Guest Post: Lisa Mangels- Schaefer

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1 Guest Post: Schaefer Lisa Mangels- As part of their Annual History Day celebration, the Coney Island History Project will be honoring a number of new inductees into their Hall of Fame. Although my great grandfather, W.F. Mangels, has already been inducted as a ride inventor and manufacturer, on Saturday, August 6th, he will once again be an honoree, this time as a member of a group of artisans, mechanics, and businessmen known as the Wizards of West Eighth St. We are all familiar with the names of the men who dreamed and built the now famous landscape: Tilyou, Thompson, Dundy, Reynolds, and Feltman. However, it was the artists, mechanics, machinists, and innovators who took those dreams and made them jump, spin, twirl, and fly. Like my great-grandfather, these men were all immigrants- the Pinto and Kargman Brothers, the

2 Peluso and Rea families, and the Bonsignores. Along with the skills acquired in their homelands, they arrived in this country carrying their own hopes and dreams for the future. They came to Brooklyn, and with dedication and hard work, established the workshops that would make Coney Island the capital of the outdoor amusement industry. As businessmen, they owned property, paid taxes, and, in turn, employed other immigrants. Not only did they keep the great parks operating, but their many contributions to American society were a positive influence on the growth of the community in which they prospered. My great grandfather, William Mangels, arrived in this country in 1883, at the age of 16. His father, Ernst, owned a machine shop, repairing bicycles and producing parts for merry-gorounds. Eventually, William opened his own shop in Coney Island, first repairing rides, and then building devices of

3 his own design. In less than 25 years, he was granted more than twenty patents for amusement devices and improvements, and designed and manufactured many more without patents. The overwhelming success of his ride, the Tickler, followed by The Whip, enabled him to construct a state of the art factory on West Eighth St., from which he shipped his rides all over the world. In 1929, he realized a lifelong interest with the opening of his American Museum of Public Recreation, dedicated to the collection, study, exhibition, and conservation of all variety of objects and ephemera related to the public pursuit of fun. In 1952, he published The Outdoor Amusement Industry, the results of his own research of a history that he so famously had contributed to. After William F. Mangels passed away in 1958, at the age of 92, the company he established continued to operate until 1981, when my father, Albert, built the very last Mangels shooting gallery.

4 Every day I spend in Coney Island is History Day, viewed through the lens of my family s connection to this place, and the experiences of my childhood. For me, and so many others, Coney Island exists as a nostalgic pop culture Camelot, cherished in our collective dreams and memories, and worthy of our efforts to nurture and protect. I entreat you all to come and share the glories of the past; to ride the beautifully restored B&B Carousell, and be thrilled by the Cyclone and the Wonder Wheel. Let your children enjoy the Mangels Pony Cart and Fire Engine rides at Deno s, and discover the hidden treasures at the Coney Island History Project. Stroll the boardwalk, marvel at the architectural splendor of the Parachute Jump, and relish a frankfurter at Nathan s. Immerse yourself in the Coney Island Museum, and try your skills at the 1940 s era Mangels shooting gallery installed at Coney

5 Island USA s Arts Annex. This isn t textbook history, folks it s real, it s alive, it s all at Coney Island! With the recent completion of the new Ford Amphitheater, the influx of updated restaurants and retail venues, the renewal of the Shore theater property, and the numerous future construction sites, Coney Island appears to be in the midst of a much-needed revitalization, something that should imbue all fans, as it does me, with a sense of hope.

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7 1896: The Alligator That Fought a Newfoundland on Coney Island By Peggy Gavan In July 1896, Victor D. Levitt, the manager of the BostockFerrari Midway Carnival Company, received an alligator that hailed from the St. Sebastian River in Florida. Victor considered the gift to be a bad luck sign, as the large alligator had been bruised in a train wreck on its way to New York. Victor decided to give the alligator to Acting Police Captain

8 Lawson of the Coney Island Police station as a sign of his gratitude for Lawson s upstanding service since taking over the corrupt police force started by Gravesend Supervisor John McKane. John Y. McKane Gravesend Town Supervisor and Sunday school teacher John McKane fortified his control over corruption and vice by creating a Coney Island police force in 1881 and appointing himself chief. Many of the policemen that he commanded from his shack in the sand were ex-cons who often robbed the people who sought their help. Not wanting to appear ungrateful, Captain Lawson accepted the alligator graciously. He then chained the alligator to the

9 lawn of the station house on West 8th Street, where it drew large crowds. Thinking that this activity was in violation of the penal code (not to mention dangerous!), he convinced Captain Paul Boyton that he needed an alligator at his new Sea Lion Park (because alligators and sea lions get along so well.) Captain Paul Boyton Born in Ireland in 1848, Paul Boyton took to the sea at a young age. He reportedly joined the U.S. Navy when he was 15 to fight for the Union side during the Civil War. He also helped organize the United States Life-Saving Service (USLSS) and served as captain of the USLSS station in Atlantic City, New Jersey. It was during his stint with the USLSS in 1874 that he discovered the rubber life-saving suit invented by C. S. Merriman of Pittsburgh. Gravesend town hall In the late 1880s, the Coney Island police shared space in the Gravesend town hall at 2337 McDonald Avenue (they had four jail cells in the basement). It was here Captain Lawson kept the alligator on display. The town hall was constructed around 1873 on the site of a

10 former schoolhouse built in When the police force moved into their new headquarters in 1897, the town hall served Engine Co It was demolished in The suit the precursor to the frogman diving suit or the dry suit used in scuba diving was essentially rubber pants and a shirt cinched at the waist. It had air pockets that one could inflate using tubes, which allowed the person to float in the water and stay dry for long periods of time. (If only the Titanic had a few thousand of these on board!) In the winter of 1879, James Creelman, a reporter for the New York Herald who couldn t swim, was assigned to test the lifesaving suit in New York. He and Paul Boyton donned the suits and jumped into the icy water at Castle Garden (today s Battery Park) at 11 p.m. The two daredevils paddled their way in the dark as Boyton shot off Coston flares to alert the men on Governor s Island that they were approaching. Once near the island, they drank some wine and smoked cigars that Boyton kept along with his flares and other safety gear in a small, 3-foot iron boat that he tied to himself.

11 Captain Paul Boyton After a few dangerous encounters with ice floes, the men finally reached shore at Stapleton, Staten Island, around 6 a.m. It was James Creelman s vivid account of that dangerous adventure that helped propel Boyton to aquatic stardom. Sea Lion Park After years on the road demonstrating the rubber suit and operating a traveling aquatic circus, Paul finally settled down at Coney Island. In 1895, he bought 16 acres of cheap land behind the failing Elephant Colossus hotel from the New York & Sea Beach Railroad. He opened his Sea Lion Park on July 4th of that same year. Sea Lion Park was a fenced-in amusement park that featured a broad lagoon where Captain Boyton would demonstrate his rubber suit and show off his performing sea lions. The one-price admission also gave people access to the oldmill water ride, the famous Shooting-the-Chutes ride designed by Boyton and Thomas Polk, and the Flip Flap Railroad ride. I m not sure why Police Captain Lawson or Captain Boyton thought Sea Lion Park would be a good place for an alligator,

12 but it was here the alligator which they named Cap Lawson made its brief stay on the island. The Grizzly Death of Cap Lawson On July 14, 1896, Cap Lawson decided to break through the wires of his enclosure and make a meal out of Captain Boyton s Newfoundland, Nero, who was sleeping nearby. As several attendants watched in horror, the alligator and dog engaged in a fierce battle. Although the men tried to separate the two with clubs, their efforts were to no avail. Finally, Nero seized Cap Lawson by the throat and killed him. The poor alligator who was taken from his river home and survived a train crash never had a chance against the Coney Island Newfoundland. The Demise of Sea Lion Park Although Captain Boyton enjoyed a few years of success especially after he built a large ballroom on the former site of the Elephant hotel in 1899 he couldn t entice repeat customers on an annual basis. Following a dismal rainy season in 1902, he offered a 25-year lease to Frederic W. Thompson and Elmer Skip Dundy, proprietors of the Trip to the Moon attraction at Coney Island s Steeplechase Park. A year later, they opened the spectacular Luna Park on the site. Still drawn to the water, Boyton spent the rest of his life building houseboats along the Mississippi River. He retired in 1912 and returned to the Sheepshead Bay section of Brooklyn. On April 19,1924, he died of complications from pneumonia in his new home at 2649 Mansfield Place (today s East 24th Street). He was buried at Holy Cross Cemetery on Long Island. Thanks to Peggy Gavan at the hatchingcatnyc.com for

13 contributing this post. Paul Boyton demonstrates life-saving suit Paul Boyton would demonstrate the life-saving suit by paddling like an otter down the rivers of Europe. The Italians labeled him L uomo pesce the fish man. In this drawing from the Illustrated London News in November 1874, Boyton demonstrates the suit in Cork Harbour, Ireland.

14 Paul Boyton in rubber life-saving suit, 1880s Captain Paul Boyton was famous for his daring demonstrations of a watertight rubber suit designed as a life-saving device for steamship passengers.

15 Sea Lion Park, Coney Island This photo of Sea Lion Park was reportedly taken from the rear of the Elephant Colossus hotel across from Surf Avenue, between W. 11th and W. 12th Street. The Shootingthe-Chutes is on the right and the Flip Flap Railroad is near the entrance on the left. Flip Flap Railroad The Flip Flap Railroad was a

16 dangerous ride that featured twopassenger roller coaster cars that descended from a high lift hill and sped through a vertical 25-foot diameter loop. The cars were held in place at the top by centrifugal force only. The ride s abrupt high Gforces sometimes caused whiplash as the cars entered the loop.on circular April 19, 1924, he died of complications from pneumonia in his new home at 2649 Manfield Place (today s East 24th Street). He was buried at Holy Cross Cemetery on Long Island.Thanks to Peggy Gavan at hatchingcatnyc.com for this post!

17 Shooting-the-Chutes was an aquatic toboggan slide with flat-bottomed boats that slid down a long steep slide into the lagoon. An up-curve at the lower end would launch the boat into the air before it hit the surface, resulting in a series of hops and skips that heaved the passengers from their seats several times. The boat was guided to a landing by a boatman on board, then pulled up the ramp by cable and turned around on a small turntable to be ready for the next group of passengers who arrived at the top by elevator. The feeding of the sea lions

18 at Captain Boyton s Sea Lion Park A Baller New Year s By Traci Kampel A quote from the comedic goddess Janeane Garofalo: I prefer to see the dark side of things. The glass is always half empty. And cracked. And I just cut my lip on it. And chipped a tooth. Preach. That pretty much sums up my view of life in general, but New Year s Eve in particular. I am not, nor have I ever been, a fan of New Year s or its accoutrements. I hate the pressure it brings to do something big. I hate most of the options that define something. I hate revelers and being reminded of the fact that, due to faulty wiring, I myself am incapable of reveling in anything but my own snark. But most of all, I hate staring time in the face. Those last 10 seconds of the year the tortuous downward slide of the crystal ball kill me. I find it physically and mentally uncomfortable to just stare helplessly as another year disintegrates. For me, it s like a my-whole-lifeflashed-before-me experience, and all I want to do is reach into my head, grab a few memories, and make them the now. What, I ask you, is so mesmerizing about a ginormous crystalcovered sphere that, at any other time, would be mistaken for a light fixture in the kind of uber-tacky suburban wedding venue that advertises on TV? Why is it appealing to watch the present slip away and know you can t stop it? I can only assume that normal people get caught up in the excitement.

19 That they feel hope for the future and the amazing things it might have in store for them. And I guess I can understand how, if a given year dealt you a particularly shitty hand, you might welcome its demise. But still. I, not being normal, feel dread for the future and the horrible things it might have in store. I feel sadness and loss about all the things I said I would do, didn t do, and probably never will do. About every New Year s Eve of yore. About getting older, and getting further away from childhood and the point in life at which there were still good possibilities. For all my failures and weaknesses. For all the things I wish were different but can t be. The glass is always half empty. Sometimes I m not even sure there IS a glass. But there s always a fucking ball. And it s horrible. So whenever it s remotely feasible, I stay home on New Year s Eve and avert my eyes from the torture of the evil orb. And I do my absolute best to suck in any would-be reveler who s part of my immediate circle to this December 31st miasma. But 2015 saw the birth of one of my favorite obsessions (see Angels, Demons and Bloodsuckers): Coney Island, a magical land of benevolent creepiness at the end of the subway line. It is a piece of old New York whose quirky goodness I try to support however I can. A few weeks ago, it came to my attention that an official New Year s Eve soiree was taking place at the very home of my beloved Circus Sideshow. Going would mean helping a great cause, and the evening promised performance art, a laser light show, fire-breathing, Mermaid Pilsner a-plenty, relatively clean bathrooms, and a certain destined-forgreatness (and also possibly esophageal rupture) sword swallower. Plus, Marie, a local artist, neighborhood expert, and all-around great person I know from my days as a cub reporter, would be there. But wait! There s more! There would be NO. BALL. Repeat. There would be NO BALL. Sword swallower NO BALL, you say? A ball-less New Year s Eve?! Tell me more, I m intrigued. The call of the wild

20 overpowered my hatred of New Year s Eve and my ridonculously understanding husband obliged. The shows were amazing and exactly the way they should be: packed with F-bombs, lighter fluid, tattoos, 8-pound swords, jokes about dirty underwear and ecstasy, and the perfect amount of camp. Hashtag #creeptastic. The backdrop at midnight was epic fireworks on one of the world s most famous boardwalks; the illuminated Parachute Jump, North Star of southern Brooklyn; the smell of popcorn and cold air; the ladies Marie introduced us to so we didn t look like friendless looz-airs. Please don t spread this around. I have a rep to maintain. But I think I accidentally reveled a little bit. Behind us on the boardwalk were Coney Island s historic rides, the landmarked Deno s Wonder Wheel and the iconic wooden roller coaster known to most as the Cyclone and to me as the Certain-Puke-o-Rama. I was 100% confident I would never experience either of them, because I hate roller coasters and rides and pretty much everything. But I said that about New Year s Eve too, so now I m only 90% sure. Thank You 60 NYPD The following is an editorial post sent to us from Barbara Russo. Barbara Russo Everyday I go to work, I know I ll be in a safe environment. That is pretty much true for most people. But for police officers, it couldn t be further from reality. I don t come from a police family. My blood doesn t run blue.

21 But I don t think we have to be that connected to someone who works in law enforcement to understand the harsh realities of the job. If we all stop absorbing the one-sided stories often told about police and imagine what it is like to deal with a part of society most of us never have to see, only then can we stop judging these brave men and women for what they do each day to protect us. Yes, they signed up for this job. No one forces anyone to go into law enforcement. But without these heroic fathers, mothers, husbands, wives, sons and daughters, who would we call when we need help? Who is going to come to our aid when burglars break into our homes? When we are accosted or assaulted crossing the street? When our children go missing? Or when our loved ones are murdered? I ve spent a lot of time talking to police officers from all over the city. On a daily basis they are harassed: Things are thrown at them from the windows of buildings, the very residents they are trying to protect yell out demeaning slurs about police, and even something as simple as pulling a car over for speeding can have dangerous consequences: Who is in the car? Are they against cops? Are they hiding something more in that car than just a lead foot? Will they try to shoot me to avoid being caught for something more serious? As a resident New Yorker, I would like to give cops of this community and our city a big thank-you. I know because of them and the sacrifices they make, I and many others can sleep easy at night. I hope when people read this, they ll want to thank a cop for their work this holiday season. Here s to the NYPD, their families, and everyone in this wonderful city!

22 Happy 88th Birthday Grandpa Abe Feinstein to My Sister Stacy and I would like to wish our grandfather Abe Feinstein a very special Happy 88th Birthday. We love you very dearly grandpa, and we are very proud of for all your accomplishments over the past 50 plus years of photography. My grandfather has drawn so much attention at Coney Island photo exhibitions, along with his work with the Coney Island History Project. Here s to you grandpa on your 88th birthday, wishing you good health and your continued love of Coney Island, and photography. We all love you very very much! Love your granddaughters, Elise and Stacy

23 @Elise Feinstein Artist Thomas Pitilli By Thomas Pitilli I am an artist. I am also a Brooklyn native. When I create art, I can t help but let my inspirations and experiences show through to some extent. City culture and urban life is often a character within my work and this image I created entitled,

24 Coney Island Night is no exception. I ve always been fascinated by old photos of New York, mainly era s before my time. The style of clothing and overall aesthetic of the characters in this piece was definitely inspired by my love of a long time ago. I wanted to tackle something that captured the essence of a night well spent at Coney Island, something that can transcend era and culture, something that hopefully tourists and locals alike can enjoy. If you do enjoy this piece and might want to keep a bit of Coney Island on the wall year round, please check out the print of this image in my online store. Click here. Thank you so much for reading, Thomas

25 Coney Island at Night by Thomas Pitilli Guest Post: Feinstein Elise Laura By Elise Laura Feinstein My grandfather Abe Feinstein grew up in Bedford-Stuveysant and

26 used to go to Coney Island as a teenager with his friends, and took his dates to the amusement park and he remember the Parachute Jump very fondly. As Abe settled down and got married and started a family, they lived on Ocean Avenue and Newkirk. Having the need for a bigger apartment, my grandma Florence and my grandpa Abe decided to move to Luna Park co-op in My grandma s childhood friend heard of apartments available and they jumped at the chance to live in Coney Island. Having taken pictures of Coney Island since moving to Luna Park he has been documenting Coney Island from 1962 to present. My grandpa remember Coney Island from back in the day from his youth, Feinstein has seen Coney Island go through many changes from the good days, through the bad times, and now the re birth representing its bright new Laura Feinstein As I watched my grandpa Abe Feinstein document and captured the moments of Coney Island, I always admired looking at his

27 pictures and wanted to do the same. I attended Edward R. Murrow high school and took Black and white photography class and I enjoyed taking pictures and decided to pursue my dream in photography. When I enrolled in Kingsborough Community College I decided to major in Photography and as one of my photo essays, it happened to be that I chose to photograph the changes/rebirth of Coney island, which included Applebees, Grimaldi s, Showing the construction of the Thunderbolt site, the Cyclone and Nathans. Now I am capturing each moment of Coney Island as Abe Feinstein s granddaughter the third generation Feinstein and is following in his Laura Feinstein I was always very fascinated with Coney Island s History and reading about what it was like in the 1920s/1930s. Even though i wasn t born in that era it is history that lives on forever and I like to capture Coney Island s rebirth and to show the world how I see Coney Island through my lens. I enjoy going for walks on the Riegelmann Boardwalk, going to the beach,

28 seeing all the smiles on the people and having a good Laura Feinstein

29 @Elise Laura Feinstein

30 @Elise Laura Feinstein

31 @Elise Laura Feinstein

32 @Elise Laura Feinstein Guest Post: Gene Ritter The Discovery of the Dreamland Pier Part I The Discovery of the Dreamland Pier Part I By Gene Ritter Years before the discovery of the Dreamland Bell I made the discovery of the Dreamland Pier. It was a cold January winter day back in 1988 when I walked into a bookstore that sold used

33 books. I was researching old shipwrecks. I stumbled across a book titled Old Brooklyn. I opened the book and what I saw was a photograph of an old pier which dated back to It was a photograph of the New Iron Pier also known as the Dreamland Pier. It also had the location which was W. 5th St. and Surf Avenue. I said to myself, how can that be. I lived in Brighton Beach and Coney Island all my life. I never knew about this pier since there are no traces of the existence of a pier. Intrigued with this information I decided to further my research and I made a trip to the New York public library map room in Manhattan. I could not believe my eyes, the map showed that there were two piers side-by-side only 400 feet apart extending out fifteen hundred feet into the ocean. At that moment I knew I was on the verge of making a significant underwater discovery. After careful planning all winter I made the discovery of the Dreamland Pier on a single solo dive in the spring season of Since that time I have recovered hundreds of artifacts that have been displayed in schools and libraries.

34 Guest Post: Parascandola Louis J. By Louis J. Parascandola When they think of Coney Island, the first things that come to mind for most people are the beach, boardwalk, and the rides. For me, however, the main attractions were the food, the games

35 (particularly Skeeball), and the so-called freaks. Coney has had a long history of not only accepting the unconventional, but also celebrating it. So it should not be surprising that it has embraced these very special people and provided them a home. Even before the days of the great amusement parks began in 1897, Coney already had side show displays continuing the great tradition of P.T. Barnum s American Museum in lower Manhattan in the 1840s and 1850s. Perhaps the most famous practitioner of the side show act at Coney was Samuel W. Gumpertz, who was hired by the Dreamland park. Perhaps his most famous attraction was Lilliputia, which included over 300 midgets who had their own community. To Gumpertz, the key to success in drawing crowds to amusement parks was novelty. He brought that in spades to Coney. He yearned for authenticity in his acts and searched around the world for his human exhibits, managing to bring almost 4,000 such people into the United States. Many of them were displayed at the Dreamland Circus Sideshow, begun in 1911 on the grounds of the park after it was destroyed in Another well known side show impresario was Sam Wagner, who operated the World Circus Side Show from Wagner s side show starred such attractions as Pipo and Zipo (two micro cephalic people or pinheads ), Prince Randian, the human torso, the Gibbs Sisters (conjoined twins), Laurello (who had a revolving head), and the Spider Boy, Henry Bulson. Some of his performers were featured in Tod Browning s classic film Freaks (1932). At their peak in the 1920s, Wagner s shows could attract as many as 20,000 people on a single day. By the early 1940s, interest in human oddities had begun to wane for several reasons. New medical devices helped to prevent some of the natural born oddities. New York City Parks Commissioner Robert Moses passed legislation prohibiting

36 barkers from giving their bally (spiel) that would attempt to lure customers into the shows. People also became jaded by the numerous bearded ladies, tattooed people and fat ladies. Unlike Samuel Gumpertz and Sam Wagner, some of the newer operators presented fake freaks. Finally, tastes had changed. Increasingly, people felt the human oddities were being victims who were being exploited rather than entertaining performers. Still, even in their reduced form, the side shows continued throughout the 1940s and 50s. Map of Coney Island and Sheepshead Bay, 1879 In 1985, however, Dick Zigun, through the organization he founded Coney Island USA, opened Sideshows by the Seashore. Zigun s show is a 10 in 1, presenting ten acts for the price of one ticket. Over the years, Sideshows by the Seashore has presented such performers as Donny Vomit (the human blockhead), Serpentina (snake charmer), and Heather Holliday (ire eater/sword swallower). Sideshows by the Seashore continues to operate between April and September each year. A Coney Island Reader: Through Dizzy Gates of Illusion (Columbia University Press, 2015), edited by my brother John and me, contains several pieces about the sideshows at Coney Island. These include an insightful discussion of Sam Wagner s World Circus Side Show in the essay To Heaven by Subway (1938), a charming excerpt from Amram Ducovny s novel Coney (2000), and a delightful short story Kwan s Coney Island (1969), written by Edward Hoagland, featuring a human pin cushion. Perhaps the most unique piece however is Confessions

37 of a Coney Island Sideshow Performer, by Donald Thomas (aka Donny Vomit). Here in two sketches written specifically for this anthology, Donny recreates the spiel he would pitch outside Sideshows by the Seashore to bring in the customers, and he also relates his life as a blockhead. It is hoped that the writings in the book help to preserve the storied history of Coney, including its side shows, and to continue into the future. Guest Post: Craig Dudley (Boyton) Great Grandson Of Capt. Paul Boyton By Craig Dudley (Boyton) It was quite early on that I was aware of who my celebrated Great Grandfather, Capt. Paul Boyton was, simply because of my closeness to my grandfather, Joseph Boyton (second oldest son of Captain Paul Boyton). Furthermore, I was raised around two of his other sons; Paul Boyton (formerly Claude Boyton, who changed his name in tribute of his brother who had died of meningitis) and Father Neil Boyton S.J. whom I admired greatly, not to mention in overwhelming awe, but it was my Grandfather Joseph who actually lived with us. He was admired and respected by many and his affiliation with the Ringling Bros Circus and his wife, Adela Evans whom he met there when she was a showgirl flyer who possessed among many other talented performing abilities. Whenever my paternal grandmother would come to care for my sister I would be relegated to my grandfather s bedroom which to me was the national gallery of Boyton memorabilia all over

38 the walls..my first real look at this mysterious celebrated man of adventure I would read my Golden Books and stare about the room s museum waiting for my grandfather to return from work before he even had his hat off, (and it was the straw one that fascinated me), he would be on to stories..if only I had a tape recorder or the sense to write things down as he narrated, but I was a kid, a child in fascination..it would be difficult to fall asleep with all that exciting history..i would imagine myself going down the rapids or on the Tagus River waiting for the King of Spain or unaware of the fellow making me coffee and what if Billy The Kid was-all true? A lot of my life was fashioned in that room of glorious wonder and true life imagination.various people of note in my grandfather s life would appear even at times unannounced such as circus performers who worked with my grandmother, one I think was DRAPO THE GREAT..apart from not realizing what was truly there, something about their presence, though unaware, drove a beginning passion into me for the performing arts many were funny and I do remember them making me laugh. On certain occasions we received the presence of Marie Tilyou, daughter of the famed George C. Tilyou of the Steeplechase Park in Coney Island..I was led on like Speranza s guest bio to Oscar Wilde before any reception, that Miss Tilyou was someone of reverence..however looking back and vaguely, that it was the reverse, Marie was taken by my grandfather..in a way she was attending the Court of the Boyton name, for my Great Grandfather did assist George C. Tilyou in reviving his park and always in return we were given access to the Amusement Park and Pool we had a membership to the Long Shore Beach Club, Rockaway near Breezy Point and went there during the summers. But then one summer I found myself at the Steeplechase Pool Club which I adored and created a whole new world adventure for myself..i brought my best friend Victor and we were ever so inseparable. Marie gave the word in my parents living room that if and when we wanted to use the Amusement Park, just go to Jimmy in the Palladium, then a

39 second new world appeared to me..it was the most exciting adventure ride of my childhood..years later in both Disneyland and Disney World never gave me the same impact as it did in Steeplechase Park, the last of the glory of Coney Island! I do remember being greeted by this revered woman, Marie Tilyou at the front gate entrance to the Pool and Park..certainly she knew we were coming, whether my grandfather was with us or not I don t recall, but it would sound logical that he must have been, simply because Marie was there..i remember walking with her to the entrance into the pool area which was on the right not far from the entrance to the roller coaster to me that was the world and life of innocence and every acquired emotion and sensation was the greatest gift of youth. How unlike today in a world of unfulfilled dreams of make believe those make believe images were still there when I was a kid roaming about Coney Island..across the street from Steeplechase Park was the Tilyou Theatre and there were my greatest memories of celluloid imagination, sitting in the box seat to the upper left of the theater with Grandfather..he loved the movies and we had Carte Blanche at the box office hello Mr. Boyton and Mr. Craig, two tix coming up! I loved the side shows which were still around up until the early sixties, especially the one near Feltman s (which had a child s dream of an arcade!) and that barker so convincing to what mysterious forbidden wonders were behind that curtain, that I, in a trance would give up my dime to see this terrifying image whatever, then inside, another nickel, you got to see the main event, whatever it was, you just believed it yes, looking back we were fooled but really I d be fooled again just to win back one of those days again!

40 Captain Paul Boyton s Sea Lion Park was the world s first enclosed amusement park containing numerous rides. Surf Avenue, Coney Island 1895 Imagine what it was like when my Great Grandfather walked onto this desert world of Coney Island and built the first for Coney, SEA LION PARK, its first construction with SHOOT THE CHUTES to stir the imagination of those willing to be children always! There are many other stories faded now but its history will always surface from somewhere from someone who still carried on the thoughts and ideas from a bygone era we will be remembered! Through this incredible childhood I had, it catapulted me into the professional theatre and frankly I feel I have been carrying on my family tradition as I believe Captain Paul Boyton would have wanted me to. See Craig Dudley as Oscar Wilde in the one person play: Diversions and Delights by John Gay March 5-8, 2015 Reserve now on the updated webpage:

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