You can meet the viral Cheeseball Man at this NYC event on Friday
If you’ve been on the Internet recently, you’ve probably come across the Cheeseball Man—A masked person who one day announced he would eat a giant jar of cheeseballs. On an afternoon in April, he did exactly that to a crowd of adoring, cheering fans in Union Square.
The viral Internet star has since become a New York legend, and this Friday you can meet him and eat a cheeseball with him (for $5-$10 per cheeseball) at an event space in Chelsea.
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The party, aptly called “Come Eat Balls and Party,” is happening at Slate, a venue known for its mini bowling alley, ping pong tables and 20-foot slide, starting at 11pm.
The best part? The proceeds for each cheeseball eaten will be donated to the Food Bank for NYC, a hunger relief organization that provides free meals to New Yorkers. We spoke with Cheese Man about his rise to fame, what life has been like since he got famous, and what people can expect from the upcoming party at Slate.
Can you tell me how this event at Slate came together?
I told Slate I would only do an event with them if it was for charity because otherwise it’s kind of cringe. I’m not doing a show, I just eat cheeseballs and there’s only so far I can go with that. The next logical step was finding a charity and I decided on a food bank and people will just pay me to eat cheeseballs with them.
How many cheeseballs are you willing to eat on Friday?
I have no idea, maybe I’ll charge more because I’m looking at this jar that fits 2,000 balls. If it’s $5 per ball it’ll be 10 grand if I get through the whole thing. I don’t think there’s gonna be that many people, but you never know.
Why was it important to you that this money go to charity?
I’m not doing this because I need the money, I’m in a fortunate situation. I might as well put this newfound fame to good use.
Why cheeseballs?
It was an idea that I thought would be funny, but I never thought it would be such a big thing. Cheeseballs are just funny.
Why do you think you eating cheeseballs resonated so much with people?
I think everything is so highly produced and everyone’s trying to make a quick buck and become famous and I’m just a guy who wanted to do a thing and I did the thing and I think people really resonated with that.
Why do you keep your identity a secret?
If people knew, it wouldn’t be funny. Part of the allure is that anybody could be behind the mask and that’s the fun part. It could be your parents, you never know.
What’s next for Cheeseball man?
I’m just gonna keep being a good person to the city. I might make some art, I don’t know if I’ll do it as cheeseball man or be myself for that, still figuring things out.
Are you lactose intolerant?
I do think I have some intolerance, every time I eat dairy it kind of messes with my stomach. But it’s not debilitating.
To mingle with Cheeseman himself, RSVP to Friday’s event here.