Brooklyn Gets Snubbed This Fleet Week

One of the meaningless mental notes I’ve made during my life is, while watching old war movies that take place on ships or submarines, I have noticed that there’s almost always some endearing and lovable tough guy aboard the vessel endowed with a thick Brooklyn accent (John Garfield and Dane Clark in “Destination Tokyo” come to mind).

I mention it only because, as a massive convoy of Sailors, Marines and Coast Guardsmen sails triumphantly into New York City today in anticipation of Fleet Week, May 26 to 31, the annual celebration of all things maritime, the impressive week-long roster of activities features but one measly two-hour event in Brooklyn, with dozens being held all over Manhattan, Long Island and New Rochelle. Where’s the love?

Members of the US Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard will present “Air & Water Demonstrations” in Coney Island from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., May 26. Unlike other outer-borough locales, where specific locations were listed for Fleet Week’s seafaring-related events (i.e., at a school, address, or exact coordinate), there is no precise location provided for Fleet Week’s lone Brooklyn event (West 5

Street? West 14

Street? West 37

Street? Come on, help us out here!).

To be fair, Queens and The Bronx were also only bequeathed with a single event while spoiled Jerk–hattanites from the opposite side of the Hudson luxuriously bask in their borough comprising the majority of Fleet Week activities. Still, you’d think with our many piers and fishing fleets all over the borough, not to mention those pervasive Brooklyn accents in all the old war movies, we’d get a little more respect, no? In fact, I seem to recall that it was a 24-year-old Marine corporal from Bensonhurst who toppled the statue of Saddam Hussein, ceremoniously proclaiming the fall of Baghdad. Street creds only extend for so long, I guess. You’re only as good as the next gigantic dictator statue you overthrow.

Oh well… like jilted fans of “Dem Bums” were sadly accustomed to constantly telling themselves after the end of nearly every season (*), “Wait ’til next year.”