Arcade game repairman
Louis Beard grew up in Brooklyn and visited Coney Island with friends as a teenager in the 1980's. He joined the Army right out of high school and worked in immigration where he learned that new citizens had more questions about Coney Island...
Content type: Oral History Item
Volunteer at Amethyst Women's Project
Priscilla has lived in Coney Island since the late 1990's. She loves her 17th floor apartment that overlooks the ocean and considers Coney Island her home. Priscilla describes the good work Amethyst does for the community and talks about her...
Content type: Oral History Item
Coney Island singer/songwriter who wrote "Save Coney Island" and "Hot Dog Song"
Amos Wengler moved to Trump Village in Coney Island as a teenager in 1962. Today, he is a professional musician best known for his "Save Coney Island Song," which he has performed outside of City Hall and on Broadway. He first performed...
Content type: Oral History Item
Founder of the Sea Gate Historical Society
Pete Spanakos first became familiar with Coney Island in the 1950's when he worked cleaning the beaches. In 1967, he moved into an historic home in Sea Gate built by Chrysler Building architect William Van Alen. Spanakos has a Golden Glove...
Content type: Oral History Item
Mr. Cyclone 2010
Joshua, posed here with Miss Cyclone Angie Pontani, took a break from his busy schedule the day he was voted Mr. Cyclone 2010 to talk with us at the History Project. He explains the highlights of the competition and some of the things he'll...
Content type: Oral History Item
Winner of the 2010 Coney Island Talent Show
Stephen Lin Bai-An has practiced T'ai Chi, the martial art and system of meditative exercise, since 1965 and taught it for the past twenty years since moving to the United States. The Sheepshead Bay resident is nearly eighty years old and was...
Content type: Oral History Item
Fan of the new Luna Park
Mi Won has been visiting Coney Island since her parents brought her as a little girl in the 1970's. Today, she is a teacher in Queens who enjoys amusement rides as much as her students do. She and her sister paid their first visit to the new...
Content type: Oral History Item
Real estate broker and restaurant development consultant
Paul Fetscher grew up in Brooklyn in the 1950's and visited Coney Island with his family. Today, Paul works as a real estate broker and development consultant for the restaurant business. One of his clients is Thor Equities. Thor owns a sizable...
Content type: Oral History Item
Bringing the 1960's back to Coney Island
Ron recalls going with both friends and family to Coney Island back in the 1960's. His family always took the same spot on the beach in front of the Wonder Wheel. He remembers amusement rides from that time in great detail, but waited until his...
Content type: Oral History Item
D.J. Vourderis adds solar panels to the Wonder Wheel
The Wonder Wheel is going green! Solar panels are being added to power a re-creation of the original 1920s lighting scheme on the swinging cars. Charles Denson interviews D.J. Vourderis, grandson of Deno's Wonder Wheel Park founder Denos...
Content type: Oral History Item