Oral History Archive

Filtering by 1940 - 1949 back to all

Carol Polcovar

Writer and playwright who grew up in Coney Island from 1943 to 1956

John Philip Capello

Mystery artist who carved faces into rocks on the shoreline at Brighton Beach

Rachel Rosenberg Simon

Rachel Simon recalls her family's Deli Restaurant on Mermaid Avenue

Frieda Schwelke

Memories of growing up in Coney Island in the 1930s and '40s and moving to Luna Park Houses in 1962

Sharon Tera

Sharon Tera's family operated Ethel's Restaurant on the Boardwalk in the 1940s and '50s

Jane McNeive Ennis

Memories of Ocean Tide Baths and Coney Island

Esther Delgado

Growing up in Gravesend and going to Coney Island in the 1940s and living there today

Rena Stutman Rice

Memories of growing up in Brighton Beach in the 1950s and '60s

Sam Person

Family memories of Nat Faber's Fascination arcade and amusement business empire

Stanley Shapiro

Memories of growing up in Coney Island in the 1940s and going back four times a year

Joyce Chopra

Groundbreaking filmmaker grew up in Sea Gate and on Mermaid Avenue

Ellen Abrams

Memories of growing up on West 29th Street and meeting her lifeguard husband on Coney Island Beach

Jeffrey Berman

Longtime Sea Gate resident and watercolor artist who teaches at Seaside Innovative Senior Center

Robert Levrini

Memories of growing up on West 5th Street and grandfather's shoe repair shop on Ocean Parkway

Chris Cuomo

Memories of riding the Steeplechase Horses, Human Roulette Wheel and Parachute Jump 70 years ago

Stanley Fox

Retired Coney Island arcade operator recalls his family's 30-plus years in the business

Sheila Levrant de Bretteville

Memories of growing up a block from the ocean and being head of Lincoln High School's Art Squad

George Ancona

The art of growing up Mexican American in Coney Island in the 1930s and '40s