Many people have mixed feelings about New Year's Eve. Some see it as a time to make resolutions and better themselves, while others see it as an opportunity to pop champagne and celebrate the year that just passed. Some love it, and some hate it, but one person's feelings on the holiday have never changed. New York's 'confetti king' explains why New Year's Eve never gets old for him.
New Year's Eve 'Confetti King' Tells All
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While I enjoy making a good resolution and ringing in the new year, I could never do it in New York. Although I will gladly watch the ball drop on my television, I cannot imagine being there in person. For me, it is my worst nightmare. The streets are packed with people like a can of sardines. I have even read that people need to wear diapers because they stand out there for hours, and if they leave for the restroom, they will never find their spot again.
Let's also not forget this is in the dead of winter, so you are doing all of this in the blistering cold. However, year after year, thousands of people line up to enjoy this spectacle in person. I am sure that the impressive glowing ball and the 'confetti king' have a lot to do with it. While everyone is eagerly awaiting the countdown to midnight, Treb Heining is pacing anxiously. As the 'confetti king,' he has one of the most important jobs of the night.
He needs to ensure that his confetti erupts around Times Square just as the ball drops and everyone screams "Happy New Year's!" He and his 100-plus volunteers have an immense job ahead of them each year, yet Heining shares that it never gets old. "Every year on New Year's at midnight, I cry. It is an emotional, wonderful thing for me every year, you know?" he told the Post in an emotional video call.
His Backstory
Despite getting a little anxious each New Year's Eve, this is not Heining's first rodeo. When he was just 15 years old, he was selling balloons at Disneyland. Afterward, the NY Post shared that he was "convinced by entrepreneur David Klein to harness his Disney roots and form his own balloon company." He listened and has since "staged balloon drops and large displays for 18 Super Bowls, three Olympic Games and many Republican and Democratic national conventions."
Additionally, he has been the 'confetti king' for over three decades now. He launched New York City's first Times Square confetti event on New Year's Eve on December 31, 1992. Despite having done it for so long, Heining still gets a rush every year as he drops those 2-inch square pieces of paper. "I am completely nervous at 11:50 when I'm pacing up and down on my setback with a walkie-talkie, ready to give the cue. It never changes," he told the Post.
Heining even shared that people sometimes scrawl inspirational messages or wishes on those pieces of confetti, allowing him to connect with so many people. "It's a complete honor to have the job, to be the gatekeeper for so many people," he shared.
