Amusing the Zillion

Photo of the Day: Hello Kitty and Honey Bear at Nathan’s Famous

February 18, 2015 by Tricia

Hello Kitty and Honey Bear at Nathan’s Famous in Coney Island, August 30, 2014. Photo © Tricia Vita

Nothing beats taking a break from trudging though the snow and cleaning up after burst water pipes like dawdling over photos from the last days of summer. Today’s fave was taken on the last Saturday of August of a couple enjoying a bite to eat at Nathan’s at dusk after a day at the beach and amusement parks. It was their parked prizes, Hello Kitty and Honey Bear, that caught our eye on the way to the station. Hello summer, goodbye winter can’t come soon enough.

February 17: Grucci Fireworks Spectacular on Hudson River for Chinese New Year

February 16, 2015 by Tricia

Photo courtesy of Fireworks by Grucci

2016 Update: Looking for info on the February 2016 Grucci Fireworks show for the Lunar New Year? The fireworks are set for Saturday, February 6 at 8:30pm. Best viewing spots are along the Hudson River near the Circle Line on the NYC side or across the river on the New Jersey side. Download the “Fireworks by Grucci” app on your iPhone or Android and to hear music by Chinese composer Tan Dun that perfectly synchronize with the live fireworks.

On Tuesday, February 17th, there will be a three-barge Grucci Fireworks spectacular on the Hudson River in celebration of the Chinese New Year. The 20-minute show off Pier 84 (West 44th Street) is scheduled to start between 7:30-8:00pm, weather permitting. The rain/snow date is February 18. According to the event’s organizer, the China Central Academy of Fine Arts, this is the first time in U.S. history that a large-scale fireworks show will celebrate the Lunar New Year and it will nearly equal the iconic Macy’s Independence Day Fireworks Spectacular in scope.

“We have joined creative minds and talented teams to really accentuate this remarkable event,” says Phil Grucci, whose pyrotechnicians have choreographed the fireworks to Chinese and Western music recorded by the China National Symphony Orchestra.

Tuesday’s fireworks will launch “Happy Chinese New Year: Fantastic Art China,” a series of concerts, art exhibits and community events through February at the New York Philharmonic, Avery Fisher Hall, and the New-York Historical Society, as well as the Lunar New Year lighting of the Empire State Building from February 17-19.

UPDATE February 19, 2015:

Check out Jim Levine’s gorgeous photos and video of the fireworks here.

Grucci Fireworks Spectacular on Hudson River for Chinese New Year 2015

Grucci Fireworks Spectacular on Hudson River for Chinese New Year, February 17, 2015. Photo © Jim Levine

Coney Island Bumble Bee Ride Rebuilt, Set to Go on Road with Canadian Carnival

February 15, 2015 by Tricia

Bumble Bees and Herschell Carousel at McCullough’s Kiddie Park, Coney Island, September 3, 2012. Photo © Tricia Vita

Remember Coney Island’s Bumble Bees? The popular kiddie ride in McCullough’s Kiddie Park left its spot on the Bowery when the family closed their park in 2012 after being unable to extend the lease. In April, the Bees will once again be awhirl after finding a wonderful new home in Canada.

ATZ learned the good news from the ride’s new owner, Jim Mills, who operates Select Shows, a traveling carnival based in Manitoba. “This past fall I purchased the Bumble Bee ride from McCullough’s Park in Coney Island,” Mills told ATZ. “During the past winter it has been totally rebuilt and going to hit the road this spring on my show.”

Coney Island Bumblebee under Restoration. Photo © Select Shows, Manitoba

Mills, whose family-run carnival operates from mid-April through the end of September in Manitoba and Ontario, sent us photos of the rehab. “There is a picture of the beginning of the make over and the rest are showing the painting of the last two as well as the new sweeps, all new hydraulics, electrical and complete body work, which alone for the Bees is about 400 man hours. We have put approximately $30,000 into this project so far,” says Mills, who promises to send more photos once the redo is completed and the ride is set up. He has put up a page on the show’s website about the history of the ride, which survived Hurricane Sandy. SO happy to see the Bees lovingly restored and ready to begin their new life on the road!

The McCullough family operated amusements in Coney Island for four generations and their kiddie park had been on 12th Street and the Bowery since the 1960s. The often-photographed Bumble Bee ride was emblematic of Coney Island and frequently photographed with the Wonder Wheel or Parachute Jump in the background. When Astroland closed in 2008, some photographers’ captions said it was the end of the Bees because they did not realize the ride was part of a different park.

On Flickr we posted: Please note the Bumblebee ride on the Bowery and the kiddie rides surrounding it are NOT part of Astroland. McCullough’s Kiddie Park has 12 kiddie rides and is open for the 2009 season. The McCullough family is related to the Tilyous and have owned and operated rides in Coney Island for many years and we hope many years to come!

Fun Facts about the Bumble Bees:

The ride’s trademark name Bumble Bee Bop was first used in 2001. This aerial kiddie carousel was designed and manufactured by Sellner, the inventor of the Tilt-A-Whirl.

McCullough’s Bumble Bee ride inspired Galloping Boy Designs T-shirt of an adventurous tabby seeing the sights of Coney Island from the back of a bumble bee. The Bees can also be glimpsed in numerous films and music videos shot in Coney.

Artist Chris DAZE Ellis, who painted a mural adjacent to McCullough’s Kiddie Park for the Dreamland Artist Club in 2004, pays tribute to the Bumble Bees in his painting Kiddyland Spirits. The 1995 painting is among his works currently on view in the touring exhibit Coney Island: Visions of an American Dreamland at the Wadsworth Atheneum.