THEY CALL ME THE MAYOR AT RIIS BEACH: RALPH'S BEACH PARTIES 1994-2000
To purchase this book, please order directly from Anthology Editions
For one day at the end of each summer between 1994 and 2000, Ralph Hopkins and the community transformed Riis Beach (aka the People’s Beach), New York City’s oldest public gay beach, into a vibrant and otherworldly fashion event. Ralph worked alongside friends, designers, and models from the storied queer sanctuary to create joyful spectacles and iconic looks in the sun and sands of the Rockaway Peninsula. Now, on September 22, 2024—on the occasion of Ralph's Red Hot at Riis Beach party, the revival of Ralph’s Beach Parties to the People’s Beach, co-organized by Ralph with Gili Rappaport (green flash projects) and Halo Kaya Perez-Gallardo (Lil’ Deb’s Oasis)—Anthology is thrilled to present They Call Me the Mayor at Riis Beach: Ralph’s Beach Parties 1994–2000. Featuring more than 100 photographs alongside reflections by Ralph and his collaborator Gili Rappaport, They Call Me the Mayor at Riis Beach is a celebration of the historic parties as well as a unique document of artistry, inclusivity, and wondrous beachfront fashions on Ralph’s signature glittering mylar runway.
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Ralph Hopkins (he/him) is a 76 year old native New Yorker residing in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn. Known as The Mayor at Riis Beach, he threw participatory beach parties there in the ‘90s involving fashion shows, DJs, and food, and has been a consistent presence at Riis for the past six decades. He is also a former chef, and in the ‘70s, became a five-time gold medalist — and one bronze — at the Madison Square Garden Harvest Moon Ball for the Lindy Hop and Jitterbug. He is also a US army veteran. They Call Me the Mayor at Riis Beach: Ralph’s Beach Parties is his first book.
Trade Paperback
8.5 inches x 11.25 inches
104 pages, 107 Images
ISBN: 978-1-944860-69-1
To purchase this book, please order directly from Anthology Editions
For one day at the end of each summer between 1994 and 2000, Ralph Hopkins and the community transformed Riis Beach (aka the People’s Beach), New York City’s oldest public gay beach, into a vibrant and otherworldly fashion event. Ralph worked alongside friends, designers, and models from the storied queer sanctuary to create joyful spectacles and iconic looks in the sun and sands of the Rockaway Peninsula. Now, on September 22, 2024—on the occasion of Ralph's Red Hot at Riis Beach party, the revival of Ralph’s Beach Parties to the People’s Beach, co-organized by Ralph with Gili Rappaport (green flash projects) and Halo Kaya Perez-Gallardo (Lil’ Deb’s Oasis)—Anthology is thrilled to present They Call Me the Mayor at Riis Beach: Ralph’s Beach Parties 1994–2000. Featuring more than 100 photographs alongside reflections by Ralph and his collaborator Gili Rappaport, They Call Me the Mayor at Riis Beach is a celebration of the historic parties as well as a unique document of artistry, inclusivity, and wondrous beachfront fashions on Ralph’s signature glittering mylar runway.
:
Ralph Hopkins (he/him) is a 76 year old native New Yorker residing in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn. Known as The Mayor at Riis Beach, he threw participatory beach parties there in the ‘90s involving fashion shows, DJs, and food, and has been a consistent presence at Riis for the past six decades. He is also a former chef, and in the ‘70s, became a five-time gold medalist — and one bronze — at the Madison Square Garden Harvest Moon Ball for the Lindy Hop and Jitterbug. He is also a US army veteran. They Call Me the Mayor at Riis Beach: Ralph’s Beach Parties is his first book.
Trade Paperback
8.5 inches x 11.25 inches
104 pages, 107 Images
ISBN: 978-1-944860-69-1
To purchase this book, please order directly from Anthology Editions
For one day at the end of each summer between 1994 and 2000, Ralph Hopkins and the community transformed Riis Beach (aka the People’s Beach), New York City’s oldest public gay beach, into a vibrant and otherworldly fashion event. Ralph worked alongside friends, designers, and models from the storied queer sanctuary to create joyful spectacles and iconic looks in the sun and sands of the Rockaway Peninsula. Now, on September 22, 2024—on the occasion of Ralph's Red Hot at Riis Beach party, the revival of Ralph’s Beach Parties to the People’s Beach, co-organized by Ralph with Gili Rappaport (green flash projects) and Halo Kaya Perez-Gallardo (Lil’ Deb’s Oasis)—Anthology is thrilled to present They Call Me the Mayor at Riis Beach: Ralph’s Beach Parties 1994–2000. Featuring more than 100 photographs alongside reflections by Ralph and his collaborator Gili Rappaport, They Call Me the Mayor at Riis Beach is a celebration of the historic parties as well as a unique document of artistry, inclusivity, and wondrous beachfront fashions on Ralph’s signature glittering mylar runway.
:
Ralph Hopkins (he/him) is a 76 year old native New Yorker residing in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn. Known as The Mayor at Riis Beach, he threw participatory beach parties there in the ‘90s involving fashion shows, DJs, and food, and has been a consistent presence at Riis for the past six decades. He is also a former chef, and in the ‘70s, became a five-time gold medalist — and one bronze — at the Madison Square Garden Harvest Moon Ball for the Lindy Hop and Jitterbug. He is also a US army veteran. They Call Me the Mayor at Riis Beach: Ralph’s Beach Parties is his first book.
Trade Paperback
8.5 inches x 11.25 inches
104 pages, 107 Images
ISBN: 978-1-944860-69-1
