WATCH: The comedy short that skewered over-sexed Fire Island gays—20 years ago!
#ChickenFingerGate—in which one Pines-goer’s tale of a stolen chicken finger inadvertently made them the villain of the island—”Che Diaz” sightings, and even a gay-on-gay brawl outside the Canteen.There was enough drama crammed into that 32-mile long island to make you think, “Hey, they should make a movie about this!”Of course… they totally did.
And, one year on, the rom-com Fire Island stands as the definitive pop culture ode to the magic and mayhem of the Pines.The thin Atlantic Ocean barrier on the coast of Long Island has sheltered generations of queer culture, split between the neighboring towns of The Pines and Cherry Grove.
But, credit where credit’s due: The 2022 feature wasn’t the first comedy to lovingly skewer the destination and its denizens—that would be “Fire Island Pines On $0 A Day,” a short film from comedian Randy Eisenberg, which premiered 20 years ago this summer.Back in 2003, Eisenberg wrote, directed, and co-starred in the 10-minute short, which played at a number of queer film festivals.
It follows the journey of a young gay man named Jonathan, who arrives to the Pines with little more than a day-bag, a dream, and a To-Do list.As the title suggests, Jonathan is trying to get the full Fire Island experience for free, and the film finds a lot of humor in the way he effortlessly cons his way into a day of sun, sex, and fun.For years, a low-quality upload of “Fire Island Pines On $0 A Day” has lived on Eisenberg’s YouTube channel, but last summer, amid all of the Fire Island buzz, he uploaded it in three-minute segments to his TikTok, @wayoldgay.
