Friday, January 7, 2011

The Cape

From Wikipedia

A little over 10 years ago I was pushing my kids in their stroller and for the first time noticed the Statue of  James Stranahan near Just inside Prospect Park, near Grand Army Plaza.  In my mind I heard my kids saying "Daddy, who is he?"  I did not know.  So I went across the street to the Central Branch of  The Brooklyn Public Library and check out a book.   He was the President of the Brooklyn Park Commission and was the man responsible for hiring Olmsted and Vaux.  He was in the room when people decided to build the Brooklyn Bridge.  He actually presided over it's dedication in 1883.

I read that he was a "gentlemen politician".  Like our current Mayor is was a wealthy man who took no salary for his service.  But unlike Mayor Mike, he put his money where his mouth was and wrote a check to cover the deficit that the Park's Dept. had when he retired.

My kids have never asked me who he was, but I told them.  The statue at left makes him look like a nice man.  It should because  is was designed by his friends and he was there when it was unveiled.  "The statue was unveiled June 6th, 1891, in the presence of then 83 year old Stranahan. He died September 3, 1898. The bronze sculpture was created by Frederick MacMonnies. - Wikipedia.

Today it is covered in a Cape
My sad photo


From the Prospect Park FaceBook


















It is part of a promotion for a new TV show.  I really hope NBC paid a lot of money to humiliate Stranahan like that.  


What is gonna happen in the Summer?  Will Stranahan be holding a Coke? 


Will they paint him green when the Hulk movies opens?

6 comments:

  1. They did the same thing to the Columbus statue in Columbus Park by Borough Hall. At least the capes are temporary. Can't help remembering that Capeman musical, which was such a flop, by Paul Simon the other year.

    ReplyDelete
  2. OK, he's a super-hero on a new TV show, but with no radioactive freaky stuff.
    http://www.nbc.com/the-cape/

    Meanwhile, here's a real super-hero in Seattle.
    http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/01/reallife-superhero-phoenix-jones-fights-crime-seattle/

    ReplyDelete
  3. That's pretty cheesy, on the part of the tv show promoters, and even more on the part of whoever let them do it.

    ReplyDelete
  4. lol.
    I haven't noticed the capes elsewhere. I guess these fellows are cheap spokespeople.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Kitty,

    They are everywhere

    City Parks Department officials allowed NBC executives to create hype for "The Cape" by draping frocks on sculptures of historic figures until Sunday in exchange for a $120,000 donation to maintain public art.

    Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/brooklyn/2011/01/06/2011-01-06_herothemed_tv_show_stunt_draped_statues_with_capes.html#ixzz1AVEvWdVMl

    Who knew?!?!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Oh god. I just sat through the show.

    It was road kill.

    ReplyDelete

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