Just call them the kings of Staten Island.
Saturday Night Live stars Pete Davidson and Colin Jost have partnered with comedy club owner Paul Italia to buy a decommissioned Staten Island ferry boat, according to The New York Post. The three reportedly spent $280,000 on the boat, which was sold at auction by the New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services — and Italia told the Post they have "grand plans" for it.
"The idea is to turn the space into a live entertainment event space, with comedy, music, art, et cetera," Italia told the Post. "We're in the early stages, but everybody involved had the same ambition — not to see this thing go to the scrapyard."
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The John F. Kennedy ferry was described as being in "poor condition" and was decommissioned due to mechanical issues, the auction listing said. After starting with an initial offer of $125,000, it sold for $280,100 to an unidentified bidder, later revealed by the Post and Vulture to be Jost, Davidson, and Italia. "SOLD: $280,100," the DCAS tweeted. "The rest of you will not be owning a Staten Island Ferry boat. Sorry."
Davidson and Jost are both from Staten Island, New York, and Davidson starred in the 2020 comedy The King of Staten Island. According to NBC News, they'll now have 10 days to get the boat out of the Department of Citywide Administrative Services' hands. It's unclear when their planned ferry event space could open, though the ribbon cutting ceremony will presumably include a live rendition of "I'm on a Boat."
