Oral History Archive

Filtering by 1980 - 1989 back to all

Dennis Thomas

President of the Coney Island Polar Bear Club for the past 12 years and a member since the 1980s

Boan Lin (Master Lin)

Tai chi master who was born in China shares memories of practicing and teaching his art in Brooklyn

Yeva Novik

A 90-year-old Coney Island resident recounts her journey from Moscow to Southern Brooklyn

Mr. Luong

Coney Island homeowner recalls fleeing Vietnam with his family in 1981 and settling in New York City

Betya Shenker

Memories of World War II in Ukraine and immigrating to Southern Brooklyn

Mary Engel

Filmmaker and archivist whose parents collaborated on the film Little Fugitive in Coney Island

Stella Bacolas

Growing up in Greece and living in Coney Island's Luna Park Houses since the 1970s

Mort Shatzkin

Memories of growing up in Coney Island and the family business, Shatzkin's Famous Knishes

Ronald Kannatt (The Prince of Coney Island)

Twenty years at Deno's Wonder Wheel Park's Karaoke on the Boardwalk

Karen Wilcox

Memories of living in Luna Park Houses and going to Coney Island bathhouses in the 1960s

Samantha Robles (Cake)

Tattoo artist who grew up in Coney Island's West End

Alicia Angello

Teen memories of Coney Island's Polar Express and Breakdance in the 2000s

Ansen Tang

Director of United Chinese Association of Brooklyn in Bensonhurt, Dyker Heights, and Sheepshead Bay

Eric Schwelke

Memories of living in Luna Park Houses in the 1960s and again in the late 1970s

Fred Stern

Bus driver for 35 years on the B36 route and the shuttle bus inside Sea Gate

Eric Sanchez

Growing up in Coney Island and Gravesend in the 1990s and 2000s

Amparo Garcia

Lifelong Brighton Beach resident shares stories of Brighton Beach then and now

Orlando Mendez

Growing up in Coney Island in the 1970s and being the third generation of his family to live here today