Hundreds of dogs in costumes celebrated Halloween in Fort Greene’s highly competitive costume contest, the Great PUPkin, on Oct. 28.
Pups dressed as popular movie characters, historical figures, and plain old spooky figures strutted their stuff in front of a panel of judges and a crowd of thousands, showing off their outfits hoping to take the grand prize. The event — hosted by Fort Greene PUPS and named for Snoopy, the ultimate fall-related dog celebrity, and his owner Charlie Brown — has become a staple of the season in Fort Greene over the last quarter-century.
“For the past 25 years, the Great PUPkin contest has taken place rain or shine—even during a global pandemic!” said event director Alana Davis in a statement earlier this month. “It’s become a Brooklyn tradition.”
Saturday’s competition saw unseasonably warm weather, with plenty of sunshine and a high of 78 degrees Fahrenheit, even as colorful autumn leaves littered the ground.
The massive crowd, who started gathering in the park up to two hours before the contest started at noon, cheered throughout the contest, voting for their favorite pooches with applause. Gertie, a chihuahua dressed as the Talking Heads lead singer David Byrne, in a big suit, took home the first-place prize: a big bag of treats and toys. Second place went to a fluffy pup dressed as a panda bear with a fuzzy crop top and pants, an extra pair of ears, and some black eyeshadow, while third place was awarded to Dusty Doggerton as Missy Elliot in the music video for “The Rain (Supa Fly.)”
This year’s judges were included repeat judge and local council Member Crystal Hudson, Fort Greene Park Conservancy board member Joylyn Holder, Pitchfork editor Amy Phillips, and Tribeca Film Festival curator Faridah Gbadamosi.
Last year‘s winner was “The Princess and the Pooch,” with a pup riding atop a pile of mattresses with her owner dressed up as the pea.
