June | 2011 | Amusing the Zillion

Archive for June, 2011

Pop Up Piano Returning to Coney Island Boardwalk

Posted in Events, Music, Music Video, tagged Coney Island Boardwalk, Luke Jerram, Pop Up Pianos, Sing for Hope, street piano on June 7, 2011| Leave a Comment »

The Piano Has Been Drinking. July 5, 2010. Photo © Bruce Handy/Pablo 57 via flickr

Last year, British artist Luke Jerram’s “Play Me I’m Yours” project brought 60 pianos to New York City parks, including the Coney Island Boardwalk, in collaboration with local arts organization Sing For Hope. A couple of weeks ago we heard via twitter that the pianos –88 of them this year– were returning on June 18th.

We started looking for photos and videos of the Coney Island piano from last summer to include in a post. In addition to our friend Bruce Handy’s black and white shot of the Boardwalk piano waiting for a player, we found these entertaining videos of Manny Panta’s rendition of Joplin’s “The Entertainer” and Sandy Santra’s solo piano improvisation. “Play Me, I’m Yours was a dream come true for me: playing piano on the streets of New York in just about every location imaginable,” wrote Santra on the Play Me I’m Yours website.

The street pianos will return on Saturday, June 18th, for another two-week run. When ATZ visited Sing for Hope’s website in May, we liked the idea that one could reserve a date for a “Pop-Up Concert” at any of the locations. That option is not currently available, though on the Coney Island Piano’s page, someone has scheduled a concert for June 18 at 1:30 pm. “Sarah LeMieux will sing jazz and blues standards and originals! Visit her on MySpace and ReverbNation.” She’s going to be playing to a packed house–it’s just before the Mermaid Parade gets underway!

This year’s project is called “Sing for Hope’s Pop Up Pianos” instead of “Play Me I’m Yours!” because the arts organization has taken the artist’s original concept and made it its own. A story in today’s NY Times City Room describes “discordant notes” between the artist who originated the project and Sing for Hope, which led to a parting of the ways…

The artist, Luke Jerram, said his idea of putting a batch of pianos outdoors and letting anyone play them had spread to more than 20 cities. But he said the arts group that oversaw last year’s installation in New York — and is overseeing this year’s — had told him, “We don’t want you to come.”

We’re baffled and dismayed. But don’t let it keep you from playing the piano in Coney Island or anywhere else in New York. Somebody should bang out “Who Stole My Blue Suede Shoes” and dedicate it to Luke Jerram.

HBO’s Bored to Death Brings Susquehanna Hat Co. to Coney Island

Posted in film, Photography, tagged Abbott & Costello, Bagel Street, Bored to Death, Coney Island, Coney Island Beach Shop, Susquehanna Hat Company on June 6, 2011| 6 Comments »

HBO's 'Bored to Death'Moved the Susquehanna Hat Co. on Bagel Street into Coney Island's Oldest Building for Film Shoot. June 6, 2011. Photo © Charles Denson/ConeyIsland History Project

If you’ve ever seen Abbott & Costello’s Bagel Street routine about the Susquehanna Hat Company, you’ll do a double take when you pass by Surf Avenue and Jones Walk in Coney Island. The Jones Walk sign now says Bagel Street and The Susquehanna Hat Company–“Coney Island’s Greatest Hat Supplier”–occupies Coney Island’s oldest building, Thor Equities’ long-vacant Grashorn Building. The signage on the shop makes it look like it’s been there forever. But it’s a set for the HBO series “Bored to Death,” which is filming in Coney Island this week.

If the T-shirts and souvenirs in the window and inside the store look familiar, that’s because the props manager bought everything locally at Coney Island Beach Shop located behind Nathan’s. If you see anything you like at the Susquehanna Hat Company, you can buy it at the Beach Shop, which still has plenty of merchandise in their store as well as online.

The last time ATZ wrote about Coney Island’s oldest building, it had been rescued by Will Smith and “Men in Black 3,” who were filming in Coney Island in May. The MIB3 production crew fixed up the gutted interior of the building located at Surf and Jones Walk to use as their location headquarters. Now the spiffed up building and its interior are actually part of the story.

“Bored to Death” is an HBO comedy series featuring a Brooklyn writer who moonlights as a private detective. In this episode he is sent to investigate something funny that’s going on at the Susquehanna Hat Company. More than that we cannot say! Though it will be interesting to see how the script plays off the Abbott & Costello skit from “In Society” (1944). Will it solve the mystery of why everybody they meet flies into a rage upon hearing the name of the Susquehanna Hat Company?

Thanks very much to Charles Denson of the Coney Island History Project, who has been photographing the Grashorn building for decades, and we hope many more decades, for sending us these on location photos.

Susquehanna Hat Co. on Bagel Street Has Moved into the Grashorn Building, Coney Island's Oldest for Film Shoot. June 6, 2011. Photo © Charles Denson/ConeyIsland History Project

Vidbel Circus Coming to Coney Island in One-Year Deal

Posted in circus, tagged Central Amusement International, Coney Island, Coney Island 2011, Vidbel Circus, Zamperla on June 3, 2011| 1 Comment »

Since Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Circus bowed out of Coney Island after two seasons, ATZ has been hearing that efforts were underway to bring another circus to Coney this summer. Names of a few circuses were mentioned, but didn’t pan out. This morning, the following press release from Robert W Connor Marketing landed in our inbox. Though we don’t usually post press releases, this is very good news for Coney Island’s amusement area and we’re happy to share it with our readers…

Bob Connor announced today that he has booked the Vidbel Circus into Coney Island this summer from July 4 thru Labor Day. This will be the first summer of ~~a multi year deal~~. So the people of New York City will have a circus at Coney Island this summer and many years to come. The circus will be centrally located in Coney Island–Connor says–“If you walk out the front door of the subway station at Coney Island–cross Surf Ave. heading straight for the boardwalk and the beach–~~Nathans will be on your right and just past that will be the circus.~~ It is a perfect location.”

We’ll update this post as more details become available..

Update, June 3rd, 11:30 am…

The location mentioned in the booking agent’s press release, which is Thor-owned land currently occupied by the BK Festival, is incorrect. The circus is actually coming to City-owned Parcel C, the empty lot across from the Scream Zone (Parcel B). It is also not a multi-year deal, as claimed in the release. ATZ has confirmed with Valerio Ferrari, CEO of Zamperla’s Central Amusement International, the operators of Luna Park and Scream Zone, that they are bringing in the circus for a one-year deal. Also, Ferrari says the deal is not signed yet.

Update, July 10…

Photo Album: Vidbel Old Tyme Circus Opens in Coney Island
Shows are Tuesday through Fri, 6 & 8pm; Saturday, 4, 6 & 8pm; and Sun, 3 & 6pm. Tickets are available one hour before showtime and cost $10. At the show we attended, children 5 and under were admitted free of charge.

Update, July 17…

Catch the show this weekend! The circus will be here only through Sunday, July 17th and then will be hitting the road again. Discounted tickets are now available online
http://coneyisland.eventbrite.com/