Long Island Literati To Celebrate James Joyce At Bloomsday Event

PATCHOGUE, NY — The work of literary great and Irish author James Joyce will be heralded on Friday as part of the worldwide celebration Bloomsday in Patchogue.

The Patchogue Arts Council and Moca LIights event celebrating Joyce’s 1922 masterpiece, "Ulysses," has been marked on June 16 in Dublin since 1954. It's celebrated June 16 because the 640-page novel takes place on June 16, 1904.

It will run from 6 to 8 p.m. at Toast Coffeehouse.

The celebration originated on June 16, 1954, when poet Patrick Kavanaugh, and journalist-novelist Flan O’Brien, along with four other compatriots, walked and rode in horse-drawn coaches on a pilgrimage through the streets of Dublin, Ireland, where Joyce was from, and they stopped at locations depicted in his book.

Their travails, along with increasingly unsteady footing, were captured on home video.

Bloomsday celebrations now center around people, who are often celebrities, reading excerpts from the famous book accompanied by Irish musical interludes filling the space between the readings.

In some places, participants mimic the original walk through Dublin City, with participants traveling from performance space to performance space — often pubs, taverns, or bars.

Some cities hold marathon readings in theaters.

Organizers are looking for 14 readers to participate. For more information, email

[email protected].