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sand feet into the sky, there to erupt all over. "There were two-thousand-plus charges in the Fantastic Four show," Mr.

Grucci said.

The midsummer season is to the fire- works trade what Thanksgiving-to-New-

Year's is to the merchants. "We had over 450 people out on this Fourth of July weekend," said Mr. Grucci, "including part-timers - people with day jobs as accountants, lawyers, what have you. The lead technicians on the Fantastic Four show were an accountant and an IT man- ager. A lot of these people, for their sum- mer vacation, they go out and shoot for us."

They're trained as pyrotechnicians, of course, but able to operate in freelance modes that accommodate seasonal shifts in fireworks presentations.

Mr. Grucci being confident of the show going on despite heavy rain, his principal concern is any discomfort for the crew, in case of showers. As the Megan McAllister left Mariner's Harbor, bound for Erie

Basin at around 1700 on the sixth, some- one called out. "Look at that sky over Manhattan!"

There was no Manhattan to be seen, and soon no sky either. A shapeless but defi- nite mass, deep charcoal-gray, had descended from above and swallowed-up the city. The solemn mass engulfed the bay, until it was replaced by a clattering rain that was nearly as dense.

It takes just a few minutes to get from the Kill to Erie Basin, which was enough for the rain to desist and the weather to clear.

As the Megan pulled-up, the drenched

Grucci crew was busily disposing of pud- dles that had formed on their tarps. In a half hour or so, the Megan was pushing the barges past the Beard Street ware- houses and out toward the bay, and its light yellow sunset.

That's Show Biz "We pay for the tugs by the hour," said

Mr. Grucci, whose most frequent New

York contractors are Hughes and McAllis- ter, with Donjon a supplier when ABS- certified equipment is required for ocean exhibits, and Buchanan as required. "I don't mind if everything's in place five hours ahead, just for the comfort factor - plus the rig sitting in place great publicity for the show coming up. But we have to balance that with the expenses."

As it was on the night of the sixth, the wait was cut short by a technical problem.

After the audience had been ferried to

Liberty Island for the movie debut, some- thing went wrong with the projectors. The message was terse: they're broke, can't be fixed. Pack everyone back on the boats to be bussed to theaters ashore. Would Mr

Grucci mind running the fireworks early, as the evacuation was prepared?

With everything in place, the answer was technically simple. But the Coast

Guard, and the fire department, and the

F.A.A., and other interested parties had issued permits specifying exact times.

Said the Megan's Capt. Pitcher, "They ask me to turn this way. Then they ask me to turn that way. It's all fine with me, but when do they make-up their minds?"

The approvals came through in short order, Mr. Grucci recounts, and the show ran to perfection — 45 minutes early.

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