Memories of the Bobsled, Caterpillar and Parachute Jump
Joan grew up in Brooklyn and describes it as a magical place where neighborhood people all knew each other and the smell of tomato sauce was in the air on a Sunday. In the summer, her father worked in an arcade near the Parachute Jump. She recalls...
Content type: Oral History Item
Photographing his Coney Island neighborhood for 50 years
Abe Feinstein moved with his wife and children to Luna Park Houses in 1962 and lived there for 31 years. Working at a camera store, he could get discounts on film and processing, which enabled him to take as many photos as he wished. He had a habit...
Content type: Oral History Item
Former resident theater artist at Coney Island USA
Fourty-four-year-old Joseph, a former "focalizer" for the Rainbow Nation, gives us a spiritual, mystical take on Coney Island. He used to come to Coney with his parents as a young child, lived in Sea Gate from age 10 to 19 and, in the 80...
Content type: Oral History Item
First in line for a ride on the Cyclone
Erik Knapp of the rock band Mystical Children arrives in the middle of the night to be the first person in line to ride the Cyclone on opening day. He shows off his fresh tattoo of the ride's top hill.
Content type: Oral History Item
Worked at the RKO Tilyou Theater
John Landi worked as the house electrician for the RKO Tilyou Theater in the early 1960's when the Tilyou family still operated the theater. He was 19 years old when he started the job and stayed for two or three years. John describes his...
Content type: Oral History Item
Memories of Tunnels of Love ride operator John Kavakos
Neal recalls his father, John Kavakos, a "street urchin" from Greece who came to Coney Island and built the Tunnels of Love at the Bowery and 12th Street. The attraction consisted of a serene boat ride that took passengers past various...
Content type: Oral History Item
Lived in Coney Island since 1961
Dorothy moved to Coney Island in 1961 from the Brooklyn neighborhood of Bedford-Stuyvesant. She has also lived in Brighton Beach and Ocean Parkway and remembers "the west side" near Seabreeze Park (now known as Asser Levy Park). She...
Content type: Oral History Item
Recalls Coney Island as a boy, especially Steeplechase Park
Jim, who currently lives in Massachusetts, grew up in Brooklyn until he was 17. He brought his son to Coney because he heard rumors that the Wonder Wheel was going to be torn down. He recalls the sights and smells of Coney as a child, his fondest...
Content type: Oral History Item
Owner of Sheepshead Bay tattoo shop recounts when Coney Island's Stillwell Ave was "Tattoo Alley"
Coney Island Vinny talks about the well-known tattoo artists of the 1950's before tattooing became illegal in Coney Island from 1961-1998. Stillwell Avenue was "Tattoo Alley" and hosted many shops run by local characters with names...
Content type: Oral History Item
Avid weekender in Coney Island
Pat Lingenbach recalls her weekend visits to Coney Island as a child and teenager growing up in Riverdale, New York in the 1930's and 40's. Pat's mother was friends with Evelyn Mangels and according to Pat, Evelyn played matchmaker...
Content type: Oral History Item