The Year Park Slope Won Halloween

Photo credit: Lisa Hoffman

We all know that Park Slope has a bunch of celebs roaming the streets these days -- has anyone spotted Chloe Sevigny in the 'hood, yet? -- but on Halloween, Friend o'FIPS, Lynn Harris, had what is perhaps the most epic celeb sighting in Slope history. I'll let her tell the story: 

When I first moved to Park Slope 20 years ago I went to a party in the apartment building on 9th Street near the 7th Ave. subway stop. All of a sudden, I see Steve Buscemi come in, and I’m all, I’m so cool, I went to a party in New York City and Steve Buscemi was there, except it turned out that he had just come in because the keg was leaking into his apartment. Since then, I’ve come to realize that he is really just part of the neighborhood, usually walking around in a baseball cap and sunglasses, head down, not in an unfriendly way, but just looking like a character Steve Buscemi would play. He has since moved to lower-numbered streets, and here’s where I first heard about the Costello connection. Our neighbors’ back deck faces his, and one night they heard guitar and singing that sounded uncannily like Elvis Costello, only not so uncanny because it was Elvis Costello, just Elvis Costelloing on Buscemi’s back deck.

So at around 5 pm on Friday, when things were just getting rolling, we were heading down 6th Street toward 6th Avenue with our gang of feral 8 year olds as two grown men were heading up, in full Halloween. We greeted each other — everyone was greeting everyone — and a split second later all the adults in our group did a full body double-take. That was Steve Buscemi! That was Steve Buscemi! And I, in my own split second, remembered the Back Deck Sessions. AND THAT GUY WITH THE ELVIS COSTELLO GLASSES IS ELVIS COSTELLO. My friend Lisa, God bless her, turned and jogged in front of them and asked for a photo. As you can see, they jauntily obliged. 

Note: I hear from neighbors that they were actually trick or treating. And allegedly also giving out candy, right back. 

Your move, Sir Patrick.