Seaside Heights, N.J., winces at 'Jersey Shore' on MTV
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SEASIDE HEIGHTS, N.J. -- To some who know it well, this Ocean County beach town is known, not so affectionately, as "Sleazeside."
It's the summer playground for bored city kids who pack boardwalk bars and nightspots looking for drunken debauchery and quick hookups. When the revelry turns to rivalry, fueled by the alcohol-all-the-time vibe, the place becomes "Seaside Fights."
And if you live in neighboring Seaside Park, you never, ever fail to tell an out-of-towner that you're not from here. Home is "the Park," not "the Heights." Got it?
So it's no surprise to the small group of year-rounders in this now-freezing beach tundra that their town has been given another black eye.
The punch was delivered by MTV's new reality series "Jersey Shore," in which eight buxom babes and buff boys -- most from New Yawk -- make the rounds of clubs like the Beachcomber and Bamboo to compete for time on the hard-drinking, dirty-dancing, "Real World"-ish soap opera.
The tanned, fist-pumping Italian-American cast members' references to themselves as Guidos and Guidettes -- repeated in MTV's promos -- have angered other Italian Americans. State Sen. Joseph F. Vitale, D-Middlesex, chairman of the New Jersey Italian American Legislative Caucus, last week joined organizations such as the New Jersey-based Italian American service organization UNICO National in calling for the series' cancellation.
"The show is ridiculous and insulting to Italian Americans. It's despicable," said Bruce Polcino, a funeral director who lives in Seaside Park.
"We're trying to improve the image of Seaside Heights, and MTV has certainly set us back in doing that," he said. "People see this and say, 'Gee, no wonder they call the place 'Sleazeside Heights.'"
First Published January 4, 2010 12:00 am
