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Zamperla to Bring Venetian Carnevale, Da Vinci-Inspired Ride to Coney Island

Posted in Amusement ride, Events, tagged Bici Da Vinci, carnevale, Central Amusement International, Coney Island, June 28, Leonardo Da Vinci, Magic Bikes, Venetian carnival, Zamplerla on April 9, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

Zamperla’s Magic Bike Ride inspired by Leonardo Da Vinci. Photo via Italy in US 2013

On June 28th, Venice comes to Coney Island when Luna Park operator CAI Parks stages a Venetian “carnevale” on the Boardwalk and in the new Steeplechase Plaza. A Zamperla-designed amusement ride inspired by Leonardo Da Vinci’s designs for flying machines is set to be part of the festivities along with Friday night fireworks. The event is part of “Italy in USA 2013,” a year-long showcase of Italian culture, including art, music, cinema, stage, design, fashion and food, organized by the Italian government “to promote Italy as a whole in both the cultural thematics and the economic features of the Italian Brand.” The series of events has the hashtag #2013italianyear on twitter.

“Antonio Zamperla S.p.A and Central Amusement International LLC (CAI) recreate the magical atmosphere of ‘Carnevale’ in Venice with masks, gondolieri, acrobats and street artists,” according to the calendar of events.

Rendering for Parachute Jump Lighting, Steeplechase Plaza. Photo via Italy in US 2013

“There will also be a virtual tour of Venice throughout various eras called the Venice Imago Project in collaboration with Università Ca’ Foscari of Venezia where spectators can see the city and its works of art created by famous artists like Bellini, Giorgione, Tiepolo. The Boardwalk on Coney Island will be reminiscent of the Venetian streets during Carnevale with face painting activities for the children and contests for best Venetian masks.”

The Magic Bikes amusement ride pictured in the event calendar is Zamperla’s “Bici Da Vinci,” which was originally designed for Leonardo Land at Minitalia Leolandia. The Italian park was formerly owned in part by Zamperla, which is based in nearby Vicenza. “We came up with the story that we have found a secret book by Leonardo Da Vinci in which he designed an amusement park for the prince,” said Alberto Zamperla in an interview with Park World in 2009. “That is how we themed some of the rides.” The program listing for the Coney Island event says the Magic Bikes will be placed near the entrance to Luna Park. The ride is said to reproduce the design and the operating method of Leonardo Da Vinci’s studies of the flight of birds and his sketches for flying machines.

The new Steeplechase Plaza, where Zamperla won the contract to operate the historic B&B Carousell and light the landmark Parachute Jump, is scheduled to open on Memorial Day Weekend. The June 28th Venetian Carnevale will be six days after Coney Island’s Mermaid Parade, which is on June 22, the first Saturday of summer.

UPDATE 2:45 pm

Whoops! It turns out the info posted on the Italian Foreign Ministry’s Italy in USA 2013 event page is not completely accurate! According to an email from Luna Park online coordinator Rob Blatt: “Some of the information about the Venice in Coney Island event is incorrect on the Italy in the USA site. The actual event that was supposed to be on June 28 was moved to a different date, and will now be a private event, not something public.” It’s too bad a Venetian Carnevale in the People’s Playground, which sounds like a fun addition to Coney’s schedule, went from being a public to a private event. If you get an invite, let us know! The good news is Leonardo’s Magic Bikes are still coming and will be one of the new rides in Luna Park along with Water-mania. More info soon.

Bici Da Vinci at Minitalia Leolandia Park via Facebook

“Notorious BOB” and Larell Marie Win Nathan’s Hot Dog Qualifier

Posted in amusement park, Events, Food, tagged Bob Shoudt, competitive eating, Coney Island, George Shea, Larell Marie, Nathan's, Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest on March 24, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

Bob Shoudt AKA Notorious BOB at Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest Qualifier, Coney Island. March 23, 2013. Photo © Tricia Vita

On Saturday in Coney Island, Nathan’s Famous celebrated the reopening of their Boardwalk eatery and Coney Island’s Opening Weekend with the first hot dog eating qualifying round of the season. The winners were Bob Shoudt AKA “Notorious B.O.B.,” who ate 36 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes, and Larell Marie AKA The Real Deal, who ate 17. They will return to Coney to compete on July Fourth, when separate men’s and women’s hot dog eating contests are held in front of the original Nathan’s at Surf and Stillwell, which is being rebuilt after Sandy.

Compared to the hugely attended and tightly choreographed July 4th event televised on ESPN, the qualifier had a refreshingly impromptu air. A couple of “Bunettes,” the ladies who flip the cards indicating the number of franks consumed, had to be recruited from the audience, which consisted of a few hundred people. The event was the first-ever hot dog qualifier held in Coney Island, according to contest organizer and emcee extraordinaire George Shea.

Larell Marie AKA The Real Deal on her 3rd hot dog at Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest Qualifier, Coney Island. March 23, 2013. Photo © Tricia Vita

It was the first qualifier we’ve attended in more than a dozen years. In 2001, we followed Ed “Cookie” Jarvis, Don “Moses” Lerman and “Krazy” Kevin Lipsitz on the hot dog eating circuit, starting with the season’s first qualifier at the Meadowlands, on assignment for a travel magazine. It turned out to be the year that Kobayashi stunned everyone by eating 50 hot dogs and buns on the Fourth of July, doubling the record of the previous year. The article was called “Bet on the Thin Guy.”

After winning yesterday’s qualifier, Shoudt tweeted: “Since 7/4/07 only one man besides myself has won the Nathan’s hotdog eating contest at Coney Island, just sayin’,” He’s referring to current champ and record holder Joey Chestnut, who ate 68 hot dogs and buns in last year’s contest.

If you’re interested in competing in a Nathan’s Famous qualifier, visit Major League Eating to register. Contests are being held in 12 cities, including Savannah, Miami, Las Vegas, St. Paul, Pittsburgh and Boston, before heading back to the New York metro area for qualifiers in Queens and the Meadowlands.

March Events: Coney Island USA Gala, Dreamland Bell, Tom Thumb, Opening Day

Posted in amusement park, Events, News, tagged Carol Lipnik, Coney Island, Coney Island USA, Coney Island's opening day, Dreamland Bell, Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest, Tom Thumb on March 7, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

March 8: The Coney Island Dancers First Dance Party of the Season
The Coney Island Dancers, whose free parties on the Boardwalk are the stuff of summer, are getting a head start on the season. On Friday, March 8th, Rican Vargas AKA The Commander-in-Chief is hosting Latin House Night with DJ Frankie Paradise from 9 pm till 4 am. The venue is Coney Island Bar and Grill on the north side of Surf Avenue, across the street from Coney Island USA. $5 cover until 11pm, $8 after. Full kitchen menu available.

March 9: Tracing the Story of the Dreamland Bell’s Maker
When the bell from Coney Island’s Iron Pier was hauled up from the ocean nearly a century after it was lost during the 1911 Dreamland Fire, there was jubilation in Coney. Information about the bell’s maker has come to light thanks to the research of Brooklyn architect David Grider. On Saturday, he’s giving a talk at Green-Wood Cemetery Chapel on the “USS Monitor to the Dreamland Bell: Unscrambling the Story of James Gregory.” The 1 pm event is free but reservations are required. A trolley tour of related Green-Wood sites, including Gregory’s grave, is available for $15.

March 9: Coney Island USA Spring Gala & The Burlesque Manifesto
When Coney Island opens for the season on March 24, we’ll miss Coney Island USA’s circus sideshow, burlesque shows and Freak Bar. They don’t expect to open till May, since CIUSA’s building suffered flood damage from Sandy. On Saturday, March 9th, you can help out with their renovation costs by partying from 7-11 pm with sideshow freaks and burlesque beauties at Coney Island USA’s Spring Gala at Webster Hall. One of the highlights of the evening is a staging of “The Burlesque Manifesto” starring a who’s who of Coney luminaries and based on an article written by CIUSA founder Dick Zigun. Ticket prices range from $60 to $250 and may be purchased online or at the door.

March 10: Around the World with Tom Thumb
Tom Thumb biographer and University of Bridgeport professor Eric D. Lehman will present an illustrated lecture at the Barnum Museum on March 10. Charles S. Stratton, AKA General Tom Thumb, became an international celebrity when P.T. Barnum took him on a European tour, which is the subject of Sunday’s talk. Lehman is the author of Becoming Tom Thumb due out in November from Wesleyan University Press. The museum will have on display an exhibition of artifacts owned by Tom Thumb and his wife Lavinia Warren. Admission to the 2 pm event is $5.
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March 17: Carol Lipnik and Spookarama at Joe’s Pub
Coney Island native Carol Lipnik, who calls her band Spookarama after the dark ride at Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park, will appear in concert at Joe’s Pub at the Public Theater. Her multi-octave voice and Dred Scott’s wurlitzer do indeed make you feel as if you’ve stepped inside an old-timey spook house or are careening down the drop of a roller coaster. Check out ATZ’s Q & A with Carol and her song “List Of Attractions (Of Coney Island)” here. The St Patrick’s Day show is at 7 pm. Tickets are $15.

March 23: Nathan’s 4th of July Hot Dog Eating Contest Qualifier
Nathan’s kicks off Coney Island’s 2013 Season with the first-ever qualifier for the 4th of July hot dog eating contest to be held in Coney Island. The male and female winners of the March 23rd Coney qualifier will win a spot in “The Big Dance” on July Fourth. The event is set for 1 pm at Nathan’s Boardwalk restaurant, which reopens on March 18 to serve the first Nathan’s hot dogs and buns since Sandy devastated the area. Renovations are underway at the Surf Avenue location, which is expected to reopen by Memorial Day Weekend. For info on registering for a hot dog eating qualifier, visit Major League Eating.

March 24: Coney Island’s Opening Day of the 2013 Season
Coney Island’s traditional Palm Sunday Opener comes early this year – March 24th! The rides at Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park, Luna Park and Scream Zone, 12th Street Amusements and the Eldorado will go for their first spin of 2013. The Cyclone opens at 12 noon with the first 100 fans on line riding for free. At Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park, the annual Blessing of the Rides ceremony starts at 11 am on the Boardwalk. This year, to celebrate Coney’s comeback from Sandy, rides on the landmark Wonder Wheel are free for everyone on Opening Day. The Coney Island History Project’s free exhibit center will be open, along with its neighbors “Coney Island Always,” a window showcasing a miniature animated amusement park, and “Miss Coney Island” the dancing doll. It’s also the first official weekend of the season for the Boardwalk shops and eateries and the games on the Bowery.