then there’s the vintage arcade game, Tic
Tac Strike, which Higgins and Spellman
found on eBay. Ironically, the only one
they found was located in Asbury Park.
The bar’s main attractions, however, are
three spray-painted murals, which were
done by Brooklyn muralist Danielle Mastrion.
Higgins met her through a mutual
friend, who knew that Higgins was looking
for a muralist and that Mastrion excelled
at carnival-themed artwork. Mastrion lives
in Sheepshead Bay and grew up in Coney
22 FEBRUARY 2 0 1 8
Island, so she was perfect for the gig. The
biggest of her three murals is located
along the bar’s back wall and depicts a
Madam Marie-like figure holding a crystal
ball up to her eye, which is magnified
through the glass.
For inspiration, Mastrion was given
a folder of reference images — “a mood
folder!” she laughed — filled with photographs
like Springsteen playing at the
Stone Pony, vintage carnival signs and
people on the boardwalk. She described
herself as a kid in a candy shop looking
through the lookbook.
“I never had a client do my homework for
me,” Mastrion said. “I really feel like we all
really collaborated and worked together to
make the vision they had come to life.”
Higgins is happy with the results, too.
“I'm glad we got her because she did a
fantastic job,” he said of Mastrion.
In addition to painting the walls, Mastrion
also helped Higgins and Spellman find the
soon-to-be-famous Tillie Face light, which
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