Coney Island Gets Ready For 31st Annual Mermaid Parade
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- The mermaids are getting ready to hit the streets of Coney Island.
The 31st Annual Mermaid Parade will kick off at 1 p.m. Saturday at West 21st Street and Surf Avenue.
Organizers initially feared the parade would be canceled because they had too much debt after superstorm Sandy, but an online fundraising effort saved the event.
PHOTOS: Coney Island's 2010 Mermaid Parade
"We took a chance on a Kickstarter campaign and 2,500 people contributed $117,000," organizer Dick Zigun told 1010 WINS. "Even after the fees come out we keep about 75 percent of that."
The Mermaid Parade is the largest art parade in the country and has been going strong since 1983.
As many as 750,000 people are expected to attend the event which will feature Judah Freidlander from "30 Rock" as King Neptune and Carole Radziwell from the "Real Housewives of New York" as Queen Mermaid.
The event is meant to be a celebration of the sand, the sea, Coney Island pride, and artistic self-expression. The parade is followed by a Mermaid Parade Ball which features a burlesque show and a number of sideshow acts.
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