Invasion of the Pines
Encyclopedia
Fire Island Pines, New York
Fire Island Pines is a hamlet in the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, New York, United States...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, denied entry to a visitor in drag
Drag (clothing)
Drag is used for any clothing carrying symbolic significance but usually referring to the clothing associated with one gender role when worn by a person of another gender. The origin of the term "drag" is unknown, but it may have originated in Polari, a gay street argot in England in the early...
named Terry Warren. Fire Island Pines
Fire Island Pines, New York
Fire Island Pines is a hamlet in the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, New York, United States...
is a beach community on Fire Island
Fire Island, New York
Fire Island is one of the outer barrier islands adjacent to the south shore of Long Island, New York. It is approximately long and varies between broad. Fire Island is part of Suffolk County. It comprises a number of hamlets, census-designated places , and villages, all of which lie within the...
east of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
with a gay
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
majority population that was at the time more affluent and conservative than the population of nearby Cherry Grove
Cherry Grove, New York
Cherry Grove is an unincorporated hamlet in the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, New York, United States. It is located on Fire Island, a barrier island separated from the southern side of Long Island by the Great South Bay...
. When Warren's friends in Cherry Grove
Cherry Grove, New York
Cherry Grove is an unincorporated hamlet in the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, New York, United States. It is located on Fire Island, a barrier island separated from the southern side of Long Island by the Great South Bay...
heard what had happened, they too dressed up in drag, and, on July 4, 1976
United States Bicentennial
The United States Bicentennial was a series of celebrations and observances during the mid-1970s that paid tribute to the historical events leading up to the creation of the United States as an independent republic...
, with Cherry Grove's 1976 Homecoming Queen Thom Hansen (aka Panzi)
Panzi
Panzi is an American gay activist.Hansen was educated at Pace University, where he studied business and accounting; thereafter he began working as a financial analyst, a business manager in the textile industry and an actor...
in the lead, sailed to the Pines by water taxi
Water taxi
A water taxi or water bus, also known as a commuter boat, is a watercraft used to provide public transport, usually but not always in an urban environment. Service may be scheduled with multiple stops, operating in a similar manner to a bus, or on demand to many locations, operating in a similar...
. The boatload of drag queens that stormed into the Pines that day—to a surprised but exuberant welcome—was the first "invasion," an event now repeated each year.
Today's annual event
Now, many years later, the annual Fourth of JulyIndependence Day (United States)
Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain...
Invasion of the Pines attracts hundreds of drag queen
Drag queen
A drag queen is a man who dresses, and usually acts, like a caricature woman often for the purpose of entertaining. There are many kinds of drag artists and they vary greatly, from professionals who have starred in films to people who just try it once. Drag queens also vary by class and culture and...
s and thousands of spectators to what has become an annual Independence Day
Independence Day (United States)
Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain...
event.
Drag queen
A drag queen is a man who dresses, and usually acts, like a caricature woman often for the purpose of entertaining. There are many kinds of drag artists and they vary greatly, from professionals who have starred in films to people who just try it once. Drag queens also vary by class and culture and...
s from both Cherry Grove
Cherry Grove, New York
Cherry Grove is an unincorporated hamlet in the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, New York, United States. It is located on Fire Island, a barrier island separated from the southern side of Long Island by the Great South Bay...
and the Pines
Fire Island Pines, New York
Fire Island Pines is a hamlet in the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, New York, United States...
gather at the Ice Palace Bar at the Cherry Grove Hotel in Cherry Grove
Cherry Grove, New York
Cherry Grove is an unincorporated hamlet in the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, New York, United States. It is located on Fire Island, a barrier island separated from the southern side of Long Island by the Great South Bay...
; after parading through the street of Cherry Grove
Cherry Grove, New York
Cherry Grove is an unincorporated hamlet in the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, New York, United States. It is located on Fire Island, a barrier island separated from the southern side of Long Island by the Great South Bay...
, they board a chartered ferry boat
Ferry
A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...
and sail to the Pines Harbor, where they are greeted by thousands of cheering residents and visitors. As each drag queen
Drag queen
A drag queen is a man who dresses, and usually acts, like a caricature woman often for the purpose of entertaining. There are many kinds of drag artists and they vary greatly, from professionals who have starred in films to people who just try it once. Drag queens also vary by class and culture and...
leaves the ferry
Ferry
A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...
and marches onto the dock, she is announced by Panzi
Panzi
Panzi is an American gay activist.Hansen was educated at Pace University, where he studied business and accounting; thereafter he began working as a financial analyst, a business manager in the textile industry and an actor...
, the original 1976 invasion leader, now mistress of ceremonies.
Jon Morrow, a film maker (and gynecologist) from New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, has made a short film on the annual celebrations—see the link below.