Must...not...break....

Question: What happened to the 2002 or 2003 ball that had the names of the 9/11 victims etched into the crystal? Was it broken or is it in some museum?

LiC

@DigitalSciGuy: Fail - geodesic sphere...it's a sphere not a dome.

DigitalSciGuy

@qbrad: I'm fairly certain the Times Square Alliance but there's no reference anywhere I can find to back this up.

DigitalSciGuy

That ain't no ball...that's a geodesic dome. :P

DigitalSciGuy

Guys, it's actually mine. I paid for this whole thing and I'm pissed as fuck that they didn't give me credit.

MBPro

@pdok: Where does it say the City of New York is footing the bill for this?! RTF(source)A

Hyman Decent

@pdok: I too agree with you. However, I'm not so sure NYC foots the bill on this. The Fireworks are Macy's. The Thanksgiving Day Parade is Macy's. I don't know if the ball is Macy's, but I do think it's a sponsor's and not partially mine.

qbrad

@pdok: Although I agree with you, New Years does bring in quite a bit of tourism dollars.

TheCapt

This sounds like a great thing to add to NYC's deficit spending! Way to go, and enjoy all your new toll bridges...

pdok

thank you Sean for adding the tag "big balls"

ffoofighter2001

i was just in the waterford crystal factory/museum this summer in ireland, i stood next to a 1:1 replica of the old, 6-foot-tall new years' ball, that waterford crystal said was an emergency backup, in case the one in new york were to break.

i guess now, that ball is just a museum piece?

he who still uses a sony clie, and once called himself rimplestultskin

Great Fuller's ghost!

Kaiser-Machead's Cookie-Powered LEGO Machine

Insert chorus of "We've got the biggest balls of them all!"

bitgod

So, by leaving it up all the time, doesn't that just take away from the OOOOH THAT'S AWESOME of New Years Eve?

Con Seannery

@Kaiser-Machead's Cookie-Powered LEGO Machine: Olsen! Where's Kent?

Comrade GadgetPlay, Fellow Traveler

can't wait for the mortgage bailout to pay for this one

heroineworshipper

Holy crap did anyone realize that news reporter came from TechTV He hosted like a Mac show and was on a few other shows.

Bantam

What is it with this whole ball dropping thing? Does anyone know how and why this got started?

LittleJon

@LittleJon: Um......nah I won't bother :X

Kaiser-Machead's Cookie-Powered LEGO Machine

@he who still uses a sony clie, and once called himself rimp...: I was just there in summer '07, and they said it was the real one (or at least that's what I remember).

Playing football/soccer/rugby/lacross/any other game in their display room or storage area would've been so insanely awesome.

andyc52042

I don't care much, since I sure as hell won't take the R train out to Times Square around 7 or 8pm, stand around for 5 or 6 hours, just to see the ball drop among a horde of people. I'll do the same thing I do every year, drink at home, watch the ball drop on TV, and get back to my Honeymooners Marathon, then go out to the bar for more drinks. It's genius!

Trowble (XBL/PSN)

I'm a little disappointed that there is only one entry under the tag "BIg Balls."

Does that make me gay?

The Magnificen7

"...To the Crystal DOOOOOOOOOME!"

Jawdy

@Trowble (XBL/PSN): You know, that actually IS genius.

Kaiser-Machead's Cookie-Powered LEGO Machine

times square alliance unveiled it but "It's being paid for privately, said publicist Thomas Chiodo. Straus estimated the cost at several million dollars." http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/11/11/new.year.ball.ap/index.html

MillicentAmphitryon

"A billion here, a billion there; pretty soon you're talking real money."

Pwnage

@The Magnificen7:
It most certainly does.

Pwnage

I remember being so disappointed when I was little, when they didn't actually "drop" the ball.

Xterm11

@Kaiser-Machead's Cookie-Powered LEGO Machine: Been doing it for years, hasn't failed me once.

Trowble (XBL/PSN)

To which the world says "thanks, but I'd rather have kept my house."

Don't pretend it's not all connected!

nuclearlove

@LittleJon: puberty

HawaiianActor