GREENWICH VILLAGE — Eighth Street is going to get a little goofy this weekend.
The Crazy 8 Cartoon Festival is taking over the Greenwich Village block between Fifth and Sixth avenues on Saturday from 10 a.m. to midnight, with classic cartoon screenings, cartoon-themed cocktails and $8 cartoon tattoos.
The comic- and animation-themed event is the brainchild of David Hollander, a New York University professor of sports management who got the idea while working on a short story about NHL hockey that he wanted to develop into an animated comic strip online.
"When I was trying to figure out what kind of event would bring the most different types of people, I just thought that cartoons and comic art appeals to children of all ages," Hollander said.
Highlights of the event include a pop-up art workshop for kids at 24 W. Eighth St. from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and the "Funky Turns 40: Black Character Revolution" exhibition and closing party at Analogue from 7 p.m. to midnight.
Hollander said he is most excited for the elaborate cartoon comic art murals that will be painted from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the side of the old Barnes & Noble building on the corner of Eighth Street and Sixth Avenue, and a flash parade that will shut down the block for eight minutes so that a 60-piece marching band can perform at 2 p.m.
Hollander — who has previously organized the Arlene's Grocery Picture Show on the Lower East Side and a pinball tournament and multiple youth sports award shows in Washington Heights — worked with the Village Alliance business improvement district to plan the cartoon festival.
Restaurants and bars along Eighth Street will be pouring their own $8 cartoon-themed cocktails made from WhistlePig whiskey, one of the event's sponsors. Cocktails will be available at Analogue, The Marlton Hotel, The Lodge, Burger Joint and Greenwich Project, and there will be a free guided tasting of WhistlePig whiskeys at Lomography starting at 4 p.m.
Festival-goers will also be able to get tattoos for just $8, inked by Alex McWatt, owner of Three Kings Tattoo shop in Greenpoint. McWatt will be at a table at Stumptown Coffee Roasters at 30 West Eighth St. from noon to 4 p.m., offering a variety of cartoon tattoos.
For the full schedule, check out the Crazy 8 Cartoon Festival website.
