It’s on, folks! Now it’s summer!
Friday morning, One Reel took Lady Liberty’s head out of a crate and put her atop the hill at Gas Works.
While setting up, One Reel’s Production Director, Winsor Graves, shared some of her history with bystanders. The large inflatable balloon was custom made in 1992 for the annual fireworks at Gas Works Park. She is owned by One Reel, but there used to be more to her than a disembodied head. When she was originally made, she was a whole life-sized replica of the Statue of Liberty. Somewhere along the way her limbs and torso were lost. But the head remains and has become an iconic symbol here in the lower ‘hood.
Lady Liberty is held in place by 7 ropes — one to represent the 7 seas and 7 continents.
And she gets a bath every 5 years (don’t tell your kids!). First she gets hosed, then splashed with a biodegradable soap like Simple Green, and placed in a container where volunteers agitate the nylon balloon with their feet. Sort of like smashing grapes to make wine, but not as messy. Then she’s hung out to dry, sometimes by crane.
Lady Liberty will be lit so she can be seen at night across the city. She is deflated in hard rains or when winds reach 20mph. Which we certainly don’t like to see this time of year!
Enjoy the slideshow below, and we’ll see you in the neighborhood on the Fourth!
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How cool! I was always curious about how Lady Liberty got set up. Thanks for the great pics!
what a tremendous waste of precious money and resources, not to mention the enviro- polution of the lake, etc. – all this for about 20 min of explosions – i don’t get this love for waste and disregard for members of the community suffering from poverty and foreclosures on their homes…..
Or, you could think of it as 75,000 neighbors coming together to enjoy the free entertainment, including those in poverty. I saw plenty of families in old beat up cars with lots of kids seeking out parking early in the day & heading down to the festival at Gas Works. I remember when my parents used to look for events like this… something they could afford to take us all to.