33 Oldies Bands & Doo Wop Groups!
1,500 Vintage Cars from 22 States!
27th Annual LEAD EAST
Thursday, Sept. 3 thru Sunday, Sept. 6, 2009
Parsippany NJ Hilton Hotel & Hampton Inn
Welcome to LEAD EAST 2009, an Oldies Music and Old Car Weekend unlike any event held anywhere. This is the 27th year for this cherished event. Over the years we've delivered a 100% American, 100% family, 100% fun series of events that celebrates the 50's decade. Tens of thousands of people have come to our event and many have told us it is the best, most fun, most nostalgic event they have ever attended! LEAD EAST is for 1972 and earlier vehicles — but it's not just a car show!
LEAD EAST is a giant 50's PARTY, offering more unique events than 15 normal car shows added together. If you dig the good old days of greased hair, tail fins, and 50's rock n' roll, have we got a PARTY for your entire family! Join us to relive and revisit the best decade in history. We GUARANTEE there is no other event remotely like this on the planet.
LEAD EAST is renowned and unchallenged as THE BEST Oldies Nostalgia weekend anywhere! We offer an indoor and outdoor, day and night lineup of non-stop activities unmatched anywhere — Sock Hops, Drive-In Movies, Cruising, Jitterbug and Swing Dancing, Doo Wop A Cappella, Prom Night, and MORE!
CHIP FOOSE RETURNS
Perhaps the biggest news regarding this year’s event is that the star of the TV show OVERHAULIN’, CHIP FOOSE of Huntington Beach, CA is back. He will be at LEAD EAST on Sunday September 6th and will be signing autographs and posing with people for photos from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. This will be indoors and there will be a line inside the Hilton (in case of hot or wet weather) for people to meet him face to face. At 5:00 PM Chip will go onstage for a half hour to answer questions from the audience. We’ve known him since the last Century and can say without hesitation, he is not just the most talented hot rod designer and builder in the history of the car hobby -- he is a genuinely down-to-earth, nice guy. This may be his only East Coast appearance this summer, so if you want to meet him and shake hands, here’s your opportunity.
THE CARS
The word LEAD is a synonym for "customized car." We fill three adjacent parking lots with 1,600 classic 1972 and earlier cars, customs, lowriders, and street rods. Many are for sale. In 2007 it drew 1,600 cars from 22 states, as far as Canada, Florida and Wisconsin, because it offers activities and non-stop entertainment unlike any other "car show" or oldies concert.
If you love custom cars — a true American art form —year in and year out LEAD EAST gathers more leadsleds than any other event on the planet. This event was created 26 years ago to promote the custom car movement, and it has done just that. Many cars have been built and finished with LEAD EAST as the deadline, the event being an incentive for guys to start and complete their dream car. There are always a number of fresh, incredibly high quality customs on display at the event that we guarantee you have not seen.
We'd love to see your car at LEAD EAST 20010! You can register your car at the show or pre-register in advance.
1976 and EARLIER CARS ON SUNDAY
While LEAD EAST is restricted to 1972 and earlier cars to keep it a true "oldies" event, because we all are getting older and so are our cars, as an EXPERIMENT, on Sunday August 31st ONLY, we will allow 1976 and earlier cars to enter the event as One Day Entries. They will park in the Deloite & Touche lot, but they will be allowed to cruise the entire event as all other entries can do. The response and turnout of these cars may influence car vintage restrictions at future LEAD EASTs.
THE VENUE
If you want to stay at the host hotel, The Parsippany NJ Hilton and Hampton Inn (two adjoining hotels in the center of the event), we suggest you make your reservation at the event for the following year. At the event last year the hotel was quickly 2/3 sold out and was totally sold out by Christmas for this year's party. We wouldn't be surprised if the entire hotel sold out at this year's even for 2010. A 4-night minimum stay is required.
We hold the event at a first class Hilton Hotel with many air-conditioned indoor activities and exhibits, plus clean first class indoor restrooms. Outdoors, the cars and exhibits are on clean asphalt with grassy areas to set up your picnic chairs, etc. Mercury vapor lamps illuminate the car areas at night so you're never in the dark. If it should rain, there is no mud as all cars park on paved asphalt. The optimum way to enjoy LEAD EAST is to stay four nights at the Parsippany Hilton / Hampton Inn where the party happens, but there are several surrounding hotels also available.
Food ranges from several restaurants and vendors inside the hotel to outdoor food vendors with a nice array of reasonably priced items. Many participants with old cars bring their own food and BBQ grills for the parking lot. The Hilton sells alcoholic beverages and beer in the hotel. Note: The police will not permit people riding in old cars inside the event to have an open container of alcohol!
THE MUSIC
In addition to playing recorded oldies and live Doo Wop over the P.A. system in the hotel parking lot, we have an outdoor stage for bands Friday night through Sunday, an indoor stage in the hotel ballroom providing live entertainment from Thursday night though Sunday night, and a third stage in the Hotel Lobby Atrium area for Open Mike opportunities, plus 60's Karaoke from 4:00 PM Friday to 4:00 PM Sunday. Tune your radio to 87.9 FM for our low-power broadcast of our outdoor PA system. You can listen to it on your car radio!
We also offer a Prom Sunday night with a DJ and larger dance floor. More than 12 Doo Wop A Cappella Groups will be singing 5-part harmony in the Hotel Ballroom Saturday and Sunday afternoon, and three Oldies Concerts Friday, Saturday, and Sunday night feature name groups with hit records from the 1950's and early 60's.
NEW THIS YEAR: “Doo Wop Idol” ! On Saturday and Sunday afternoon. after six a cappella groups perform from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM, we will let any group that signs up get up on stage in the Ballroom in front of the big audience and sing one song. The Judges will then select one of those groups as the winner and present them with a $300 cash prize! Here’s a shot for your group to win!
If that's not enough, we offer live bands for a Welcome Party Thursday night, two Sock Hops with bands operating simultaneously Friday night, and bands onstage outdoors Saturday and Sunday afternoon! No other event we've ever seen has spontaneous Doo Wop groups singing a capella into the early hours in the bar or hotel lobby!
|
