"In the summer of 1978, disco fever in New York City reached new heights when dance floor battles turned into all-out brawls. Instead of volleying dance moves, New Yorkers were trading blows. It was the bridge and tunnel crowd versus the city's Disco purists during what would explode into the nation's second largest Civil War, the Disco Civil War. Have you forgotten about this dark chapter of New York City history?"
"Other memorialized hoaxes included a tugboat UFO abduction, a bootlegging bulldog, and the most recent sculpture from 2024, the man who introduced rats to NYC. Reginella keeps a running list of ideas that he pulls inspiration from, and each story is based on just enough true New York City history and pop culture references to leave passersby scratching their heads and wondering if they should believe what they are seeing."
An installation in The Battery depicts a fabricated 1978 conflict dubbed the Disco Civil War, where dance floor battles supposedly escalated into brawls between bridge-and-tunnel patrons and Disco purists. Staten Island-based artist Joe Reginella created the work as part of his NYC Urban Legends series, which began in 2016 with a giant squid monument. Other fabricated memorials included a tugboat UFO abduction, a bootlegging bulldog, and a 2024 piece honoring the man who introduced rats to NYC. Reginella compiles ideas from historical and pop culture elements to craft plausible-sounding hoaxes. The newest sculpture, titled 4 on the Floor, portrays four figures fighting in 1970s attire and references a driving drum beat.
Read at Untapped New York
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