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It was 1981 when Ronald Colbert, who had just returned home from serving in the Navy as a mess specialist aboard the USS Cavalla, traveled to Times Square to watch the ball drop in person for the first time. times.
It was a lifelong dream come true that year, and he’s been going almost every year since.
“My younger brother and I would stay with the babysitter at the time to watch the ball fall. Everyone wore their party hats, banners. Dancing with tiaras and tuxedos. The initial ball was just a little white – probably a bowling ball on a pole as well. Now, they’ve turned it into this electronic monstrosity, ”Colbert said.
“The excitement is incredible, the energy everyone has during this last minute. I don’t know how many people I weirdly kissed on New Years Eve or have kissed me.”
Colbert intended to visit Times Square on Dec.31 one last time, ushering in the New Year with over a million foreigners gathering in the heart of the Big Apple from around the world to count the last seconds of the year. . .
Ronald Colbert celebrating New Years Eve in Times Square, Manhattan on December 31, 2019. As a longtime reveler, he hopes to return to the plaza to watch the ball drop one last time.
(Ronald Colbert)
“I had everything planned, my Kentucky Fried Chicken in my Ziplocs and was ready to stay all day,” says Colbert, Deckhand for Staten Island Ferry.
For the first time in 114 years, the spectacular New Years Eve in Times Square took place without the usual crowds due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
It would have marked the 40th anniversary of Colbert’s party at Times Square’s New Year’s Eve celebration.
“I was waiting for this to be my last year. I will have to get there next year, ”he said. “It’s a disappointment, but it’s not a disaster.”
As usual, there was a live TV show for the Times Square 2020 New Years celebration. Additionally, the event was accessible through an app called VNYE, where users could also explore the virtual world of Times Square.
“We are also adding a kind of gamified virtual version in addition to [TV]. It’s always been virtual in some ways, “says Tim Tompkins, president of Times Square Alliance, who was one of the producers of the NYE event.” You’re going to be able to create a virtual world of Times Square, create your own avatar, then you place yourself in a virtual Time Square to experience New Year’s Eve as if you were there and in real time. “
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VNYE was created by Jamestown, the group that owns the building that houses the 11,875 pound New Years Eve Ball, covered with 2,688 Waterford Crystal triangles lit by 32,256 LEDs.
So far this year, there have been more than 18 million cases of the coronavirus and more than 318,000 deaths have been reported in the United States since February. Tompkins says New Year’s event staff and organizers are working hard during the pandemic to try to make this event special for people watching at home as the number of COVID-19 continues to rise.
A Times Square employee disinfects the booth where people can write their New Year’s wishes on confetti that will fill the Crossroads of the World on New Years Eve.
(Countdown entertainment)
“One of the challenges is just the uncertainty about how the health situation will evolve. The people who set up the stages, build the stages – they’re all going to be tested. They have to be socially distant,” he said.
The Times Square Alliance and Countdown Entertainment recently announced that TV personality Jonathan Bennet, host of “Holiday Wars” and an actor who starred in “Mean Girls,” will host this year’s event, with performances artists like Jennifer Lopez, Billy Porter and Cyndi Lauper.
“Gloria Gaynor is going to be singing ‘I Will Survive’ which is kind of a theme with 2020 both metaphorically and sadly, literally,” Tompkins said.
People like Muhammad Ali and Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor have been honored at Times Square New Years Eve party in the past. But this year, the many “Heroes of 2020” will be honored on site in Times Square for their efforts on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic, especially those who have risked their lives at work every day.
No Crowds: During the holidays this time of year, the streets of Times Square are filled with people walking side by side. This year will be very different without the millions of visitors.
These award winners include transit workers, doctors, nurses, delivery people, first responders and other essential workers who will be set up in sealed areas of limited capacity away from other guests, performers and staff.
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“We pay tribute to the heroes of 2020, the people who, through their courage or creativity, have helped us through this year. They will all be New Yorkers representing people around the world, ”Tompkins added.
“2020 has been kind of a drain,” Colbert says. “Hopefully we can get back to some normalcy. It’s a new beginning. Let everyone be included.”
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