Spring break has become a tradition in modern college life. But who came up with the idea to take this precious time away from classes and spend it partying?
Much of the appeal of spring break is that it serves as a chance to experience warmer weather. So, it comes as no surprise that the origin of spring break comes from right here in icy Upstate New York.
In 1938 the Colgate University swimming team decided to spend their break in Fort Lauderdale so they could take advantage of the new Olympic-sized swimming pool that had just been built there. Not surprisingly, the team quickly discovered that there was much more to do in Fort Lauderdale rather than just swimming. They ended up spending most of their time partying over training. Word spread throughout the college swimming teams of New York, and over the next couple of decades an annual migration from the North East to the South happened every March.
Since the 80’s there have been countless movies glorifying the experience of Spring break. These classics include Revenge of the Nerds II and Spring Breakers, which features James Franco, Selena Gomez, Vanessa Hudgens and Gucci Mane.
But one of the earliest Spring break movies is a 1984 film called Where the Boys Are which is about the misadventures of “four college coeds”. It is the film that was probably most responsible for introducing the Spring break culture to the main stream. Where The Boys Are was set in Fort Lauderdale, as were many of the other Spring break movies from the 80’s.
Eventually the citizens of Fort Lauderdale decided they were tired of being the Spring Break capital of the country and cracked down on their drinking laws and increased law enforcement presence. There were still plenty of sunny locations students could visit instead. Today some of the most popular destinations include Daytona Beach, Miami Beach, and Puerto Vallarta. Following Fort Lauderdale’s cracking down, the mayor of Daytona Beach actually encouraged spring breakers to visit, which he later admitted to regretting.
Another major catalyst in the popularization of Spring break was the introduction of MTV Spring Break which started in 1986 and aired for an entire week in March. This allowed viewers to witness the craziness of spring break from the comfort of their own homes, and high school kids who were considering whether or not they wanted to attend college may just have been swayed to enroll due to the events they watched unfold on their television.
MTV Spring Break also held live concerts that were extremely popular and included headliners such as Eminem, Xzibit, Aaliyah, Kid Rock, and Aaliyah. Much of the week was filled with mini-game shows that spring breakers participated in.
You can find footage of these game shows on YouTube, including a game hosted by Jerry Springer where he offers girls in bikinis to do things like cover themselves in honey and roll around in feathers, or eat whipped cream off a strangers foot.
Enjoy your spring break and stay safe!
