Frozen Dead Guy Days
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Frozen Dead Guy Days is an annual celebration held in the town of Nederland, Colorado.
In 1989, a Norwegian citizen, Trygve Bauge, brought the corpse of his recently-dead grandfather, Bredo Morstøl, to the town of Nederland. When Trygve was deported from the United States for overstaying his visa, his mother, Aud, continued keeping her father's body cryogenically frozen in a shack behind her unfinished house. Aud was eventually evicted from her home for living in a house with no electricity and plumbing, in violation of local ordinances. At that time, she told a local reporter about her father's body, and the reporter went to the local city hall in order to let them know about Aud's fears that her eviction would cause her father's body to thaw out.
The story caused a sensation. The city passed a new ordinance outlawing the keeping of human body parts in a residence, but because of the publicity that had arisen, they made an exception for Bredo, a grandfather clause. The local Tuff Shed supplier built a new shed to keep him in. In honor of this event, the town holds an annual celebration.
Frozen Dead Guy Days is celebrated from Friday through Sunday on the first full weekend of March. Coffin races, a slow-motion parade, and "Frozen Dead Guy" lookalike contests are held. A documentary on "Grandpa Bredo", called Grandpa's in the Tuff Shed, is shown. A newer version of the film, Grandpa's Still in the Tuff Shed, was premiered in Nederland on March 7, 2003.
Other events include a tour of the Tuff Shed where Grandpa is still frozen; a "polar plunge" for those brave enough to go swimming in Colorado in early March; a dance, called "Grandpa's Blue Ball"; pancake breakfasts; a market showcasing local artists; snowshoe races and snow sculpture contests. Glacier Ice Cream, headquartered in the nearby city of Boulder, makes a flavor specifically for the festival (named, appropriately enough, Frozen Dead Guy), consisting of fruit-flavored blue ice cream mixed with crushed Oreo cookies and sour gummy worms.
Although Trygve and Aud filed a complaint against Nederland involving money and naming rights in 2005, Frozen Dead Guy Days is still kicking, and according to the Official website, the most recent celebration was held March 9-11, 2007.
