'Bert Wild:' Comedian, Tampa native Bert Kreischer named 2024 Gasparilla grand marshal
TAMPA, FLORIDA - SEPTEMBER 25: Comedian Bert Kreischer is seen on the field prior to a game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Philadelphia Eagles at Raymond James Stadium on September 25, 2023 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Mike Carlson/Getty Im
TAMPA, Fla. - Comedian Bert Kreischer, a Tampa Bay native, has been named a Grand Marshal for the 2024 Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tampa Gasparilla Pirate Fest on January 27, he announced on social media on Tuesday.
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Kreischer, who was born in St. Pete and raised in Tampa, was hailed as the ‘number one partier in the nation’ in a Rolling Stone article in 1997. He was the third highest-grossing comedian on tour in 2023, according to Billboard.
"There's no better person who embodies the pirate culture and a love of Tampa than the one and only Bert Kreischer. What a delight to have Bert serve as the 2024 Seminole Hard Rock Gasparilla Pirate Fest Grand Marshal!" said Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla Captain Truett Gardner. "All I have to say is look out Tampa Bay! We look forward to Bert's energy and hometown pride to lead this year's festivities for a lively crowd along Bayshore Boulevard."
The Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla also announced World War II U.S. Army ‘Buffalo Soldier’ Roy J. Caldwood will be honored as this year's honorary Community Hero.
Roy Caldwood
The Pirate Fest, scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 27, will feature the Gasparilla Invasion and Parade of the Pirates and the Gasparilla Pirate Fest Street Festival.
Roy J. Caldwood in 2023.
Beginning at 2 p.m., Kreischer and Caldwood will lead more than 115 parade floats, 53 krewes, seven marching bands, and the Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla pirates down the parade route along Bayshore Boulevard.