The King Mango Strut, Coconut Grove’s satirical end of year parade, didn’t plan to ‘punk’ Channel 7, but when the TV station received a press release that said ‘Toronto Mayor Rob Ford’ will appear as the Grand Marshall, they had to cover the news, not realizing it was another in a long long line of satirical headline grabs.
Maybe they dish out so many odd and unusual entertainment and political stories, that this one seemed so real. “Well, you’ve ‘punked’ Channel 7” said a rep for the station when the call came in to Strut headquarters.
True fact….Rob Ford’s office in Toronto also called to insist the Strut put an asterisk around his name so people will know it’s not really him. Well, hellOOOOoooo, after all the publicity he’s generated by himself, couldn’t he wallow in a little more for us? It’s only neighborly!
So let the satire begin!
The now legendary (32 years in the making) King Mango Strut Parade (Accept no substitutes) will kick off in Coconut Grove at 2PM on Sunday December 29th come hell or high water.
The ‘hell’ will be the satirical content which spares no one and the ‘high water’ is the heights that locals will reach when they come together and amuse the humor cognoscenti with a street smart version of the headlines of the past year.
The ‘Strut’ has proven itself year after year as the nation’s premier pageant for satire and humor and OMG it’s in your own back yard.
Including:
The Sierra Clubs ‘Frackenstein’, The Coconut Grove Barnacle’s Toxic parks expose’, Seniors Texting – ATD (at the doctors), BFF (Best friend’s funeral) BYOT (Bring your own toilet) Kate and William’s new baby George. Anthony Weiner “Sexting” Scandal; aka Carlos Danger, Sequester: government shutdown, Horsemeat found in burgers; Ikea recalls meatballs, The gibberish hand language interpreter, Spin the Wheel of Obama-Care, The People’s Pope may be present a/k/a “Pope Pourri”, Bullying football players and a ‘grand slam’ of GMO’s called the ‘Broccoli horror Show’ including a ‘Franken-Carrot’ and actual ‘Children of the Genetically Modified Corn’ round out the entries.
This is not a complete list, as groups may join at the last minute by simply being there and adhering to the rules of satire and the Strut.
The Pre-Parade activities begin at 1pm at the corner of Commodore Plaza and Main Highway, with emcees Buzz and Kathy Fleischman warming up the crowd and letting them know it is certainly not your father’s Orange Bowl Parade.
The ‘highly competitive’ Little Miss Mango’ pageant will be a tough one for the judges, especially since Miley Cyrus (And everyone) is expected to win. The winners will ride the first float of the Strut.
The featured celebrity guest is well known jazz artist Joe Donato who will play two and possibly three horns at the same time. Yes, he’s that talented!
All parade-goers should arrive early and be herded through security checkpoints. If any alcohol is found, it will be consumed on the spot by parade Grand Marshall Rob Ford.
Any unruly parade-goer will be required to do community service by following Justin Bieber around letting him know he is about to lose his pants. The NSA is listening in to anyone it deems a risk to parade humor.
With the dropping of the banana at 2pm.by emcee Nathan Kurland the Parade begins at the corner of Commodore Plaza and Main Highway. It turns left onto Main Highway and then another left onto Grand Avenue at Coco-Walk with emcees Buzz and Kathy Fleischman and back to Commodore Plaza where they will run into the groups at the end still waiting to get out of the starting gate. Chaos can be fun!
After the Parade, Commodore Plaza will remain closed and the King Mango Music Massacre begins. Bands will continue playing at the After Party on Commodore with one band at Coco-Walk until the festivities are over or the last strutter falls down from exhaustion.
All this entertainment is free (cheaper than a therapist) and open to the public.
There is plenty of parking along or near the parade route at Coco-Walk, Mayfair, Coconut Grove Playhouse on Main Highway and Charles Avenue, St. Stephens Episcopal Church, Coconut Grove Elementary School, the city garage at Oak Avenue and Mary Street, and the city garage next to the Sonesta Hotel.
Take the Metrorail to the Coconut Grove Station. There will be shuttle buses (the Coconut Grove Circulator) picking up every 15 minutes at the station and dropping them one block from the parade route.
LIVE VIDEO STREAMING on THE INTERNET Broadcast starts at 1:30 p.m., exclusively at Richard Fendelman’s http://www.artsandculturetv.com
Warning: The Strut contains concepts that could be construed as politically dangerous in small foreign countries with no sense of humor!
For more information, go to http://www.kingmangostrut.org or call the Mango Hotline at 305-582-0955.
