones and removed old patches, making Dutchman repairs, and, when necessary, installing new stones sourced from Germany that match the originals.
Today Castle Clinton welcomes more than 3 million visitors annually, as the National Park Service NPS ticket office for the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. This work ensured that the Castle will continue to welcome visitors to New York City for decades to come.