Bananas will never be the same again, after people donned banana suits turning West Village into their personal grove.

It all started when Bill Cochran, a Dallasite and the founder of World Banana Day, packed up his yellow fruit suit for a Halloween trip to Las Vegas.  It was an easy costume choice, because it fit nicely into his suitcase. By coincidence a friend wore the same suit.

The fun they had that night inspired Cochran to organize an outing in costume. His friends were enthusiastic and they decided to call it World Banana Day.

The interest in World Banana Day was so strong that Cochran inquired into what the Guinness World Record was for a fruit gathering. They needed 200 people in banana suits.

Last year about 55 people in banana suits participated. This year it was held Feb. 27 and Holly Calderon, a World Banana Day participant, said there were not quite enough people to qualify for the World Record.

“A lot of people didn’t think it would go as well last year,” Cochran said. “Now that there are pictures of last year, everyone sort of has the courage to show up.” 

Greg Gardner, a World Banana Day Organizer and alumnus of SMU, went as a banana wearing a tux to add a bit of class to the event.

“It’s better then paying $1,000 for a fancy plate dinner and wearing a real tux,” Gardner said.

Michael Davis, an art teacher at South Grand Prairie High School, went as a gorilla with a banana bib. He said he doesn’t drink so he dressed up in a costume that covers his face to stand out in the banana theme. He said his favorite banana costumes were Elvis Banana, Rhymin-n-Peelin’ Banana  and Neon Banana, because they took the banana idea and ran with it.

Rhonda Zahnen, who helped organize World Banana Day, said, “We decided at some point along the way we didn’t want to do it for doing its sake.”

During the planning, Zahnen’s friend, who volunteers at the North Texas Food Bank, inspired them to raise money and awareness for hunger relief. It is not difficult to imagine that a hoard of bananas mingling in a pub-crawl would attract a lot of attention.

This is a vital tool for World Banana Day’s fundraising. They wait for people to ask them about their costumes, then they talk about it and people are given the opportunity to donate money. They also give out business cards with instructions for online donations.

Another World Banana Day participant, David Nichols said, “It was just a great way to get people to listen to you talk about helping the food bank. Plus, it was just funny to dress as a banana and see the reaction on people’s faces.”

This year five bars signed up for the pub-crawl: Lemon Bar, The Quarter, McKinney Avenue Tavern, Uptown Bar and Grill and Sambuca. Cochran called West Village the “peeling out point.”