Join Us In The Courtyard To Honor and Celebrate Independence Day!
Date: Wednesday, June 27th
Time: All Breaks
What: We will serve lemonade and patriotic hot dogs.
Why Patriotic Hot Dogs? In honor of the historic Coney Island Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog eating contest, we decided to serve hot dogs.
A Brief History:
Held annually at Coney Island since 1972, Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog eating contest was rumored to have begun from an argument over patriotism. What’s more patriotic than enjoying delicious hot dogs on Independence Day? As the myth goes, Nathan Handwerker was a Polish immigrant who opened Nathan’s in 1916. Immigrants at that time frequented Nathan’s and some of the immigrants began to debate who was more patriotic. The solution to the problem, a hot dog eating contest. Four immigrant men took part in the contest and Jim Mullen was chosen as the victor.
Other tales involve famous icons participating in earlier contests such as Jimmy Durante and Mae West’s father, Jack. Although the original contest was rumored to be in 1917 instead of 1916, one thing is for certain, the contest has become a tradition for Nathan’s and is held year after year on Independence day.
A Few Quick Facts:
In 1941, Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest was canceled due to World War I because of the large immigrant population which made it controversial.
In 1971, the contest was canceled in protest against the Vietnam War.
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