I flew up for my job interview at The Day in September of 1997 — my first trip ever to New England — and I vividly remember Milton Moore conducting a tour of the area on my behalf. Amazing: hallucinatory foliage, Mystic and Stonington Borough, abundant lobster, every game by my beloved Red Sox on television, Sam Adams on draft!

But nothing slammed into my consciousness in the indelible fashion of Ocean Beach Park — the quintessential New England waterfront facility. The boardwalk. The Port 'N' Starboard. The amusement rides and arcade and mini-golf and expanse of white sand! I still love the place and it's still pretty much the first destination any time we have rookie visitors come up from the South.

Well, the park is in the middle of its 75th anniversary season, and Friday's Celebration Proper should be one for the ages. On tap: a circus aerial show, live music from the appropriately exuberant Steve Smith and the Nakeds, plenty of birthday cake, a laser show, a hot dog eating contest, Fireworks with a capital "F," and a visit from Sammy the Sea Otter, the U.S. Coast Guard's mascot. And, of course, you.

- Rick Koster

75th Birthday Celebration, 7 p.m. Friday, Ocean Beach Park, 78 Neptune Ave., New London; free; (860) 447-3031.