Bringing the Fun Back to Fun City: Mamdani, Mailer and Breslin
Gabriel S. Tennen's Vital City essay comparing Zohran Mamdani's 2025 New York mayoral campaign to the 1969 '51st State' mayoral bid of Mailer and Jimmy Breslin. An about-Mailer clipping.
Read an excerpt (rights pending)
Gabriel S. Tennen. “Bringing the Fun Back to Fun City: Mamdani, Mailer and Breslin.” Vital City, 29 October 2025. https://www.vitalcitynyc.org/mamdani-mailer-and-breslin-bringing-fun-to-new-york-city/
An essay reading Zohran Mamdani’s 2025 mayoral campaign against the 1969 Democratic primary bid in which Mailer (for mayor) and Jimmy Breslin (for City Council president) ran on a joint “51st State” ticket — proposing to make New York City the nation’s 51st state, banning cars from Manhattan, neighborhood “Sweet Sunday” holidays, and community-based policing. Tennen argues Mamdani has, perhaps unwittingly, channeled the Mailer–Breslin mix of charm, pugnacity, and civic love, while noting that Mailer finished fourth and Breslin “demanded a recount.” See the 1969 Days page for the campaign itself. The full text is held in the working archive (rights not yet cleared); see Bringing the Fun Back to Fun City: Mamdani, Mailer and Breslin under texts.